Gabi LeBlanc Log

6.27.12

Today I built a biochar kiln. Biochar is pretty useful on a farm with deadwood as a byproduct. I used a simple replication of the Gunther Folke Biochar design, minus the biogas reservoir. It can be retrofitted if we ever see the demand for biogas here, which is very likely, but probably not for a few months at least. If there is time tomorrow I'll start a load to demonstrate how it works. I'll also draw up the design I came up with using very rudimentary materials (2 barrels in bad shape, rebar, some roofing metal, 3 nuts and bolts to hold up the inner lid. Aaron sent me this glimmer of inspiration before I was even on-site, and it had been nagging in the back of my brain ever since I got here. First taste of welding using the tools here, thanks Aidan!

Tomorrow I'll be shoveling horse manure (Tim is awesome), then taking Yoon Seo to the airport, as well as picking up Briana, plus 2 tents for our Greek guests who are arriving in a few days.

Been irrigating, chicken tending, keeping up with lots of visitors and collaborators (American Farm School, Will Bratton for the Horto Domi, a dairyman from Vermont who might prototype the GVCS dairy milker, to name a few) Oh, addressed some envelopes today for the kickstarter. It was great to see the breadth and scope of those addresses, really makes you realize where our audience comes from. (Planet Earth!)

6.26.12

Corn and sorghum are in the ground, spinach and chard and cabbage are in planters, squash and melons are in seed flats, and everything got watered. Good day today. Starting to sleep more, that's a nice change.

I have diversified my technological capabilities! Using expert instruction, plus a USB flash drive, I now run linux on this silly little laptop.

6.25.12

Rome wasn't built in a day, but the chicken tractor was. It's on wheels, is about 50 square feet, and is made entirely of what I scrounged on-site.

We'll plant corn, sorghum, and millet tomorrow. I'll be starting squash seeds in the greenhouse for the three sisters, and transplanting some cucumber starts to a container with a trellis. The blackberries are just now starting, and there are plenty of tomatoes even though none are getting color yet.

If I have time tomorrow I'll either stuff another straw mattress, or weld a biochar kiln. FeF officially has its own string trimmer! Wooo!

6.24.12

Today is my sister's birthday! Happy birthday Celeste!! It is also Aidan's birthday! Happy birthday Aidan!! To all those whose birthday it is, congratulations.

The first garden plot is all set to be planted!! I've been manifesting some great timing with the weather, as soon as I finished this video, spread the rest of the cardboard, and went inside to make coffee, it started raining buckets. Thanks, universe!

Yesterday I went to Kansas City and the surrounding areas. First I dropped off Aaron at the airport. (FeF already misses you, come back soon!) Then I went south to pick up the electric fence from a craigslist ad. Then I went to Kavitha's house and enjoyed great conversation and refreshment. Even got to do my laundry! (Thanks so much for everything, Kavitha! The papasan is being put to very good use already.) Then I got back to FeF to meet the visiting family.

Woke up this morning pre-dawn, stared out my window listening to the birds, waiting for the sun to give me an excuse to start my day. The apples are falling larger and sweeter now, and the pears are delicious! I've been roasting chicory to make DIY coffee, it grows all over the place here. In the photo you can see the plants, and the roots that I snipped off. I figured the easiest, least consumptive way to roast it was to chop it fine. It turned out great, brews like motor oil, no caffeine, free of charge, and the cost of transportation is the time it takes me to walk from the shop to the HabLab.

So this is the first full week I've spent at FeF. I dig it.

6.22.12

Yesterday was pretty epic.

• I made my bed! And slept in it!
  • Thank you Dancing Rabbit for inspiring us!
• Tim mowed down a bodacious amount of ragweed and brush
• We tried plowing the mowed area, but ran into problems with the turning radius of LifeTrac with the plow mounted on the back corner. Decided to use the bucket to scoop soil and mound it, now we have passable rows! Aidan was plowing until 10 last night, and we very nearly finished but then the LifeTrac needed a break. Laid out the cow panels, so today we'll be trying out the soil pulverizer and setting up the fence. Then I can wet everything, cover it with cardboard so it'll be ready to plant.
• I got sunburnt. Mild bummer, overshadowed by feelings of accomplishment. I guess that means it was worth it.
• Marcin's gone so I'm keeping track of the well pump so we don't dry up.
• Chicks got their first taste of CRACKed corn yesterday. They're lovin' it.

