open house yockey farms 2013. 

        as far as i know a good time was had by all who attended the open house here at yockey farms. we had   it o a Saturday on may 18 th of this year. a hay ride and a raffle of a bear i am yet to carve was offered for free as well as free plants to all who attended. neighbors mark and sheila miskimmens, were awarded the yet to be carved bear i should soon start on. 

         i know i said i would carve on the open house date and attempted to do so. but the heat and my lack of saw preparation , prevented me from doing so. i kind of let everyone down. sorry but as i have said it is currently a one man operation and it was all i could do to just make the open house as nice as it was. never again will i allow myself to be extended that far that i was unable to accomplish what i said. 

       this has all been a journey for me over the last year and quite a learning experiment for me and some that  have helped me. a major goal was achieved by just being open this spring. at this time last year i was tearing down the greenhouse from where i had bought it at canton south garden center when it went up for auction. two new ends and moving it to the farm and re-erecting it as well as stocking it in one year and having product to sell from the middle of nowhere, is one major goal accomplished . also during this time i cant say how many posts on here i have contributed toward my goal on this blog.

       as usual this is never enough as the bar goes higher as i knock off another goal. and of course part of what i have done is only accomplished through the help of others.my thanks to all and you know who you are.   having accomplished the goal of opening the greenhouse i need to focus on a direction for it to go in the next couple of years. i am a hobbyist gardener at best and hardly know all there is to know and would work best in a supportive role to move this project where it needs to go. at times i am stretched so thin that i can hardly do a half good job of all attempted. this is not me and i would like to change this. i need to find someone to take over the greenhouse operations. 

      my arbor day tree sale was a real success, and i was able to sell all but about 40 of the 400 trees i bought last year. i need to expand on that this year. i feel there is a niche here to sell trees in the sizes i offer at  a discount and at the same time assure that the livability rate of the trees are greatly enhanced by potting and holding for one year before planting. this years plantings include hardwoods and edible fruit trees, shrubs, and arbor vitae grown from seedlings. presently weeds seem to have an upper hand in my management decisions. this i one thing i need to change. 

      been thinking of advertising for a person to be responsible for running the greenhouse. at best it is a part time position to start. i would have to negotiate a percentage of net profit as wages earned. it is impossible of me to think about doing all this by myself. this would be an excellent opportunity for a person interested in greenhouse management to take charge and assume responsibility. we would be responsible for the hating / cooling and mechanical as well as the supply side of the greenhouse operation. the trees do not necessarily need to be in the greenhouse and so this would  be an opportunity to plan on filling the greenhouse with sell-able product. at 28x48 feet ,and being a semi round type greenhouse . it is fairly sizable with good plastic still rated for 3 years before replacement. we have 2 wells and and it has a retention pond designed to be used as a water feature and as a source of backup water. we are able to source materials in bulk and delivered to the greenhouse, saving a considerable amount of money. as with most business deals complete specifications would be backed in writing with a signed contract. this protects both parties. i am still thinking as to what direction i should go. i just know i would not b able to do justice to all and make the business grow without some help. i would like to be carving the bear and not worrying about any of this. but i also have hay to make for the cows, and a log cabin to build and a couple of carving appointments. wow i make myself tired just thinking of all. so shedding some may be in my best interest. 

       lately i have been of the notion to find some peace in my soul to become settled in my mental state. to do those things i was intended to do, to work my artistic side and be creative. this is what i have always wanted to do.i owe some people and have been working at making amends to those people i have wronged in life and now it is time for me. some who have followed me over time could possibly say that i have always done what i wanted. and to this i say ptui...i have hardly said or done half of what i always wanted to do but instead have been at the bidding of others. for this reason or another, others in my life have been the beneficiaries of my time. i gave and i have gave till i don't know if i want to give any more. currently i have just myself and one other person who would have a say in all i do, and doubt that would be my mom as i love her much but i still feel it is time for me and another person i care about to make some sort of  life together despite all of our differences. this is a plan and always subject to change. my life has been changing quite a bit over the years. 

     i guess i would just like to try some new things i have always wanted to try. i also want to do it before i am to old to even think about trying. another goal i have met recently was to lose weight and so far have lost 27 pounds and this as well as lifestyle changes , have maybe given me another 10 years i hope.  just cant waste no time doing the wrong thing and feel having someone in my life is an important part of it all. 

