Putting Rock Veneer on Hearth

This was loads of work involving about 1500lbs of rock and 500lbs of mortar. Not to mention that finding a rock for each space required lifting many rocks to find the right fit. We're thrilled with the result... just hope the foundation is up for it.

Spring 2009

Spring is here on Silver Creek!

Since a picture is worth a thousand words, and I'm no author...

Columbine

Slabbing some fallen pines

The new wood shed

Beef Steak is shy

First Ruby Throated Hummer of the Year (female)

We've got a pair of Pileated also but they are incredibly camera shy.

Anyone know what this is? It's all over the pasture.

Camping trip to Curtis Creek

Whippoorville Farms carries Silver Creek Family Farm Eggs!

You can now order

Silver Creek Family Farm Eggs through Whipporville Farms.

Place your order at: http://www.whippoorvillefarms.com/

While you are there check out Whippoorville's outstanding organic seasonal produce selections!

Pick up your order between 10am-12pm or 2pm-5pm in the Union Plaza building (Lower Level - Suite 101) in downtown Hickory.

Orders received by Tuesday (2:00 pm) will be available on Wednesday
Orders received after Tuesday (2:00 pm) will be available on Friday

Whippoorville Farms is a small organic produce farm located in Hickory, North Carolina. Whippoorville encompasses 22 acres in the Mountain View area. Whippoorville utilizes two small garden plots that, combined, total approximately one half acre. They have also started a small fruit orchard which has Thompson and Concord grapes that were rooted from the family's 50 year old vines. Whippoorville has been growing produce since 2000 and have been selling at local Farmer's Markets and on the web since 2007."

Woodstove Install- efficient cozy inexpensive heat.

"Wood warms you twice. Once when you cut it and once when you burn it."

The wood stove is in - just in time for the cold weather.

The hearth begins

The pipe install (inside)

The pipe install (outside)

Ready for fire

The pipe kits came from lowes. The stove is a Fisher Baby Bear. It's air tight and circa 1975 (craig's list is an amazing thing). The entire project cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $400. That is roughly equivalent to a quarter of a tank of propane.

Pig Pickin for Heifer

The First Annual Pig Pickin' for Heifer!

Thanks to everyone who came and for the donations to Heifer International!

The cook

The Guest of Honor

So much food!

Some Pickers

Katie and Nate

Brandon and Nate

I just wish I had taken more pictures. If you attended and have any pictures to share, please send.

A Taste of Costa Rica

We spent 10 days in Costa Rica. These are just a few highlights.

Coffee Plantation

I guess that's why they call it a rainforest.

La Paz Waterfall

Golfito

Zancudo Town (Spanish for Mosquito... no kidding)

Beans and rice with breakfast in Zancudo

Beautiful beach in Zancudo

Into the Jungle

Howler Monkey (Eat your heart out Sam)

Morpho on Cocoa tree

Out of the jungle and back onto the beach

A dry place to sit

Flight back to San Jose

Canopy zipline tour

New Friends

Brandon (5) and Nate (2) are staying with us for a while.

We are having a great time learning from each other on the farm.

Brandon was up at 5:00 am for his first day of Kindergarten.

Nate and Brandon both love to be outdoors.

Nate is very fond of spaghetti.

Brandon's favorite is cereal.

Minimizing the Heat of Summer Sun

Shade

Matthew built these great overhangs for our south-facing windows. They do a great job of shading the windows in summer and controlling the heat, especially upstairs. Also, they shouldn't block much of the winter sun that comes in at a lower angle and is beneficial at that time of year.

Help

Thanks for all the suggestions and comments,

It looks like the winner is Button.

Say Hello to Button!

Button eats poison ivy! Hurray for Button!

On the flip side, Button rolls in poison ivy.

Conclusion...Pet Button with Caution. :-)

Rain Barrel

Now that's a rain barrel!

275 gallons of rain saving splendor... now all we need is some rain!

More details were requested. We obtained what is refered to in industry as a tote from a local ink factory. It once contained acrylic ink so after thorough rinsing it is fine for water for the garden. We were put on the track of this beauty by a local pig farmer who has half a dozen put to as many uses.

Chicken Coup

The New Chicken Coop is Complete
06/23/08

I am really proud of our new chicken coop. We finished it up this weekend. Now the chickens are outside where they belong and have plenty of space and fresh air.

Plenty of roosting sites

Gang-plank door gives free access to gather bugs during the day and security at night

The coop is built from 2x2's that we ripped on the table saw from 2x24's that were milled in Waxhaw from the dead yellow pine that Matthew cut down in our yard in Charlotte last winter.

At the mill

Pigs

Say "Hello" to Bar and B-Que our two new pigs.

5/12/08

We picked up the pigs about a week ago and installed them in the pallet corral / future garden. In the last couple of days they have started to eat like pigs. We can hardly keep the trough full. We feed them 16% protein pellets- the same than the adult ducks and chickens get- and they are happily digging up worms and roots.

They haven't shown much interest in vegetable scraps but they did like the watermellon rind I tossed them last night. No 'oinking' yet. They bark like dogs!

1 Month Later 6/23/08

One month later Bar and B-Que have rooted out the future garden and are loving the muddy hole they have left behind. I know the mud is healthy for them... but ugh!