tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60682944276534262442024-02-19T05:20:19.972-08:00Tilton Hollow Farm 1823JeffJustJeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04574511510296447394noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6068294427653426244.post-85246302918725616242013-01-07T20:31:00.003-08:002013-01-07T20:31:37.159-08:00Duck ProsciuttoYep. You heard me right. Duck prosciutto. I got <u><i>Charcuterie</i></u> by Michael Ruhlman and Brian Polcyn for Christmas. It's basically a cookbook for cured meats. If you're a fan of charcuterie and would like to try it yourself, I urge you to run, not walk, over to <a href="http://astore.amazon.com/advinthegoola-20" target="_blank">Ohio Farmgirl's website</a> and buy it from Amazon through her store. Take a look at her blog while you're there. She's a talented, informative, and highly entertaining writer.<br />
<br />
I am a prosciutto NUT. Try to take a slice of prosciutto from me, and you'll get a growl if you're lucky, a nasty bite if you're slow. I am also a huge fan of duck. And luckily enough, our ducks breed like rabbits. They hatched out over 50 this season.<br />
<br />
To start the prosciutto, you'll need two duck breasts with the skin still on, kosher salt, ground white pepper, cheese cloth, and some kitchen string. I removed the tenderloin from the back of the breasts and gave it a quick sear. It tasted better than any steak I can remember. Make sure the breasts are dry. Find a container that will hold the breasts without them touching each other. I didn't have anything that fit very well, so I put each one in a separate glass pie pan. First, put a layer of kosher salt down in your container(s). You don't want the breasts touching the side of the container or each other. Put the breasts in meat side down. Make sure they're pushed down in the salt. Pour salt over top to cover. Make sure that they are completely covered. Wrap your container(s) in plastic wrap or foil and put in the refrigerator for 24 hours.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMC9xEpUTq_V3YDlc98jkMTPEBju6ySdXvQGkZm94Cdq7S_wPn5id4hUGQma2xGO3Gny_yGrio4ubAFualoc65rZkYXwyuExCvuDF7NfEHrIecmwZHUOcvjx9jfajoaPKYNSv_QgLNrad2/s1600/Salt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMC9xEpUTq_V3YDlc98jkMTPEBju6ySdXvQGkZm94Cdq7S_wPn5id4hUGQma2xGO3Gny_yGrio4ubAFualoc65rZkYXwyuExCvuDF7NfEHrIecmwZHUOcvjx9jfajoaPKYNSv_QgLNrad2/s320/Salt.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Covered in salt</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
After the day in the fridge, remove the breasts from the salt. Rinse them. It's okay if you don't get every single grain of salt off. Pat the breasts dry. You can let them air dry on a rack for a while if they're not completely dry. Once dry, sprinkle both sides liberally with the pepper. I've read other recipes where people use different spices, or place spices in the salt. This is where you can use your creativity. I followed the recipe since this was my first time curing meat. Throw out the salt! Don't try to get frugal. <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg30yBqOh__bvNSoHmqV3hVabUso4dOApfk9Zwgki-JF5SMN-46rfVkBMWvjyc2u5Jmn6jE-0t7t02IMwReqU37T9JBBG_6xB4cXVOEu5nY0BIHOBr0cZwzC5PvvMMV6sVi4wvCqduxF9CO/s1600/24+Hours.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg30yBqOh__bvNSoHmqV3hVabUso4dOApfk9Zwgki-JF5SMN-46rfVkBMWvjyc2u5Jmn6jE-0t7t02IMwReqU37T9JBBG_6xB4cXVOEu5nY0BIHOBr0cZwzC5PvvMMV6sVi4wvCqduxF9CO/s320/24+Hours.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">After a day in the salt</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Wrap each breast in a single layer of cheesecloth. Secure the cheesecloth with the kitchen string, leaving a length at one end to hang them. Weigh each packet and write down the weight on a piece of paper you can attach to the packet.