      so for all the bad i did by not carving on the open house i have secretly tilted the goal meter deeply towards the good i have accomplished. the goals i have achieved and the residual knowledge one gains when working and thinking in realms he has only touched before. it is all good when you try to accomplish something. pessimism and dark thoughts yield very little to an open mind. i am glad to be a free thinker.  

      the boat i had carved for a party before, and the ducks, had the better of the pansies both times . was beautiful while it lasted. i love to watch the empty boat being carried by the wind on its tethered course.

    the hay ride was fun and mom was able to ride to the top of the farm where eagles fear to tread. well maybe not that high but it is a ways up there and what a view. on a clear day you can see 2 landfills and a strip mine . we all had a fun time. hope to see you next year.

bigger fish to fry

          this was an apple tree that had taken over the pond on the other side of the hill . i was cleaning out the pond and it was in my road , but i did manage to salvage the log for a carving and it is still attached to the root it was carved on at the edge of the pond. as with all my carvings it needs attention something i seem to have so little time to pay to details such as this . so the list accumulates 

        a  neighbor down the street has every blade of grass waving in unison and at the correct height so his lawn shimmers  under shining sun. all his shrubs are trimmed in a precise manner, i actually think he counts the leaves on each bush \so to make sure that all his property is in balance.  . for fun he rips up his driveway and lays asphalt where the concrete used to be. he has to look for things to do around his house . i wonder just where and when did he get all this energy to do lifes bidding and more. i can hardly get one or two projects done right, let alone the multitude  of projects he attempts and he is one year younger , it is almost sickening to drive past his pl;ace and not find anything wrong. 

        one reason and a major reason he is able to be on top of things is that his place is small and he has been there forever. myself in contrast have been in and out of this area , and at no time was i the only one making decisions on the farm. this makes a big difference  as were not allowed to do this or that because of one reason or another. so we had to just go with the flow. 

      mr perfect also had a good job, while i in contrast spent more than my fair share on unemployment line as they used to call it when everyone had to report. when i was making good money , it would come in dribbles and drabs and only long enough for you to maybe see some light. i worked in construction where the norm is to be laid off at times. and when i was busy  i was working to much to  worry about farming and again i didn't have a place of my own to farm or equipment to do it. . so i was in a sort of limbo and it was during this time of living alone and working on projects was i able to slowly achieve some order to my life. 

         mr perfect had  2.2 kids and one was a female and one male and raised them, with his wife's help through graduation, and college to find them moving on to their own life. and  mr perfect began his further obsession with being perfect as he had plenty of time now that the kids were grown to become more perfect. it was a hard concept for someone who knows he is already perfect to admit defeat and say yes the bar needs to raise higher. trees were removed from the front yard. majestic beauties towering and full, partially hiding his front porch and casting shadows on his yard affecting the quality of the grass,  as grass doesn't do well in shade. his projects seemed to have urgency as he was getting older and they  needed to be finalized before he might pass away. 

         we talk on occasion , and wave on a regular basis as neighbors do. it doesn't stop me from envying his life to an extent. it was as if someone had mapped out his life . he never strayed and probably goes to church also. something i would have to do to say anything about one way or another just as i couldn't prove he goes to church. he  just seems the type. raised his kids payed his taxes , and yet i envy normal. 

  

         i don't know whether i envy him or his lifestyle of having everything fit into a plan so nice and neat. to so the same thing year after year.it is at this point i start to scare myself as i start to think about how emotional he must get when something comes up that didn't fit into the plan as it commonly does in my life. to never get a job done such as farming as it is never ending , must scare the hell out of someone that is perfect. me i just try to take it in stride. you cant tell a cow when t have a calf or let alone where. i had a calf  born in a snow storm and it had froze before the mother had it cleaned. it wasn't in my plan to have it that way, but it happened. i just dragged the calf to the side of the field and buried it . what could i do? 

      i struggle daily to find my purpose in life. i imagine mr. perfect already knows what that is. i long for more comforting times and less toil. to find times to just enjoy life and my partner in crime. hoping in the end that my life will be full . and in some ways it is already. i have spent my time in the trenches and know what the true meaning of nothing means. so to have some something makes me appreciate more. 

