Pretty peonies

Posted on June 25, 2014 by Julia at Home on 129 Acres

We’re fortunate that we have numerous peony plants growing around the property.

I’ve moved a few into the gardens that I’ve reclaimed, but most are still out in the undomesticated wilderness.

They’re all different shades and are a beautiful splash of colour.

I never pick a bouquet of peonies because I’m cautious about ants, but it would be nice to have some the beauty inside as well as out. Am I worrying unnecessarily?

Who else is a peony fan? Do you have a favourite colour? Any tips for peony care?

Snapshot

Posted on June 13, 2014 by Julia at Home on 129 Acres

Rainy daisy.

Forsythia of ’14

Posted on May 19, 2014 by Julia at Home on 129 Acres

Two weeks later than last year, six weeks later than our first year, our forsythia is finally in bloom… if you can call it that.

I think the harsh winter gave our forsythia frost bite. We have just a handful of yellow blossoms on the very tip of a few branches.

Rather than going golden this year, I think our bushes are going to straight to green. Green is better than the dismal grey days we’ve had so far. I think spring is here.

Has spring arrived at your house? Have any of your plants been frost bit?

Trilliums!

Posted on May 16, 2014 by Julia at Home on 129 Acres

When we moved to the farm, I thought there must be trilliums somewhere on the property. After two springs, though, I still hadn’t seen any. Then, on Monday morning, I found them. In the small grove between the front field and the east field, alongside the creek, there are trilliums. Lots and lots of trilliums.

For those that don’t know, trilliums are Ontario’s official flower. There’s a common perception that you’re not allowed to pick trilliums in Ontario. But, according to Wikipedia, trilliums are only protected in conservation areas or provincial parks (and in some areas in the States). However, picking a trillium can kill the plant.

Trilliums tend to be a bit elusive. They hide away in the woods and aren’t seen very regularly, so I’m super excited that we have some on our property. I even spotted some Jack in the Pulpit, which I’ve never seen before.

Happy spring!

Project Replant

Posted on April 28, 2014 by Julia at Home on 129 Acres

You may remember that our trees took a bit of a beating during the Christmas ice storm. So you can imagine that I did a double take when driving home on Friday I heard the words, “Lowes is giving away free trees this Saturday” come out of my radio. Free trees? Even better, I didn’t hear any words like “conditions apply” or “minimum purchase required.”

I walked in the house said something like, “Free trees!” to Matt and then dashed to my computer to look up the details.

It was true! Lowes was giving away 2,000 trees. And one of the locations was our local store.

The giveaway was called Project Replant, and the idea was to “help rebuild some of the tree canopy lost in … the ice storm.”

The giveaway started at 9:30, but I wanted to be absolutely sure I got a tree, so I got to the store 45 minutes early. Twenty-six other keeners were already lined up in front of me. About a half hour later, Matt arrived and joined the end of the line. Yay, another much needed tree!

There were coffee and hot chocolate and donuts and great camaraderie amongst the people in the line. The Lowes staff kept the hot drinks flowing and walked the line chatting with people. When the trees were finally wheeled out, I thought that people were going to cheer. They were 1 gallon red maples, about 4-5 ft. tall, and normally cost $30 each. But Saturday they were free!

And Sunday they were in the ground.

Our poor willow beside the driveway took such a beating over the winter and a tree-lined driveway is one of my big wants, so one tree went there.

On the turnaround our big maple only lost a few branches, but it looks so fragile and old that I’m not sure how much longer it will last, so we decided we’d better get a new tree started sooner rather than later. (Especially since the new trees are so small. In the photo below, you can see the metal stake that we used to keep the tree straight better than the tree itself).

Small or not, the trees are so nice to have. Thank you, Lowes.

Did anyone else get anything free this weekend? Did you do any gardening? Any tips to help our trees get established and make sure they survive?

Crazy for a full moon

Posted on April 16, 2014 by Julia at Home on 129 Acres

I think we’ve established that we don’t have a fenced yard, and we’re still working on helping Baxter remember he has to come when called. So any time Baxter goes outside, he’s wearing a leash, and a human is holding the end.

