Greetings, friends! As you can imagine, we’ve been busy over here in Baking Land and Homestead Land. I have a couple of exciting announcements before I update you on our goings-on at home.

Firstly, Spring Baking Classes are up for March and April! Come learn to bake different breads, hot cross buns, Icelandic almond rolls, and more this spring. I’ve gotten lots of locals, as well as some out-of-towners in class, which has been excellent. Come on down and get in the kitchen with me!

Secondly, I’m very excited to announce our first annual Youth Baking Camp! We’ll have three days of baking fun for ages 12-17 this July 1-3, with basic baking, pizza, and pastry on the docket. We’re offering both a full three-day experience, as well as chances to sign up for individual days. (And psst – we have a sibling discount if you’ve got more than one budding baker in the family!) Sign up today – spots are limited to keep class sizes small. Contact me with any questions.

Whew! So, as you can see, it’s been a whirlwind of planning and logistics this past month, on top of my triumphant return to the Weaverville Tailgate Market this past week, with more markets to come next month.

So, let’s talk about the homestead life, shall we?

March 2024 Homestead Update

Plants are mostly still dormant at this time of year, but we’re getting spring temperatures, and therefore, some little spring sneak peaks.

We’ve pruned our peach tree as much as we can, just in time before the blossoms really come out. We’ve been enjoying having a little sprig bouquet of trimmings on our dining room table and kitchen windowsill, watching the blooms slowly pop. I’m looking forward to making a nice spring tonic with some of the blossoms, as well.

Speaking of sprouting, our porch blueberry is also coming back. This is the year I get blueberries, dangit.

I’ve been spending much of my time outside lately moving mulch around trees and in creating two new garden beds: one for Preschool Homesteader’s garden, and one for a pollinator garden:

(Yes, they’re literally just pictures of sheet mulched ground. Here’s hoping they’re bursting with produce and flowers in about six months!)

I’m looking forward to having a new garden bed solely dedicated to flowers, since I generally have trouble finding enough room for them in the regular garden beds, or I’ve had limited success in other areas of the property (AKA I did lazy bed prep and suffered the consequences).

I’ve spent the other chunks of my time outside transplanting blackberry canes to a third (!) row. I’m super proud of completing this task, and am very excited to expand our blackberry plot even further.

Indoors, we’ve started several seeds, including moonflowers, peppers, tomatoes, beets, basil, dill, parsley, and various brassicas. I can’t believe it’ll be time again soon to plant out the porch herbs.

Finally, I’ll leave you with some of the perennials that are popping up all over the property, reminding me that this time, while a bit busy, is still a time to reflect, relax a bit, and let nature do its job as it will.

Happy homesteading, ya’ll!