Quarterly Updates: Vernal Descent

Another seasonal shift is upon us, and the days are already growing shorter and cooler. Rain ushered in the Autumn planting season for us – so much rain. We have welcomed the relief, and the flourishing of the land as a result.

Much has changed in a short time. Summer was quite quiet here, the Ranch hosting just three adult residents, and we weathered the heat quietly. The hot season always feels fragmented, internal, and a little isolating as everyone seeks space and deals with cabin fever and the physical limitations imposed by the environment. And yet, there is still so much to do, and so the tension between the two existences becomes a kind of mild stress that settles in for the duration of the season.

We still accomplished quite a lot, though. Many larger projects were either shifted out of dormancy and into action, such as the Airstream renovation that has slowly progressed in the background. This project will enable the main house to become a fully shared space, and for one of our residents to open and share an art studio. After months of relative stagnation, as one resident whiled away at tedious aluminum patching work, rapid progress has resumed and we now have a new, finished floor, insulation, wall panels sewn and ready to be installed, and intact windows. The studio should be open for residents and guests in October, a welcome addition to the communal spaces, as almost all of us are artists.

We have also welcomed two new residents, breathing an entirely new sense of movement into the already-energized Autumn season. We have begun to do communal activities periodically, integrating all of us into our shared goals and responsibilities.

The rerouting of all of the critical water infrastructure is complete, aside from a donated pump we likely need to replace. Old leaks are all fixed, shades have been built for the new faucets and the water filters, the chicken coop has automatic water on a float-valve system, and we installed a new outdoor shower.

We also spent time preparing for the larger projects of the Autumn season: organizing the workshop, cleaning up the land, collaborating on the division of responsibilities and expectations for ourselves and guests. We have brought back monthly Full Moon Dinners, and September's was lively and wonderful, reconnecting us with local friends and those we haven't seen for a while.

Finally, we planted. Oh did we plant! On August 28th we planted hundreds of seeds: food and medicine plants of so many varieties, strategically interplanted and placed around the garden areas. This means our chickens are in for the season, taking some time to scratch up their run until Winter harvest when they will get to turn in the remnants of any annuals whose growing seasons end with frost. On the very day we planned to plant, we were blessed with extraordinary rain, and for many days in those following weeks. So now our land is abundant and hopeful: several squash varieties, tomato transplants, brocolli, tepary beans, cowpeas, arugula and beets are coming up ferociously, with hopefully more to show themselves soon. If we can carry them to harvest through the season, we will have the most successful year yet. Our soil is more ready now to hold more growth, and it's showing. We also planted more yellow clover as a cover crop, and some of our older clover is actually flowering and will soon go to seed despite being in its first year (yellow sweet clover is a biannual which typically does not go to seed until its second summer).

We have seen for the first time a new raptor (most likely a red-tailed hawk, though its ID has evaded me) attempting to displace the native-invasive ravens, another sign of ecosystem return. We've seen California condors, owls, and new varieties of snakes hanging out by our property. Moths and cricket populations have exploded, and new varieties of scarabs are present that weren't before. Due to the rainy weather and our chickens being up in their yard, we're also experiencing an out-of-control population of flies and junebugs. To help balance out the ecosystem in the absence of some of the native animals who would normally prey on these insects, we've welcomed three guinea fowl keets to the Ranch who serendipitously needed a home just as the insects went crazy. They're being coop trained currently, and in the next week or so will begin "work" carefully removing insects from the garden.

Speaking of chickens, the remaining Rhode Island Reds from our April flock have been integrated into the main chicken coop successfully, and are getting along fine with the slightly larger Naked Necks. We've also painted the chicken coop with a reflective paint to help keep it cool, and covered the run to protect the chickens, reduce the risk of disease transmission from the influx of wild birds, and to keep the ravens from stealing eggs.

In July, we welcomed a new guardian dog. His name is Oso, and he was at first quite interested in eating our chickens but has since been trained and now loves to lay by them as they do their chicken thing. He also has become obsessed with the new guinea fowl, and will require another round of training once those begin ranging. Sadly, about a month after Oso arrived, our beloved guardian dog Diego who has been at the Ranch since its inception disappeared very uncharacteristically (he hasn't bolted since first being adopted, and he's hasn't exited the perimeter fence since we finished constructing it). We are unsure what happened, and have done all of the things a group of people can do to try to find him or have him found, but to no avail. We still have no received no leads and while we are trying to remain optimistic that he will still return home one day, are uncertain that this will happen. Oso was very stressed about Diego's disappearance but is adjusting to working on his own, at least for now.

Autumn will bring work on pastures, shelters for livestock, and some upgrades to community spaces, along with new trees being planted and a new garden area being established. We are dealing with the fallout of the heaviest storms, and learning some improvements that should be made to the way we pull rainwater down into the ground. As the sun begins to relax for the season, there is much to be done.

Thank you as always for reading! We look forward to continuing to share our knowledge and progress with you. This month's post for paid subscribers will be the first in our Quarterly Q&A series, and paid subscribers have submitted some wonderful questions. If you'd like to learn more from this series, please consider subscribing at the paid tier to materially support our project and community.

Until next time ~