As the human responsible for the first and last outings of the day, I love a full moon.

Being able to see my shadow at 6am and 10pm is a luxury.

On most of our walks this winter, I was stumbling over ruts, tripping over tufts of grass, straining my eyes for telltale strips of white–and my nose for the putrid scent–that signifies skunk.

Now that the days are getting longer, our walks are starting to be lit by the rising sun. However, I still have a special fondness for moon walks.

While the full moon is reputed to cause craziness, full moon walks are so much more relaxing. What drives me crazy is if my full moon is hidden behind cloud cover.

Aside: Apparently there was an eclipse yesterday. I missed it. Eclipses are neat enough that I would have given up my full moon without complaint.

What’s your favourite phase of the moon? Is anyone else wandering around outside in the wee hours of the morning and night? Did you catch the eclipse?

Rituals and signs of spring

Posted on April 2, 2014 by Julia at Home on 129 Acres

Waiting for our forsythia to flower has become one of my spring rituals since moving to the farm. For the past two years, my post on April 2 has been an update of how close we are to blossoms.

Our first year, the forsythia was in full bloom at the beginning of April. Last year, we weren’t anywhere close to flowers. It would take another month before the forsythia would be out in bloom. This year, we’re even further away from the bright yellow flowers.

So far in 2014, spring has just been a date on a calendar. I’m eagerly awaiting its arrival and the return of my forsythia.

What signifies spring for you?

Snapshot

Posted on February 26, 2014 by Julia at Home on 129 Acres

Ice-covered branches on a misty country morning. (Shot back before Christmas, but too pretty not to share).

Walking on (frozen) water

Posted on February 24, 2014 by Julia at Home on 129 Acres

A week or so ago, I talked about how I was trudging around the farm due to all of the snow. Thanks to a thaw and freeze last week, it’s gotten even worse. The temperature didn’t go up enough to melt the snow very much, so it’s still deeper than my knees. Then the temperature dropped, but just enough to freeze the surface into a very inconvenient crust.

Now I take a step and with a jerk drop down through the snow. The icy crust bruises my shin and grabs hold of my boot trapping me. My boots are full of snow, my shirt is soaked with sweat and my thigh muscles are burning. Walks are brutal.

Before he jetted off to Hawaii (I’m not at all jealous), my father-in-law left me his snowshoes. They may look more suited to being decorative objects hung on a wall, but desperate times call for desperate measures.

I strapped them on and took my first tentative steps.

Antiques or not, these things still work. I can walk (waddle) without dropping down into the snow. In the picture below, you can see my crash-through path from the day before at the bottom and the gentle web prints from my new footwear at the top.

I am not coordinated at the best of times, so I can’t claim to be graceful or quick when I add snowshoes into the equation. However, after just one weekend I am already a snowshoe enthusiast. In fact, I’m already planning to upgrade my equipment. I’m thinking something made in this century might be a good choice.

Did you try anything new this weekend? Does anyone else use vintage tools or sport equipment? Have you ever gone snowshoeing?

Life lessons from my dog

Posted on February 12, 2014 by Julia at Home on 129 Acres

When the going gets tough, I get trudging. With all of the snow and wind we’ve had recently, I spend a lot of time trudging.

In the photo below, I am up to my thighs in the snow, while Baxter the lucky dog lightweight stands on top.

When the going gets tough, Baxter gets hopping. He makes like a bunny and bounds through the snow.

Sure, sometimes he lands in a drift that’s over his head. There’s a moment while he ponders the injustice of the situation and how he came to be buried up to his ears. However, then he gathers himself together and makes a larger leap, charging on through the snow.

Other times, he embraces the drift and dives in deeper, searching for real live bunnies.

This week, when work has been particularly hectic, when things seem to be much more difficult that they need to be and when I’m feeling particularly frenetic, a dog’s enthusiasm and joy for life are good lessons.

How’s your week going? Anyone else enjoying/dealing with particularly deep snow? What lessons have you learned from your pets?