Feathers & Fruit

Feathers & Fruit Freelance journalist & Farmer specializing in egg layers & in fruit- blueberries, blackberries & figs

Starting the year by doing what I said I would do for over a decade, all my life really-- writing a book. Attempting to ...
01/02/2025

Starting the year by doing what I said I would do for over a decade, all my life really-- writing a book. Attempting to write several books actually as I always have multiple hair-brained schemes going at once.

👩‍🍳 Amuse Booze 🍹
The pictured cookbook started when I was a liquor rep in 2011 where we incorporate spirits into meals. My fave is the TCB: Triple Sec, Cranberry & Brie or the Sloshed Nutty Taters using coconut tequila, agave & sweet taters. Now with canning taking the front burner more often, I'm working on a "Getting Canned" section that may become it's own book.

🧢 The Adventures of Knitty & Pilly 🧣
A children's touchy feely cardboard book that tells the tale of two thrift store garments who find each other & the friends they made along the way.

🌻 Summer Lovin', Winter Bush❄️
The memoir I've been writing since before Robert & I got together. It's a relationship, comedy, tragedy & horror story all in one. It may have to be published once I'm dead.

Fun facts: I've been writing stories since I was ten years old. I have a degree in Journalism & I've been published everywhere I've lived with my last stint being before covid as the Assistant Editor of 📝 Here's to the next chapter!

How do you move a goat into a new paddock across the field? By using purple sweet taters, apples, a lil peanut butter & ...
12/30/2024

How do you move a goat into a new paddock across the field? By using purple sweet taters, apples, a lil peanut butter & her best friend Sentry as lure!

Moving livestock used to not be such a nightime ag adventure. We used to just put up the next adjacent paddock during the day then open the adjoining fenceline & watch the critters naturally mosey their way onto greener grasses.

Goats do not have feathers nor fruit & that was one of the reasons in 2021 that we parted with our now 6yr old goat Boy George; he didn't fit our business plan. We originally got him (& several other goats) to be a huge part of our regenerative farm in that he would graze the overgrowth so we could reclaim our fields, then the flock followed behind him.

After a few years, he had eaten everything down that we needed gone so we were ok to donate him to an educational non-profit farm when they we're looking for fieldtrip farm critters. Well, then their business plan changed so now we have him back & I'm glad.

Even though I spent an entire beautiful winter Sunday afternoon preparing a new spot for him to then spend my Sunday post-dinner/pre-bedtime kneeling in goat poo, I'm glad to have him back. He's worth it.

I'll post a daytime video tomorrow to show more of Boy George's & Sentry's set up. For now, a much needed shower & shut eye.

The short dark days have officially put a hurtin' on our egg production as we've gone from getting a dozen dozen a day t...
12/22/2024

The short dark days have officially put a hurtin' on our egg production as we've gone from getting a dozen dozen a day to now only five dozen a day.

We gotta remove fresh eggs from our online store but will letcha know when they're available again.

We won't be vending at tomorrow's pre-Christmas but we will be there collecting pumpkins from 4-530p.

For those who are interested in raising their own chickens, here are some ways to help up production during the winter.
1. Keep solar lights on the same times in the coop to mimic summer. We used to do 6a-6p year-round. I mean, I would be ok with that schedule as daylight savings screws me up. Our solar lights system broke & we opted to not repair it.

2. Keep their bodies warm from the inside with cayenne pepper. They don't taste capsaicin but their bodies can use it to give a lil lift to production. Jalapeno, cayenne or any hot pepper powder sprinkled in their feed or mixed with some ACV & their water helps. I mean, its like a makeshift farm fire cider for chickens to give em a boost.

3. Get more chickens. Chicken math 😆

When I should have been canning goods all day today for tomorrow's , I opted to leave the farm this morning before sunr...
12/20/2024

When I should have been canning goods all day today for tomorrow's , I opted to leave the farm this morning before sunrise to go help fellow food waste warriors process a truckload of salads.

