What a spring the bees have been having. After an exceptional winter, with 100% overwinter survival, the honey bees at Green Acres Farm continue to exceed expectations. Or maybe I should say that they have completely disregarded the bee instruction manual. My normal spring routine is to split strong hives in early May, as swarm …
Author Archives: rpgreen61
Broody chicken mistakes
It all started a couple of weeks ago, when one of my hens decided she wanted to be a mother. When a hen’s mothering instinct kicks in, she “goes broody”. A broody chicken wants to sit on eggs, and once she has decided to do so, she can be pretty determined! She leaves the nest …
Swarm season
As we pass through these last crazy days of yo-yoing temperatures, I have been taking advantage of the warm days to assess my beehives. I love being back with the bees. And it is wonderful to find that this year I beat the odds. My honey bees had a great winter. Of my twenty hives, …
What to do about bird flu
I was so excited to be adding ducks this year….. but I have put that plan on hold. You may have heard that a very pathologic strain of bird flu is circulating this year. It is in Michigan, and has been detected in wild birds and in kept flocks, both commercial and backyard. What does …
Please excuse my bees
Boy, am I glad that the silver maple trees decided to start flowering today. Yesterday the temperature hit 65 for the first time this year and the honey bees were out in force, looking for food. It was great to see the bees healthy and vigorous after the winter. Unfortunately, while the bees were out …
Maple Syrup March
Isn’t it funny how certain childhood memories stick with you? Laura Ingalls Wilder’s description of maple sugaring in Little House in the Big Woods has stuck with me since my third grade teacher read the book to my class. I particularly remember the part about cooking the sap down far enough to be able to …
Goat Milking Hugs
Izzie is nearing the end of her first milking cycle. At her peak she was giving us a gallon of milk a day, but that is now down to a quart, and I expect it to continue to decline. Even if she is still producing, in 2 months I will stop taking milk and let …
Snow!
Those of you who have to clear your driveway, scrape off your car, and make your way to work on snowy winter mornings will probably roll your eyes when I say this, but I love the snow. Growing up in Ann Arbor, Michigan, my winters included hours outside playing in the snow. With the freedom …
Field trips and fires
In 1974, when I was a freshman at Pioneer High School and my brother was a sophomore, my mother attended a school board meeting as an observer for The League of Women Voters. She found herself sitting next to Bill Browning, who was the head of the environmental education (EE) program with the Ann Arbor …
More goats????
Although my mom grew up on a small farm outside of Detroit and was returning to her roots when my parents bought Green Acres Farm, I grew up in Ann Arbor, and the closest thing to farming I ever did growing up was help a little with the large garden my mom maintained when I …