Busy Bees?? You Mean Busy Chickens.

The flies are buzzing around. Bees are working hard. But it's our chickens that are truly busy. They are more efficient than any Toyota or Ford assembly line!! Not only are the eggs stacking up, but the girls are hard at work eating the bugs and turning the compost. We owe them so much more than we can ever imagine. Yeah sure.... our yogurt based pancakes wouldn't be the same without their rich yellow eggs, but the farm would just be a vacant lot without them. They eat our waste, produce our "fertilizer", work our compost, manage our pastures, keep our guests of all ages filled with joy, and the list goes on and on. If only they could take reservations and update our websites!!

And then there is Cortez. He is not so busy.

The Heat Is On

Well ... I'm guessing by now the secret is out on the gorgeous "summer" weather we've been graced with this past week!! Those who came up last weekend got a real treat and it's supposed to carry through this coming weekend. That's good news for anyone looking for a little escapade out into the islands!! The Harbor Hideaway and Abigail's Beach House are booked, but we still have some space on the farm. Give us a holler!!

Springtime for Chickens!!

The Chickens have finally returned from their winter vacation. It's been a good few months. Not a bad gig really. Just like members of Congress, chickens have the good life!! Some spent it knitting, others sent us postcards from Tuscon, Cape Town, and beyond. Now they're back hard at work and doing their daily yoga routine. The ladies couldn't be happier, and Mr. Big (our rooster) is showing off his full flare.

Eggs are coming in by the basket!!! Look at all these eggs our intern Jenny collected from the coup. Making up for lost time, they are back in full production!!

The geese have established their nest and Meredith is sitting on her eggs. Can't wait for some goslings again this year!! We need some more little girls. Poor Meredith, last year she had all boys!!! Oh the trouble!!

Need some eggs?? Give us a call at 376-7035 and we'll have them out on the road for you to pick-up. We've got them here on the farm daily. Also you can find our eggs at Orcas Homegrown market. Here they are sitting on the shelf. Don't forget to drop your used egg cartons off in our "eggbox"!! We'll fill 'em right back up. It also makes good bedding in the Chicken Coup. We throw it in the chipper when we make a load.

Nothing beats the firm rich yellow yolk of a farm fresh egg loaded with Omega-3's. Our chickens are free pasture ranged, eating all kinds of grubs and bugs, but they also get their fill in OUR garden!! We only give them a touch of grain a day. They do have the life!!

Adeline's Suites Opening!!!

Well it's been a long haul. Longer than expected and longer than planned, but this Saturday the Lilac Suite will have its first guests. The Rock Rose will soon follow, but we still have some last touches to make and spaces to create. All in due time. It was worth the wait as we were able to take out innovative approach without contractors breathing down our necks!!

We are bursting with excitement to share these two new suites with ya'll this summer. They were each designed and built by Zachary Lefton and he is ready to field any of your questions about the methods, principals, and philosophies behind the project. While they are not officially LEED certified, we followed and surpassed many of the requirements from energy, to material use and selection, to water and waste management.

We hope you enjoy and relish these newly created escapes on our farm estate. We have still yet to move in the furnishings, so it would be sacrilege to post any photos yet as the feeling would not fully be captured!! So ya'll just have to wait patiently for the moment to come.

Hope to see you soon!! Spring is hanging out and Summer knocking on the door.

We've Got Peaches and So Much More!

How could you ask for more?! Peaches, Nectarines, fresh Figs!!! Taste buds and scents are swirling every which way on this farm. The nectarines, were absolutely divine, very apt for a fruit named after the drink of the Greek gods. We have never tasted anything so sweet. We will be planting another few of these this Fall for sure.

Everyone still can't believe we did it!! That we grew stone fruits successfully west of the Cascades! But we can't take all of the credit, as this was a particularly dry spring and hot summer. Still, we put our hours in. Our final count of Apricots was around 250 lbs. We harvested about 75 lbs of Nectarines and another 180 lbs of Peaches. We still have Peaches left, but our Apricots and Nectarines are all sold out.

