#backyardfarm

[rastabtv]

Giant cucumber (pickles )😋 Taste so good especially with my number one taste tester Irie'Elle on duty. Blessings Princess. #grow #cucumber #tasty #backyardfarm #backyarddesign #flavor #carpediem https://www.instagram.com/p/CDkODlzlKBg/?igshid=hvdq6j9mh6hf

[barbarianart]

Another morning harvest I also have some watermelon growing which makes me happy. Gardening is a simple pleasure to me I love the feel of dirt under my nails, the sun on my back, and seeing all my efforts pay off. Plus I get delicious fresh veggies that I can share with the people I care about. Everyone should garden every now and then, dont be discouraged by past failures, failing is the first step to being good at something. #garden #crops #backyardfarm #cherrytomatoes #squash #jalapenos #sunflowerseeds #sunflowers #watermelon #growyourfood #knowyourfood https://www.instagram.com/p/B0g0ZSQgzIo/?igshid=n392x4n3wtg

[cryptidcreek]

Why I Changed My Blog

Hi, it’s Rhys. You may know me from such things as these wings I wore at a convention in DC. To this day, this cosplay is one of my absolute favorite and I’m very proud of the work I did on them, and I’m eternally thankful to the people who helped me get to the convention. 

The pictures of me at that convention are pictures of me in the best shape of my life. But no more than a year later, I found that my body was beginning to deteriorate.  I had to quit my job, find all new hobbies while fighting major depression and some other mental illnesses that I was able to ignore while physically able. 

I’m no longer able to take care of myself, and rely almost entirely on my partner and best friend to cook and clean. At this point, I am disabled to the point of walking with crutches, and I can’t do any of the small fiddly work that comes with cosplay for longer than a few minutes at a time. Furthermore, my physical ability continues to deteriorate. 

This means giving up on dreams, lots of them. It means accepting myself as I am, every day. It means living on a budget that doesn’t allow for most medical testing I might need for a diagnosis. A budget that doesn’t allow any missteps. It means being frightened every day and facing that fear with the knowledge that the only thing keeping me afloat right now is the kindness of strangers and friends and the generational wealth my family has.

But one of our biggest expenses as a family of four is food, so I decided to go into livestock farming. I know that’s absolutely out of left field, but let me explain my logic. I went to an agricultural college. I kill every plant I touch, but I have a deep affinity for animals. I figured out that we can supplement our income with animal products, and eventually reduce our dependence on factory farms. Plus, animals have their own legs, so I don’t have to be super awesome at using mine when I’m not feeling great.

So we started getting into it. I got chicks and brooded them in the house until they were old enough to go outside. I built a chicken tractor to drag around the backyard to give them fresh pasture every day. They’re coming up on laying age now, and we’re going to have amazing fresh eggs. 

Our next ventures are other small animals that we can keep on our suburban property, rabbits and quail.  Our goal with each of these animals is to replace one meal a week. Someday soon, we’ll have the room to raise our own meat chickens, sheep, pigs, and cattle. 

Anyway if you want to support us and get goodies, we have a Patreon, and if you just want to follow us, join us on whatever your chosen thing is. Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.

[brimwoodfarm]

The first egg of 2019 from my lovely quail! They're seasonal layers and respond to the daylight hours rather than warmth so I'm always awaiting that first one. My hens are quite old now (2/3 years) so I need to buy in a fresh batch of hatching eggs as though they still lay, the fertility is super low. Lovely birds though and wouldn't be without them. . . . #smallfarm #smallholding #homestead #homesteading #brimwoodfarm #farming #farm #quail #poultry #growyourown #urban #urbanquail #urbanpoultry #urbanfarm #backyardfarm https://www.instagram.com/p/BvgaJKsFzbL/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=8whym4gol4ok

[morrza]

Today in the garden: Dill flowers! Which I ate. Because I want bushier dill. It was delicious! Also, my in laws are visiting and while I had planned to take advantage of their presence to hang out with the baby while the parents got more yard work done they got extra involved and we had the whole fam-damily out pulling weeds and getting starts and seeds in the ground. We’ve transplanted all the tomatoes, so now we have 4 cherry tomato plants and 8 full size. There are also 3 tomatillos, one of which is tiny and I’m trying not to hold out hope for its survival, but it may now be my new favorite underdog. Five clumps of broccoli seeds went it, and ghost peppers and chocolate hot peppers as well. One (ONE out of SO MANY) chive seeds has sprouted, and still no sign of the apparently ill-fated parsley or lavender anywhere. Tomorrow we redo our rear privacy fence and put in seeds for sage, rosemary, and thyme since so much extra weeding got done, and hopefully transplant purple orach (a giant spinach variant), which will be the last of the summer starts. Stay tuned for: how do we trellis ten billion tomatoes for under $20, and WTH kind of tick-spider-monster is that?!

[backyardgroceries]

Raised beds made out of rough cedar! #accessible and will last for decades! No more weeding or bending this is an installment in a large-backyard scale! #urbanagriculture #urbanfarming #the6ix. #growyourown #vegetablegarden #organic #cedar #raisedbeds #backyardfarm #produce #groceryshopping

[copperhawkplots]

The deck jungle is thriving! 🌼🌱🌸 #garden #gardening #urbangarden #urbangardening #deckgarden #containergarden #containergardening #smallspacegardening #backyardfarm #gardenblog #plantstagram #plantblr

[theurbanchickens-blog]

Flashback to the girls hanging out on the fence with Apricot when the yard was in full bloom. Sure miss our girl! Happy Friday from our Fluffy Butts to yours! Hope your weekend is filled with some relax time :) #FlashbackFriday #Apricot #FluffyButtFriday #fluffybutts #fluffy #fbf #TGIF #Friday #weekend #backyard #backyardfarm #backyardchickens #seattlechickens #urbanfarm #urbanchickens #theurbanchickens