There is a lot to be thankful for!
The Infrastructure
After several years of working on the Farm, repairing and replacing this and that, there was one last repair that had to be done. Well, there are a few, but they aren’t on the critical list. I was able to have the HVAC system replaced so that the farm house stayed warm when needed, and cool when needed. A huge blessing. I had an invisible fence installed around the farm to keep the LGDs home; and “the farm truck”, which is just my little car, needed a lot of maintenance and new tires. I really need a “junker” truck and am hoping I can swing it. Oh, and while I’m dreaming, a small cattle/horse trailer would help too… oh, and maybe a couple of supply sheds.
I spent a lot of money having cows and pigs transported here and there by others. Other than those things, most of the really hard work has been done. All the animals have good shelters, the patched fencing has held up, the farmhouse has been repaired and is in great condition, the new well is performing better than I had hoped, and oh, I had a dump truck drop a few tons of crusher run from the road up to the house after the driveway washed completely out. It seems that is going to be a maintenance item I must keep on the list. I hired tree trimmers to cut back the large, old, rotting trees around the main barn. That barn is a critical component of the farm. Things are looking good.
Gardening
I made the move to raised beds in 2024. With help, I transported a ton of barn compost to the gardens and filled the beds. For the first time since moving here, I had a good harvest. I had only built 5 raised beds, but I am now excited about building more and seeing what I can grow. Tennessee is green from one end to the other. However, the earth beneath the green, is either clay or rock. Everything grows here, out of every crevice, due to the rain and humidity. If you are a forager, you would enjoy it! But, if you are fighting briars, brambles, weeds, invasive species, not to mention the deer and other critters, gardening is a constant battle. I’m happy about moving to raised beds because my land is very rocky. The “orchard” I planted, all but died due to 2 years of “arctic” winter weather here – totally out of the norm. I may start over, purchase older trees, and plant the new trees in a different location so that I can keep a closer eye on them.
A Farm Business
I had originally not wanted any sort of farm business due to the need for privacy. I just wanted to raise food for my family, as an exercise in “self-sufficiency”. But, I discovered that a 1,300+lb cow translates into a lot of beef, as does a couple hundred pound hog, not to mention several hogs, and a single dairy cow can produce 20-60 gallons of milk each week, as well as a calf every year, and chickens produce a lot of eggs and meat. 2024 was a bountiful year! I now have three freezers in the garage plus an extra refrigerator to hold all the milk. No one in my family will go hungry, and my relatives and a few friends are happy about that!
Raising your own food used to be “a thing” and it was absolutely necessary not even a hundred years ago. The one thing the plandemic taught us is the supply chain is fragile, and I’ve seen no moves to make it less so. To the contrary, the government is still at it trying to regulate small farms out of business (oh, and planning new pandemics and vaccines). In any case, I began to sell extra milk and extra eggs, and a few cows. Whatever my family didn’t need and whenever I found myself seriously considering dumping food (that would be a sin), I sold or gave to neighbors and friends. I didn’t make a lot of money in 2024, but it helped defray some expenses. I am not sure I’m going to continue the farm business in 2025, but I have a long “waitlist” of people who want to buy products off the farm. So far, I have gotten to know well, and trust, my “customer base”. I need to spend some time figuring out how to manage selling product more efficiently, as it takes a great deal of time to receive people on the farm. I have no desire to sell in a Farmer’s Market since that takes even more time.
Selling extra off the farm is a time honored tradition, and it helps with expenses, so I will probably continue. I can’t foresee myself “scaling up”, but I do dream of more land and being able to hire more help. As it stands, I hire a high school boy part time after school, and I hire mowing/bush hogging services, as well as occasional handyman services for things I can’t do.
Security
I upgraded the farm security, which now includes: dogs, cameras, fences, gates, signage, motion sensitive lighting, and firearms. I’ve only met one “unhinged” person who was disinvited to the farm, and that fact was made known far and wide. I haven’t had a single problem with that person since. I have plenty of farming neighbors I can call night or day. So, in that regard, I feel safe. We do not have a crime problem where I live.