       i also don't know if my life was so mapped out as some are, would i be the same person i am today? and i can answer that an unequivocally no.  i would not be the same person. my path would have been a lot different as well as my experiences. i think too that one becomes sheltered and mislead when living in a cocoon all the time. that you never reach your full potential as a human being, and that adversity as bad as it is rewards us with an experience that draws us together as a family in ways not really understood or appreciated. it is same way disaster victims tend to bond together after a major tragedy. as they all have a similar story to tell and remember. 

        but day after day of relentless struggle to keep moving and pushing myself to my potential has left me drained and wanting at times for a simpler life like mr . perfect has. but it is also at these times i must search my self for a deeper meaning to life and understand , that it was never in my nature to be anything but who i am now. and if that means struggling then so be it. it still doesn't stop me from checking out his lawn for that errant swatch of grass that would give me an oh yeah type of moment where i finally realize he is like me , and maybe not so perfect after all. 

        i have tried over the last year to do my best at this greenhouse project, at times investing labor ad cash and time i can never replace to make it happen. it will tomorrow if all goes well and even if it doesn't , i will take in stride as i usually do. all i really want is a camaraderie of friends and strangers and family to come together and have a good time. to understand that i will be here and if you want something special grown out , i have the facility to make it happen. i will continue to improve  these facilities,with future plans already in place of where i want this to go. but i intend to make the open house a moment of reflection and appreciation for those i hold dearly on a yearly basis. a time to come together and have fun , and enjoy each others company. maybe learn something new. buy if want , but most all have a good time.  

the 2nd cabin here on the farm. 

     this is the second cabin here on the farm as the 1st is the main house mom lives in. in 1943 it was the only house back in here when grandpa and grandma first looked at the property. the original house was much smaller by about half what it is today and the basement consisted of a whole dug in the ground and there was an  old coal furnace standing in a about a foot of water.a small shed was attached to the front porch ad i believe someone used to sleep in it. the lane was thick from brambles that would scratch the sides of the vehicle as you drove in or out. they paid 1800 for it when they bought it. mom said she had never seen so much cash at that time. today it wouldn't even be considered a good down payment. but at that time it was a lot more money than most people had, work was plentiful as the war effort was on but there really was nothing to spend it on as everything was rationed. 

      so grandma being a real penny pincher managed to tuck away enough to buy this farm of 40 acres. grandpa set about building the house that partially houses me called the little house and little it was 4 rooms and outside toilet. it had no running water as there was no electric back here yet , wire was in short supply due to the war effort. so it was candle light and carrying water from the spring that feeds the pond we have today. they lived in the little house till grandpa could remodel the main house. when world war 2 was over it wasnt long before electricity was installed .wharton electric wired the house and the old log cabin finally leapt into the 20 th century. 

        it is amazing how we take a simple thing like electricity for granted. they  now had electric for a water pump and had my uncle orpha come up and drill a water well we still use today. grandpa and grandma worked as much as they could, so there was little time to do anything , but grandpa would find time and he built a barn and a corn crib . it was about this time he bought a new tractor a ford ferguson. a small but dependable tractor that was a big plus  to farming. at some point land was becoming available in large tracts with suitable barns and houses. 

        not quite sure if it was the muskingum conservancy district or a government agency similar that offered up the land behind dover dam for sale at auction . it was about 1955 when this happened and the piece of ground grandpa was interested in was our other farm. the house had been moved but the barn had not. it was necessary to move the barn or tear it down as it was in a flood zone and we had one year to move it and grandpa did and it still stands today. 

       again this farm was put on hold as grandpa set up frming at the other farm .  until mom met my step dad and married him in 1963 and then we as a family moved into the vacant house here on this farm. then  grandpa and grandma eventually moved into our house on the other farm. when we moved back into this farm  i can remember everything being grown up and spending days pruning saplings out of the fields especially crabapples and briar vines well over 10 feet high were the norm. the house was quite cozy in a grove of trees and the backyard was a hill out of the kitchen . soon dad would bring in equipment borrowed of beaver excavating  and  set about making the yard as it is today. 

       the original old cabin does date back to the early 1800's around 1825 when the deed to the property mentions a cabin as part of the description of property. originally the property was a land grant to a revolutionary war veteran as compensation for being involved in the war effort. . this cabin i am building  is going to be built with pieces parts of old barns that used to exist around here and may contain parts of the barn next door that is nothing but a memory as many have fallen. 

