February on the Farm
The groundhog did not see his shadow this year, and it seems like spring is indeed just around the corner! It’s time for the February farm update to keep you all apprised of what’s happening at Heritage Springs with the warmer weather.
The vet came out last week and checked our mini nubian does who are expecting. All of our little mamas got an ultrasound, hoof trim, parasite check, updated vaccines, and an evaluation of their body condition. Kidding season will start at Heritage Springs in March! Expect a ton of pictures on our social media pages because what is cuter than baby goats?
Sweet Pea getting her ultrasound
To prepare for kidding season, Neil is in the final stages of constructing the goat shed. This weekend he painted the floors with waterproof sealant and set up the camera system. All that is left to do is put in the stalls, install solar panels, and hang the lights. When it is finished, the goat shed will have private stalls for our does to nurture their babies as well as an area for the herd to use as a run-in shelter. There will also be a place to store food, minerals, treats, and medical supplies. The part of the barn where the goats live now will be converted into a milking parlor complete with stanchions, milk refrigerator, and all the things needed to maintain sanitary conditions.
The goat shed floor is sealed!
Another super exciting update is that we have welcomed 3 female Maine Coon cats into our home! We have been in the process of selecting the most perfect Maine Coon cats we can find for months, and we are so happy with our cats! If you follow us on Facebook or Instagram you have probably seen photos of Chloe, Ember, and Calypso. In addition to being beautiful, they all have incredible temperaments. This is super important because Heritage Springs Cattery is the newest addition to our farm. I have taken a course on breeding Maine Coons and we are committed to ensuring we maintain the breed standard and further the breed through strict testing and adherence to responsible breeding practices. First and foremost our cats are part of our family and we take great pride in producing beautiful, healthy, and sweet kittens to become part of yours. We are hoping to welcome our first liter in early summer. Please reach out if you want to be added to the waiting list for kittens!
Ember is a black smoke Maine Coon
In other news, the winter houseplant glow-up is complete! When the repotting, leaf cleaning, and general maintenance was done I decided it was time to grow my collection a little bit. I added some rare alocasia, philodendron, and begonias that I’ve been trying to find for a while. I would love to highlight my favorites, but they’re pretty much all my favorites. If you’re interested in rare houseplants or houseplants in general check out my YouTube channel. It’s all plants all the time: Heritage Springs - YouTube.
Some of the alocasia additions
The latest plant passion project I’ve immersed myself in is plant tissue culture. Plant tissue culture is essentially the micropropagation of plants and I am officially fascinated. I have been spending all my free time learning everything I can about using plant stems, nodes, and sections of leaves to grow new plants in test tubes. I am in the process of setting up a sterile lab in my basement and I’m hoping to get my first experiments into culture soon! Spring is a super busy time on our farm, so I expect all progress to abruptly come to a halt sometime in the next couple of weeks only to resume around November. That said, I will keep you all updated via Heritage Springs - YouTube , Facebook , and Instagram.
Another exciting tid-bit is that I am partnering with Landon Farm LLC in Sperryville, VA to teach some classes this spring! I will be teaching Kombucha 101 and Fire Cider 101. In these classes you will learn everything you need to know about how and why to brew these homestead staples yourself! Keep an eye out on , Facebook and Instagram for details on how to sign up!
A jar of kombucha brewing
I have been preparing for the kombucha class by producing the cutest SCOBYs possible. My personal SCOBYs are giant, floppy, gelatinous masses that can appear somewhat grotesque to the untrained eye. I decided to work on the presentation a little bit and have been making adorable little SCOBYs in quart sized mason jars. These are small, pert, gelatinous masses that look like they’ve dedicated their lives to cycling and eating kale. They will be packaged in 16 ounces of kombucha starter tea and be given to students as part of a complete kombucha kit in class. If you have questions about the class or you want to buy a kombucha kit separate from the class, please feel free to send me an email or a facebook message.
It's almost honeybee season! Here in Northern Virginia, there have been several days this month that it has been warm enough to feed our bees. During the winter when the temperature reaches at least 60 degrees we feed them. They get honeycomb left over from the honey harvest and sugar syrup fortified with a special blend of essential oils designed to boost their immune systems. This just gives them an extra boost to help them get through the winter.
A frame of honeybees and brood with honey on the edges
We plan to grow our apiary this year significantly by splitting our hives and buying nucs from local beekeepers. “Nucs” is beekeeper speak to refer to a nucleus of bees that typically have been overwintered at least once. Usually, nucs are boxes containing 5 frames of bees, brood, honey, pollen, and most importantly a queen bee that is already laying eggs. We are going to start preparations soon- we will paint hive bodies, build frames, and check over all of our bee keeping equipment to ensure everything is ready to go.
There truly is no better way to spend a spring morning than to be out in the bee yard. The smell of the smoker is reminiscent of a campfire which is complimented by the sweet scent of honey. The bees are content because the spring nectar flow is on and resources are plentiful. They make happy buzzing sounds as they fly back and forth with their legs loaded with pollen. The sunlight shines through the trees overhead and light up the frames as I look for signs of progress: eggs, pollen, nectar, and always vigilant to catch a glimpse of the queen. Beekeeping is one of my favorite things we do here on the farm and I am so excited for this season!
Olivia (left) and Victoria (right) walking back from the apiary
This weekend we will spread compost and plant our cold- tolerant crops like beets and radishes. Once those are in the ground we will get our greenhouses up and start the tomato and pepper seedlings. The potato garden will be prepped so we can celebrate St. Patrick’s Day by planting potatoes. I am sure I’m forgetting some things, but we will be posting updates on all of our projects on social media. ,We would love to hear what your spring preparations look like! Drop us a comment and let us know what you are up to. You get an A+ if you send pictures!
View of the sunrise from the barn
