Summer can be a very fruitful time on the farm.  Besides baling hay, the garden gets a start in producing its treasures.  After the asparagus and rhubarb emerge and produce, the berry blossoms silently make their presence known.  As the mature strawberry crop climaxes and declines, the June berries, the currants, and raspberries take to the fore.  Yes, fruit is in the making whether by design or by chance here on Heritage Farm.

One day, I trekked to our property fence line to pick currants.  Every bush showed off its bobbles.  Strung like colored beads on a Christmas tree, the shiny orange orbs dangled delicately from dainty stems attached to a fruiting stem.  I snatched up the berries I could see easily.  Then I sat on the ground, peering deeply into each bush to uncover the hidden berries.  As I did, I heard the low drone of hummingbirds as they visited our hedge of trumpet vines nearby.  Presently, I felt the warmth of something next to me.  Our farm dog snuggled up by me under the shade of the currant bushes.  Although I was the only one picking berries at the time, I was definitely not alone.

Later, I made two batches of currant jelly and currant buns.  I also froze some currants for future use.  The berries that the Lord has supplied have certainly shown us His generosity. 

By this time, the raspberries began to ripen.  My daughter picked our luscious golden raspberries.  Coupled with my harvest of tart currants, the honey-sweet of the raspberries made a delightful, refreshing juice. 

Berries show us the Lord’s creativity.  Different colors, flavors, and shapes and even the different harvest times all demonstrate for us the variety of His creative nature.   So you can see, the Lord gave us a Berry Good Day.

Be sure to check out the cards available through our store.  You might use the cards to send good wishes and cheer to a friend in need of a personal greeting just from you.

photo credit:Wenda Grabau
photo credit: quinn.anya via photopin cc

Have you ever had to go on a “Search and Destroy” mission?

I just did that over the weekend and again this morning.

Due to the frequent rains of springtime, our planting work has been held at bay. Finally, we were able to get the vegetable garden in just 2 days ago.  While outdoors with the garden work I got to observe some new growth in the windbreak. Sometimes it can be a delight or it can prompt a task.

Today. I went to pick some fresh asparagus.  Before I got the job done I made my way out to our newly cleared windbreak area. Since my husband removed dead trees and brush last summer, the sun has now been able to blaze its rays on some very old currant bushes.  From them I have high hopes for a fruitful harvest.

Yet as I admired them I became distracted when I spied some nettles lurking amongst the berry bushes. I just happened to have plastic shopping bag in my pocket. I used the bag like a glove and began pulling up the fiery weeds. Just as I finished one group of nettles, I noticed another and then another. On and on I went to search for them and pull them up with as much root as possible.

While on my way looking for the unwanted greenery in my windbreak, I noticed the curling tendrils of another unwanted plant…the wild cucumber.

My admiration of the currants led to a long task of disarming these enemies of the new space my husband had made for our much more desirable plants.  

Early June happens to be a great time to get these pesky wild cucumber weeds because:  

1. They are still small.

2. Many primary leaves are turning yellow so they can be seen easily amongst the other greenery growing nearby.

3.  It is much easier to get the roots out while the plants are still young.

Get them out now!!  Otherwise they will travel to tree tops and cover many plants.  The wild cucumber can kill trees and overpower plants.  Don’t let them get the best of your yard, garden or trees.  Seek them out, before they multiply.

Gardening cards are available in our store: Corn Crib and Garden,  and Seed Packets

photo credit: Bretta Grabau
photo credit: Wenda Grabau

I do enjoy the new life of springtime.

Today, I went outdoors and got my “garden-fix”. I picked fresh asparagus and a few juicy stems of rhubarb. I got to pick up some brand new blooming stems of white and purple irises that opened during the night. I also picked a lone stem of a beautiful pink peony that burst open this morning.

Yesterday, my break from my homebound duties included a visit to the what we call, the Teddy Shed. There in the manger lay 5 one-week-old kittens and their loudly purring mother. What a delight to hear the kittens purring along with their mother. The stillness in the shed made it easy to gaze on them without interruption. The break I had to enjoy the new lives brought me joy and a sense of satisfaction.

The sights and sounds that our Creator has produced with his skillful hands bring a sense of awe and peace to the busy, weary soul.

Today, I took time to spend reviewing some special Bible verses.  The one that was particularly freeing to me is Romans 6:14.  It says, “For sin shall not have dominion over you for you not under law but under grace.” 

How wonderful to know the Creator who makes all things, has taken us imperfect, human beings who are under the bondage of sin and He has set us free!  We are no longer under the thumb of sin, since Christ paid the penalty for it.  Because he did, I, as a believer in Christ, do not owe anything to sin…I am free to live under righteousness.

I hope that you, too, can say that you are trusting Christ’s sacrifice as the payment for your sin.  You can then rejoice in the fact that sin shall not have dominion over you.  You can be living as a new creature made by the Creator Himself, who makes all things new and beautiful. Enjoy His new creation today in your heart and also in what he has put outside your door. 

See our spring selection of cards. Daffodils and tulips , Daffodils, Shamrocks

Photo credits: Wenda Grabau

On Thursday, April 11, 2019, the wind and freezing rain plastered their heavy ice crystals on the snow-laden county side of southeastern Minnesota. Many electric poles succumbed to the weight of the elements leaving many homes and farms without power. The Randy Grabau farm was one of those homes.

Life changed in a hurry. My plans to use my oven for baking were foiled. My husband’s power tools were useless. The computer went black. The furnace-fan became silent. The radio with its daily update of news was mute. Even some clocks went dead. The land-line telephone still worked, but soon that ended.