But what is stealing all the attention on the farm are our Figs. People and the local restaurants cannot get enough. We have Lattarula (Italian Honey Fig) and the Brown Turkey. Some of the best fresh eating figs you can find.

Now we are taking in our first early Apples. We have two varieties, Sunrise and Rosey Glow. Both are sweet eating apples. Pears are ready to turn and we are waiting just days for the last of our plums.

The "farmstand" on the farm has been somewhat successful. Much easier than going into town and dealing with the street vendor ordinance which is still in the works. It is an activity, an adventure to find and buy your fruit. Plus we leave the figs on the tree until purchased. Never ever refrigerated!! Can't beat that.

So don't forget to stop by and stay tuned for our Asian Pears, Quince, and Kiwi!!!

Lazy Days of Summer, I only wish!!

Do I wish I was sleeping on my raft, gently rocking, on a "sleeping sea?" Yes I do!! But, I am working as all farmers do in the summer months. I am harvesting apricots, drying apricots, eating apricots, selling apricots, feeding chickens over-ripe apricots and telling everyone how much we are proud of our APRICOTS!!! Can't you tell we are proud of our apricot bounty? It was a great season for our stone fruit. The peaches are almost ready and they are big fruit, bright red and just perfect in appearance in everyway. Our fruit are all natural, nothing on their pretty skins but the kiss of Orcas Island sunshine. Kiwi is turning softer each day. Strawberries are having their 2nd big performance, and they are just as delicious as they were in June! We are digging up elephant garlic, and soon will be harvesting a few varieties of red and yellow potatoes. The apples, pears and quince will be ready for harvest in a few more weeks. We are stuffing ourselves with farm fresh good "eats!"

Our customers are enjoying all three of our vacation properties, The Farm and The Beach House, both on Orcas Island, and the new Village House in Friday Harbor, on San Juan Island.
The Harbor Hideaway rental on San Juan Island has two popular homes to choose from.
The main rental home in Friday Harbor is called The Hammock House and is quite large. It has about 2000 sq feet of space. Two big bedrooms + a huge living room with vaulted ceiling, a large gourmet kitchen plus a big dining area. The best part is the big outdoor deck and the Hammock tied between two huge cedar trees. This main portion of the home sleeps 6 or 7 comfortably. . Add on the Bunk House and bring 2 more singles. Add on the Porch Suite, and add another couple. Add on the "hammock," and add the family dog! Can you picture your dog sleeping in a tree hammock?

The Porch Suite is very popular as a separate unit for couples and friends "get-aways." Reasonably priced, it is an artistic and bright bedroom suite, with queen bed, many windows, microwave and refrigerator, DVD player, a colorful tiled bathroom, and a big wrap around porch and deck with tables and chairs. Or, rent the Porch Suite along with the very large Hammock House, if you are bringing the whole family.


At the farm, we had to slow down the finish work of our new vacation home, "Adeline's" : 5 suites with mountain, water, and pasture views, all with private entrances from outdoor decks and patios. As with everything we do, all our creative expression and artistic input takes additional time and planning. Zach, who is the project manager for Adeline's, is installing tile mosaic pillars in the living spaces, and designing the patterns and colors for the bathroom tiles.
The suites are all works of art with many wood details and other special natural materials, much of which is restored and recycled.

Tune in tomorrow and I will be writing about our horses at Once In A Blue Moon Farm.
I will bring you news of our Alpaca and chickens too!

Thanks for reading the latest Blog, updating you about everything it seems, but the Hog.

Shana

Apricots, Apricots, Apricots!!!

Take a look at these delicious apricots!! They are ripening out in the sun, just waiting to be plucked from the trees. The dry hot summer has made this a terrific year for these trees. This is our biggest crop ever, some apricots are the size of apples!!! We harvested a couple flats this evening and there are plenty more on the way. You can find them for sale here at the farm and we'll be bringing some in to town.