Dateline: Memorial Day Weekend, Moone Athy

Here’s a brief video recap of last weekend’s Skinner Reunion held at Moone Athy. Skinner siblings, spouses and progeny from nearby and both coasts returned to the farm to celebrate the beginning of summer. Each day there were cook-outs, swims in the pond, hikes, horseback rides, and ample time to catch up with the extended family. As you will see, it was thoroughly enjoyable.

A few explanatory comments:

• Attentive viewers may have noted the two annoying interlopers who invaded the Hokus Pokus ritual at the Quicks. Though they peeked, they were too slow to get to any of the fairy droppings. A good thing.
• Inevitably our videos fail to include some participants. My apologies to those (lucky) ones.
• If you have snapshots you’d like to share, email them to me and I’ll be happy to post them here for everyone to see. In fact, do so even if you wouldn’t like to!
• Finally, the newborn fawns filmed early on Saturday the 23rd were not the only neonates to appear during the reunion. The newest Skinner progeny, Margaret Frances Smith, arrived uneventfully in Chicago on Sunday the 24th, weighing in at 7+ pounds. Pictures, we hope, will be forthcoming. Congratulations to Kate and Pete.

LC

Here’s an update on activities at The Farm for the infrequent visitor.

• Round Pond
  The clearing of trees which were threatening the very old and substantial dam at Round Pond has been completed. As a result we have accrued quite a bit of excellent mulch, mostly cedar, available for gardeners. There are abundant fish (blue gill, bass) in the pond too. Have a look (or fish!) when you visit.
• Farm House
  The dormers on the west elevation (above left) have been replaced, including new windows, siding, and headers. These windows are now operational making the second floor southern bedroom and hall much more comfortable and attractive. The main entry door and surrounding windows (above right) have been replaced. Old termite and ongoing water damage destroyed much of the framing around these structures and as a result there has been considerable settling. Appropriate repairs to structure are underway. Finally, as recommended by Susan Cromie, some of the the original, deteriorated siding has been removed for inspection. Severe underlying damage has been discovered (image on left – click on it for larger image). These areas will require repair which is ongoing now. By use of new materials recommended by Susan, we hope to preserve the spirit of the Defty design while avoiding its inherent susceptibility to water damage. Once these critical structural issues have been addressed we will be in a position take on the replacement of the remaining deteriorated siding/windows as well as consider suggestions that have been made about enhancing the overall space. Obviously our finances will dictate our pace and what is feasible. We anticipate the need to take these projects on piecemeal over the next few years.
• Invasive Exotics
  Recently we made note (link here) of a new eco-friendly approach to clearing brush honeysuckle that has been implemented by Jay Deatherage on the property. Jay has had his 10 Boer doelings at work for the past three weeks, moving them across infested areas. There has already been remarkable improvement as the accompanying photo will show. The ground cover and lower tree arbors are left intact but the brush (poison ivy, honeysuckle, etc) is devoured. The result is akin to burning, but without fire, and of course we are spared the expense of the RoundUp. Meanwhile, the goats thrive and will be a source of lean meat. Again our thanks to Kathy Skinner for providing the reference book Omnivore’s Dilemma (Michael Pollan) which described the Polyface Farm’s use of this sustainable farming approach
• New Bridge
  Increasing volumes and speed of water in our intermittent creeks has resulted in deeper and steeper banks. This has hampered access to several areas on the property, especially Aunt Grizelda’s Pond. We have just completed a six month project to remedy this, a pedestrian bridge across the creek at the barn to access the stile at the foot of the Pond Pasture.
  Aided by the forestry skills of Conrado Marquez, two 40-50 foot white oaks were harvested from the woods near the Pond Pasture. He used a chain saw to plane two sides of these, and he and Neal Fuhr teamed up to move these giant timbers across the creek at the stile.
  Yours truly then added planking to create a walkway over the creek. Note: Rails have not been installed yet so children crossing will require adult supervision until these are in place. The big pond is now much more accessible.
• Roads
  There are two ongoing challenges with our gravel roads. Pot holes will always be with us. Last month we re-graveled sections of the roads most in need. A more worrisome problem however is erosion from Brushy Fork Creek, which had been encroaching on the main entrance road. The Highway Dept has been extremely helpful in attacking this. Last summer they placed a giant revetment which should remedy this threat for the foreseeable future. The snapshot below shows this completed project. St Charles County did a marvelous job for us here.