       lucy took the pics of babe and her darn wood she leaves me in the yard. mom calls them her babies as she carts them around protecting them. and chewing on them when frustrated . i was showing lucy where i was placing the cabin above the spring and we were sitting on the stones of the foundation when the cattle come up to us and started crowding around. some wanting petting and some were curious . at one point while talking to lucy i totally left my guard down and allowed the bull in  an open pasture get close enough to my back while being seated to smell my shirt which made me jump up and chase him off. he is a friendly bull but unfortunately to many friendly bulls have killed farmers or maimed them over the years. never again will i allow that to happen as once before i was to friendly with a bull and nearly cost my life. lucy was unaware the extent of danger we were in , but rest assured i shall never let her be in that situation again. thankfully he is still scared of me and maybe now more than ever. but this did allow me some great closeups of everything but the bull.

    and here is obama at a safe distance looking all sullen and rejected as i wont play with him. to bad. 

mudder and trouble

       mudder having been born in a mud puddle and the older and i wouldn't say wiser, but definitely more ornery than trouble who also is aptly named, were caught the other day red handed or black hoofed so to speak. a low place where the terrain dips and exposes a high electric fence affords mudder and trouble the freedom to explore my yard and in turn the back of my greenhouse. the slightest hint of anything and they slip back into the fence seemingly undetected, leaving behind a trail of destruction and mayhem . 

       recently i had spent time placing some older arbor vitae in an area back of the greenhouse and had the plants all set up and heeled in real nice. i topped off the top  of the pots with more soil as i had recently transplanted them and since i was handling them took full advantage of getting them into shape. shaping the tops with shears and weeding as necessary. an unusually windy day after i had placed them there , let me find them in the morning all scattered about , but in an unusual way as it didn't look like wind as i had originally thought but instead one was going this way , and another the other way. thinking at the time if this was wind it sure was a twirling around. i sat them up and straightened everything up and went on about  my business. the next morning i again found the arbor vitae west hell and crooked as the term goes. and then i started looking for another culprit to my vandalism problems , as there had been no wind the previous evening. 

       it was as i was standing there straightening them up again i noticed that mudder and trouble who at this time was called shithead, as i call; any unnamed animal i am fond of, but just haven't settled on a name yet. well mudder was giving me the old evil eye as i grumbled about what was going on , and it was at this point she dropped tit and stared and then walked to the other side of her mother , as if to hide. up the hill i could see shithead or the future trouble as it is cleaner to say than shithead, looking down at me glaring also as if i was taking all the fun away and then it came to me what  they were doing . and it was then i looked at the ground and noticed the hoof prints as if bambi had been stalking me from behind the greenhouse. i looked up the hill again and said to shithead , you are nothing but trouble and thought to myself what an appropriate name. he too had found a tit but gladly looked down the hill at the mere mention of his new name . 

       since  accusing them and finding them out things have been pretty good but today with an added twist i actually caught them in the act of being on the wrong side of the fence again as i came out of the greenhouse to find both of them chewing on a pile of cardboard boxes as if it was their last meal. the door slamming spooked trouble who scurried back under the fence arching his back downward to assure he didnt touch the wire which was electric. whereupon he he returned to the safety of his mother who seemed , at best unconcerned by the going ons. 

         yet defiantly this time mudder refused to give ground and steadfastly reserved her right to stand and eat cardboard as she pleased , till she saw babe behind  me and figured she too had better return to the safety of the fence. and off she went as she to ducked behind the fence to supposed safety, looking back as if to say you are not any fun. but then again neither is picking up after them. 

         i have just been to busy to give much thought to fixing the fence as it is low on my list of priorities , but assure you it will move higher if they persist . now it is just a novelty to watch them have fun in their cow ways and think they are getting one over on me. 

         today was a step closer to the open house as preparations continue. i was able to set the front stones of the log cabin and unload the logs in the location i selected. also i spent time straightening the office area and absorbing the overflow of pots we have. 

going green and what does it mean? 

        it is nearly impossible to go anywhere or do anything in your life at our present time without being dependent to some extent on non renewable resources like coal and oil. they are at the backbone of our economy, fueling the trucks that bring you food from the fields of mexico to the grocer up the street. mechanical harvesters serve up dinner while consuming diesel fuel in their engines to keep them running. electricity to man the water pumps to cleanse your food of herbicides and pesticides designed to provide you with cleaner bug free vegetables are all based on petrochemicals produced in energy consuming chemical plants.and we do this just to eat , let alone what we use to heat our homes drive our kids to soccer, or to take that long soaking warm bath to ease away the wolds pain. 

