is a certified farmgirl at heart. She’s happily married to her beach bum Yankee husband of 20 years. She went from career gal to being a creative homeschooling mom for two of her biggest blessings and hasn’t looked back since. Debbie left her lifelong home in the high desert of Northern Nevada 10 years ago and washed up on the shore of America’s hometown, Plymouth, MA, where she and her family are now firmly planted. They spend part of each summer in a tiny, off–grid beach cottage named “The Sea Horse.”
“I found a piece of my farmgirl heart when I discovered MaryJanesFarm. Suddenly, everything I loved just made more sense! I enjoy unwinding at the beach, writing, gardening, and turning yard-sale furniture into ‘Painted Ladies’ I’m passionate about living a creative life and encouraging others to ‘make each day their masterpiece.’”
is a “MaryJane Farmgirl” who lives in a large metropolitan area. She is a lawyer who has worked in both criminal defense and prosecution. She has been a judge, a business woman and a stay-at-home mom. In addition to her law degree, she has a Masters of Theological Studies.
“Mustering up the courage to do the things you dream about,” she says, “is the essence of being a MaryJane Farmgirl.” Learning to live more organically and closer to nature is Rebekah’s current pursuit. She finds strength and encouragement through MaryJane’s writings, life, and products. And MaryJane’s Farmgirl Connection provides her a wealth of knowledge from true-blue farmgirls.
an old-fashioned farmgirl with a pioneer spirit, lives in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. As a “lifelong learner” in the “Live-Free-or-Die” state, she fiercely values self-reliance, independence, freedom, and fresh mountain air. Married to her childhood sweetheart of 40+ years (a few of them “uphill climbs”), she’s had plenty of time to reinvent herself. From museum curator, restaurant owner, homeschool mom/conference speaker, to post-and-beam house builder and entrepreneur, she’s also a multi-media artist, with an obsession for off-grid living and alternative housing. Cathi owns and operates a 32-room mountain lodge. Her specialty has evolved to include “hermit hospitality” at her rustic cabin in the mountains, where she offers weekend workshops of special interest to women.
“Mountains speak to my soul, and farming is an important part of my heritage. I want to pass on my love of these things to others through my writing. Living in the mountains has its own particular challenges, but I delight in turning them into opportunities from which we can all learn and grow.”
Dori Troutman is the daughter of second generation cattle ranchers in New Mexico. She grew up working and playing on the ranch that her grandparents homesteaded in 1928. That ranch, with the old adobe home, is still in the family today. Dori and her husband always yearned for a ranch of their own. That dream came true when they retired to the beautiful green rolling hills of Tennessee. Truly a cattleman’s paradise!
Dori loves all things farmgirl and actually has known no other life but that. She loves to cook, craft, garden, and help with any and all things on their cattle farm.
describes herself as a goat charmer, chicken whisperer, bee maven, and farmers’ market baker renovating an 1864 farmhouse on an Ohio farm. With a degree in Design, Mary says small-town auctions and country road barn sales "always make my heart skip a beat thinking about what I could create or design out of what I’ve seen.”
Rooted in the countryside, she likes simple things and old ways … gardening, preserving the harvest, cooking, baking, and all things home. While you might find her selling baked goods from the farm’s milkhouse, teaching herself to play the fiddle, or sprucing up a vintage camper named Maizy, you will always find her in an apron!
Mary says, “I’m happiest with the simple country pleasures … an old farmhouse, too many animals, a crackling fire, books to read, and the sound of laughter … these make life just perfect.”
is a budding rural farmgirl living in Palmer, the agricultural seat of Alaska. Alex is a graduate student at Alaska Pacific University pursuing an M.S. in Outdoor and Environmental Education. She lives and works on the university’s 700 acre environmental education center, Spring Creek Farm. When Alex has time outside of school, she loves to rock climb, repurpose found objects, cross-country ski on the hay fields, travel, practice yoga, and cook with new-fangled ingredients.
Alex grew up near the Twin Cities and went to college in Madison, Wisconsin—both places where perfectly painted barns and rolling green farmland are just a short drive away. After college, she taught at a rural middle school in South Korea where she biked past verdant rice paddies and old women selling home-grown produce from sidewalk stoops. She was introduced to MaryJanesFarm after returning, and found in it what she’d been searching for—a group of incredible women living their lives in ways that benefit their families, their communities, and the greater environment. What an amazing group of farmgirls to be a part of!
