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Farm Products

Cut Flowers

Pastured Eggs

Duck Eggs

Pastured Poultry

Pastured Pork

Grass Fed Beef

Thanksgiving Turkeys

Meat CSA

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It never really ends. 😜 Who else spends January It never really ends. 😜 Who else spends January ordering seeds, organizing seeds, starting seeds, making garden plans? 🙋🏻‍♀️

Winter is quite possibly my favorite gardening season. The beds are resting and I’m thinking over the successes of the last growing season and considering ways to improve the “non-successes”. 

I’m gearing up for another season of food-growing and everything feels fresh and promising. What will this year bring? What shall I grow this year?

I’ve really come to love this garden-planning, seed-starting season! 

PS: if you could use some tips and encouragement for planning your 2023 garden, stay tuned. Something special is coming soon!

And if you have questions about starting a garden or starting your own seeds, drop them below! I’ll do my best to answer. 

#gardeningtips #zone7a #zone7gardening #organicgardening #beyondorganic #permaculturegarden #veggiegardening #growingfood #growwhatyoueat #eatwhatyougrow #homesteadmama #homesteadgardening #seedstarting #gardenplanning
It’s that time of year! Here are the seeds I sta It’s that time of year! Here are the seeds I start first, indoors:
Onions - already started ✔️
Celery - already started ✔️
Parsley - already started ✔️
Broccoli - coming soon 

After that will come direct seeding outdoors:
Radish
Carrots 
Spinach 
Chard
Kale
Lettuce
Beets

For reference, I’m in zone 7A, in northern Virginia.

What seeds are you starting? Will you start seeds indoors, outdoors, or both?

 
#seedstarting #startingseeds #soilblocks #soilblocking #heirloomseeds #openpollinated #growingfood #growyourownfood #growwhatyoueat #eatwhatyougrow #veggiegardening #beyondorganic #permaculture #permaculturedesign #permaculturegarden
Homesteaders wear all the hats, all the time. And Homesteaders wear all the hats, all the time. And we wouldn’t have it any other way! 

It’s a challenge to balance all the things (garden, animals, cooking, processing, homeschooling, enterprises, etc.) with the inevitable demands of modern life (for example, my husband has a demanding day job and my boys are involved in several activities like music lessons, church youth group, and 4H) but this way of life carries so many rewards. 

It’s a lot of work, yes, but it’s good work. Together work. Life-giving work. The kind of work that feeds the soul. 

I’m proud to be a hardworking homesteader, by day and by night! How about you? 

#homesteader #homesteadlife #homesteading #homesteadliving #homesteadinglife #homesteadmama #homesteadfamily #canningandpreserving #preservingfood #homegrownfood #growingfood
Let’s keep food out of the landfill! Who’s wi Let’s keep food out of the landfill!  Who’s with me??

The average US household wastes 32% of its food. 
Wasted food makes up 24% of US landfills. 
Guess who likes to eat household waste? 
PIGS!  And chickens. 

Idea: Keep a bucket in or near the kitchen to collect food scraps.  Donate your scraps to a local farm to feed their animals. 

At our farm, we’ll give you an empty bucket and a lid.  Simply take it home, fill it up, then return it for an empty one, and repeat. 

Pigs will eat almost anything, including meat, bones, egg shells, spoiled foods, veggies, fruits, liquids, and more. 

A few things to avoid (although in our experience, the pigs simply avoid/eat around these foods): 
citrus peels
avocados
tea bags
coffee grounds
raw potatoes

We’re happy to compost these items if they arrive separately. (This is why we keep two compost pails on our kitchen counter, for those who’ve noticed in my videos.  One for the pigs and one for the compost pile.) 

What do you think: would you adopt this habit in order to save food from the landfill (and make a farmer and his pigs happy)? 

📷: @beckiekirker 

#pasturedpork #heritagepork #mulefootpigs #reducereuserecycle #zerofoodwaste #localfarmers #localfarm #loudouncountyva #loudounfarms #leesburgva #recyclefoodwaste #recyclefood
It’s true: winter carrots taste better. There’ It’s true: winter carrots taste better. There’s something about freezing temperatures that bring out their natural sweetness. 

Have you tried storing your fall carrots in the ground? 

#wintercarrots #fallcarrots #fallgardening #growingcarrots #homegrownveggies #kitchengarden #raisedbedgardening 

Audio credit: @joel_salatin @polyfacefarm Folks, This Ain’t Normal - highly recommend!
Just because it’s hard doesn’t mean you’re d Just because it’s hard doesn’t mean you’re doing it wrong. Easy isn’t necessarily the goal. 

Most people these days seem to be allergic to “hard”. But in my experience, hard often leads to great. 

Most goals worth achieving require hard work. So many people bail out before hard turns into great. Don’t be most people! 

Hang in there, roll up your sleeves, and do the work. It will pay off in the end.

Invest in your marriage. 
Invest in relationships with your kids. 
Invest in friendships. 
Invest in developing the skills and dreams God has placed on your heart.

Do the work. 
Be faithful, be patient. 
And get ready to enjoy the rewards!

What’s something you’re currently investing in that feels hard but will be worth it in the end?

#homesteading #homesteadliving #homesteadinglife  #homesteadingfamily #hardworking #reapwhatyousow
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