       we have reached a new milestone in co2 emissions and it is said that the earth has never experienced a similar event for at least 250000 years. thats a long time and even though  republicans tend to believe we can go on indefinitely utilizing our fossil fuel resources , it makes one wonder what the implications of burning so much fossil fuel is doing to our planet . no resource is inexhaustible and even our sun has a limit on how much it can take before the lights go out. it too can perish as it has set limits on how much fuel is available. best estimates is that it should last another million years or so. we have a lot less fossil fuels than that , which are becoming increasingly more costly to extract and polluting millions of gallons of freshwater to extract these resources or devastating huge swaths of co2 dependant plants to achieve their goals of making us dependent on industry to provide us with our basic needs. it is like the dog chasing his tail, we will never be free of fossil fuels until the profit is drove out of the business, greed will always make that muscle car and monster truck fascinating to some. they are a reflection of what we have become as a race. that is the human race. 

      set aside our consumer mind and look at what it is doing to our environment and realize that humans are the only animal that pays to exist on earth. some people live on pennies a day and some for a lot more, and this has cost us as we enjoy the creature comforts of electricity, running water, and heat to the extent, we have as a human race altered our environment here on earth. we are moving into a gray area where we are melting our ice caps and raising our sea levels , and affecting the habitat of thousands of animals as they seek to adjust to our race. yet we can not take care of own , let alone the animals of the world and still we go on plundering our resources and  feeling the pulse of our planet reacting to environmental disaster after another , rather than preventing it.

      and how do we prevent environmental disasters such as global warming? by taking action and being aware even on a small scale , just how much we do waste of our resources to date. sitting in the mc donalds drive thru line waiting to purchase i thought as nice as this is , it could be better as they could take your order and then let you proceed to the parking lot and wait for your order to be ready , and allow you to turn off your vehicle for even 5 minutes and considering all the mc donalds in the nation and the world with a \drive thru business being a major part of their business this could result in saving a lot of fossil fuel. simple things as they are make a difference. whether it is feasible , doubt it as to many consumers whine about sitting and waiting and doubt they would turn off their vehicle but it is an option as we have many other options as long as we act on something.in retrospect,  in some ways sonic is already doing this and we have done it before with the old root beer stands and the car hops. they used to bring the food to your car as you would wait and listen to the music. 

       solar panels where you can , planning your trips and multi - tasking as much as possible reduces energy dependence  but as an individual it is going to be hard to impact the price of fossil fuels or reduce the acreage of trees to be devastated for coal production, but as a race , the human race, we begin to act as one. as each individual's mindset turns to energy saving and we begin to turn the tide of consumerism in favor of energy independence and when we  take the profit out of energy production  will we see a better environment. greed is based on supply and demand , and the greedy in our society would turn to other vices to satisfy their desire to control. if we were all for energy dependence and clean living then it will probably result in someone taking over our food supply. greedy people and corporations like you to be dependent on them and could care less about our environment as long as profit is king. our goal should be to make corporations be at our bidding and not theirs. 

        we need to start recycling and we need to become more aware of our resources and how fragile something as simple as the air we breathe can be affected by our use of creature comforts we need or think we need to exist.  you are an advocate if you have read what i wrote thus  far. and you need to do more , read more. don't just take my word for anything . there are a lot of people preaching the same thing and for good reason. read, be active. and plant a tree for  this world of ours, and  our other animals we share it with.

           get your trees at my new greenhouse or buy from someone else or grow your own . will show you how. maybe you might be better at it than i am. anyhow my crew made significant progress yesterday as i finalize the look inside the greenhouse for saturday's grand opening. 

the pots are gone. 

          

          well i managed to move the flower pots out of the greenhouse to maximize space for plants . cleaned a bunch of pots of weeds and generally just spent time trying to catch up on all the things i couldn't do by myself and give myself a jump start to next weekends grand opening. i have  pots of all sizes up  to mammoth ones for really large trees that would require a tractor or a forklift to move around. anything or size you would like in black pot sizes. have a few hanging baskets available also.

