Summer Sun... and Rain!

This has been the best summer in years for our farm, and probably pretty much anywhere in the area where things grow.  The rain has been an enormous relief.  You can almost hear the thirsty ground and plants sigh in delight when the rain begins to fall.  And extra rain meant less fire and smoke in the area, which is obviously wonderful.  I hope we have more summers with milder heat and rainier weather:  

Summer's Arrival

The farm is vibrant this time of year.  All the little (and big) creatures are relishing the warmth and sun, and even some wonderful late rains.  We are very excited to get our first hive of honey bees, which is something we have been planning to do for years and finally took the leap.  They seem very gentle and so far are happy and seem to be settling in nicely.  All the critters are busy and doing their business of summer life, while the flowers are doing their own:

Warming and Blooming

Spring has been beautiful, full of blooms and buzzing and growth.  We are particularly delighted to be providing a home to a whole bunch of mason bees, thanks to Bee Friendly Portland and we hope they enjoy life on our farm and also help with some of the early pollination for our fruit trees, especially plums and cherries: