Circa 1907

Wine tasting in Illinois? Yep! (at Valentino Vineyards & Winery)

Here's the haul from yesterday's frame. We have a couple pounds of honey and a few ounces of beeswax. We've put the frame back into the hive, leaving the comb foundation for them to clean and bebuild, and there was honey still on it that I know they'll appreciate. While doing this, it was so cool to see them coming back from foraging, legs loaded with bright pollen from our sunflowers. I'm planting buckwheat tomorrow, and our flowers and vegetables are opening all over. They should have plenty of food to build up some great stores for the winter ahead, and it makes me happy to be helping them do just that. 🌱🥀💚🌼🐝🐝🐝 . . . . . . #bees #beekeeping #pollinators #savethebees #honey #farming #farmher #nature #farmlife #grateful (at Barboursville, Virginia)

Loving that some of our crops that have survived here are ones that can nourish us and our beehive. Look at her go! And while organic gardening can produce some blemished or imperfect produce, its beauty is never diminished when it hits the dinner plate! Our tomatoes are thriving, mustard greens are spicey, and the basil is already pesto. 😊🌱🌻🍲 . . . #bees #beekeeping #pollenpants #sunflowers #organicgardening #organicgarden #cooking #nourish #growyourfood #tomato #mustardgreens #basil (at Hop & Hen Farm)

Loving that some of our crops that have survived here are ones that can nourish us and our beehive. Look at her go! And while organic gardening can produce some blemished or imperfect produce, its beauty is never diminished when it hits the dinner plate! Our tomatoes are thriving, mustard greens are spicey, and the basil is already pesto. 😊🌱🌻🍲 . . . #bees #beekeeping #pollenpants #sunflowers #organicgardening #organicgarden #cooking #nourish #growyourfood #tomato #mustardgreens #basil (at Hop & Hen Farm)

Loving that some of our crops that have survived here are ones that can nourish us and our beehive. Look at her go! And while organic gardening can produce some blemished or imperfect produce, its beauty is never diminished when it hits the dinner plate! Our tomatoes are thriving, mustard greens are spicey, and the basil is already pesto. 😊🌱🌻🍲 . . . #bees #beekeeping #pollenpants #sunflowers #organicgardening #organicgarden #cooking #nourish #growyourfood #tomato #mustardgreens #basil (at Hop & Hen Farm)

Loving that some of our crops that have survived here are ones that can nourish us and our beehive. Look at her go! And while organic gardening can produce some blemished or imperfect produce, its beauty is never diminished when it hits the dinner plate! Our tomatoes are thriving, mustard greens are spicey, and the basil is already pesto. 😊🌱🌻🍲 . . . #bees #beekeeping #sunflowers #organicgardening #organicgarden #cooking #nourish #growyourfood #tomato #mustardgreens #basil (at Hop & Hen Farm)

Commemorating July 4th with the making of a Danish blue cheese. In some parallel universe, this must be a perfectly acceptable endeavor. 😊 🍻🥂 #cheesemaking #cheese #bluecheese #cooking #rawmilk #goatmilk #farmlife #makeyourown #neverstoplearning #beauty #grateful (at Hop & Hen Farm)

Just in case you need some cute in your day! We're on chick watch right now, and this is the first hatchling of the bunch! When it dries off a bit, we might be able to discern the baby daddy better. Thinking either Buff Orpington or Easter egger cross. The French Copper Maran hatching this babe is Guinevere and she's been an outstanding Mommy. 🐣🐣🐓🐓🐤🐥 . . . #chickens #chicks #babychicks #babywatch #farmlife #fluffy #cuteness #grateful (at Hop & Hen Farm)

Just in case you need some cute in your day! We're on chick watch right now, and this is the first hatchling of the bunch! When it dries off a bit, we might be able to discern the baby daddy better. Thinking either Buff Orpington or Easter egger cross. The French Copper Maran hatching this babe is Guinevere and she's been an outstanding Mommy. 🐣🐣🐓🐓🐤🐥 . . . #chickens #chicks #babychicks #babywatch #farmlife #fluffy #cuteness #grateful (at Hop & Hen Farm)

Old houses hold both history and secrets, along with all their charm and character. Back in the winter, I started trying to insulate and improve our cellar because as you can see, our kitchen floors are directly above it. This newspaper was used as insulation back in the winter of 1956, according to it and other pieces I removed. Today we're insulating the attic, and wouldn't you know it, newspaper is being added to the home, in the form of Greenfiber insulation. 🤔 85% recycled cellulose (newspaper being one of the ingredients), and we're more than doubling the R-value, then installing radiant barrier in the coming days. Always work to do on a farm and as usual, we try to do our best to go easier on Mother Earth. (at Barboursville, Virginia)

Buttermilk, Bucky and Barley demonstrate the finer points of teetering. Notice how Buttermilk transfers his weight, while Bucky stamps his foot when it's time to shift! 🤣😂 Even Tino has a cameo! Props to @stephenbliley for getting this spectacular footage! 💕❤️ . . . #goatsofinstagram #goaties #pets #goatstagram #goats #farmlife #fun #balance #play #teamwork #rooster #chickens #chooks #brothers (at Hop & Hen Farm)

Buttermilk, Bucky and Barley demonstrate the finer points of teetering. Notice how Buttermilk transfers his weight, while Bucky stamps his foot when it's time to shift! 🤣😂 Even Tino has a cameo! Props to @stephenbliley for getting this spectacular footage! 💕❤️ . . . #goatsofinstagram #goaties #pets #goatstagram #goats #farmlife #fun #balance #play #teamwork #rooster #chickens #chooks #brothers (at Hop & Hen Farm)

Even though I gather eggs every day, it's still very novel to me how absolutely gorgeous they are! Our girls are little chicken artists 😊 #grateful . . . #chickens #chooks #farmlife #hens #frenchcoppermaran #easteregger #wheatoneasteregger #amberlink #australorp #dominique #bufforpington #cochin #sexlink #goldenwyandotte (at Hop & Hen Farm)

Despite my serger seizing up and putting me off schedule on sewing, the production show must go on! 👊These are some hard lotions (Virginia beeswax!) that are now cooling their heels. It smells pretty awesome here right now! 😊 . . . #festivalseason #homemade #bees #farmlife #entrepreneur #farmher #virginia #buylocal #shoplocal #microbatch #orangecounty (at Hop & Hen Farm)

The evening chicken headcount shows that the rains have resulted in an abundance of tasty insects, as evidenced by Buttercup's stuffed crop. 🤤🤣 Each day she's the first to lay her egg, then heads out to forage the day away. Surprised she's able to balance on the roost! #foodboob #chickens #freerangechickens #farmlife (at Hop & Hen Farm)

A perfect day of horses, the outdoors, family, and wine. My 💓. #grateful #family #love #wine #horsebackriding #nature (at Adventure Farm, LLC)

Besides clearing the start of our first of 10 #hugelculture raised beds, we installed our first bee colony and hit the last hour of a cool local burgeoning wine fest. This dude is the only man that understands my need to be doing. He's got my whole heart.❤️ Ev.ery.damn.day. #tndo #hugelculture #gardening #beekeeping #wine $#shoplocal #farming #montpelierwinefestival (at Honah Lee Vineyard)