My friends Michael & Norm, who are making the world a better place, are constantly creating solutions for food-focused companies like wineries, grocery stores & restaurants. Helping decrease landfills & generate gorgeous compost, these guys are really making a positive impact on our planet.

This summer, I showed my parents in Myrtle Beach that their recycling facility accepts residents' compost. I have travelled with compost on roadtrips.

Apartment dweller, RV lifer, or city slicker-- there's no reason you can't compost. It's not too late to make a change & start composting no matter where you are! Maybe make it a New Year's resolution!

Sign up today & get your first month of curbside pickup service FREE! Plus there's a referral program so you get $10 off if you put in my code-- https://tinyurl.com/27yk2d9g

FREE & $10 OFF, WHAT A DEAL?!

Thanks to , I'll have these feathery festive coloring sheets to hand out at tomorrow's & at the on Saturday.I only pr...
12/17/2024

Thanks to , I'll have these feathery festive coloring sheets to hand out at tomorrow's & at the on Saturday.

I only printed a couple dozen for each event, so wondering if I should make a kid sing a Xmas song to get one, or maybe tell me their fave holiday treat. Trust me when I say "kid," I mean kids of all ages.
💚❤️💚❤️

Hopefully this rainbow of locally sourced, homemade goodies brightens up your dreary winter, grey Monday.Robert said, "D...
12/16/2024

Hopefully this rainbow of locally sourced, homemade goodies brightens up your dreary winter, grey Monday.

Robert said, "Don't you want to take this on a nicer day?" I said I didn't know when we would get one plus I wanted to promote these in time for this Wednesday's & the this Saturday.

For only $40, you can grab any of these baskets & take em right to a party or gift as a present. Instead of , I like to say they're Market To Mingle!

Hoping to make Xmas shopping easier, but you don't have to stick to what I came up. Stop by with a budget or idea & I would love to help craft a custom basket for your one-of-a-kind loved one.

I also have lots of paint & fabric so if you don't see exactly what you're looking for, we can put in an order to be ready on the 23rd to pick up at the market on Monday or meet up nearby.

🤸‍♀️ If you made it this far, check out the last pic of me recreating the one-legged acrobatics needed to capture this photo shoot. Of course the pups were super quiet & helpful throughout.

I only have a few of these festively packed pickled jalapenos & garlic. As if they couldn't get any more cute for Christ...
12/11/2024

I only have a few of these festively packed pickled jalapenos & garlic. As if they couldn't get any more cute for Christmas, they're even packaged in jars with snowflakes on them!

I'll have them at next week's & on the 21st at the so holler if you want me to save you one.

That is all.

With my phone almost dead, my spirit has been charging all day. No matter what I sold, I left rich.Getting to spend a p...
12/08/2024

With my phone almost dead, my spirit has been charging all day. No matter what I sold, I left rich.

Getting to spend a perfect Saturday afternoon with some fantastic foragers & marvelous makers has me beaming as bright as today's blinding sun.

🧺 Celebrating .s.web first market
🔜 Talking sign language with .and.stipe
🛍 Shopping Mooney's Market with
🐥 Cackling about crafting with Social Maddia &
🥚 We got to sample my new concoctions-- Prickly Pear Curd & Smoked Sausage Pickled Eggs. Both 🤌

💚 Huge thanks to .sewanee for sharing their space & hosting a beautiful holiday market where I got to connect with my friends on a day other than Wednesday.

As if LUNCH wasn't already super supportive of all things local both on their menu & shelves, they also included a pastry & coffee with our vendor fee. It's like they know small businesses rarely properly feed themselves on a market day.
Attention all future pop up markets, I will expect nosh included with my fee going forward. 🤣

Of course I did not get any pictures of my booth or products cause this busy bee was too busy buzzing, but I'll have some gift basket pics up soon & on my online store as well. If you have a budget & idea, I can craft a custom basket for any celebration.

Plant blueberries as they will bring you joy year-round as their dormancy produces these bright red leaves which make fo...
12/03/2024

Plant blueberries as they will bring you joy year-round as their dormancy produces these bright red leaves which make for excellent, natural Xmas decorations!