         i would like to thank those who have helped me get this far, and first is james , he was there when we  tore it down and rebuilt and put up with my oh so pleasant attitude. i hope you learned a few things from the experience.my brother Jim also deserves a big thank you as he was there also, when i took the greenhouse down and when we put the plastic back on . my nephew roger was also a big help. next would be lucy who i so hoped would be here on open house day , but may not be for personal reasons. she helped me plant , gave me inspiration to move on with this project and someone i enjoyed spending time with. kathy also provided me with flowers and cuttings and i also enjoyed her enthusiasm about gardening and wish her the best. janet showed up today and helped with weeding of the pots and we had a nice visit. thanks all for being a friend and helping out and hope all can make it to the open house.and of course mom of whom i couldn't forget on mothers day.

       she has been there from the beginning when i purchased it at auction and has backed me all the way. today we were able to get mom to the greenhouse and she planted tomatoes for me. she seemed to enjoy being able to help out . will be looking forward to her being able to be outside on open house day and enjoy the company we will have. expect family and friends and strangers who will be friends soon i hope. 

       i have a variety of plants and if i don't have what you want will try and find it. just let me know what you are looking for. if it i a shrub or a perennial and is just a cutting will grow it out in the quantity you like. i tried to provide a variety of vegetable plants , and will have tomatoes , green peppers , banana peppers, cabbages , Brussel sprouts, broccoli, egg plant , lettuce in head variety, and plenty of cabbages. i also have arbor vitae and , a variety of hardwood an pine varieties. will be trying sequoia trees as i have one ordered and have seen them growing at oardc with success. if you are interested in any let me know and i can order most trees and grow them from bare root size to a size that should guarantee success. if not just bring the tree back. like to see you lug in that sequoia after a couple hundred years. i digress , but come and look and just enjoy the day . take a walk , check out the pond and my carvings. but mostly just enjoy life. 

        again thanks to all my help and hope to see you there as you were part of this also. thanks for sharing. 

        finally found a place to rest these pots. moved them 3-4 times. 

well the hired help has been busy. 

      preparations for the first yockey greenhouse open house are well under way. i have kept my crew busy trying to finish grading the retention pond area, and planting bulbs as well as sunflowers on the dike and wild flowers will adorn the dike later this summer . we have cleaned out the office building and have been moving pots to their new storage area and in general trying to pull everything together.still have to weed pots and deadhead as blooms are at their peak in the greenhouse now. 

      new water retention pond will allow me to utilize runoff water to water plants during drought conditions. we will use a storage tank at upper end of complex  to store water and meter it out in drip lines to pots out side. or to use as a waterfall feature. was going to use a layer of plastic to seal thew bottom but the clay soil in this area seems to be ideal for a pond as i had very little leaching away. i can always go in when water is used up and seal then. eventually i would like to power the sump pump with a solar panel and storage battery. i intend to use solar as much as i can with new led grow lights which offer full spectrum light to encourage plant growth. this should allow me to manipulate growing times and eventually blooming cycles. this will only happen with solar . the heat will change to outside wood fired boiler and we will install the pipes in the floor to radiate the heat up. this will heat the beds in the wintertime and encourage early plant growth. something i had problems with early this spring. i had also lost a lot of starts to inadequate heat source and persistent cold winter that would give me no mercy. should have some tomatoes by next weekend , but some i replanted are still small and will be closer to june 1st. before ready to plant.

        but this will; be a green- greenhouse with renewable source of fuel for heat and solar for light and ventilation. it only makes sense to be efficient as possible .

         the topsoil i used on the dike area over the old clay soil  is a 50 percent blend of organic compost from my own composting process. and 30 percent topsoil from  farm and sand to improve he tilth of the soil. it is unscreened and in short supply but next year i intend to offer it for sale. 

    this is a picture f the inside of the potting shed office. the above picture is looking down the lane and what a view. below is inside the shed.

       and of course when i want babe to do something she gives me that your crazy look . somewhat like she has now as i wanted to take her picture. any other time she would be nosing into the picture on her own. just another day oin the old hacienda.

a long haul down an uncertain path

         as winter suddenly becomes summer and we experience drier than average conditions as this will  signal the beginning of more modified weather. we need our rain to maintain our springs and the wildlife that depends on small streams prone to drying up as well as springs. this in turn forces more wildlife  into new feeding areas around a suitable water source. the increased population then creates  more competition for areas already populated with their own kind or a predator . 

        increasing all exposed land we now commercialize including pasture land and existing parks and trying to increase the organic content of all soils modified from their original condition by at least 3 x , on all future excavations or cultivation's. this will result in a greater  retention of water on the whole in our ground. the water will be retained in the organic material and will be released slowly. organic materials tend to be darker and will absorb heat more quickly warming soils to assist in planting. 

