rain

to live free · #1 06/15/05, 08:01 AM

how are all the maine homesteaders fairing with all the rain?

mpillow · #2 06/15/05, 08:09 AM

It went from 92 on Monday afternoon to 54 yesterday....and rain...we had just enough sun to dry out the soil, till and plant and mow the lawn....I cant put the chickens out on the lawn or the goats....the feed bill is high!

Not to mention my children are stir crazy

I'm going to make a fire in the woodstove because the house is chilly and I need to dry some laundry.....

We may never be able to get to Lexington....not dry enough to load the portable barn....

On the other hand our grden sprouted quickly....hopefully it wont rot! And the berries and apples should be good sized...thanks to all this rain. And I havent had to haul water to the barn....buckets under the overhang are all full!

mamajohnson · #3 06/15/05, 09:35 AM

I guess ya'll can send all those rain clouds down here. We haven't had any rain on our farm since the last week of May. Very unusual for here.... There have been scattered showers around, but didnt get us. It even thundered a lot the other night, but not even enough rain to keep the dust down on the road...
I am a little envious of you right now!! Our garden is dying, even with our vain attempts to keep it watered (read- drive to creek, pump water, drive to garden, pump water and back again) yep, rain would be nice right about now....

mpillow · #4 06/15/05, 10:18 AM

I'd love to share...or we could trade rain for warmth....about 15 degrees would be perfect with no humidity.

My wood fire feels good!

to live free · #5 06/16/05, 12:56 AM

i always enjoy reading your comments mpillow :haha:

you know we could put some rain water in sandwich baggies and sell them on ebay

Alex · #6 06/16/05, 01:49 AM

Same up here in northern BC: it was 80F week before last, and now it's 60F in the day and 42F at night, had the stove going on low-low for a week -- weird.

There was the rainbow today on the just planted, in the heat, oat-hay field:

rain - Homesteading Questions

Double Rainbow Today, After I thought It Was Starting to Dry Out, and was Going to Re-caulk the Deck Seams.

Nice day though.

Still wet and cool.

Good Luck to us all,

Alex

mpillow · #7 06/16/05, 07:29 AM

That's a pretty sight Alex!

Guess what!!....its gonna rain all week...no sun until "sun"day.

I'm apt to have natural selection on my farm....amphibious goats!

Pythia · #8 06/18/05, 02:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by to live free

how are all the maine homesteaders fairing with all the rain?

I think I should confess to being the cause of all this rain.

After several years of hounding my husband to buy me one, I decided to do it myself. I am now the ever-so-proud owner of a snazzy rain barrel. It even has a nice brass spigot.

I prayed and danced for all the Gods who would listen for rain, so that I could see my big blue gem in action. And now it's been raining almost non-stop for a week.

Be careful what you ask for.

wr · #9 06/18/05, 06:23 PM

pythia, you might want to slow down your rain dance just a bit. Over here in Alberta, we are in a state of crisis with no real end in sight. Entire towns are flooded, roads are destroyed, rivers are exceeding their banks and no end in sight. I guess if nothing else, the two weeks of heavy rain has done wonders for the water tables and there should be whining about drought anytime soon

to live free · #10 06/18/05, 08:48 PM

i saw sun in the forcast for dover-foxcroft maine
shhh don't say it too loud though you'll scare the sun away

Tracy Rimmer · #11 06/18/05, 09:42 PM

Hey, wr -- did you hear that Priddis was under mandatory evacuation today? Nice Father's Day present for all the poor guys who live there. High River is... well, I suppose it's aptly named -- perhaps "Under River" would be a better one!

I haven't seen this much rain in about FOREVER... everything sure is green, though!

Tracy

MaineFarmMom · #12 06/19/05, 05:51 AM

I needed rain here. It didn't rain this past week until Thursday. It rained hard for less than an hour. We had a mist but not heavy enough to moisten the soil more than a quarter inch down. It was 92° Monday, 80something and sunny Tuesday, but got cold Wednesday when it was 45° at 10 a.m. It's been in the 50s and misting since then. The forecast I get online and what really happens has been two different things. When it shows rain it usually doesn't show more than a 40% chance and we've seldom gotten it. My rain guage has measured only an inch so far this month. It was sunny at 5 a.m. but the clouds are back until this afternoon.