To Do: Field Work:

• Sink rebar, wire panels
• In between existing rows:
  • Plan A: use soil pulverizer
  • Plan B: dig furrows and pile that soil into a third row
• Hydrate and cover with cardboard

Writing:

• I still need to write my Contract
• Working on the Garden Plan drawing for the south side, it's in progress.
• Continue Flashy Scrum Control Panel development for Neosubsistent Agriculture
• Write a letter to my folks so they know my address works out here.

6.20.12

Ordered everything we need last night. Once I make a trip to Kansas City this weekend we'll have complete infrastructure set up for GoodCow (yes, that will be her name), the garden, and surveying the space.

Cut all the rebar I'd need for the electric fence. Will Bratton might be coming out to build us a Horto Domi. Learned some basic CAD last night, thanks Yoonseo! Never thought it would be that much fun, and we'll have more tutorials weekly, so now when I find myself with a spot of free time at night I can borrow someone's computer and design a sorghum press, fiber mill, a tool for scutching fiber plants, and anything else I've ever dreamed of wanting.

About to pick up the plow attachment for the tractor, and today will officially be my first time driving LifeTrac. Excited?! You bet! Expect a video to come with a tractor tutorial for future LifeTrac users.

South Indian food tonight! I can smell it and I can't wait.

Tomorrow looks like manure pick up, much belated mattress stuffing, and lots of yardwork.

6.19.12

Lots to do! Zip zip zip!

We have SEEDS!

Thank you, Hummert Seed & Supply! Brought a catalog back with me for next time.

Here's what I bought:

• Sorghum
• Rainbow Swiss Chard
• New Zealand Spinach
• Buttercrunch Lettuce
• Golden Acre Cabbage
• Crenshaw Melon
• Seven Top Turnip
• Sugar Baby Watermelon
• Golden Crookneck Squash
• White Bush Scallop Squash
• Stowell's Evergreen Corn
• Golden Bantam Corn
• Mississippi Silver Cow Peas
• Missouri Wonder Pole Beans

Carrots planted, parsnips planted, started some cukes, cilantro, dill, and kale. We need to run the tractor through the south side of the greenhouse, cover it with cardboard, and plant it next week. I'd like Marcin to run a tractor tutorial so everybody can learn who wants to, and we can document it for future residents.

Buying everything on the Gabi Shopping List right now. It's a lot of stuff, and my job will be so much easier when we have a string trimmer. I'm also itching to start surveying. Thanks to Chris DeAngelis for loaning me The Fundamentals of Surveying, it's great!! Also reviewing Dan Schellenberg's videos a few more times.

Learning some CAD basics tonight, my first project will be designing a sorghum press. We'll need it, especially since I bought five pounds of seed today.

6.18.12

Woke up earlier than expected. It's a gorgeous day, I've got computer things to do so I think I'll post up out of doors for the work.

Going to KS City today to pick up electric fence polytape. New place for me, we'll see what food I can forage while I'm there.

Got a lead on sweet potato slips from the East Coast at Scott Farms. We'll see what they've got.

Writing Garden Plan, finished up Survey Tools List. Next up: concise shopping list encompassing everything I haven't bought yet.

Feeling pretty well adjusted, it's a bit like I've been here for weeks instead of 4 days. Still feeling out the rhythm of the week, but I'm very comfortable here. Unexpected, but encouraging. It means that I made the right decision coming here and there's not a lot of jarring changes that I need to adapt to. There are some small ones and I'm excited to learn and grow and change as I have the same effects on my environment. Good people, good plants, good weather, soon to be good soil, and I am empowered by all of it. Happy Monday!

To do:

• google map to Dwayne's house - done, thanks dorkmo!
• garden plan - in progress
• order shopping list
• os cartography software/sourcing - in progress
• review awesome books that chris lent me on surveying etc - in progress
• vlogs

Personal To-Do:

• Turn scrap Satellite Dish into Roof for Dog House
• Put more screws in my walls for hanging things
• GET MORE SLEEP. Never expected that to be a problem here, but there you go.

