The Great Bug Hunter!
So many things to see today during our field trip and mainly Liam spent it looking for bugs....he's all boy!
Today my church play group went to Geer Crest Farms for a field trip. They are located between Sublimity and Silverton Oregon and was homesteaded by the Geer family that came over on a wagon train in 1847! And it is still owned and operated by the original family making it the only farm of its kind in Oregon. There were baby goats and pigs (which Liam was very upset he could not hold!) and lots of walking and picnicing and a sand box to play in. I missed most of the inside of the 1849 house because a certain little boy was having a horrible time controling his behavior. But what I did see on the inside was amazing! We were able to sample raw goat milk which was soooo cold and refreshing I just had to buy some! I also picked up a dozen eggs. Very expensive but my sister isn't getting enough to keep me in eggs and they beat the store bought ones...even though I only buy the cage free, humanely kept eggs. So, it was a perfect day...it started out quite cool and windy. But warmed up to a comfortable mid 70's. We are supposed to be at 84 one day this week! That is way too warm for me!
So seeing the gardens at this farm made me itch to get going sooner on mine. Craig's vacation is in the middle of the month so that is probably the soonest I will get the rest of the tilling done. But he could surpirse me. One thing that I wasn't expecting at the farm was how the gardens looked. This could just be the first of the season look but they were sort of unkept. Quite a few weeds and not as neat and tidy as I would have expected. They already had peas blooming and a hoop house where they ate greens from all winter long. I would love to have that! Maybe I can convince my sister and brother in law to go in with me on one and put it on their place?! Worth a thought.
Two other very cool things there...there are still a handful of the original pear trees in the orchard that came over the Oregon trail with the family! And they are still producing every year. The other interesting story it about the Riding Whip Tree. Along the driveway is a huge and I mean HUGE cotton wood tree. As the story goes , in 1854 the daughter of the owner had been riding her horse and stopped at that spot and stuck the cotton wood switch into the ground...it sprouted! This is amazing because they told us cotton woods do not normally have a long life span. In the Columbus Day storm the tree was badly damaged, loosing its top half. Recently an arborist checked the tree out and said that there might be 10 more years left for it. For the past 50 some years the rain has slowly been eroding down into the trunk. I am not sure of the date, It was either the 1940's or 1950's but the owner at the time cut off two branches from that tree...one for each daughter and poked them into the ground several feet away. They are now massive trees in their own right! Just so much amazing history we were able to take in today!
Today my church play group went to Geer Crest Farms for a field trip. They are located between Sublimity and Silverton Oregon and was homesteaded by the Geer family that came over on a wagon train in 1847! And it is still owned and operated by the original family making it the only farm of its kind in Oregon. There were baby goats and pigs (which Liam was very upset he could not hold!) and lots of walking and picnicing and a sand box to play in. I missed most of the inside of the 1849 house because a certain little boy was having a horrible time controling his behavior. But what I did see on the inside was amazing! We were able to sample raw goat milk which was soooo cold and refreshing I just had to buy some! I also picked up a dozen eggs. Very expensive but my sister isn't getting enough to keep me in eggs and they beat the store bought ones...even though I only buy the cage free, humanely kept eggs. So, it was a perfect day...it started out quite cool and windy. But warmed up to a comfortable mid 70's. We are supposed to be at 84 one day this week! That is way too warm for me!
So seeing the gardens at this farm made me itch to get going sooner on mine. Craig's vacation is in the middle of the month so that is probably the soonest I will get the rest of the tilling done. But he could surpirse me. One thing that I wasn't expecting at the farm was how the gardens looked. This could just be the first of the season look but they were sort of unkept. Quite a few weeds and not as neat and tidy as I would have expected. They already had peas blooming and a hoop house where they ate greens from all winter long. I would love to have that! Maybe I can convince my sister and brother in law to go in with me on one and put it on their place?! Worth a thought.
Two other very cool things there...there are still a handful of the original pear trees in the orchard that came over the Oregon trail with the family! And they are still producing every year. The other interesting story it about the Riding Whip Tree. Along the driveway is a huge and I mean HUGE cotton wood tree. As the story goes , in 1854 the daughter of the owner had been riding her horse and stopped at that spot and stuck the cotton wood switch into the ground...it sprouted! This is amazing because they told us cotton woods do not normally have a long life span. In the Columbus Day storm the tree was badly damaged, loosing its top half. Recently an arborist checked the tree out and said that there might be 10 more years left for it. For the past 50 some years the rain has slowly been eroding down into the trunk. I am not sure of the date, It was either the 1940's or 1950's but the owner at the time cut off two branches from that tree...one for each daughter and poked them into the ground several feet away. They are now massive trees in their own right! Just so much amazing history we were able to take in today!
This was growing all over at the farm. It is another edible weed. I ate a couple. It has a flavor that starts out possibly like cabbage. Or a mixture of things. It never got spicy or bitter. My sister puts this in her salads. And I have no idea what it is called.
Liam kicking up straw in the goat barn and with one of his favorite people on the planet...Tori.
Seconds after this picture was taken Luke jumped and landed right in front of Liam accidently bumping him. Liam fell backwards to the ground and as he cried and I comforted him one of the milk goats came up and brushed against us. What a sweety she was!
This is some of the group of children he loves to spend time with from our church. They had been out harvesting leeks and were cleaning them. I sure wish the farm would have let each family take one home. But I will just grow my own again this year!
It was a very good day. And I am beat! Have a wonderful evening!
It was a very good day. And I am beat! Have a wonderful evening!