We have had an exceptionally cool spring and the farm has never looked prettier. We close with a glimpse of Aunt Grizelda’s Pond….

A report on the Skinner Memorial Day Reunion to follow…

LC

Here’s our May Image of the Month – a bit past its prime but, nonetheless, startling:

I’m told this is Brunneria Macrophylla. It heralded an especially delightful spring at Moone Athy.

The upcoming Skinner Reunion is eagerly awaited. A full report will follow…

LC

Rummaging through old film footage I came across this snippet from Easter, 1971 at Moone Athy.

With the current Easter festivity still fresh in our minds it’s interesting to flash back to prior celebrations. There were, of course, many fewer participants back then. Careful viewers will recognize very brief snapshots of Lee Judy, John Harney, David Pentland Sr., Ed Fehlig Sr. (pinch hitting for Bob Dunn, away in the military). In addition, the Horton children (Tim, Connie, and Holly) have been recruited by Grizelda to help out. It’s especially fun to see Uncle Cal Sr, Aunt Delphine, and Aunt Grizelda on the terrace. Wonderful memories.

The Horton family continues to reminisce about those years. We noted the sad passing of Pat last November. Don and his family, many of them seen in this video, plan to come to Moone Athy this Saturday (9 May) to place Pat’s ashes here, where she and Don shared such beauty and friendship. They are in our thoughts and prayers…

L.C.

Here’s a post from Sarah Dunn…

The Omnivore’s Dilemma* (Michael Pollan, Penguin Books, 2006) was given to me by Kathy and Tersh Skinner. It is a fascinating look at the agribusiness in the United States and its influence on our eating habits. The most interesting chapter is about a farmer called Joel Salatin and his Polyface Farm. His sustainable methods of farming are directly opposed to the methods of the big corporations. Kathy had thought we might want to consider his approach vis a vis Moone Athy. I wrote her how much I liked his approach, but I didn’t think we had the resources nor the time to apply them at Moone Athy.

Our problem: How to get from A to B…

A. Woodland before honeysuckle removal	B.Woodland after honeysuckle removal

Our Solution: The Boer Goat

It is with pleasure that I inform the family that we now consider ourselves Sustainable Farmers thanks to Kathy and the ten or so Boer meat goats who currently take up residence at Moone Athy.

A. Doelings at work	B. Sustainable Farmer Jay, with his goat guard dog Lancelot

We have been for years battling noxious weeds at the farm like Amur honeysuckle and multiflora rose with herbicides and labor, but the goats are now happily eating the honeysuckle and the rose bushes, getting fat while doing so and clearing the understory of our woods at the same time. They belong to a young man by the name of Jay Deatherage who is a big advocate of the Salatin method and prefers books on farming that were written before the 1950s unless they are by Salatin.

The goats are fenced inside an movable electric pen with a Grand Pyrenees guard dog to protect them from the coyotes and foxes. Jay’s goats are South African Boer meat goats. His plan is to increase their numbers while moving them on a regular basis around the farm feeding them a steady diet of honeysuckle and rose. They work well with the cattle as they prefer to eat what the cattle leave behind.

A word of caution for riders and dog owners. The horses will be frightened when they first come across the goats. Be aware that the fence is electrified if the dogs go to investigate. The Great Pyrenees is sure to bark at them.

If you see Jay at the farm, be sure to introduce yourselves. He is more than willing to answer any of your questions. He has answered some of mine. A mother goat is a doe, a father is a buck and a baby girl is a doeling. Hence my comment to Bob which titles this posting. I hope you will visit our Moone Athy goat tribe soon.

Sarah

* “On the horns of a dilemma” is a phrase that all Priory students of Fr Timothy will recall. He would emphasize that correct usage of the word “dilemma” should imply not a generalized quandary, but instead should only be used to indicate a difficult choice between two non-optimal (hence painful, hence pointed horns…) options. Perhaps this Boer goat pic will provide provide a visual to pin this usage onto…