Suburban Farmgirl Nicole Christensen calls herself a “vintage enthusiast”. Born and raised in Texas, she has lived most of her life in the picturesque New England suburbs of Connecticut, just a stone’s throw from New York State. An Advanced Master Gardener, she has gardened since childhood, in several states and across numerous planting zones. In addition, she teaches knitting classes, loves to preserve, and raises backyard chickens.
Married over thirty years to her Danish-born sweetheart, Nicole has worked in various fields, been a world-traveler, an entrepreneur and a homemaker, but considers being mom to her now-adult daughter her greatest accomplishment. Loving all things creative, Nicole considers her life’s motto to be “Bloom where you are planted”.
How true! Just do a small section & all of a sudden you are finished! We have had so much rain it has been hard to even get out a do a small section. We use grass clippings between the rows in the garden to keep down the bulk of the weeds. Then it is just right in the row where you have to weed. It makes it easier for me!
Bindweed is the bane of our lives. We live in the foothills outside of Colorado Springs, and that rotten bindweed has taken hold throughout our property. Pulling does no good, of course, and we really don’t want to poison it as we want to keep things organic. I’d LOVE to hear any suggestions regarding that pesky weed.
I’ve just finally finished "weeding" my craft/computer/sewing room. You can see from it’s multi-purpose that in a very small actual bedroom area that I might have a problem. With over 10 years of accumulating scrapbook items alone, not to mention anything else I had a big task ahead of me. I even rearranged pictures and other wall art so that I now feel like it’s a new fresh room without spending a cent. It took me about 4 days but will last a good long time and will be much easier to find things and it’s a much more enjoyable room.
Hi Libbie! What a great post! I had never thought of indoor weeding before but it’s so true! I also didn’t realize that there was a badge for "Getting it Together" … that will be my goal. I’m off to weed my living and dining rooms, they’ve become overgrown. Thank you for the inspiration! XOXO
Perfect timing for this subject in my life! We just moved into our new home, complete with weeds in front that need to be yanked up. Weeds have been on my mind the past few days, and yes, all I have done is THINK about getting out there, but that’s a start, right?! You inspired me to go pluck some weeds today, thank you 🙂
I, also like to water the night before I weed or I wait till after a rain. I weed a little some where everyday when I am gathering herbs/veggies and then get some help from someone about once every 2 weeks or so. I do the beds and my helper stays in walk ways. The rains here have lighten up as have the mosquitoes, so I am a happy weeder. Thanks for the article!
Libbie,
Your blog couldn’t have come at a better time! I was feeling overwhelmed with all my weeds, 4 acres of market garden with no end in sight. I am still waiting for my husband to "fix" the cultivator for our tractor, however, weeds don’t wait, they just keep on growing. Interestingly enough, I actually do harvest Lambs Quarters and sell them at our local farmers market. Now, on to weeding inside – never thought of cleaning house that way. Love your blog, keep it coming.
Hi Libbie, I love your Blog and I like the way you started off your weeding project. So many times I look at the big picture, if you know what I mean and it becomes over whelming. Like my sewing room, I have accumulated so much stuff and then I inherited my Mothers and I have quite a few things and I guess I’ll never live long enough to do all that I want to do, I really need to weed that room. you gave me a wonderful Idea. Thanks for all you do and It helps to read you message. Farm Sister 1020 Juanita
This year I have both my two year old and six year old helping with the weeding – they are actually asking to help.
I actually really enjoy it too.
Warm wishes, Tonya
You are so right about weeding what you can "today." I started in March and worked room by room until May, even in the attic. It has been so much easier to clean house. It leaves more time for vacation, etc. As for the garden, it’s 100+ degrees with 100+ humidity here, so a little at a time has to be done. But no matter how hot, it clears the mind and helps release the concerns in life to work in the garden. Just simplicity and back to nature helps me! I guess I am a little Pollyanna-ish too. Thanks for a great blog.
I have been told not to put weeds in your compost for they will grow where you use your compost. I never thought of eating lambs quaters, do sound good, might just try it myself.
