by admin | Mar 22, 2013 | Acorn Lane Farm, Boone's Blog Contributors, General Info, Green Team, Matt Gardiner, sustainability, Uncategorized
OK…this is getting a little ridiculous! How many have you heard, “Hey Honey, the pet(s) need food” one time or another? In our house that is getting to be quite a common (and frequent) thing to hear now that Acorn Lane Farm Petting Zoo, which is our backyard, has grown more than we realized. It’s funny how things slip up on you and then it takes one moment of looking at things differently to realize how big something has gotten. I had just one of those moments tonight when I went out to feed our animals. We usually run out of food for the animals at different times, therefore it tempers for us how much food we really go thru at a time with this new petting zoo venture of ours. However today almost every species of animal (almost all) on our little micro farm needed food. Hope went to our local feed store in Crestwood, Crestwood Feed and Seed, and picked everything up. I had a late meeting tonight but I texted Hope and told her that I would feed when I got home, since she had the kids. She told me that the food was in the back of her Explorer. After unloading, and carrying 7 bags of feed ( 350 pounds) back to our storage area I looked at it all and said to myself, “OK this is getting ridiculous and a little out of control!” I guess that is what we get for having Chickens, Goats, Alpacas, Guineas, Ducks, Geese, Pigs, Horse and miniature Donkeys. And that’s not counting the Dog, Bees, Cats, Rabbits (currently 9 are in cages in our house, more about that at a later date) and Fish on the property! But you know what, I wouldn’t trade it for all the world. We are having so much fun and cannot wait for all of our friends to come out this spring and see all of the madness we have been up to!!
Here is all of the food that was in the back of the Explorer.
by admin | Mar 20, 2013 | Boone's Blog Contributors, Build, Design, Design Team, Landscaping, Matt Gardiner, Sustain, Uncategorized
Here are some really cool design concepts for a commercial project that we are working on for a really good client. These are just the rough concepts but really give an idea of how creative our designers are with a project. These are 4 ideas for the same front entrance, and each one is completely different. Holly Smith and Brad Bard collaborated on these designs. Just wait to see the final design and the actual project installed.
by admin | Mar 19, 2013 | Acorn Lane Farm, Garden Center, Green Team, Matt Gardiner, sustainability, Uncategorized
We got in some new baby chicks in at Acorn Lane Farm this week. Our friend Ellen in Versailles wanted to get some more chickens for her property so we split a shipment of chicks with her, well we got 18, and she got 10. If you have never experienced how they ship chicks, it is quite an amazing thing. They ship day old chicks from the hatchery via US mail in a small box, as in 12” x14” and 28 baby chicks fit in there comfortably! Ellen was getting them up to size and had a great setup in her house. She took a guest bathroom and put the baby chicks in a walk-in glass shower, with the heat lamps and everything. They have grown quickly and Ellen was ready to get them out of the house, because as Hope and I can tell you, they create quite a mess. With our current resident 24 hens and 2 roosters, we raised them in a homemade brooder box in our basement of our old house. The funny thing was our old house was in a subdivision and if the Homeowners Association knew about the chickens, I am sure that they would have freaked out!
So Ellen called us and brought our new little guys down the same day. We have a new area for them to roam in but it is a little cold right now for these girls and guys to be out and about. So we have an adorable little wood coop that we set up a heat lamp in and they are staying nice and warm.
Baby chicks checkign out their new home
by admin | Mar 14, 2013 | Acorn Lane Farm, Boone's Blog Contributors, Garden Center, General Info, Matt Gardiner, Uncategorized
The Boone Gardiner Blog is back, Jack! After a two-year sabbatical, we are back. We celebrate our 114th year in business this year and are so excited to share all of the great, new things we have going on. Stay tuned for lots of content and details on our reopening of the retail garden center, our new Acorn Lane Farm and Petting Zoo, gardening and farm lifestyle tips and of course our awesome landscape design/ build projects. Oh, yeah and a new website coming soon. We can’t wait!!
by admin | Apr 21, 2010 | Boone's Blog Contributors, Matt Gardiner, Uncategorized, Vegetable Gardening
This is Earth week. Plant your own vegetable garden at home. Save money while feeding your family, fresh organic produce that doesn’t have to be shipped across the country or overseas. If you don’ have the time for your own vegetable garden support local farmers through Farmer’s Markets or CSAs.
by admin | Apr 16, 2010 | Boone's Blog Contributors, General Info, Matt Gardiner, Rain Barrels, Uncategorized
OK, I hope that this is just a fluke, but with global climate change, it probably isn’t. While it is one of the most beautiful springs we have ever had with the amazing explosion of color all at once, it is also very dry. We are usually complaining about spring being too wet, but that is not the case this year. If we don’t get rain, remember to water your new landscape plantings once a week with a thorough soaking. A thorough soaking is defined as a deep watering of an inch or more. When it is this hot and dry, you may want to do that 2 times a week. . Hand watering is the best way to water and most efficient. Sprinklers and irrigation can easily under or over water. If you do use these methods, it is essential to monitor plants to make sure they are getting the proper amount. Now for annuals flowers, vegetables and seeds you will need to water more frequently and monitor the plants for when they need additional moisture. Plants in containers or with smaller root systems dry out much faster than larger trees and shrubs. If you are thinking of installing an irrigation system, look at drip systems, which are highly efficient and use much less water. Rain barrels are a great way of catching rain water and keeping it to use on your garden. More elaborate irrigation systems can include a gray water catchment, cistern, that can hold large amounts of water and then distribute it through an irrigation system via pumps. Of course one of the best methods for water efficiency is to plant the right plant in the right place and choose plants that are native or adaptable to our area and are drought tolerant.
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