We're picking from the gardens now. There should be peas ready by July 4.

mpillow · #13 06/19/05, 08:40 AM

It has rained every single day here since God knows when....over 5 inches just this last week! But we also get more snow in the winter....our area must have just the right conditions for clouds to empty :no: I havent carried water in a long time. Just put the buckets under the drip edge! I really don't think the bees even had a chance to pollinate our apple trees

I do see blue sky for now

to live free · #14 06/21/05, 07:15 AM

Mainefarmmom wow thats great veggies already. i can not wait to get started i got my first issue of countryside mag. yesterday wow this is even better then mother earth news, so much info it's crazy.
mfm have you ever herd of babydoll sheep?

Mpillow where is maine did you say you lived. Mainefarmmom hasn't got much rain. weather is so crazy. rain on this side of the river and drought on the other.

for the both of you was it really hard to get lic. for the things that you do.
also it has been a few years since i'v been to maine more then a week, how are things, and what about this gov. baldacci do you like him?
has either of you been affected by the trade agrement with cuba?

mpillow · #15 06/21/05, 07:56 AM

We are East of Waterville about 10m.

I have no licenses, no sign and take no deductions on my farming....mine is a hobby and a homeschooling aide so my kids feel connected and capable of growing their own food. Extended family and friends and neighbors benefit as well but it is all barter system (a loop hole).

I keep my investments minimal and get maximum enjoyment! We try to keep things as natural as possible but also use effective chemicals to protect our investment. My goats get vaccines and chemical wormers because the herbal stuff wasn't working...a couple dead goats proved it to me.

We have lettuce that is ready and rhubarb and the wild strawberries are phenomenal this year. Fiddleheading was also good. We planted more apple trees this year and raspberries and blackberries, strawberries and asparagus....not in great quantity but enough for our family circle!

I saw a guy on Bill Green's Maine Outdoor show that makes a living collecting wild edibles! I'm thinking of seeing if he will do a class for a reasonable charge! Some of the mushrooms he got go for $100 a pound....and I know I have some right on my property! As well as other species....

Here's a link...click on Bill Green...www.wlbz2.com

to live free · #16 06/21/05, 08:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mpillow

We are East of Waterville about 10m.

I have no licenses, no sign and take no deductions on my farming....mine is a hobby and a homeschooling aide so my kids feel connected and capable of growing their own food. Extended family and friends and neighbors benefit as well but it is all barter system (a loop hole).

I keep my investments minimal and get maximum enjoyment! We try to keep things as natural as possible but also use effective chemicals to protect our investment. My goats get vaccines and chemical wormers because the herbal stuff wasn't working...a couple dead goats proved it to me.

We have lettuce that is ready and rhubarb and the wild strawberries are phenomenal this year. Fiddleheading was also good. We planted more apple trees this year and raspberries and blackberries, strawberries and asparagus....not in great quantity but enough for our family circle!

I saw a guy on Bill Green's Maine Outdoor show that makes a living collecting wild edibles! I'm thinking of seeing if he will do a class for a reasonable charge! Some of the mushrooms he got go for $100 a pound....and I know I have some right on my property! As well as other species....

Here's a link...click on Bill Green...www.wlbz2.com

hey thanks, then what is your source of income if you don't mind me asking.
then your not to far from dover-foxcroft like what maybe an hour or less right?

mpillow · #17 06/21/05, 02:09 PM

My husband works at a supply house...plumbing,heating and electrical...he is a master oil burner and jorneyman plumber....40 hrs a week...then he cuts firewood with/for friends and family in Stratton.

I was working for the school as an ed tech but was threatened by Jeffery Dahlmer's reincarnation and the school made light of it and I told them to find someone else to be stalked and threatened...I got one family and one life to live and that's what I'm doing. Now I'm pinching pennies and homesteading on a very small scale. Growing meat and veggies and hanging laundry.