What a timely post for our household! Weeding is good for the soul inside or out no doubt about it! Last week, I participated in a blog party called Where Bloggers Create. ( maybe some of you heard about it ?) I had been daydreaming about using a portion of our unfinished basement for our daughter for several years. And somehow, the more I planned and dreamed the more packed that space became with this and that and things that really needed to be WEEDED OUT in the worst way. ( meanwhile we’ve been using the dining room table for our art projects ) I decided at the last minute to participate in the party giving myself only 4 solid days to finish the space to the point that I would feel inspired enough to share it with 4 or 5 hundred other bloggers right away. The rules were, you had to do a post about your space on a specific day. A studio show and tell of sorts. It’s been a week and I was just thinking today about how much I got done this week and how good it felt. My little piddly have too’s got checked off quickly, my mind felt clearer, my heart and spirit are lighter, and I feel like I can tackle things again with a happier heart, not an overwhelmed one… Lots of folks perform better under pressure. I guess I’ve become one of them! I agree that the weeding doesn’t have to be a big job, even little tasks like clearing the junk drawer or tidying the cleanser closet do wonders for making a farmgirl on top of the world again!
Thanks for a great post!
Deb~
Liked this blog – esp. about the "indoor weeding". (This may be a bit off track but wanted to let Juanita Massey know that "ancestor.com" has a lot of Massey & Massay family history/photos – I also come from the Massey/ay group. I love that site because so many people are getting in touch with offspring of their ancestors.) Lambs-quarters are very nutritional. Dandelion leaves are also good, very packed with calcium, but rather bitter. Sheep sorrel is another very good herb, has a surprising taste, like the sharpness of a Sweetart, but not sweet. This herb is one of the main 4 herbs in the compound "Essaic", used to fight cancer.
Libbie,
I was really inspired by your three H’s: hard work, heart work, and handwork. May I use those headings to categorize the activities of my day?
Weeding is non-stop here in Georgia. Here’s a tip I learned from my mom. When there isn’t time to do a proper job and you see a few seed heads forming on dandelions and thistles, just lop off the heads. At least the seed won’t spread before you have time to grab a hoe and dig out the roots.
I’m looking forward to reading more from you.
Carol
I just love your blog so much! Great ideas in this one! Keep up the good work – can’t wait for your next entry!
Wo. I can’t believe how that simple idea of "weeding" has taken root! Yesterday my husband said, "Hey! What happened to your desk!?" Without thinking, I said, "I weeded it!"
Of course, the drawers are still overgrown, but….at least the top looks great! I keep catching myself stepping into the room just to look at it! Amazing that such a little thing makes me feel so accomplished, and like maybe I DO still have a little control in my very busy life! A little weeding at a time every day! My new favorite developing habit! Yay!
Great post, Libbie!
Bindweed is the most abundant thing growing at our spot in the community garden. The more I pull up, the more sprouts elsewhere. Very frustrating.
I love other weeds, especially those wild edibles. Here is a great website for learning about edible wild plants: http://www.wildmanstevebrill.com/
I’m working on some indoor weeding myself, tackling those spots that are most annoying to me … just like that bindweed!
Blessings,
Catherine 🙂
Thanks for the …..inspiration! I am in a weeding MOOOOOOD!!!! ha ha! I have weeded out my office for the coming school year, I have weeded out several places in my home and all my "courtyard garden" in between the cobblestones. I don’t mind weeds too much outside, it keeps the dirt down, the dust from flyin’ and its green! ( not much of that around here) weeds and weeding is a part of life…. shoulda had my name…."weeder"" hahha!Thanks for all the ideas!!!!
The best way to work out how to get rid of a weed is to try to grow it. put it in a pot and use all your gardening skill to grow the best weed possible. when you have worked out what it needs to grow well you will know what will hurt it most. The bane of our lives is butter cup and i followed this method and discovered it loves potash and hates sulpher and coppersulphate so i added both to our annual fert programme and bingo lovely grass no buttercup. maybe bind weed has a simple dislike as well. you can also try testing soil samples from the places it grows best and the places it wont grow to find the element you need. you could also research the things that eat it bugs ainimals etc maybe all you need is an mongoos or a herd of green shield beetles ;0 lol
bindweed. we have several small patches of it here on our organic farm. Horrible stuff. When I make my tea in the morning I take the excess boiling water and pour it on the patch near my mudroom door. The patch that is out in the garden area next to one of our fields of hay we covered with a heavy black plastic which we will leave in place at least this summer. I just want to see if we can fry it out. I don’t have much hope except for a temporary fix for either spot. I’ve read that the only way to get rid of bindweed is…..to move 🙁
Linda
Sorry to say the weed situation is no better in N.E.Best I can do is attack on a daily basis.Our worst weed seems to be false rhubarb not sure about the bindweed.Roots go down about 3-4 feet and they are a @#%# to get rid of.