Skin of a Blacksnake

Suffice to say, the snakeskin next to it is in excess of 5 feet. It was quite the find—and recent too—eyeholes and tail intact. He (or she) certainly wasn’t in a hurry to get out of it.

My husband found it in a quiet corner of the barn we call “the shop.” Now, years ago, I would’ve been anything but proud to show it off. Yet since moving to a farm, there are some critters I just can’t manage on my own…and those are rodents. Unfortunately, I don’t think I’ll ever be proud to say “we have rodents!!.” So, I’ll let the black snakes alone because they’re good things to have around – Great Circle of Life and all. And I’m kind of proud of that snakeskin too.

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It takes a special person to raise bees…by the millions.

After watching our Bees  segment I think you’ll agree, Eugene Taylor is just that person!

If you’re in our area after Labor Day you will be able to visit his display and perhaps meet the man in person at the Oley Valley Community Fair in Oley, Pa. on September 16 – 17 – 18, 2010. Check out the Fair at www.oleyfair.org

Eugene Taylor’s honey can usually be found on  local grocery store shelves….to that, I say “Sweet!”

I have to tell you, if I could spend endless hours enveloped in a zen-like hum, harvesting fresh honeycomb at the end of the summer each year in a “honey room” off the house where I processed the golden liquid and was engulfed by the sweet aroma of honey every time I stepped inside, I’d take my chances with all those stingers too! 

Check back with me in a few years—I have a feeling we won’t be able to stop at just one hive.

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Jillian Prout and her husband, Ben, have the nicest pick-your-own berry patch!  Visit  www.proutsjollyviewfarm.com

When they first started, they planted more than 6,000 plants BY HAND!  To hear her tell it, it was just another day on the farm. They had quite the system (using a bucket loader to hold the many plants and containers of water at the ready).

They manage to keep everyone in the area pretty satisfied around strawberry-pickin’ time….thank goodness for their handiwork!

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Our Navajo-Churro sheep herd started with a phone call to Linda Cummings at her Shepherd’s Loft Farm. After two trips to the farm (first to meet our ewe and her lambs—then to pick them up at a later date), we were on our Churro way! 

“Daisy,” pictured in our Sheep segment is the daughter of “Reese” and 2010 was her second year of lambing. I’m holding “Petal,” her ewe-lamb, and Petal’s ram-lamb twin, “Warloch” is in the jug as well.

You can learn more about Linda on her Shepherd’s Loft blog. Go to http://guitner.blogspot.com

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My husband David and I explored the Four Corners region in the southwest shortly after we were married.

My employer had a pilot base in El Paso and at the end of one of my trips I planned to meet David there to travel around the area. Many dusty, back roads later we found ourselves in Chinle, Arizona on the Navajo Nation.We were profoundly moved by the land and the people. I remember stopping at a ravine just to watch a shepherd guiding his flock of Churro sheep down the banks of a river. Little did I know how profound an impact this scene would ultimately have on our lives.

Fast forward, 10 years later. Now we own a farm in Pennsylvania and we raise Navajo-Churro sheep – the count’s at 29.

When we settled here six years ago, we were eager to purchase animals and wanted to make the right decision regarding breed. To be honest? I was looking at the heritage of it all. My husband was closely watching what could be called “the return.” At that time the Navajo-Churro breed happened to be featured on the cover of a Hobby Farms magazine that I picked up at Tractor Supply. The article noted that the Churro had been providing a “return” for the Navajo for centuries: wool, milk, and meat equals “Life.” It brought to my mind the terrain and the shepherd of years before. The primitive setting. The culture. All right there in a breed of sheep.

The following year, I found a Churro breeder in Pennsylvania – at the time, the only one in a very large region. We paid a visit and couldn’t believe the beauty of the Churro: the four-horned rams, the eyecatching variety of the wool colors! We were sold! I think Linda saw it in our eyes – how moved we were. She sold us one of her remarkable ewes with two ewe-lambs “at side” (a mom and her twins). Our herd was born.

Linda sent this NPR link recently. It’s a wonderful story about the Churro. I felt a lump in my throat hearing the Navajo weaver say, “Sometimes, I just sit with them.Watch them.” I will do that too – just go out and sit with them.

There’s something magnetic about the Navajo-Churro. Something undoubtedly special. You can feel it and see it. Is it the centuries-old heritage they possess, the wisdom I believe I can see in their eyes, or are they just glad for the company? Who knows? I’m a sucker for heritage. I’ll take it over “return” every time.

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