Today I bring you a surprise guest of sorts, a kind gal named Mary Jo of Five Green Acres whom I've know (in that no-physical but online soul-sister sense) for several years.
Mary Jo has begun an adventure that is near and dear to my own heart and I wanted to share here inspiring story with you. What she's doing is certainly on my short list of dreams. Sheep! Dyes! Yarn!
To sweeten the deal I'm also giving away a skein of her handspun wool, so read on to learn more.
(All photos in this post are courtesy of This is Wool and Five Green Acres.)
This is wool. First Harvest: Backyard from Mary Jo, FiveGreenAcres on Vimeo.
Mary Jo has just embarked on several journeys ~ that of keeping sheep, experimenting with fiber dyes, and spinning wool. I interviewed her earlier this week about her new adventure in self-employment and artistic expression, This is Wool.
RJW: I'd love to hear about making the leap from town-living to farm girl. What was that transition like?
MJB: It was a slow and easy transition, because we're not too far from the city (Madison) but still have a small town to call home, so it's really the best of both worlds.
I didn't give too much thought about the community we were moving into - it was the property that we fell in love with - and therefore didn't really have any expectations about finding other like-minded folks in town; I was satisfied with the ability to maintain my connections in Madison.
I happened upon the newly-formed knitting group that met at our local library and through that gathering met many of the folks that are now among our dearest friends. The library was our gateway to this community.
MJB: That varies, of course, depending on the time of year. In the spring, we get chicks and foster their growth through the beginning of summer, then process the meat - that's the most labor-intensive component of our farming operation.
The sheep simply require fresh water and pasture every couple of days during the season of grass, a task which involves moving the portable electric net fence and takes under 30 minutes. Shearing, which we've just begun doing ourselves, is very labor intensive, like you wouldn't believe! But it's one or two days of the year, and most normal people bring in a shearer to do that.
The laying hens are, like the sheep, easier to care for than dogs - food and water each day, as well as opening and closing their coop to let them range.
In the winter months, the sheep are pastured right behind the chickens in a communal space, making it easy to care for both flocks in a short amount of time. As for the weekends, it's still relatively easy to pile up enough food for a few days and head out.
MJB: At the end of the season last year, I put in quite a few new dye plants, with grand visions for this year's dyeing season.
Then came The Drought.
It became clear to me as the summer progressed without any additional rain, that this year's harvest of wool would need to be dyed from traditional acid dyes. I feel good about that decision, leaving the scant goldenrod for the bees, the sumac for the birds to sustain them through the winter.
Acid dyes will introduce a very different range of colors to this vintage of wool, giving Second Harvest its own identity. I hope to return to plant dyeing next year, nature willing, because nothing is more satisfying to me than growing the dyes which color my wool.
Wow, that is really gorgeous yarn, I wish I could touch it right now! It lt looks so soft!