Reflections from the Evermore Path
Farm · Apothecary · Sky · Pasture · Herb
Fire Court 2026 · Evermore Ranch LLC · North Alabama · Kidding season closed April 17th
From the Gate
May arrives and the farm exhales. The Fire Court — our 2026 nursery class — has landed. Nine kids arrived across Aries season, and then on April 17th the final four came — all doelings — and closed the books on thirteen. My birthday. Aubrey was here for those last four, and I could not have asked for better company for the moment the season ended exactly as it began — with intention, with good people, and with precisely what I asked for.
The wishlist this year was doelings. The herd fulfilled it perfectly. We are retaining the entire 2026 crop — every single kid — while we take our time evaluating what this season threw. That is not a decision I make lightly. This court earned it.
Bellona · Polly × Ruckus · Pearl granddaughter · Admiral Havoc great-granddaughter
Dainty. A sweetheart. Absolutely was not supposed to be between those bins.
Eos · Sophie × Elfton · Evermore Stellar · Blue eyed · Admiral Havoc great-granddaughter
Refined and dainty. Inseparable from brother Lucian. Those eyes are not an accident.
The story of this season, though — the one I keep telling — is Nettle. Nettle did not plan to be a first freshener this year. Nettle had opinions about that plan, jumped the fence into the breeding pen, and made her own arrangements with Elfton. What she produced for that audacity was an udder that stopped me in my tracks. Impressive capacity, beautiful structure — exceptional for any doe, and she is a yearling. A yearling who was not supposed to be in milk at all. Whatever she becomes in her second and third freshening, this herd is paying close attention.
Peaches remains the standard everything here is measured against — udder documentation is finally on the schedule this season, long overdue. Dobbi is steady and generous as ever. Pearl holds her twice-daily routine with the dignity of someone who knows exactly what she is doing and what she is not.
The yearling does — Rhiannon, Tizzy, Willow, and Gert — have joined the main herd this spring to begin learning the rhythm of the land and the cycle of the season. Next year's fresheners watching this year's does. The herd teaches itself, if you give it the space to. We are giving it the space.
The new babies have claimed the poodles now. Joy, Freya, and Leesi have adjusted their loyalties accordingly. The Fire Court does not know yet that this is unusual.
And then three days after my birthday, on April 20th, Barbie had her piglets. Seven of them. The farm was not done yet — it just shifted species.
Rhiannon joined the main doe herd this spring alongside Tizzy, Willow, and Gert — four yearlings stepping into their first real season with the does. She is watching, taking her cues from the does ahead of her, learning what this land asks and what it gives back. Next year's freshener, paying close attention this year. She also stood perfectly still for her photo. The herd noted this. So did we.
The Fall 2026 waitlist is open. The entire Fire Court is retained for evaluation — udder assessments on the doelings, time to watch what the bucklings throw — and no placement decisions will be made until we know what we have. If you have been watching this herd, get your name in. Fifty percent non-refundable deposit holds any animal.
Flint — Pearl's son, Admiral Havoc grandson, full ears, soft and people-oriented — remains available at $275. He would make a worthy herdsire for the right small program. Inquiries welcome.
Four doelings on my birthday, Aubrey beside me, the season closing exactly as I hoped it would. I wrote the wishlist and the herd honored every line of it. Some years the farm gives you what you need. This was one of those years. I do not take that lightly.
Born Aries season through April 17th · Thirteen kids · Seven does · Two sires · Entire crop retained
From the Sanctuary
The cat sanctuary has been full this spring — and full in the best way. Alongside the Fire Court, we have been bottle raising five kittens. Five kittens and thirteen goat kids, all coming up together in the barn, all on the same schedule of small mouths and round-the-clock feeding. The goats do not find this unusual. The kittens do not know any differently. We are calling it an education for everyone involved.
The sanctuary houses cats who need a farm home — not a rescue in the traditional sense, but a working sanctuary where cats live as cats are meant to, supported and safe, with the farm around them. Membership in the Evermore Ranch community helps fund the program directly: the food, the vet care, the bottle formula, the endless small hours.
Of the five, two have names and homes already waiting for them. Sage and Shaeffer are spoken for. The other three are still looking — bottle raised on this farm, coming up alongside thirteen goat kids, knowing from day one that the world is a full and busy and abundant place. They will be ready for placement in a few weeks. If one of them belongs with you, now is the time to say so.
Five bottle kittens raised alongside the Fire Court. Sage & Shaeffer spoken for. Three still available — ready for placement in a few weeks.
The farm cat sanctuary runs on membership. If this program matters to you — the bottle babies, the barn cats, the safe haven — the best way to show up for it is to be a member of the Evermore Ranch community. Every membership goes directly toward the animals in our care.
Learn about the Evermore Ranch Farm Cat Sanctuary →Sky Watch — What This Cycle Holds
You are reading this on the New Moon — the slate is clean and the cycle is just beginning. The seed moment is now. The Taurus New Moon asks you to plant what you actually mean to grow. Not what looks good on paper. What feeds you. What you will still want to tend in three months when the novelty has worn off and the work remains.
This cycle runs through the Gemini New Moon on June 15th. In that window you will move through the full arc: intention at the New Moon, momentum at the First Quarter, culmination at the Full Moon in Sagittarius, and release in the waning days. Watch how the energy on the farm and in your body mirrors that rhythm. It usually does.
The big backdrop of this cycle is Jupiter in Cancer — generous, home-centered, nourishing. Whatever you put energy toward in the next four weeks has the potential to grow beyond what you expect. Focus matters. Jupiter in Cancer does not discriminate between what you feed; it just amplifies the feeding. Tend the things worth tending.
The Sun moves into Gemini on the 21st and the energy quickens — ideas, conversations, connections, the urge to share what you know. If you have been sitting on something you wanted to write or teach, that window (May 21 through the Full Moon) is your opening.
The Market Basket
What is ready, what is back, and what we are making space for this cycle.
For everyone who has ever had to explain the ears. The LaMancha tee — because the breed deserves a shirt and you deserve to wear it. Use code MAYBASK at checkout.
Get the shirt →
The signed paperback of Stormwalker: The Lesson Behind the Pain paired with the digital companion — together for less than apart. A good pairing for the season of slow reading and long evenings.
Get the bundle →Pasture Watch
One plant in prime season during this cycle — either because it is worth finding, or because it can cause serious harm. Quick field ID here so you know what you are looking at. Full details, look-alike comparisons, and treatment protocols are inside The Stillroom and on Discord.
↑ Purple-red blotching on hollow stems — the key diagnostic marker. If you see this, do not touch without gloves.
If you are walking fence lines this month, look for the purple spots on the stems. Young plants are lush and attractive — they will not look dangerous. Smell before you assume. When in doubt, pull and remove from reach.
The Herb Grimoire
The hawthorn blooms in May. This is not a coincidence — the old name for May blossom is hawthorn, and it has been woven into spring ritual across the old world for as long as people have been paying attention to the land. It is in flower right now. Step outside and look.
Hawthorn is above all a heart herb — both the physical heart and the energetic one. It strengthens the cardiac muscle over time, gently lowers blood pressure, and has a long traditional use in grief, heartbreak, and emotional depletion. It asks you to take the long view. It is a slow medicine, best worked with over months, not days.
Now is the time to gather the flowers and leaves if you have access to a hawthorn tree — they will not be in bloom long. The berries will come in fall, and they tell a slightly different story.