Golden Acres Ranch

Wish I lived in Florida for this event!

Organic Edible Landscapes/Let’s Grow Fruit Trees/

March 20-21, 2010

Farmers, urban and community gardeners interested in growing fruit

trees?  During these two-day workshops you will learn how to grow your

own fruit using organic methods. Includes demonstrations,  handouts,

and discussions. Come, learn and enjoy.

This workshop will demonstrate all you need to know to grow fruit

trees including plums, peaches, muscadines, blackberries, raspberries,

strawberries,  apples, and much more. Learn organic methods, pest

management, pruning, grafting,  ground preparation, etc.  

Organic specialist, Jerry Larson of Fort Valley State University will facilitate this two-daylearning session.  

Registration $20.00/person, includes lunch.

Please register at FAMU.Register@gmail.com by March 18, 2010.

Location:   Crescent Moon Organic Farm, 145 Crescent Moon Trail,  Sopchoppy, FL 

We'll be a Lake Ella today with some tasty samples. Goat sausage and something with lamb but I haven't decided what just yet.

This Saturday, March 6, will be our first time at the Farmers Downtown Market Place in Tallahassee. Look for it at Ponce de'Leon Park between Monroe and Adams.

It's supposed to be getting warmer by then.

From frig packing boxes to fine art by Melinda Copper. And I helped!

Greetings from California,

I have food on my mind this morning, so I thought I would mention the results of my experiment with diatomaceous earth (DE).

Bobbie and Fred keep food-grade DE at the ranch, mostly for organic pest control and to sell. As I was researching DE to add a page to the website, I discovered that people can use, too, for intestinal health. Last time I was in Florida, I wanted to bring some of the ranch's DE back with me. Mom and Charles were just too worried that I would be arrested for drugs or explosives if it was found on the plane. So we agreed they would mail some to me.

I've been putting a tablespoon of DE in my grapefruit juice in the mornings for months now and have been carefully monitoring my body's response. I can safely say that it hasn't done me any harm. Can't say it's changed me in any physical way, though. What it has done is caused me to think fondly of Mom, Dad, Charles and the ranch every time I mix some DE into my juice.

Bye for now,

Christine

Well, as Bobbie says, it looks like every... uh, "undesirable" in the world has found our guestbook. So we're deleting it. People can still join up to be a member although we will be limiting it to people with a legitimate interest in the goings on of the farm.

I've been posting more often to my rural living site, www.SunhouseCA.net, if any of you want to see how things are in California. Have I mentioned my web and graphic design business is up and running. Go to www.CLGolden.net for a look at that site.

My brother, Phillip Alan, is at the farm until the 12th. They are going to ditch witch and lay pipe for the troughs this weekend. Dad, Chuck, Ken, Phil and Bobbie will be entertaining a group from east Florida that want to know about the processing business and raising lamb and goat.

That's all for now. Let us know how you are doing with your comments.

The newest little mixed breed goat kids will be weaned and are going to a new home March 1, 2010, as treasured pets for a couple living in the Panhandle of Florida.  The kids job will be to browse and clear a patch of their pasture.  Hmmm, that's good eating!  They will also be required to frolic and play for the joy and entertainment their new owners.

Two of the puppies are now with their new owners.  One will be a 'guardian' dog for goats.  The other will be an outside pet with the responsibility of keeping watch over the property for their owners   We expect to keep one of the little girls for our own use to keep the fox away from the chickens.  So that means, just two to go.

I've been trying to figure out how to work the Guestbook and Membership applications for this website. If I have been inconsistent and confusing to any of you, please forgive me. The Membership section started only because we wanted to receive Guestbook comments and Webs.com automatically sends invitations for people to become members when they comment.

There's not many of us members, and we don't have a steady stream of conversation. I know at least one Member who just wanted to receive regular updates for the Blog. Now that I've been able to find the RSS feed, people don't have to become members to keep up with Blog postings.

My question now is how we can best use the membership section for our visitors and ourselves. What can we offer members that we don't automatically supply to anyone who wants to visit the site?

If any of you have suggestions, please let us know.

I hope 2010 is being good to you all so far.

Christine

Six new goats were born in these last couple weeks. We've named them all "uh-oh." We found the escaped Nigerian buck in with the registered Myotonic females last July 28. They are all really cute and should stay reasonably small and may be more docile than Nigerians. Nigerians are not a large goat but they are a little ornery, the Dad being a case in point.

None are showing the myotonic gene at this point. We have asked the grandchildren to be sure to play with them so they will make good "spoiled" pets.

There are six of them altogether and they will be ready for sale in March 2010. You can see more photos on the Livestock Page. Triplets (2 male, 1 female) were born Dec 23rd, twin doelings were born Dec 30th and a single black female was born on Christmas Day. The female's mother Tonks is letting one of the triplets nurse with her. This is highly unusual but the triplet's Mom surely appreciates the relief.

The puppies are six weeks old and are so-o-o cute!

The puppies' eyes are open and they are beginning to move around and are interested in puppy food.  They are sheltered with Dam Gracie and Sire Siggy in a goat pasture.  Both parents are good guardians of the goats but would adapt to sheep easily.

The male weighed 5.5 pounds and has badger markings. He's already spoken for. Two of the females weighed 5.5 pounds and two weighed 4.5 pounds. One has badger markings the others are all white.