Farm prep for Spring during the Winter

As winter is in full force there are a few vegetables growing in pots, chicks slowly growing towards egg laying and the sheep are in their second month of pregnancy, so things are kinda slow.

Which means it is time to assess everything and prep for the spring, in order to try and prevent the rush that happens when the weather changes and everything gets growing, laying, and birthing.

The garden which has been covered for months has been uncovered, only to find it has more green grass in it then the rest of the pastures. Now to wait on the area to dry, as we just had multiple days of rain so everything is soaked, and then the adding of dirt, tilling, and testing of ph and nitrogen to prepare for spring planting. The squash seeds have been started inside and are doing great. Squash and potatoes are the main things that we will be growing this year in the garden. The potatoes are ready to plant once I get their bags filled with dirt. We grow potatoes in old feed bags, starting with the bag fold down and only 1/3 of the bag with dirt then as the potatoes grow dirt is added and the bag is unfolded. This allows the potato to continue to grow and when the bag is full and the plant dies the bag is cut open allowing the harvest of potatoes.

Another task that is done during the winter to in prep for spring at the Muddy Homestead is checking the chicken coops, cleaning them well, and redesigning as needed. This winter we are redoing the rooster and hen coop after changing to Rhode Island Reds as our hatching chickens. The focus on the redesign is to put the egg box closer to the door and add a run in order to allow for more activity for the chickens. Also, one of the hens coops need to be reinforced due to the lambs thinking it was a climbing gym.

The lawn equipment is also one of the items that is assessed during the winter in prep for spring. The lawn mowers are all older so they need a little more attention then the newer ones. The batteries are on a slow charge for a while and then changed to the next lawn mower. The blades are checked and sharped as necessary. Overall this helps to have the lawn mowers ready for use whenever the grass finally gets growing in the spring.

The final tasks that is on the list to be done while it is still cold out in prep for spring is to clean the shed and barn. This is a task that I don't enjoy but it is one that is important in order to keep things in the proper place and working order. It never fails that the item I'm looking for is not where I thought it would be so taking time while things are a bit slower in the winter to clean, straighten, and place in correct location makes the spring easier.

Each home and farm has different tasks that should be done in prep for spring and these are just a few that are on the list to get done in order to make spring more enjoyable. Take some time to think about the areas that you can work on to prep for a better spring and do things a bit differently this year.