Fall is upon us. The leaves are changing colors and there is a coolness in the morning that reminds us that we are not in Phoenix anymore. We have spent many evenings listening to live music, and back on the homestead we added ducks, processed 250 pounds of chestnuts and are preparing to grow industrial hemp as part of a pilot program with Tennessee State University. Not bad for a month.

Falling into rhythm

During September we celebrated our 18th Anniversary, finally feel like we are getting the hang of it. To celebrate we went to the Fontanel, the home of Country legend Barbara Mandrell. As a family we attended live music each Thursday in Centennial Park. We gathered with friends and strangers alike and listened to great music from dozens of bands including Scott Mulvahill and Penny and Sparrow. In addition to September Sundowns, we joined our friends at LoveGood for an intimate house concert with Janaya Trudel. It ends up that Nashville is a great place for music. Who knew?

Chestnuts, Ducks and Hemp

Chestnuts: One of our biggest projects this past month has been processing hundreds of pounds of chestnuts. How does one process hundreds of pounds of chestnuts without commercial equipment? Answer: Have a large family.

The twins and Dad picked the chestnuts each morning, followed by the other kids each afternoon. The nuts where cut in half, boiled, peeled, and dried. You can eat the nuts raw or roasted, but we are using them for amazing nut flour for baking.

Ducks: Three Peking ducks now share the front yard with the youngins. Pato, Anatra, and Ahiru are being fattened up for thanksgiving. If they go well we will permanently add ducks to the homestead.

Hemp: Once, one the most abundant plants in Tennessee and Kentucky, Hemp (Cannibis Sativa), has been banned for years due to its similarity to it’s drunk cousin (Cannibis Indica). However, due to the increased interest in hemp fiber, hemp paper, and the medicinal properties of its oil, hemp is now a very valuable crop. We have attended classes with the agricultural team at Tennessee State University and will be part of a pilot program growing hemp next year on small piece of our land. More info to come.