Adventures

Again a later post then I had anticipated . . . Been busy on the farm with harvest (beans, squash, cucumbers, fennel, potatoes, and so much more!), and making sure all is well in our little ecosystem. On the weekends I've enjoyed exploring bits of Washington. Some of the girls and I took a trip to the Olympic Peninsula, and a few weeks ago we all went down to Mount Rainier for a hike. This past weekend Josh and I enjoyed a trip up to San Juan island to go on a sea kayaking trip. I have a love for the water and thoroughly enjoyed exploring the coast via kayak. We didn't spot any orcas, but did see plenty of harbor seals, star fish, jelly fish, and enjoyed munching on some bulb kelp. See, that's what I love about the Northwest - I can travel four hours or so and be so many different places, this place is truly an outdoor enthusiasts heaven.

Our beach hut for the night on the Peninsula roadtrip.

Views along Ruby Beach

The Elwha Dam the week before the river restoration project began (the largest dam/river restoration project in US history).

The rainforest

Up on Hurricane Ridge

Rainier revealing itself from the fog for a brief moment.

The group at Pebble Creek, 7,200 ft.

Along the trail back to the visitors center.


A purple star fish munching on some barnacles that was found while sea kayaking near San Juan

Floating in a bulb kelp field looking towards Canada (the land in the distance)

A little jelly fish

Thought Images

Wow! Two posts in one day? I just couldn't help myself and had to post some images I came across that capture what's been on my mind lately. Enjoy!

A nap

Tropical islands

Sweet corn

A good summer cocktail

Nomadic rock and parking tickets

Well, once again it has been a good while since I've posted anything - my apologies. Not a whole lot has happened here, just been staying busy with work and taking it easy on my days off. However, this last Saturday we went to Capitol Hill to see Tinariwen in concert. I have been a fan of this group for a handful of years now and was ecstatic that I was able to see them live. A few brief facts about the group just in case you've heard of them . . . they're a group of Tuareg musicians from Mali that was formed in the late '70s in a refugee camp in Libya. And their music is a blend of Tuareg, West African, and rock sounds. I highly recommend checking them out sometime. Seeing them live was an amazing, once in the life time experience, sadly the night was slightly ruined when I found a $42 parking ticket sitting on my car . . . Damn parking police.

Tinariwen

Ok, and as promised, a few gardening tips from me to you:
- On a hot day transplant things later in the afternoon or in early evening so the plant doesn't have to deal with the stress of being moved and the heat of the day.
- Think of what you want to have ready to eat several weeks (or months) in advance so that you can be on top of seeding, transplanting, and then harvesting.
- Visit your garden at least once a day to take note of what needs your care (Are the weeds overgrown? Are things ready to be harvested? How healthy are the plants? Etc.)
- Keep a journal for your garden so that in years to come you can reference where things were planted, what worked and what didn't, and other observations.

And now a quick glimpse into life here at Growing Things Farm!

Growing Things

Well, it has been just about a month since I began my internship at Growing Things Farm near Carnation, Washington - and it has been going well. I work Tuesday through Saturday, beginning each day at 5am and begin work for the day at 6am. Work tasks have varied from planting seeds to helping process chickens for meat, though I have to say my favorite task thus far is milking the goat. Michaele (the farm owner) has been farming in the area for twenty or so years and has such a wealth of knowledge on organic farming, I am so fortunate to be learning from her and from this experience. I think I may start doing a weekly tip on organic farm (or gardening), so here's the first one:

- Adding paprika to chicken feed will result in a deeper colored yolk -

Also, here are some photos! I'll post more of the baby goat, Theo, as soon as I get around to breaking out my camera again. I should also post photos of my adventures in Seattle that aren't farm related sometime soon . . .

One of my favorite pigs, Brunch

Some baby fennel that I helped plant my first week on the farm

Onions with the Cascades in the background

A misty morning

Inside my humble abode

Shops and Pure Green Living

Today I went to a little flower/gift shop in West Seattle. Fluert (click here for link) was a great inspiration to me as another one of my dreams is to own a garden supply store that offers homesteading-esque (think butter churns and bee hive gear) gear, organic/heirloom seeds, tools, books, classes, plants, and so on. Fluert reminded me a lot of Terrain (link) that is another store that inspires me, even though I've only seen photos of it.

On another note, I discovered a great new magazine (it just released its 5th issue) that is full of green living tips and such. Pure Green Living (link) captures the spirit and mind set of the two shops I mentioned above. I look forward to reading the coming issues of this lovely new magazine, and hope you enjoy it as well. Here's a few photos from the Pure Green Living blog that grabbed my attention.

What my shop would look like
Mainly just like the bed in this photo

I could continue to post photos (like usual) so I just recommend heading over to the magazine or blog website.

The Open Road

It's been awhile hasn't it? I was busy preparing to move to Growing Things Farm out near Carnation, Washington. We took four days to drive from Lincoln to Seattle, stopping in Estes Park, Colorado for a few days to visit with friends. It was a beautiful drive full of sunny days and the open road. Here's a few photos from the drive out to the Northwest.

Lily Lake near Estes Park, CO
Rocky Mountain National Park, CO
Water sitting on the Bonneville Salt Flats = a neat reflection
In Nevada
Base jumpers over the Snake River in Two Falls, Idaho
Catherine Creek in Oregon

Photos of the farm and the valley I am now calling home will be coming soon . . . :)

School Garden

For the past year and a half I've been working with a few others on building elementary school gardens. Most of my time was spent at just one school, Saratoga, where there was an established 17'x98' garden space. We created a classroom/sitting area with found benches and tree stumps, curly willow pea tepees, raised no-dig garden beds, bike rim trellises, potato tires, a compost pile, and a native grasses and flowers section. We also worked with kids in an after school garden club to teach them how to garden, sustainability, and so on. Providing the garden to the school allows for the students, their families, and the teachers to have an outdoor learning space, as well as access to fresh produce.

I could probably go on and on about school gardens and how beneficial/important they are as that's what I wrote my undergraduate thesis on . . . instead, I'll just show you a few photos.

Looking north
Curly willow branches used for a pea tepee
Garden club kids working on building squash mounds. Potato tires in the foreground.
Garden club kids planting cucumbers, eggplant, carrots, and radishes.