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOOTZsKIDMVzEMGC5J6vGcmNyotkqmgwm-zPclgsQdpWoXfeUvCLwWarpW_8qK_Qa_Il5tAklTbWFIOmpERypNjaz4ZRf-ZrEXQWMIni99FHiF5Xr-91SR8TlWfGHf68YxWZo__-M2obE4/s1600/Packages.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOOTZsKIDMVzEMGC5J6vGcmNyotkqmgwm-zPclgsQdpWoXfeUvCLwWarpW_8qK_Qa_Il5tAklTbWFIOmpERypNjaz4ZRf-ZrEXQWMIni99FHiF5Xr-91SR8TlWfGHf68YxWZo__-M2obE4/s320/Packages.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pretty little packages</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Find someplace to hang them where the temperature stays between 50-60 degrees F. For me, it was in our pantry which is unheated. It stayed perfect. Generally, they'll need to hang about 7 days to be ready. It could be longer or shorter depending on the size of your breasts...well, the duck's breasts...and the humidity. To be honest, I missed the part about weighing, and let them hang for seven days but gave them a little squeeze(the duck breasts, not mine) every day to check progress. If you did remember to weigh them, you want them to lose 20-30% of their weight.<br />
<br />
Once they're ready, remove them from their wrapping and inspect them. You just want to make sure there isn't any mold or anything funky. I've heard white mold is fine, just wipe it off with a vinegar and water solution. Other kinds of mold are not good and it's time to start over, with probably less humidity.<br />
<br />
Prosciutto is best served in paper thin slices. I like to eat just prosciutto, but it's delicious with fruits, cheese, melon. You can saute it for sauces or to jazz up a dish. It makes all kinds of great hors d'oeuvres. It will last for months in the fridge wrapped in plastic wrap. Honestly, I just don't know how much you would have to have to not eat it in a week.<br />
<br />
It turned out amazing for me. I think it probably was ready on day six. The outer edge of the meat side, was a bit jerky like, but not too bad. It darkens as it ages. The inside stays softer and lighter. It is...well, just prosciutto. It has the smooth texture and wonderful flavor. The white pepper really sets off the flavor. So, run right out and get a duck and start curing meat. You won't be sorry. All I see outside is prosciutto walking around on webbed feet. I think the geese are getting nervous.<br />
<br />
Here is a little video of Chad and me unveiling our prosciutto(sorry if I should've have worn something more formal than pajama pants). Let me know how it turns out for you.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dxBrc7QnRJqPNNjWhZY2K9wbgejQdHXln7_K8eT9WYUObYhH8l_kdOHk437RBe0HPb1ewJJcuVxR-3es-UT' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />JeffJustJeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04574511510296447394noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6068294427653426244.post-75245399686297684042012-11-03T19:49:00.001-07:002012-11-03T19:49:17.188-07:00Gone too long...Hiya friends,<br />
It hardly seems possible that it has been almost 5 months since my last blog. Surely, it was just day before yesterday when I said, "Oh, I'll write another one tomorrow...". Summer sure can keep you hopping on the farm. Now that the cool weather has moved in, I have just a tad more time to catch my breath. Let me try to recount our summer in a few paragraphs...<br />
<br />
I guess I never blogged about one of the most momentous events so far on the farm. Shaasta, our mini-LaMancha goat gave birth to twin girls on March 9th, Tilly and Luna. They are just adorable. Tilly needed a little help to get out in the world and Luna came sliding right out, no problem. They're as tall as their mommy now.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikJ1QE55mbyXlnx6FDBeW0cNTiK7e1zKGPwtIk0MHbvuaHV8wBVmzcHvWoOC5eU0MagESdnJhiJ7ytSw41nnGrDiAuaGM4yfGPJ4f-k0jHigrEPiMyl0_a6qg31rwd3Y4O9VPvhiXFriW3/s1600/Luna+Tilly.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikJ1QE55mbyXlnx6FDBeW0cNTiK7e1zKGPwtIk0MHbvuaHV8wBVmzcHvWoOC5eU0MagESdnJhiJ7ytSw41nnGrDiAuaGM4yfGPJ4f-k0jHigrEPiMyl0_a6qg31rwd3Y4O9VPvhiXFriW3/s320/Luna+Tilly.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
