It’s that time when we turn our attention each year to the goals we set for the past year.

It’s our first Christmas in the lodge, and as every homeowner does with a new home, the Farmer-in-Chief is eager for her friends and family to see it.

As we adjust to the reality that our nation might actually choose to go over the “fiscal cliff,” Amanda and I ponder the steps we’re taking to make ourselves more resilient and less subject to the money economy.

Please note that none of the information I’m sharing with you here is backed by research. We hope and expect agricultural researchers to explore this and other techniques for coping with climate change, but it’s happening so fast now that research is running behind and having to play catch-up.

It’s December in Elmore County, and the weather is delightful. Way too delightful if you ask us. We’re seeing budding of the fruit trees, and one of our poor LSU Blacks has actually produced a December fig. That can’t be good, of course, because we know it’s just a matter […]

Our primary goal this fall (well, primary after the time-consuming task of managing the massive injury of my left arm) has been to complete the conversion of Veg Hill to raised beds. It’s the initiative we’ve taken to calling Veg Hill 2.0.

It’s that time again, when we pause to express our thanks for all our many blessings. By now you know the drill, so there’s not much more we need to say.

Last week we talked about direct solar energy – things like using the heat of the sun to heat our home, to cook, and to dry our clothes. This week we shift our focus to indirect solar.

We’re talking regularly with others these days – almost daily – about how we’ve designed our lives at Longleaf Breeze. By far the most frequent question is “Do you have solar panels?”

We’re enjoying our first fires of the season, and they have us feeling warm and cozy. When we talk about how much we enjoy heating with wood, though, our friends raise all kinds of objections.