No matter where you live, there's a variety that'll work for you--Southern Highbush, Northern Highbush, or Rabbiteye (which is the one that works best for me in Eastern Tennessee).

You only need two of these low-maintenance fruit bearing bushes to produce. However, I teach that you should plant one for every mouth in the house, one for your neighbors & one sacrificial for the critters.

It was such a pretty walk today, cold as it is, to check in on the orchard & make sure I'm not neglecting it while my focus has been on tearing down the house. They're fine, I've only been neglecting my self. 🤪

12/03/2024

Weird, that nothing I shared from Instagram has been automatically sharing to fb since Nov 20th. Hmmm...

Cowboy Candy, aka Candied Jalapenos, is a sweet & spicy treat that's great on a charcuterie board, atop a burger, or gar...
11/20/2024

Cowboy Candy, aka Candied Jalapenos, is a sweet & spicy treat that's great on a charcuterie board, atop a burger, or garnishing a soup or chili.

I have to pickle two gallons of jalapenos to ensure I have enough over winter to continue using local ingredients in my canned goods.
With sourcing bulk in the heat of the season from multiple farms, including & , I'm not exactly sure how many pounds I need so I had extra.

With the excess, I experimented with selling them pickled & candied. Both were big successes so I've kept them on our core canning list.

Since I don't do any kind of heat, these are all for yall! Available online, at today's & next month's 💚

I learned how to can something new--pumpkin! Happy to say I thrived outside my comfort zone & produced this vibrantly ca...
11/19/2024

I learned how to can something new--pumpkin!
Happy to say I thrived outside my comfort zone & produced this vibrantly canned comfort food!

I can water bath can in my sleep, whereas pressure canning still gives me some anxiety. Theres just so many moving parts. Then factor in my mobile canning kitchen getting moved into our big ass building, there were additional changes like wind & cleanliness that caused me elevated blood pressure. After a few test runs that we guinea pigs ate, it turned out a success!

For just a few dollars more than you would pay at Wally World, my locally grown 100% pure canned pumpkin is full of color, fiber & I must say pure joy.

Weighing in at almost a pound, this jar pureed will easily make (cue Bubba Gump accent) pumpkin pies, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin breads, pumpkin soups or just roast up the cubes for a savory or sweet side.

Get it this Wednesday at the GIVE Thanks , next month at the or order from our website 🧡

Anyone else look forward to grazing the holiday appetizers more than the main festive feast? Then our Charcuterie Kit is...
11/19/2024

Anyone else look forward to grazing the holiday appetizers more than the main festive feast?

Then our Charcuterie Kit is just what you need as it covers your sweet, spicy, savory & pickled cravings!
🍐 RosePeary Jam
🌶 Candied Jalapenõs
🥚 Pint Pickled Eggs (which make the best deviled)
🧅 Onion Jam (made with wine, butter & sugar)
🥒 Pickled Okra (pint or upgrade to a quart)

🥖 Just add bread or crackers & cheese of choice then its ready to go & comes in a cute wooden basket so it could be zhuzhed up to leave as a gift.
🧀 I can also easily add on a local goat chevre, sheep cheese, or award-winning cow cheese... or all three!

Get one this Wednesday at the GIVE Thanks or order one from our website & we can talk pick up spots or shipping.

Til then, enjoy these pics of my fave Xmas grazing table & a little pick & sip picnic I set up.

Looking for a cool gift or something fun to take to a potluck? For $25, my Mystery Grab Can is a perfect way to bring fu...
11/11/2024

Looking for a cool gift or something fun to take to a potluck? For $25, my Mystery Grab Can is a perfect way to bring fun & food to any gathering!

I only have five of them as thats all the coffee cans I hoarded ovee the years. Packed with a pint, a half pint, & a 4oz jar, any of 'em would complement a charcuterie board, brunch, bbq or holiday feast.

You don't get to know what's in it until after purchased, but I do have a Spicy one (bottom shelf with flame fabric) if you like hot peppers.