We put in a HUGE garden this summer. When I say 'we', I guess I should say that I put in a reasonable sized garden and my step-dad thought it should be about 3 times the size I planned. Oh, and once he helped me get it planted, it was time for Ma and Pa to head back to Arkansas to take care of some things! I was a bit overwhelmed. Next, our tomatoes started showing signs of leaf spot. It's a nasty fungus that starts with round dark spots on your tomato leaves. The lower leaves start dying and the fungus progresses up the plant. Our tomato crop was pretty much a bust. I'll most likely plant them in raised beds or the greenhouse next year, as it takes 4 years for the fungus to die in the soil. We did get lots of beans from the garden.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGHLNEXM_aVBtbmbAM-q2j87uWlSilKvbKBCdjSLkB9OOYG9RKLxPEyntc7kRDxktScdvtA6LmMQkVLE3qAWgmQdXRidiZ75kusx0yrIu_GSqWM49lB1ulAo3WjS2ZS_mDzvbvZ3S_B7Ib/s1600/garden+2012.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGHLNEXM_aVBtbmbAM-q2j87uWlSilKvbKBCdjSLkB9OOYG9RKLxPEyntc7kRDxktScdvtA6LmMQkVLE3qAWgmQdXRidiZ75kusx0yrIu_GSqWM49lB1ulAo3WjS2ZS_mDzvbvZ3S_B7Ib/s320/garden+2012.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
That leads to the next adventure. I learned how to can. Boy, that is some hard work. I know it just seems like 'cooking', but it keeps you hopping. I spent several days canning. We put up pickled beets, pickled okra, tomatoes in sauce and wholes, chili sauce, and beans. If you haven't tried canning before, get a Ball Blue Book and a canning kit. It's a great feeling to put up your own food for the winter.<br />
<br />
We had our first hogs butchered. Nigel was our Old Spot/Large Black cross and Mr. Humphries was our Old Spot feeder. We filled our freezer with pork goodness. We have been eating a lot or pork and not complaining. It is wonderful. The bacon is out of this world, and unfortunately, we are out of it :-( We have three more hogs ready to go to the butcher in December. One is sold. We'll try to sell a second and keep one for ourselves. These are two Yorkshires and a Hampshire. Next time, we'll be back to Old Spots. We had a hard time finding a husband for our sow, Martha. He came all the way from Georgia. Luckily, we were able to meet his previous owners in Kentucky. She's very excited to be betrothed. She just wishes um, he would get taller, quicker...<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRT4KSnPy3zjpqJrGHssnlng-kaK4DzyerU1hpCcFnFeG6bBfvI_T16Kr063aHFAJsxseSkCAcj21cnVt8N_m9XB29Kf6FaSR_meIwtJKyydTj8k4RCzqqDj-UWhB0VlIZry8vjWUMckbB/s1600/Stewart.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">,<img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRT4KSnPy3zjpqJrGHssnlng-kaK4DzyerU1hpCcFnFeG6bBfvI_T16Kr063aHFAJsxseSkCAcj21cnVt8N_m9XB29Kf6FaSR_meIwtJKyydTj8k4RCzqqDj-UWhB0VlIZry8vjWUMckbB/s320/Stewart.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
We finally got our hoophouse finished in time for fall. A hoophouse is an unheated greenhouse. We'll be able to grow plants that can tolerate cool weather throughout the winter. This includes root vegetables and many types of lettuces/greens.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcFwGfGD1AtYqtx1iirUUT9znqNF7FaruskwBl2o6uKcAOFtEcQIjtpaoPcPrk5VXj1zR3t4acfnYdipOYD15w_diC1kpFfejLM6w2zed2vLX5JE-6yWM_cg30rMcHpM7yEFe9_ME7m1y0/s1600/hoophouse.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcFwGfGD1AtYqtx1iirUUT9znqNF7FaruskwBl2o6uKcAOFtEcQIjtpaoPcPrk5VXj1zR3t4acfnYdipOYD15w_diC1kpFfejLM6w2zed2vLX5JE-6yWM_cg30rMcHpM7yEFe9_ME7m1y0/s320/hoophouse.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
