Filed under: December 2020 | Tags: Apples, draft horses, Growing up, Small Farming, Suffolk Horses, Suffolk Punch, Suffolk Punch horses
December 15, 2020
The old saying goes; Anyone can count the seeds in an Apple, but only God can count the apples in a seed. That is a profound statement. I believe it to be true. Apply it to daily life. As I look at my young horses, I wonder how they will turn out. I do my best to train and nurture, but things can happen. I hope for the best as I work hard to instill trust and confidence into the young ones. I maintain that level of trust in my broke teams. Patience is not always easy, but it is always necessary.
In the above photo taken of Bree of Riceland being led by our son, I can’t help but be amazed at her growth. Nine months ago, she was a little girl learning to wear a halter and stand tied just a few days after her birth.
She learned to tie and lead very quickly. She has been a challenge at times because of her intelligence. She is a very smart horse who learns quickly. She also tries to outsmart me once in a while. As long as I correct bad behavior quickly, she yields. If I let her do something even twice, then she thinks that she is in charge and never has to do it my way again! She will be a great addition to our working horses because she likes routine. Do it the same every time and she is happy…change things up…not so much!
In this photo, my current main team, Amee and Abby taken when they were young fillies. Their owner at the time Joe Cervanka stands proudly with his “Lakeview” babies. I am sure that he wondered how these girls would turn out and where they would end up. Well Joe, they turned out great and ended up as foundation mares for our breeding program at Riceland Meadows. They are more than that though; they are my partners in powering the farm!
They are a joy to work. They make my farm days fun. I look forward to a bright future working these fine animals. It is my hope to help advance and promote these rare Suffolk horses. The farmers, who for over 400 years, have bred and preserved their fine qualities could obviously see “the apples in the seed”. I am grateful to those visionaries. I hope to continue in their strict adherence to old style qualities, to breed, train and love these great beasts of burden. They deserve every effort that I can manage to give them.
Filed under: November 2020 | Tags: apple crisp, apple pie filling, Apples, applesauce, Blessings, Bounty, Small Farm Kitchen
November 3, 2020
Autumn brings much bounty. The last of the harvest is gathered. I accidently tripped the breaker on our freezer, causing some chicken parts to thaw. We spent a day cooking chicken and making broth. The shredded chicken will be nice too, but I am sure that it wasn’t on my wife’s agenda for that day. Oops!
Our apple order came in last week. We are busy getting them put up. The eating part is wonderful, but I look forward to pies and applesauce. It makes for a few long days in the kitchen, but it is well worth it! I pitch in quite a bit. My wife even praises me, telling me she wonders how she ever got along without me…telling her how to do everything!
The deer are starting to move, as their breeding time is here. Hunting season is in full swing for archery. Hunters are bagging a few. We haven’t been out much, but we hope to get some venison for the freezer this fall.
We had a skiff of snow on the ground yesterday. My great grandpa called it “squaw winter” and now we should get some very nice “Indian summer” days. The days for putting the lawn and porch furniture away, rolling up hoses and tipping unused water troughs over. All in preparation for the coming winter.
We have had a very rainy period. We got 7.25 inches of rain in 15 days. We are wet now for sure. I am glad to have our fall harvest all in. The blessings abound and for that we are thankful.
Filed under: September 2015 | Tags: apple cider, Apples, border planting, chicken yard, cider, hens
Little apple tree…loaded
September 19, 2015
We planted a small orchard three years ago. It still needs lots of growing time, a few replacements and some care. This little tree, however, doesn’t know just how good it is! In this crazy hot summer void of rain, she still made this awesome crop. I asked a friend to mix some apples with these and to please make me some cider. He is somewhat of a cider “king”, so I know that I am in good hands 😮
I want this orchard just for cider, some apples to eat and of course PIE. It will all come in time, but for this year cider only… well okay, I did eat one of these sweet Jonagold apples and it was great. I am hoping for a lifetime supply and if this little tree has anything to do with it, we are well on our way!
Growing fruit trees and edibles in your landscape is a great idea. You get the joy of watching them grow along with the joy of eating the fruits of your labor. We are going to plant two more of these semi dwarf trees in the chicken yard. The trees will provide some shade in time, more apples and the hens can clean up the dropped apples. I think it is a simple way to provide food for us, shade for the hens and a quaint look to the yard.
Think about your own place. Is there room for a raspberry hedge? Or perhaps a couple of apple trees in a forgotten corner or border planting? I don’t spray these trees. I only trim them just a little. They are not much work. They look neat to me and hey, Who doesn’t like sweet cider?
Filed under: November 2013 | Tags: Apple pie, Apples, applesauce, mom's love
A sample of our handiwork
November 3, 2013
  When I was a kid, we had an orchard and I had an awesome mom! The trees belonged to our landlord, but we could have as many as we wanted. Nobody ever trimmed the trees or sprayed them. They just grew all by themselves. There were twenty-two of them … I know, because I had to push mow around them 😮
  In the fall we would pick up the apples. The bad ones went over the fence to the cows. We made cider, apple pie, applesauce, apple jelly and apple butter, with many of the rest of them. I did more eating than making, but I sure did love those apples. I swear, everyday upon getting home from school…there was always apple crisp to eat!
  I miss that old orchard and all of mom’s sweet treats. My wife understands my appreciation for the apple and takes very good care of me. I eat apples all year-long. We can applesauce and apple pie filling, freeze some cider for cold winter nights and hot summer days. Cider is awesome both hot and cold!
  Over the past couple of days we canned our applesauce. It went very well. All of the jars sealed and the mess seemed to me like it was small. I scrubbed the roaster pans, hauled empty jars up and full jars down to the pantry and helped everywhere that I could. Like any job, teamwork makes it go much better. I am pleased that this job is behind us, but even more pleased that we have the yummy jars to eat all winter and until next apple season.
  My cousin and I learned to take a springy stick about two feet long, stick an apple on the end, and launch those suckers into space! Man they went far…and oh did it hurt when we would throw them at each other. Those sticks were not toys, they were weapons of war! We survived it I guess and I still love apples, so our mischief had no lasting effects.
   They say that,” An apple a day helps keep the doctor away.” I am not sure that statement is totally true. I know that apples are healthy but I think it’s all the love that grammas, moms and wives put in, that holds the true benefit 😮
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