I loved making these too because they are upcycled coffee cans & brown paper chicken feed bags. A true zero waster's dream gift wrapping.

They're availavle on our online store & I can ship plus I'll have em at the & the 😘

For those of y'all who guessed Lemon Curd, you are correct! A creamy, lemony, buttery, sugary sweet treat is about to be...
11/07/2024

For those of y'all who guessed Lemon Curd, you are correct! A creamy, lemony, buttery, sugary sweet treat is about to be available on our online store.

My longtime canning coach Bev, who has been canning longer than I've been alive, showed me her magical ways of preserving lots of eggs into this decadent brightly-colored creation. Tricks like just using your hands to separate the yolks was some of the simplest yet genius things she taught me!

I love lemon (our wedding cake was lemon & we had lemonheads at the dessert station too) so we will not be upset if these don't sell cause then we'll eat the leftovers.
🤤
I plan to add a "Lemon Lovers Basket" for the holidays that will come with Lemon Marmalade, the curd & a LemonHeady simmer pot.

I'm trying my hand at orange, lime, and even prickly pear curd too & lemme tell ya, this R&D is brutal on my waistline. So happy to gift a jar of the lemon & say congrats to .allison.rae (fb) & who were the first to guess correctly 💛

If you were to get a themed gift basket, what would you want it to be? Like I've made a "Cat Lovers" one because thats what I would want 😻

Thanks to everyone who bought eggs this month, therefore donating $1 from every carton to my friend Traci who is just a ...
11/02/2024

Thanks to everyone who bought eggs this month, therefore donating $1 from every carton to my friend Traci who is just a bebe battling breast cancer.

We have been doing this for so long, I even found a pink carton with our old logo on it. I look forward to the day where I wont't have to do this.

I do like helping causes, making raffle baskets & the likes so if I can help your fave charity raise mula, please reach out & I'll see what I can do. 💗

I'm not one to turn on the stovetop unless mac & cheese is the end result so when I recently learned about simmer pots, ...
10/30/2024

I'm not one to turn on the stovetop unless mac & cheese is the end result so when I recently learned about simmer pots, I was bewildered & curious.

Right when my pal Regina suggested I make simmer pots in these beautiful brown jars I've been hoarding for years, editor Hannah brought them up. I saw it as a sign to do it.

I made four scents-- Essence of Rose Ella, LemonHeady, Into The Woods, & ElderFairy Findings.
My favorite is a tie between Essence of Rose Ella & LemonHeady.

🍋 LemonHeady has lots of dried lemon, lemon thyme, goldenrod & treasured french marigolds. We love lemon. Even our wedding cake was lemon & we had lemonheads at the dessert table.

🌹I also created one after my mom Rose, Essence of Rose Ella with rose petals, eucalyptus & rosemary.

I'll have em today at the Falltoberfest then will be putting them on my online store along with other new creations 🧙‍♀️

Coming from a farmer who has sunburned aloe, blueberries are pretty easy to grow. Little pruning & thrive with your coff...
10/26/2024

Coming from a farmer who has sunburned aloe, blueberries are pretty easy to grow. Little pruning & thrive with your coffee grounds, they're great as an edger bush, natural fence or just to have two by your porch for easy picking snacks.

Plant blueberries to enhance your landscaping as they not only provide food but generate these gorgeous red leaves in their off season.

No filter, just some bright sunshine in this picture showcasing the vibrancy of a fruiting bush when it's not fruiting.

Here's some tips on bluebs & watch for more indepth blueberry tutorials on mah youtubes (link on website).
🫐 Plant 2 diff varieties
🫐 Plant one bush for every mouth in the house, one for the neighbor, & one sacrificial for the critters
🫐 Use coffee grounds before & after planting
🫐 Don't prune until they're 3+ years old

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9320 Dallas Hollow Road
Soddy-Daisy, TN
37379

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(843) 503-3836

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With just a $7 bail of straw, you can entertain & insulate a couple hundred hens. Having our flock far from any power, there have never been heat lamps in our coop. Before a cold snap happens in Eastern TN, we snag at least one bail of straw to add extra insulation to the #BirdBarn aka big ass coop that holds 80 nest boxes. The winter turns everything brown so added stimulation is good for the bird brains too. They love scratching through it & I love watching them do it. Juniper does too. Everyone wins on straw day! 🧣#FarmFashionFriday Tip: Don't wear fleece or anything fuzzy that can grab all the loose straw as you will most likely look like a Wizard of Oz reject. Check out my story for a fun video I found forever ago that sums up today's chores perfectly.

Recipe cards? Recipe boxes? Recipe folder? What's a recipe? What's your technique for cataloging an edible creation that you love making? Now that I have some core concoctions (pickled eggs, bruscetta, onion jam, etc) that sell well & we just love to eat, I am transcribing this book into a more organized, final copy so that I can flip less & can more. I am also working on a non-canning related cookbook that combines my former profession as a liquor rep & my newfound role as a farmhouse wife. Calling it "Amuse Booze" like amuse-bouche but with more spirit! My BMW aka Beer Meat Wreath aka meatloaf is what got me started & now I have a book's worth including triple sec, cranberry & brie, coconut tequila sweet taters, & more. If you have any recipes using booze, let me know too! 🍻

Gourd Goddess making, Pistol classes, Mother's Day Brunch, Chicken Butchering--just to name a few events we've hosted on the farm. Trying to utilize the land to it's capacity while maintaining my sanity, it's been a push & pull of what we've been able to pull off. Planted eggplant, pumpkins, watwrmelons that were eaten by critters. Tried fencing but they got thru it & I just couldn't. Blueberries, figs & cherries all seem to be ground predator resistant & not too hard to keep from feathered freeloaders. Working chickens through our acres seemed to be the best way to enrich the soil & our lives. Looking at future goals, we do want to add more fruit trees & berries, but for now we're focused on tearing down the house. So, it brings to mind, what else can we build & grow that will bring us joy in years to come? Besides digging in the dirt, what activities would you dig having here?

"I hate sh*t like this. Its ridiculous that chickens are even around a high strung, clearly untrained, high prey drive dog."-- a comment made on Judy's Humpty Hen video. That video, like cutie Judy's booty, went wild (w/over 250k views). I was shocked. All my years of farming, chicken butchering, canning, & it's my @heschatt foster fail who goes viral. So when this negative comment came in, I was as shocked as Judy's dance partner. Bitch, I'm high strung. I'm clearly untrained. Does that mean I shouldn't be doing what I'm doing? Nope. It just means give us time. Grace. Patience. Kindness. Encouragement. In this video my mini austrailian shepherd, whose breed is ingrained to herd animals, herded the flock on her own & I am so proud! Over the years, we had several legit Livestock Guardian Dogs (great pyrenees, anatolian shepherds, etc) who ended up eating our chickens so they found new featherless families. I've seen chihuahas be great chicken dogs so you never know what a creature is capable of until you put them in an environment where they feel safe, are eager to please & are given a job that they can be proud of & praised for. All this to say, do what works for you & no chickens were harmed in the making of Judy's newfound freedom to be her true silly self.

The best time to wrangle chickens is when they're roosting, getting ready for bed which makes it tough for me in the summer to get to bed at a decent hour. I should've moved this splendid mama hen & her ten babies a few days ago but the heat & rain kept delaying my plans. Oh & my procrastination got in the way too but hey, I got it done. These are the last of our free-range rogue chicks, as we just harvested the four residential roosters. When I realized that tonight, I did get a bit sad but the serene sunset made all my woes wane. We usually get a couple hundred three-day old chicks every summer but with tearing our house down, we opted not to so that I would not feel more scatter-brained than I usually do in the summer. I'm happy to have experienced eggs hatching & chicks being born on the farm, but am equally glad that I don't have to be on the lookout for lil babies that may need my help accessing water or feed to survive. Stay tuned for pics of cute chick fluffy butts!