We are also currently raising a few cows for beef. We buy them as calves from the livestock auction and bottle feed them until they are weaned. Billy, our first steer, is about 6 months old and getting huge. We call him 'Billy', because it was written on his eartag when we purchased him. He's like a 500 lb. puppy dog with horns. He's very friendly, but you should never let your guard down for a second with such a large animal.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOcSxGz23JopIdNqvz2NvWH5lABm5FVVq9Gi5m75hdb-v9yKN_o_CfGXcK7GoSuvc-N2Fuk4Kjwy6ppN0bWHdmWP3NOT9sWQueaFi6Gp3HqSp3cy7uHmTA4naBVnuuTMqssI9NFzPrCN5b/s1600/Billy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOcSxGz23JopIdNqvz2NvWH5lABm5FVVq9Gi5m75hdb-v9yKN_o_CfGXcK7GoSuvc-N2Fuk4Kjwy6ppN0bWHdmWP3NOT9sWQueaFi6Gp3HqSp3cy7uHmTA4naBVnuuTMqssI9NFzPrCN5b/s320/Billy.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
<br />
We also have Count Chocula and McCartney who are still on the bottle. We feed them a mix of milk replacer and goat milk. They do very well on it.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi83VVDaJroL27w6XAqrB9gdkv8oBgodhaEQOkf55KZsNIivHGzBDnPnnDaxYm_2p5LQUC52lD0zbfvz6Z6Q1DaLmLHzsJYanfdI5ziKxn_Pf0zz2w-2uBEuLPMarAdzrxireVgPu4HOHHN/s1600/calves.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="315" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi83VVDaJroL27w6XAqrB9gdkv8oBgodhaEQOkf55KZsNIivHGzBDnPnnDaxYm_2p5LQUC52lD0zbfvz6Z6Q1DaLmLHzsJYanfdI5ziKxn_Pf0zz2w-2uBEuLPMarAdzrxireVgPu4HOHHN/s320/calves.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
We are now up to 14 goats! Animal Hoarders, here I come. No, they are well taken care of and have plenty of space. We finally got our pasture fenced with a lot of help from Pa. The animals are having a high time in their expanded digs. We even took a trip to NY back in May to pick up Jill from the Beekman Farm. It was such a pleasure to meet John Hall. He raises some spectacular, friendly goats.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEA0DsTOrus1CYlaCjI_03zfsyAUXXE3_Tbj2JKc4tz8OumaoCwhdm76xbXcRXfBlt7VAp5736hjMM1zsJwfQzORUlspUNmPGQdYv3bqGZd_sjnUOJxQspBWt8Gmk_76UzoHxT7sJvQaNb/s1600/Me+and+Jill.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEA0DsTOrus1CYlaCjI_03zfsyAUXXE3_Tbj2JKc4tz8OumaoCwhdm76xbXcRXfBlt7VAp5736hjMM1zsJwfQzORUlspUNmPGQdYv3bqGZd_sjnUOJxQspBWt8Gmk_76UzoHxT7sJvQaNb/s320/Me+and+Jill.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me and Jill</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Here's a pic that has most of our goats. We have quite the herd now. We love them all so much. They really bring more joy than you can imagine to our lives.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ3lQmV8LAQUbOBwFGH1ZlQld4Bn00W6_ZsAkKycxnLJMG7-CUpHciFiZyZtX-PWmBhjWJAXN_mGN3EaFzl6OKlX4LMlWALUGy5lZwbPU5GymHAfwvF0wfIvjXePLILsIX2MHGqCo9e_EB/s1600/Tilton+Hollow+Promo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ3lQmV8LAQUbOBwFGH1ZlQld4Bn00W6_ZsAkKycxnLJMG7-CUpHciFiZyZtX-PWmBhjWJAXN_mGN3EaFzl6OKlX4LMlWALUGy5lZwbPU5GymHAfwvF0wfIvjXePLILsIX2MHGqCo9e_EB/s320/Tilton+Hollow+Promo.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Oh, shoot. I almost forgot. We have a line of soap! Chad and I come up with all of the scents, and we have a master soapmaker, Margaret Neff from Nature's Touch Soaps, who makes the soap for us. We are in several retailers and a bed and breakfast. We also have an<a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/TILTONHOLLOW" target="_blank"> Etsy store</a> where you can purchase online.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixe5rU9JY2yKswAfrivo_K5WIhWLgktSRWznVX1SNcbDN2sepK73CREPWi7n2JbUOR-fmySykIdKUJ2hgxUUD68nKw_Y_DN5cR1bSLk25qAduL4jYdob8MYt2_ZmUOIuzrO0CO667x7tGN/s1600/soap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixe5rU9JY2yKswAfrivo_K5WIhWLgktSRWznVX1SNcbDN2sepK73CREPWi7n2JbUOR-fmySykIdKUJ2hgxUUD68nKw_Y_DN5cR1bSLk25qAduL4jYdob8MYt2_ZmUOIuzrO0CO667x7tGN/s320/soap.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
