Snow on snow. And still snowing. Last week we had lots of snow, then heavy rain, then warm days, but there was still a lot of snow on the ground. We had our white Christmas but the roads were clear for travelling to grandchildren. Snow began falling late last night and we woke to a silent white world. The snow continues to fall, as does the silence. The plow hasn't made it to the End of the Road…

Such fame as my Massachusetts garden has is our collection of 60+ hardy roses, rugosas, gallicas and albas. My daughter Kate, who was married amidst our roses 13 years ago, and her family now live in Missouri City, just outside Houston, where hardiness of a different kind is required. Roses there need to be able to survive hot hot summers and heavy gumbo soil. When we visited in mid-April we went nursery shoppping and bought lots of star…

My friend Helen Opie, who now lives in Nova Scotia, sent this handrawn computer drawing (using the Paint program) as my Christmas greeting. It is only appropriate that she chose the life giving sun to celebrate the season.Helen has a sunny nature, and was one of the bright spots in my difficult year of teaching sixth grade. Her very smart, imaginative and creative daughter Jenny was in my class, and the link that brought us together. From there…

Peace on earth to all of good will!

I love my chickens. I 'd love to give everyone their own small flock to enjoy, all the strutting and sashaying, the color and pattern of the soft feathers, the clucking and even the squawking. And the eggs, too, of course. Unfortunatley this is impossible, but what I can do - and did do - is donate $20 to Heifer International who will give a small flock of chicks to a family to raise. The nutritious eggs will…

I'm no Martha Stewart, but it doesn't take much skill to make a welcoming swag of trimmings from the balsam Christmas tree we cut from our snowbreak. While we were down in the field I took a few extra branches from a nearby pine that included little pine cones. Many people buy their holiday wreaths, garlands and swags at one of the numerous holiday fairs that benefit churches, schools and other worthy organizations. This is a Good Thing!…

This the the view from my bedroom window on Sunday morning. The outbuilding is our Cottage Ornee where we spend fine summer Sunday afternoons with tea and the Sunday papers. Not today.And this is the view from my reading chair. Note the chicken waterer defrosting by the fire. No Sunday papers in this storm, so I am reading The Earth Moved: On the Remarkable Achievements of Earthworms by Amy Stewart, one of the witty and knowledgeable members of…

The second winter here at the End of the Road there was a terrific storm. Not only did more than a foot of snow fall, there was wind. And the wind blew snow from our open fields down on to the road to our house. We were snowed in!We didn't mind. It is always fun to play hooky from work - not our fault! We sat by the fire, eating and reading and having a wonderful day. But…

When I choose plants for my garden I often choose a plant that will supply food or shelter for the wildlife I welcome to my garden.This means I have looked for native plants, but I never fully understood why this was necessary.In his book, Bringing Nature Home, Professor Douglas Tallamy explains that "native plants support a diverse and balanced food web essential to all sustainable ecosystems". In the book he gives the best explanation of the food web…

A friend of mine who has his first tiny flock of chickens heard a great ruckus outside the other day. He ran out of the house and saw two of his chickens fighting each other. Odd. Then he realized one of the chickens was a hawk! He screamed. The hawk flew off. The chicken ran into the hen house and promptly laid an egg. When I told my husband he said clearly the chicken's response to the threat…