I don't always wash my eggs but when I do, it's for another great small local biz like @bellechocolates & their newest addition, donuts! 🍩 His core flavors coffee, Boston creme, and lemon are my favorite & I always look forward to the weekly surprise creations. Check 'em out & treat yourself to a small batch sweet treat.

Update on the March events as we had to cancel this Friday's @ivy_academy_chatt & Saturday's @urban.horticulture.supply Canning classes 😫 But in happier news, we still have tickets to this Sunday's Farm Yoga with @jimonalimb & Easter Bunny Brunch with @ociahartley on the 30th. Congrats to @emilygottberg who won this week's Weekly Winner Wednesday Feathers & Fruit t-shirt courtesyof @burlaepprintandpress We are closing on an adjacent three acres tomorrow bringing us to twenty-two acres! Most of it under power towers, which means we can't build permanent structures but we can have bodies! What events would you love to try out here?

Congrats to @kenblasters who won yesterday's #WeeklyWinner Wednesday by making a purchase at this year's first two-hour @mainstfarmersmarket Two more weeks to win & here's how to enter: Buy a ticket to any of my March events! 🌱Canning at @urban.horticulture.supply 📓Canning 101 @ivy_academy_chatt 🧘Farm Yoga with @jimonalimb 🐰Bunny Brunch with @ociahartley Head to our website for details on these & get your tickets.

Weekly Winner Wednesdays the whole month of March with all kinds of ways to win. Thanks to winning logoed t-shirts from @burlaepprintandpress , we're going to share the love & give some away this month every Wednesday! Here's the multiple ways to win: 1. BUY TICKETS to any of our March events. ❤️Canning classes at @urban.horticulture.supply ,@chattaudubon or @ivy_academy_chatt then 🧡Farm Yoga with @jimonalimb & 💛Easter Sunday Bunny Brunch with @ociahartley 2. VISIT ME AT THE FIRST TWO HOUR @mainstfarmersmarket on Wed, March 12th & maybe buy something 😘 3. NAME THAT NEST BOX as every girl has her favorite (besides those who are choosing to lay under lawnmowers or in sinks). Only one person per nest box so claim yours early. I'll be posting tomorrow (Sun, 3/3) the two dozen to choose from. Good luck, have fun & hope to see you this month!

Nothing says lovin' like nudity by the oven! These two Food Lovers Baskets are complete with a sheer vintage apron thay can fit any size (I'm looking at you fellas), a love-themed vintage cookbook that's sure to be a page turner, a one-of-a-kind vintage card that just needs your personal touch, & a jar of my Strawberry Banana Jam that would be great for dessert or the morning after dessert. If you pick one up today at @crafters_emp ,partake in their Shop Hop to win prizes & graze on some free samples including my jam. I also have a couple solo sheer aprons for sale there so make use of this rainy day & stroll over 100 small businesses.

They really are little assholes! 🖕#FatHappyFarmer

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Wild & Wonderful

We bought the farm (haha) in April 2015 with a somewhat grandeur idea of what we were going to do with it since it wasn’t actually a farm to start with. We found the 18 acre property on Craigslist and it was as is. It came with a hot tub and pool (yes please) as well as 6 fully producing blueberry bushes, 30x30 shop with a lift and a dilapidated greenhouse.

I love digging in the dirt and he loves living off the land so it took no time for us to acquire 30 egg laying Barred Rock hens and a garden full of carrots, corn and wildflowers. The goats were kind of a happy accident as McKamey Animal Center found Billy Rae (black and white) on 4th avenue and we needed some landscaping assistance with vicious Wisteria and Poison Ivy. George (brown) came about 6 months later because Billy needed a friend.

Now, almost 2 years later, we have 46 Barred Rock, two silly Pygmy goats, 8 blueberry bushes, 6 blackberry bushes, 6 fig trees and two very vivacious farm kitties Mewtant and Jacob. Please enjoy our products as much as we do, and hopefully as much as you enjoy the stories of our trials and tribulations.