Our blog is making the official transition to http://www.hostilevalleyliving.com this week! On Wednesday, I’ll be updating all links and any bookmarks you have saved will redirect to our new website. You can subscribe to the newsletter on the new site to get all of our updates, or book mark us and follow along. Our Facebook … More We’re Moving!
Turmeric’s flavor is most commonly compared to mustard, its growing style is the same as ginger. Though it won’t survive a cold winter, it can be grown indoors in a greenhouse year-round, or outside anywhere that temperatures don’t fall below 65 degrees for most of the year. Like ginger, Turmeric is started from a section of … More Helpful Herbs: Turmeric
Livestock Guardian Dogs are dogs that are specially bred and trained for the protection of farm animals. They help to defend a herd or flock against predators, keeping a constant eye on their charges. We decided to add a LGD to our farm almost immediately, realizing that ducks, geese, chickens, and goats couldn’t be left … More Getting a Livestock Guardian Dog
While the Sugar Maple Tree isn’t exactly a herb, its sweet syrup is a staple feature of every New England spring. Maple trees can be planted on your property, but often you’ll find them already in abundance in wooded areas. Tapping and processing their sap will give you fresh, home made maple syrup. The Sugar … More Helpful Herbs: Sugar Maple
Do you have an excess of eggs this spring? When the weather warms up and sunlight starts to extend later in the day, your hens will begin to ramp up egg production. This time of year, it’s common to get an egg a day from all of your chickens. You’ll find yourself busily searching for recipes … More Creative Uses for Eggs
Bay Laurel can be a 60 foot tall tree in the wilds of our Southern states. But in cooler climates, in culinary gardener’s backyards, it is a fun plant to grow in a container and enjoy in your cooking. And, perhaps surprisingly, it has some great benefits for your health as well. Since Bay Laurel … More Helpful Herbs: Bay Laurel
As part of our wintertime planning, we’re making orders for spring poultry. While adding goats to the farm is going to be a huge focus of our summer, adding new birds is also part of our plan for 2016. In addition to more chickens and geese, we’re going to be getting a quartet of ducklings. … More Adding Ducks, and Other Spring Chicks
The Columbine plant is a hardy wildflower that thrives in cooler climates. Their unique flowers make a beautiful addition to any garden, and they are useful for their healing properties as well. Columbines’ flowers are bell-like and spurred, and their name is Latin for “dove” as the blossoms are said to resemble five doves clustered … More Helpful Herbs: Columbine
When you’ve got livestock, even just chickens and geese, there’s no real off season. Animals require attention year round, 24/7, and even more so when the weather freezes. Nonetheless, winter does allow us to unwind from the tasks of weeding and harvesting in the garden, and having a few hours of the day to … More Wintertime Planning
A hardy perennial with fernlike leaves and clusters of aromatic flowers, Yarrow was is a wild flower with a rich history in healing. The bright flowers of the Yarrow plant make it a pretty feature in any garden, and its resilience makes it easy to grow in many climates. Yarrow is usually started from seed and, since … More Helpful Herbs: Yarrow
Day's Ferry Organics 