jrh
@jrheling.bsky.social
Nudger of complex systems. Small scale multi-species livestock farmer 🐑🐓🦃🐐. Regenerative+perennial focused. Stubborn DIY-er. Novo Collegian. Husband. Dad.
Also @jrheling on Twitter / @jrheling@mastodon.xyz
Also @jrheling on Twitter / @jrheling@mastodon.xyz
Spontaneous oyster on willow
August 23, 2025 at 1:52 PM
Spontaneous oyster on willow
Anybody know what this fuzzy ball wrapped around a young white oak branch might be?
June 7, 2025 at 3:46 PM
Anybody know what this fuzzy ball wrapped around a young white oak branch might be?
Fungal activity in the compost pile confirmed
May 14, 2025 at 1:54 PM
Fungal activity in the compost pile confirmed
bonus playground for the lambs as the flock graze through my unfinished firewood work
May 10, 2025 at 2:37 PM
bonus playground for the lambs as the flock graze through my unfinished firewood work
Our very modest little “pond” is mostly minimally realized potential, but it’s at least enough for this turtle family to have decided to call it home
May 4, 2025 at 8:43 PM
Our very modest little “pond” is mostly minimally realized potential, but it’s at least enough for this turtle family to have decided to call it home
I’m easing the flock from hay to grass gradually so their rumens have time to adjust, and feeding hay on bare patches that I seeded first, so the sheep do the work of pressing the seed into the soil and the hay remnants they won’t eat serve as mulch.
Happy early spring in zone 5b
Happy early spring in zone 5b
May 4, 2025 at 1:03 PM
I’m easing the flock from hay to grass gradually so their rumens have time to adjust, and feeding hay on bare patches that I seeded first, so the sheep do the work of pressing the seed into the soil and the hay remnants they won’t eat serve as mulch.
Happy early spring in zone 5b
Happy early spring in zone 5b
2025 lambing season has begun - we expect 9 ewes to be expecting, so ballpark ~18 lambs en route.
The white & black one here we've dubbed Lexi - a candidate to be kept for future breeding
The white & black one here we've dubbed Lexi - a candidate to be kept for future breeding
March 30, 2025 at 1:20 PM
2025 lambing season has begun - we expect 9 ewes to be expecting, so ballpark ~18 lambs en route.
The white & black one here we've dubbed Lexi - a candidate to be kept for future breeding
The white & black one here we've dubbed Lexi - a candidate to be kept for future breeding
c'mon, @theguardian.com - compared to the alternatives you're a less-objectionable major news source but chainsaws don't have "blades" and missing that is a bad look
February 23, 2025 at 1:06 PM
c'mon, @theguardian.com - compared to the alternatives you're a less-objectionable major news source but chainsaws don't have "blades" and missing that is a bad look
Yes! Great piece - the conclusion really gets at the heart of the optimism-supporting angle on our current moment:
February 12, 2025 at 1:07 PM
Yes! Great piece - the conclusion really gets at the heart of the optimism-supporting angle on our current moment:
how many kittens does it take to replace the pressure switch on an air compressor?
January 4, 2025 at 8:03 PM
how many kittens does it take to replace the pressure switch on an air compressor?
From "Hospicing Modernity". This is a good and ambitious (if challenging) book.
December 18, 2024 at 1:32 PM
From "Hospicing Modernity". This is a good and ambitious (if challenging) book.
It's difficult to overstate how much time & labor this saved.
Some fossil fuels were burned. But that's not unique to this method; our old method used some (maybe more) as we mowed and grappled logs out of the way with the tractor. Literally *years* of focused weekends of work happened in one day.
Some fossil fuels were burned. But that's not unique to this method; our old method used some (maybe more) as we mowed and grappled logs out of the way with the tractor. Literally *years* of focused weekends of work happened in one day.
November 16, 2024 at 8:17 PM
It's difficult to overstate how much time & labor this saved.
Some fossil fuels were burned. But that's not unique to this method; our old method used some (maybe more) as we mowed and grappled logs out of the way with the tractor. Literally *years* of focused weekends of work happened in one day.
Some fossil fuels were burned. But that's not unique to this method; our old method used some (maybe more) as we mowed and grappled logs out of the way with the tractor. Literally *years* of focused weekends of work happened in one day.
Another illustrative before / after
November 16, 2024 at 8:17 PM
Another illustrative before / after
This has been very satisfying work to do, but also a *lot* of work. We experimented with a different approach yesterday, and hired a guy to clear a ~2ac area with a forest mulcher and grapple.
For example, look to the right and behind the (reference point) treehouse - before/after
For example, look to the right and behind the (reference point) treehouse - before/after
November 16, 2024 at 8:17 PM
This has been very satisfying work to do, but also a *lot* of work. We experimented with a different approach yesterday, and hired a guy to clear a ~2ac area with a forest mulcher and grapple.
For example, look to the right and behind the (reference point) treehouse - before/after
For example, look to the right and behind the (reference point) treehouse - before/after
Areas that were a nearly closed canopy of a dense bramble of misc brush now grow grass and legumes and support intensively rotated sheep grazing amongst the trees with interspersed areas of (mostly new) perennials (hazel, apple, berries)
November 16, 2024 at 8:17 PM
Areas that were a nearly closed canopy of a dense bramble of misc brush now grow grass and legumes and support intensively rotated sheep grazing amongst the trees with interspersed areas of (mostly new) perennials (hazel, apple, berries)
We have cleared brush and opened forest canopy on 5-7 acres of our land in the last decade using a succession of animal rotation (goat, pig, sheep, chicken) and mechanical removal (chainsaws, brush hog).
November 16, 2024 at 8:17 PM
We have cleared brush and opened forest canopy on 5-7 acres of our land in the last decade using a succession of animal rotation (goat, pig, sheep, chicken) and mechanical removal (chainsaws, brush hog).
Having a workshop cat is underrated
November 10, 2024 at 11:26 PM
Having a workshop cat is underrated
Always grateful for a weekend day after the leaves have all fallen that is neither rainy, windy, nor cold.
Mid 50s F today, and nice views of one of the sheep breeding groups and the turkeys while I clean the gutters.
Mid 50s F today, and nice views of one of the sheep breeding groups and the turkeys while I clean the gutters.
November 2, 2024 at 7:07 PM
Always grateful for a weekend day after the leaves have all fallen that is neither rainy, windy, nor cold.
Mid 50s F today, and nice views of one of the sheep breeding groups and the turkeys while I clean the gutters.
Mid 50s F today, and nice views of one of the sheep breeding groups and the turkeys while I clean the gutters.
Good freakishly warm Oct 30th morning to you
October 29, 2024 at 12:28 PM
Good freakishly warm Oct 30th morning to you