6.17.12

Lots to do at once, I think I'll be working on my day off, since my energy is undiminished after only 2 days of being here.

Leaving to find our cow in about an hour, really excited to meet her for the first time. Teddy, too.

Emailed MFA to see if they have rods, because my usual source, Livewire, is in California. They're probably closed on Sunday, so I'll hear from them on Monday. Just set up buying our first piece of the fence, the polytape. Dwayne is selling it through craigslist, I'll be picking it up at 2:00 tomorrow. These were his directions:

8294 W 335TH 69 TO FORT SCOTT 7 MILE SOUTH OF LEWISBERG 69 AND 335TH

Moved into the solar cube, because the hab lab is a bit too comfortable. I prefer a place that is only used for sleeping, and doesn't have the space or accommodation for much else. Also I wanted to live in the box, from the beginning my instincts told me that I wanted to live there.

In charge of the chicks while Briana is in Texas. She'll be back in a week.

Paid deposit on cow, I am in love with her. She's number 17, is a Jersey Holstein cross with Brown Swiss and Shorthorn genetics as well. Teddy's dropping her off two weeks from Monday, so that's the 2nd of July. Need to figure out what kind of grain to feed her so the transition to being grass fed doesn't do her harm. Also it'll be her incentive treat every morning for milking. She's docile, has a great udder, isn't too big, clear eyes, good feet, everything I would want in a cow. Contemplating names. Thank you to Teddy, for being such a friendly dairyman. He truly loves his herd.

Set up my hammock in the wooded area over the creek bed. Also found a berry patch in the ravine. Gooseberries, mystery berries (look like black rasberries?), and picked some mulberries off the tree, too. Blackberries are coming in, not near ripe yet but I'll be ready when they are! Same story with the grapes.

6.16.12

Woke up early, did some sourcework for the cow, went to the Saint Joseph Farmer's Market with Aidan. Found it pretty limited in terms of organic produce, only one farmer there sold organic food and it was mostly greens. Also, more processed/canned foods than I was accustomed to seeing.

Met a guy named Joel who raises lamb, asked him what he does with his bummers, I'll probably be looking for some lambs to diversify our grazing polyculture in a couple seasons.

Found a couple more berries that I'd like to propagate here: aronia berry and gooseberry. Pretty sure I can find some gooseberries if I just rummage around in the native trees. Aronia berries we'd probably have to buy seed for, but it would be so worth it.

Came back, and after a quick meeting we started stuccoing one of the outer bedrooms at the HabLab.

Took a dip in Pony Express Lake and washed the stucco off my clothes. Found a roadkill deer coming back, brought a couple bones with me for the dog to chomp on later.

Had a meeting with Marcin about the cow, talked to a guy in King City who can sell us a first calf heifer, jersey-holstein cross, for $1100. He sounds personable, I can't wait to meet him.

6.15.12

Rolling down towards Factor E, I got an overwhelming sense of affection towards the native plants, the smells in the air, the moisture and lush green surrounding the creeks and ponds, and overall felt like I was heading to a rightful place.

Pulled up to Factor E, gave myself a tour of the property, focused on not feeling daunted and instead inspired at all the potential here. Moved into the HabLab, meaning I took a couple egg crates out of my car and put them in a convenient corner.

Met my team mates, had a meeting with Marcin outlining a concrete work plan. Looks like the first focuses will be getting a dairy cow out here, surveying, getting the garden going, and

Did laundry in town, picked up mattress shells for straw stuffing. Attempted straw stuffing, realized we were not using the correct tool. Decided that a lawn mower is a better strategy. Tried to borrow one from a neighbor, but he didn't have one. Fortunately we didn't come back empty-handed, he gave us a bunch of beets, carrots, and onions. We'll be using Tim Gravlin's lawn mower when he comes in later this week.

Engaged in some community-building card games! I had to duck out eventually because I was nearly falling asleep at the table.

Slept the best sleep I've had in a while. Excited and rushing into many projects at once, but I've got excellent folks around to help me keep my head on straight.