A perfect late autumn day

We planted a cherry tree. 
Grow little tree, spread out your roots! 
Another cherry and two peach trees are coming on Saturday. 
Finally, we're getting the orchard re-established.
Trees make me HAPPY.

Whit helped.

We moved the old dog house up by the back door to make a cozy place for the outdoor cats.

Whit tried it out.  He approved.

The chickens love ranging the farm.

In the pasture all is well.  32 degrees is the perfect temperature for Pyrs to sun-bathe.

Preservers

A friend once told us, "There are two kinds of people - those who like to start over and those who like to preserve.  You guys are preservers."   The comment was made at the time we were trying to decide if and how to renovate our old farmhouse or whether we should just build a new house.  Of course we ended up renovating because we are, in truth, preservers.

And not only when it comes to houses.  It's hard to put into words but somehow I find it fundamentally important to preserve and restore the connections to what went before - where we came from.  Without a history we would be marooned in the present and that would be an incredibly lonely place to be. So I try to preserve genetic diversity by using heirloom varieties of plants in my garden.  I love preserving and practicing old skills like spinning, weaving and rug hooking.  I enjoy preserving the family history in genealogy records and photos because when I'm gone, who will remember these things?  I treasure the antiques that have been passed down in the family.  And I have been on a mission to restore and preserve native prairie plants around our house and in the fields around the homestead.  

Part of preserving those plants is collecting the seeds, passing them along to others and saving some for expanding their domain here on the farm.  This past week I finally got around to sorting and cleaning the seeds I'd collected and dried earlier this fall.  I collected 15 different varieties of seeds, although that's only a small sample of all the kinds growing out there.  I was amazed at the beauty and diversity of the seeds as I worked with them.  Some were so small that I had to use my digital handheld microscope to make sure I was actually collecting seeds and not dust!  Once I got started I couldn't stop - it was so fun to photograph the seeds under the microscope.

Rattlesnake master seeds.  These seeds are dangerously sharp!

Here's the stickery seed head I gleaned the rattlesnake master seeds from.  My fingers were very sore after dealing with these seeds.

Royal catchfly seeds - about 2 mm wide.  This plant is considered rare so I'm happy it is thriving here.  Its blossoms are bright red, a rare color for prairie flowers.

Culver's root seeds, barely a millimeter wide but they grow into quite a large plant.  I find it so amazing that all the information and equipment to grow is packaged in such a miniscule seed.

Hoary Vervain seeds, also quite a large plant.

New England aster seeds.  These are phenomenally successful at spreading and turn into huge plants.  By late summer the flower beds are dominated by their purple and pink blossoms.

Prairie blazing star seeds.  This is one plant I've fallen in love with!  Such lovely long blossom stalks in gorgeous pink.

Rudbeckia seeds.  Hard to believe they grow into rivers of gold in the flower bed.

Smooth blue aster seeds.  The plants aren't nearly as big and showy as the New England asters but they are lovely in the border.

Yarrow seeds.  A very useful medicinal plant that grows wild pretty much all over the place.  I'm glad to have it in my beds.  

Even with this small selection of seeds it is easy to see the different methods the plants use to spread their seed around: some have fluff to carry them by wind, some stick to whatever happens to walk by (I've seen royal catchfly seed heads sticking to the cat!), some form heads attractive to the birds and some just drop straight down at the foot of the mother plant.  The truly astonishing thing is the sheer NUMBER of seeds each plant produces to ensure it's preservation.  Nature is far and away the very best preserver!

Late Autumn on the Farm

Autumn has turned the corner from October's bright blue weather to November gray and damp.  The corn is still in the fields here on our farm but not for long.  Most of the traffic going by on the road is ag traffic -  combines, grain trucks, grain wagons and prosperous looking pickups driven by the farmers.  It's a good time of year when the crops come in and the fields are put to rest for the winter.  We also really enjoyed a visit from our California kids who were able to spend about a week here on the farm.  We all love having a baby in the house again - another generation in the long line of people rooted in the farm, even when they are far away.

A little volunteer oak growing in the prairie grasses and putting on a real show of color.  We have one resident squirrel who plants acorns all over for us.

The very last intrepid blooms in the prairie plants - a couple of late royal catchfly blossoms braving the November weather.

Summer color has given way to autumn texture.  Wild sunflowers will provide food for the birds over the winter.

Dewey drops on switchgrass blades

Stephen, Becca and Joshua were here for Halloween - our only trick or treaters.

I love the prairie skies any time of year.

Bouncing baby boy

A little piece of sewing history.  This puzzle box of old Singer treadle machine accessories was found in the drawer of my grandmother's old sewing machine.  A friend who collects sewing machines pointed it out to me.  While I think it's really cool, I know I'll never use it and passed it on to Lynn who has been wanting one for a long time.  

Design of the puzzle box is really very ingenious.

Quiet naps in the sunroom

And happy playtimes in the middle of the living room.