We dont live large and never had a debt problem so we manage better than folks making 3-4 times what my husband makes. And just today while I had the goats out to eat I brought my book, my blanket and my 4 yo and we had a nap while the goats ate...woke up to kitty purring in my ear.....its a tough life sometimes :haha:

I dont plan on going to work unless its something I'm interested in doing....sometimes I watch my neighbors foster kids for the weekend and watch her animals (at her house) and make a little extra cash but I only do it as a favor to her because we have been friends for a long time. Other foster families want me to help them but its uncomfortable unless you really know the family and have a lot of trust with them.

Yes DF is about an hour away...less when I get to Lexington. I used to spend alot of time at Moosehead as a kid....we went thru DF almost every weekend.
We will eventually live in Lexington. My parents house is too big for them!

to live free · #18 06/22/05, 01:06 AM

so when you move to lexington will you still homestead if you can. so are you going to sell your house? what about the trees you just planted? did you get those trees from FEDCO or some where else?
i can't wait to get started on my stead, i mean really i've waited long enough. i thought about doing this in 99 but i thought i was crazy never even herd of this way of life, then i started to talking with others and they thought i was crazy. but low and behold people do do it and make a living, but the biggest thing is the experience of a lifetime and being happy.

on a side note one more reason the feds p"ss me off. i went to transfer money from my savings to my wifes checking and i get a message from the bank online stating that your allowed to transfer online only six times in a calender month.

who the hell are they to tell me how many times i can transfer my own darn money ahhhhh. i hate em

mpillow · #19 06/22/05, 08:29 AM

Trees were planted along with rasp, strawberries etc in Lexington. We have 5 mature apple trees here in China but the need to be recovered...we havent sprayed just pruned in 15 years. Mostly the goats eat them but occasionally I find a good one and eat it. We grow some "wicked" tomato trees in China in the garden.

Yes someday our home here will be sold....probably some out of stater will find it and snap it up because we are 1/2 m from China Lake beach and public launch and close enough to cities for commuting. My barn is big enough for a couple horses and 120 bales of hay. We also have trails to get to the store/library/beach thru 400acre wood behind us. The land is tied up in a family trust in Mass. so for now it is very private and convenient...they pay the taxes and we enjoy their property. We have between 5 and 7 acres. Their is also one of the highest deer concentrations in our area so the hunting is good.

Not sure what bank you belong to but most people I know use credit unions around here. Gardiner Savings(they invest in local economy) is a good local bank around here but not sure whats available in DF. My parents are using Kingfield CU but not sure if they are up in that direction.

As far as your plan goes....from my own experience....your biggest "nest egg" will be the equity you build thru homes.barns,cabins and land improvement(ponds, trees). I wouldnt count on finding much for full time work up there and a part time job may only get you $10k a year if you are lucky. I would suspect that any and all funds from your homestead will have to be reinvested for 5 years to fully develop. And in order to maximize the budget you'll have to learn to do with what you have....or what you can get free or cheap. For example, we get a deer every year which we have butchered into mostly hamburg because we can grow a ton of tomatoes....with tomatoes and hamburg you have the basics for spaghetti, chili, hamburg stew. We dont eat expensive cuts of meat or eat out and we eat spaghetti or chili alot. Like a batch a week. One batch is lunch and dinner for 3 days. Potatoes are cheap to by in the Fall and so we buy 200# and eat lots of mashed potatoes, potato salad with egg(which we will have our own eggs in Oct.). Our broilers will be butchered soon so we will have roast of chix all year after the batch of chili or spaghetti is gone.

And actually I need to get a pig or calf soon because I'm floating in goats milk. We don't need the meat so I will sell the fattened critter alive to avoid the laws surrounding processing. Its actually cheaper for us to buy a calf then to get a hunting license and get picked in the moose lottery ($20 license, $6 lottery fee, $45 tag fee) not to mention all the gas driving around to find one to shoot.

Just a few thoughts....on another rainy day....yesterday was beautiful.