Family Matters
My mother’s health had sorely declined and even though, as a family, we had taken turns caring for her, the decision was made to move her into a care facility after the dementia was making things dangerous. She had visited the Farm and I had invited her to stay, but she didn’t care for the dirt and chaos that farm life brings, although she enjoyed the food. The place we moved her into was lovely and they had nurses and a doctor on staff who could check on her around the clock. She was close to family so she could have frequent visits and whatever things she wanted were brought to her in addition to taking her out for meals or shopping. With great sadness, we buried my mother not many months later at 89 years old after several falls and illnesses she couldn’t recover from. I am thankful and grateful that we all worked together to make sure she had the best care, and that she knew she was loved.
Another family member passed rather suddenly. He was not vaccinated so it had nothing to do with that. I won’t speak much about it other than to say that my family members are so sweet and caring, so willing to put themselves into any needed role in caring for him as he passed away. He was too young to die and we grieved him sorely.
My health suffered quite a bit this past year, although overall I have experienced improved health and a stronger immune system. I probably overdid it early in the year. No. I did overdo it. We are all different in how we handle stress, and grieving a loved one takes a toll too. When I’m stressed out, I don’t eat. Some people eat when they’re stressed. I force fed myself farm fresh food, and took liver supplements and B9 vitamins, and lectured myself severely about slowing down and only doing a reasonable amount of work each day! My doctor insisted on my having an iron infusion, which I did, and it helped. At the end of 2024, I had righted myself (Thank you Gracious Father in Heaven). I also realized that, generally, farms are run by families and that many hands make light work. I faced the fact that there are only two hands doing the work, with some hired help, and therefore, the work needed to be in keeping with that. Scaling down the number and variety of animals was the smart thing to do.
My Mentors
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the Mentors that I have been blessed with. You can’t learn to farm by reading books and watching YouTube videos. Yes, there are a lot of good ideas and methods out there and it’s interesting to learn. I started my journey by reading and watching. The true value comes in the form of in-person mentors. I am blessed to have at least 4 farming/ranching neighbors who have generously given their time, observations, and advice to me. Their families have been farming and ranching for decades in this area. Our relationships began organically by virtue of doing business together in an honest and friendly way, then we became friends. Additionally, I belong to a group of very experienced “milkmaids” who participate in an online forum dedicated to the health of the dairy cow and quality milk. My suggestion is to avoid FaceBook groups like the plague as they are often filled with misinformation and lots of drama. Social media seems to bring out the worst in people.
2025 Plans
I am very happy about where the farm is now. There will be calves for beef or to sell, dairy cows for milk, laying hens for eggs, and there will be gardening. 2024 was a real stretch that almost broke me, so I have a near memory reminder to slow down and just stick to what I know really well. I know what works in the garden. I know how to raise and care for dairy cattle. I know how to care for chickens, dogs, and cats. I know who to call for help. I know how to prepare for things in advance. I know how to sell animals should I need to. I have a great large animal vet who will come to the farm for emergencies. I have excellent breeding services for the cows. I have very good security measures in place and know how far the Sheriff is from my farm should I need him. Bonus: My grandchildren are creating lifetime memories on “Gramma’s Farm”. The farm has become a “destination” for family and that warms my heart.
There are many things I didn’t get to in 2024. I didn’t get to pressure or water bath canning any food. I have been relying on the large freezers and I realize that represents a food security risk. I would like to change that lack in 2025. I have several hobbies that I had no time for, one of which is quilting and I’d like to get in the habit of setting aside time to finish the large quilts I started. I did quite a bit of foraging, but have had no time to actually grow and study medicinal plants in the way I would like. I have not taken the time to learn hard cheese making using the fresh milk, but I would like to. The urgent always drives out the merely important on a farm.
Oh, don’t get me wrong. I still waffle between: “This is way too much work!” and, “I need a bigger farm!” All in all, this has been a wonderful adventure, and should the Lord have other plans for me, I will have my wonderful, and sometimes hilarious or frustrating, memories.
Lord willing, I will continue.