So, I dug out the candles. I fueled up some oil lamps to illuminate the darkness once the sun went down.

Since my husband, Randy, used a generator to power up the farm, we had 2 hours of power twice per day. With that energy, Randy milked the cow. That also allowed power in the house to provide two hot meals and to keep the refrigerator, freezers and the furnace-fan working.

Thinking that we were going to visit friends that evening for Bible Study, in the powerless house, I went to set my hair. But alas, the curling iron which was electric was out of use. So, I curled my hair the old way . . . with pin curls.

The sun got low and the shadows crept in. Candles and oil lamps flickered to give light that was needed.

With television, videos, internet and radio all down, my family saw the opportunity to visit and play Pinochle by candle and lantern light.

I searched the house and found alarm clocks that worked by battery or main springs. Their tick-tock, tick-tock rhythms continued on through the night.

With the absence of light after dark, I was reminded of a couple of Bible verses, “The Lord is my light and salvation, whom shall I fear, The Lord is the strength of my life, of whom shall I be afraid.” Psalm 27:1. And “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” Psalm 119:105.

The next day, April 12, before the clock’s alarm went off, the shrill, piercing call of a cardinal served as the wake-up call for my husband and me. By 6 A.M., the light of dawn started its trek into the farmhouse.

While Randy milked the cow, I saw my chance to make a pound of butter and boil a dozen eggs to set aside for an upcoming meal. We stored water for washing and cooking to use while the water pump was unusable. With the absence of power for active work, the our family set about to use the time for quiet things like reading, studying, writing, needlework, and drawing. My husband began to read a novel to the family.

A hopeful sign came when the house phone-line came back into service. The telephone company had placed a generator near the service pole not far from our home to aid reception.

On the third day, an electric coop truck drove by our home. That served as a welcome premonition that the neighborhood would be getting its power restored. By lunchtime that day, power flooded our home.

The folks we had prayed for, the linemen and others who served to restore the power, had labored hard and served us well.

photo credit: Can Pac Swire Who needs to buy plastic fake icicles when you get the real thing? via photopin (license)
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photo credit: www.miriam-blaylock.com Bargello_sampler_study_detail_5 via photopin (license)

We got a puppy to help out as a farm dog when he gets bigger.  Farm dogs have to be trained.  Sometimes they self-taught, not by choice.

Dusty started out to look like a furry, football.  But today, he is a long-legged bundle of energy.  He jumps and runs and barks and nips at my pant legs.

Yesterday was a big day for Dusty.  First off, the vet came and gave him two immunization shots.  That quieted him for a bit.  He was not happy with that.

Second, later that day after he got over the pain of the shots, he made acquaintance with the electric fence.  Now he knows not to brush with that zinging boundary.  

Last but not least, after dark, Dusty was still outdoors.  My husband went out to do a few chores with the cows.  He also planned to take time to put Dusty in his “kennel”, the barn. 

Dusty sensed something was different on the farm.  He was right!  Ambling around the farm yard was a black and white beauty that had just woken up from hibernation...A SKUNK! 

Dusty likes to nip at strangers and he snuck up on the skunk.  You can imagine the rest of the story.   Dusty learned not to mess with skunks.  He rolled his snout in the grass trying to clean himself off.  

The incident must have happened very close to the house.  While I worked with some food in the kitchen, I noticed the smell.  At first I expected it was the sour smell of the fresh yogurt I had made.  But the faint odor grew stronger and stronger.  I recognized the musky smell of a skunk.  I called upstairs to ask my daughter if she smelled skunk.  “Yes,” she answered back. 

Needless to say, she and I both had to do some odor-control.  It hung around and inside the house for a long part of the night.  I slept fine, but I wonder how well Dusty did.

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photo credit: peterned Looking forward to spring via photopin (license)
photo credit: MTSOfan Let’s Try on a Wig via photopin (license)

We have been without our beloved farm dog long enough.

A weasel did damage in the chicken house. Possums attacked a farm kitten. Raccoons have delighted in our ear corn. Critters have been moving in to badger us and our belongings.

Enough is enough!

Our farm dog aggressively controlled the assaults from the wildlife for many years. Since he died, we have been made all to aware of the need to look to the future. How can we combat the onslaught of unwanted animals helping themselves to our food and our space on the farm?  It became clear, that we needed a new farm dog.

We watched the newspaper want ads, checked Craig’s list, and spread the word by mouth in order to find a new dog.  We finally made contact with a family on a farm not far from our own.  They had a litter of four blue heeler/border collie pups for sale.  (The Blue Heeler is also known as Australian Shepherd.)  We went to see them two days ago.  

The pups were basically white with black markings.  One male had one large black spot surrounding each eye and a clear white spot on the top of his head.  We chose him.  The coat on his back was not pure white, but had a lot of black hair mixed with the white. 

It took a few of days for us to settle on a name for him. His four white feet covered with black “freckle-type” spots coupled with the dusty blanket-look on his back, prompted us to call him, “Dusty”.

Dusty is full of puppy-energy.  So now comes the task of training him. My husband works with him the most.  On the farm, we need a work dog.  He will learn to shepherd the cattle with my husband.  We expect Dusty to be an asset to our farm.  We hope his energy gets channeled in the right places around here.

For the dog-lover, we have a card in our store.  It is titled, “Faithful Farm Dog.”  This card captures the image of the dear dog we lost.  His name was Samson.

If you have interest in an Australian Shepherds you might check out one interesting place that raises them.  

photo credit: Tambako the Jaguar Silva playing with a carpet via photopin (license)