     this water will also permeate to lower depths increasing the water flow in our springs .streams and rivers. also by increasing the organic matter in the soils we will see less drought affected plants. and at same time we are sequestering  carbon. not all bad,  plants thrive in organic soils and yield better resulting in a win win situation.though not economically feasible as of yet. or at least we don't think so. reversing the effects of greenhouse gases tends to be economically based allowing power companies and other major sources of greenhouse gases more time to make modifications to their existing array of outdated equipment. yet we all pay the price irregardless of where we are from. or if we even have access to electricity. we all share the same planet and like it or not we have to go on. that is mankind has to . so we need to set aside the profits and make a substantial effort to prevent global warming. i borrowed  this poster as it illustrates in simple form how dangerous us humans can be. 

      

        blossoms are springing forth with or with out rain as the plants  need to get on with their job and try to undo some of the harm we as humans have done to our environment. to propagate , multiply and move on as this earth is never ending as it should be.  

        of course while i was babbling on about global warming babe sat patiently waiting on me to catch up. she has added on about good 20 lbs of fur that  she promises to shed in the house all summer long. by winter she will be slim again and i will be still be cleaning up the mess from this last winter . she is ever so patient of me and at times i don't fully appreciate what she gives me.  i need to make a mental note to spend more time with my best friend and not take her for granted. 

           i have changed the style of writing to italics as i find it more aesthetically pleasing. or i just like it better. sorry still not into capitalization. 

                                           

bloom where you are planted-part 2 

        well the title really isn't mine but a saying i remember seeing real well. in fact every day for awhile and then on more or less frequent times as it was on a sign in a yard along rt. 30. on the west side of canton , there was a cabin and it was owned by don sterling . the sign was in his yard and i believe honestly he intended to do that in his lifetime. leaving behind a legacy of public donation and and successful businesses , all of which  he was responsible for.

        from the time i was a young child all i could remember was beaver excavating was doing this and that and don sterling wanted this done.dad was a loader operator for beaver for 28 years when he retired . dad and don had quite a history of working together . don's business was in its infancy and equipment was not as it should have been , dad was required to haul his own equipment to the site. today shiny lowboys crisscross the state shuffling equipment around. 

      dad was involved in a lot of projects over the years as beaver was responsible for doing earthwork on a variety of construction jobs over the years. from the faircrest plant of timkens to the pro footbal hall of fame, to interstate highways to slide repair at wintersville on rt.7 dad was on most projects. coming home one night from  cleveland , and the next morning would find him in the furnaces at republic cleaning up a mess. 

      beaver excavating was everywhere around me my whole life and still is as i look out my window. i see areas where dad would borrow a loader or a dozer and he would use it here on the farm. quite a few projects around here are due to beaver or don sterling allowing us to use heavy equipment to make our farming easier . briars and brambles hangin over the driveway as i remember the first time coming home to our home s we know it now. dad cleared and  changed the grade around the old house here on the property removing trees when necessary and finally getting a swale cut in around the house. as kids we would ride on the side of the loader as he would operate the machine. dad was great at what he did and it was evidenced by dad being the one to be called on by beaver excavating  to get the job done. 

       as you can see my whole life revolved around beaver when i was young. i remember meeting don one time in a Quonset building beaver had  beside their office on southway street in canton. us boys when visiting their shop would get busy grabbing a broom and doing what we could to help the grownups. don came in as we were sweeping and mentioned about how hard we were sweeping warning us not to sweep the concrete to hard or all we will end up with is dirt. that was the only time i ever met him . he was an iconic figure in our life as we would follow his and beavers doings around our area . 

