Red Dirt Farm and Studio

These days of spring bring about the season of renewal and growth.

Front porch sitting again.

 Early morning and a cup of coffee, so peaceful with the sound of birds chirping and Stanley rooster crowing in the distance.  I contemplate the tasks I want to accomplish for the day.  I have such high hopes and ambitions for my gardens.  I dream of beautiful flowers and endless bouquets that I will offer for sale in my farm stand.

Then the reality of the drought we have been experiencing up until the monsoon hit this week has slowed garden progress to nonexistence.  The seeds I spread out in the wildflower meadow weeks ago do not seem to be germinating, and the weeds seem to be growing just fine.  The garden tiller and both of our tractors are broken to some degree, rendering them useless. I despair, that I will never get the rest of the seeds planted.  Discouragement has started to seep into my heart.  I try to brush it away.

I have a new rose this year called Summer Romance, it has double pink blooms and the most heavenly fragrance.

I’ve created a few mini-flower bouquets from perennials that are blooming at this time, which I have offered for sale at the farm stand.

Lilacs, columbine, sage and boxwood fill an old white stone creamer.

Lilacs and boxwood.

Clematis and money plant.

 I cut buckets of lilacs that perfumed the entire stand.  Butterflies filled the tents and brought a smile to my face.

Oh so lovely it was.

 Then a big storm came and blew my tents and all the flowers to smithereens.

sigh.

A few months ago I mentioned a few of my dreams and goals for the farm stand this season in this post and I also said I wanted to own the title flower and chicken farmer.  Right now it seems a rocky and very slow road to being a flower farmer.

 Many readers offered ideas and suggestions for ways to offer my flowers for sale in the stand.  I’m working on implementing those ideas, such as offering cut flowers in bunches for those that would like a grab and go assortment.  I’m also offering bouquets in unique or vintage vessels.

I also mentioned increasing our chicken flock and adding white egg layers to the fold, as some of my customers have expressed a desire for white eggs.  This week we added white Leghorns, which will lay white eggs in a few months.

Our sweet chick Daisy went broody again.  Tragedy struck and she lost all her eggs she had been sitting, so I ordered the Leghorns for her.

When the chicks arrived I placed them under her.  The reception wasn’t exactly warm.

 However, she has come around and being a good mom to them.

For those of you that joined along in the fun of suggesting names for Dottie’s little chicks – thank you.  I’m waiting to see how their personalities develop and will share their names with you later.

Dottie, Inky, Pepper and their adopted family out free ranging.

We are now somewhere in the 60 oh my stars –  that is SIXTY chickens.  No, I haven’t lost my mind.  I’m a chicken farmer.

 And that makes my heart happy.

I hope that spring is kind and gentle to you and your soul.

Thank you for being here today.

xo Kim

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Red Dirt Farm

Coral Cottage is now Red Dirt Cottage