Landscaping Rocks and Managed Woodlot:

 

   

Rosewood Farm (for better or for worse) has an abundant crop of boulders and rocks.  The 'worse' part is that they can be a pain in the neck (and back)when we're trying to dig in fence posts for pastures and no matter how often you pick them, more of them pop up each year!  The 'better' part is that they have come in very handy when making a rock playground for our grandchildren to climb on and for general landscaping purposes in our yard.  This is as natural as it gets!  

 

During a recent visit to a large green house/landscaping business in near-by Winnipeg we were amazed at the sticker price on the rocks they offered for sale!  We can offer the home landscaper a variety of sizes, shapes, and colours of landscape rocks and boulders at a fraction of the cost they would pay at a greenhouse, if they are willing to pick them up.  We provide free loading service onto your truck/trailer.  Large boulders are suitable for professional landscapers who have heavy equipment to off-load the rocks at the customers' location.  Pricing is as follows:

$10.00--any rock you can manually lift

$25.00--medium boulders

$50.00 --large boulders 

 

 You can contact us at: pcbothe@nlis.ca

  

When we initially bought our farm, one of the things that attracted us to the property was that it was comprised of 74 acres of mature trees and shrubs--white and black spruce, white birch, poplar, tamarack, willows, chokecherry, diamond willow, highbush cranberry, dogwood, wild plum, pink ladyslippers and alder.  We soon implemented a Woodlot Management Plan with a representative from the Manitoba Forestry Association to ensure that wise decisions were made to manage our beautiful private forest.  

The woodlot provides a sanctuary to a great variety of wildlife (both the four-footed and winged types) in tree cavities and among the underbrush.  We harvest wind damaged and diseased trees, some is cut to thin out overcrowded growth, and some to provide grazing areas for our livestock.  Because we are surrounded by neighbouring forest, we plan to cut areas along the property lines to act as "firebreaks" in case of forest fire.  When we do cut, we pile tops and branches to be used for food and shelter for birds and animals.  We also ensure that some standing dead trees remain on the property to provide nest sites, food (insects) and perch sites for birds and animals. Each year we plant hundreds of new trees to replace some that have died or that we have cut, therefore sustaining the life of our woodlot.   We order our seedling trees from the www.agr.gc.ca/shelterbelt in Indian Head, Saskatchewan.   The aim of the Prairie Shelterbelt Program is "to improve the performance and sustainability of the agricultural sector by helping to achieve the social, economic and environmental benefits of agroforestry.   The seedlings provided are an incentive to producers adopting beneficial management practices and environmental stewardship".   We are responsible for the cost to have the seedlings shipped to us, the planting, and the maintenance. 

We will continue to cut winding trails through portions of the property, using the path of least resistance as our guide.  These trails act as hiking trails and recreational winter trails for quad-riding and snowshoeing.  They also provide open pathways for wildlife to travel, and for us to enjoy watching them.