     i had always wanted to work for beaver and it seemed it would never happen but a construction firm i was working with was forced to go union to do work with a union company and it required everyone \in our crew to go union. i received my card to work union as a journey man operator. at first i just ran dozer and then learned the excavator. and eventually through a multitude of jobs became proficient at operating any type of equipment. then one day i was called to work for beaver.
     this lasted for a period of 3 years. again i was like dad being shipped across the state , never knowing what job site i would be at in the morning. most of the good old boys were gone by the time i worked for braver and a new crowd had taken over. i was able to work for a couple of dads old bosses and was glad to have met them and worked for them. i also actually spent time working with one of don sterling's sons greg who has now passed away. and found him a great person to know and lots of fun. it was nice to work for them finally as it was a culmination of a dream i had held since i was a young kid. but politics in construction being what it is , and me having no desire to end up falling asleep at the wheel as i relentlessly cross the state to make some one else more rich, i decided to leave the construction business as it too was taking a toll on my health. beaver wasn't the company anymore that my dad had worked for . it had lost its charm to me, and i felt i needed to take my life in a different direction so i went back to farming.
    there is something that can be said for stepping out your door and going to work. in fact when i look out my door now i am looking at a cabin that don had built in his later years after he to retired from the business at beaver to bloom as puts it. he constructed heritage village outside of magnolia and then dedicated it to a church , of which i was able to purchase one of the cabins slated for removal. don has passed away , but a portion of his legacy will still touch us with the erection of the cabin later this summer. it isn't much , just a small 14x14 cabin but i intend to place it close to our pond where i hope it will remain for quite a few more years. it is now sitting on this wagon to be re erected.

     now the ironic part to this cabin is that don was had salvaged a lot  of old barns and lumber from numerous work sites and one of the work sites he was at was next door on the city farm which had a massive old barn and huge house of which both were tore down by beaver and i assume moved to magnolia at the time as it was about the time that don had started to build his cabins there and he was known to use beams from old barns to build them with. this cabin i have was actually built with old barn beams and could easily have been part of the old barn next door. it is nice to know that although it was a tragedy to see another of ohio's old bank barns fall to disrepair , that thanks to don , a little bit of the old barn will grace the opposite bank of the valley in which it stood. and maybe it can finally bloom where it is planted.
     finally beaver excavating was again in the news with the accidental deaths of two of the workers who were killed when a crane toppled. my heart goes out to the families and only serves as a reminder that construction safety has improved over the years , but it is still a very dangerous business to be in. i am glad i no longer have the desire to be involved in it. but like all jobs someone has to do it. and bless those that do and lose their lives as these 2 men did.

         
      again finally i have this pic from 1963 where dad had borrowed a machine from beaver and we all took a photo shot from the lowboy beaver owned . sherry my sister , brenda my cousin , darryl my cousin and i fill the first row. back row is faw, my older brother, jeanie my sister , jim my brother , and jr or denzil jr. . dont ask me why we were all screaming. guess it was for ice cream. in 63 i would have been 8 in this photograph. 

blooms where you are planted 

       yockey farms and kevscarvings(me), will be having an open house on may 18th, 2013 from 10 -5 . at which time i will be carving a bear for some lucky person to win at raffle. all names will be entered in a bowl and my mom will pull a name. in the event i am not able to finish the bear that day i will deliver to your house if possible. i would like to stain and seal the bear before delivering to you. 

      yockey farms has hanging baskets available to purchase now. they are in full bloom and we also have a limited supply of vegetable plants available also. the baskets are 8 for smallest gallon size to 15 for a medium basket and we have a few large kettle baskets for sale for 20 dollars without stand . with the 3 legged stand it will be 40 dollars. i will have more pics available in coming days of what we have to offer. more information is available at www.kevscarvings.com. 

      i plan on calling on all my facebook friends to show up and have a good time . relax , take a hike here on the farm and just enjoy the scenery for a few hours. this invite includes abu khiana from guinea to buck rogers from why not, nebraska, (can i help it i am a facebook whore only adding friends i don't know on for a big day like this, terrorist or not lay down your guns and have a good time). and of course buy some flowers and veggie plants and small potted trees.  

      we would like to make this a annual occurrence and hope to see you if not this year but next .a free tray of veggies or flowers will be available to each family or group that shows up.  water and juice will be provided. i am not a drinking person but if you like then bring your own and enjoy. just please dont leave your bottles or cans anywhere but in trash please. drink responsibly and be safe with a designated driver . a fire will be provided . please no burning embers poked in someones eye. we have a pond and fish are biting. bring a pole and see if you can catch. if it is small please return to pond . the koi are to be returned also. please watch your kids. but most of all have a good time. we may have a hay ride depending on how things go. 

     mothers day is this coming weekend and if you need a basket of flowers contact me at 234 521 3984 and we can make arrangements to come and view and get an early pick of baskets especially for mothers day. i would like to thank you in advance for taking the time to read this and hope that i might finally really get to know all my facebook friends and hope that family and friends who are not on facebook or refuse to add me also show up. . have a good one.