Being on the road for 5 months doesn't really help anything on the farm...Luckily I was able to come home in between a few times and get some of the stuff taken care of at the exact critical times...Irrigation being one of those things.
It's like Sharon said, I have learned more about irrigation then I ever thought...line pressure, pump horsepower, buying used hoses...I suppose if we grew up farmers than that would all be second nature, but we learned all our irrigation on high pressure city water and tiny lot irrigation, so the curve was steep, but I think we are on it now.
Irrigation is frustrating! We have 3 different pumps that run at different times and they are all different horsepower! This leads to lots of valves and line changes and what not because i can't have all my drip on at once one day then the next I can.
That said we have had a little bit of a slow start to our gardens. The cut flowers are slow coming up and the shear size of a one acre garden is daunting to put it mildly.
The weeding is insane. Even with the irrigation problems the weeds are growing like gangbusters! I rototill, once a week in between the rows and I have 3 chicken tractors that I pull down between the rows as well. I think if I build another 3 chicken tractors, I could weed all the rows and stay in front of the weeds. But this year is the experiment, anyway. I'm not sure how the nitrogen content of chicken the poop is going to affect the rows, it seems like it's far enough away that it's not a direct burn to the plants, but time will tell. 
We have a new addition to the farm, he's a fluffy boingy, bitey little monster named Radar. He is a chew monster, but he is also really smart! He already knows how to herd the ducks, and we are thinking we may put him into herding class! He is Sterling best buddy and Laird' s too!
Sharon has been hard at work trying to manage the farm, 4H, the boys and having a farm stand at the market every saturday! She's a trooper, and I am so proud of her! A little relief from the grind for her, and good news is that Nash's, the organic grocery store down the road, is buying all of our eggs now! It is so exciting to see progress on the farm! Now the quails and chickens are paying for themselves with a little bonus. I am hoping we can figure out to do with all the cut flowers now, since we won't be at the market anymore, maybe we will just have a ton of beautiful bouquets around! HA!
On the hunting and gathering side, we are now gathering herbs and plants from the woods using a few different book resources, and we all have our fishing licenses, so now we have been clamming a few times and today was our first crabbing adventure. Sterling got a huge horse clam, and we got 2 rock crabs that were keeper's. 
The woods are getting cleared a bit and I have been helping log with my Uncles workers and learning a lot about land management. The property is in a constant state of change, we are either mining, logging , farming, or dealing with wildlife and habitat stuff like the pond and creek. It is really rewarding and I am learning a ton. Our vision of the retreat and recreational space is a long way off , but I have a lot to learn in the time being and everything I learn is going toward that vision, so I must keep on even though it feels like things are going slow sometimes.
It's been an awesome July and I am so happy to be home and getting to show Sterling how much there is to do around here! He has been a great help and he loves going on adventures on the acreage with me! Laird is a character and turns 2 tomorrow! I can't even believe it....
I keep on keeping on, and I hope you do too!
Much love and wishes of happiness!
The Rowlands
The Rowlands
