The farm's first blog

<-- Kevin brings down the cows to the milk parlor as the morning mist burns off in the 7.30 sun.

It's amazing to reflect on the past 7 months at Raven Ridge Farm! Starting in January, I was milking one cow in the cold of an old 'bacco barn. More cows arrived, and do did Andy McFate and Kevin Lane, a big flock of laying hens, and just last week, Andy's first cow and 11 ducklings.

We've built a milk parlor to gather milk from the herd, destroyed an old house and built a courtyard and planted a nursery of fruit and nut trees in its place. We're working on an addition to the parlor, with insulated strawbale walls, electricity, and space for processing garden goods and milk for butter.

Andy's woodworking craftsmanship shows itself in humble hints, such as the wood hinges on the outhouse door, the nail-less pole-framed tent platform, and the patio roof of our soon-to-be, home-built, wood-fired Lorena stove (more on that later).

Kevin's devotion to the health of the herd, poultry flock and gardens, inspires we 'three farmer friends' to make improvements to the projects we've spun out with enthusiasm, but perhaps not kept up with or completed. His careful nature makes him an important asset to the farm, peacefully tending the plants and animals with a patience older than time. Leave the rushing to me, Kevin can take all the credit for making the farm run smoothly and the chores finished.

<-- the milk parlor in March, gettin' on toward completion. That house with tar-paper walls was torn down and salvaged for wood. Much of it went into the Hen House, which we built spaciously for about 70 hens & ducks for only $ 29 in nails.

More later!