We recently made the decision to give up television! Honestly, it hasn't been that difficult. If there's something we really want to see, we can always watch it online. We just found ourselves wasting too much time in front of the TV. There are so many more things we could be doing that would be productive. We just have to make sure that we have downtime. You will find yourself worn out if you don't give yourself some.<br />
<br />
I think I have hit on the major points since my last blog. I am going to do my best to be a regular blogger. I hope they're as much fun for you to read as they are for me to write. We have the beginnings of our website up as well. Visit us at tiltonhollow.com. There are links to our store and this blog. There will be a lot of content added over the next few months. It's great to be back!<br />
<br />JeffJustJeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04574511510296447394noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6068294427653426244.post-51272593976343295882012-06-12T14:11:00.000-07:002012-06-12T14:11:00.279-07:00The fight for good food...<br />
<div style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;">
</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
</div>
<br />
<br />
Hello friends,<br />
It has been way too long since I last blogged. I'm trying to do better. This post isn't going to be a catch-up post. This is going to be more of a vent/rant. As all of you know, we moved to the country in search of the good life. We found it in spades. We decided we wanted to share some of the good life and help pay some of the bills. We want to sell our pork which is raised on pasture naturally as opposed to crammed into metal buildings, never seeing the sun, getting shots of minerals because they can't root them out naturally, and crammed full of antibiotics to prevent disease in these unnatural conditions. We had our hogs butchered at a USDA inspected facility which allows us to re-sell it.<br />
<br />
I called the county health department. We have to have a freezer to transport the pork to and from the market. We've transported the pork for hours before in a cooler with ice and it was still frozen rock hard when we got home. The best part is that the freezer doesn't have to be running, it just needs to be able to run. How is that different than a cooler. The permit is $167. The county guy told me that I also have to have a permit from the state to store frozen food.<br />
<br />
So I call the Ohio Department of Agriculture. Their permit is $50. They have to come out and inspect the storage area. The freezer has to be dedicated to the meat you're selling (can't be used for the rest of your food). We have that. There's one thing wrong with our freezer situation. It's in our house. You're not allowed to have the freezer in the house. It has to be in an outbuilding. We have an automatic, natural gas generator for our house. It doesn't power any of the outbuildings. The guy goes on to say that there are other common sense rules like no toxic substances stored on top of the freezer or dogs running around doing their business in the freezer room. I say, "That's not common sense. Common sense would tell you to put it in the nice clean temperature controlled house with a generator instead of the dusty outbuilding that who knows what can get into." I get the "I don't make the rules speech.".<br />
<br />
All I want to do is share my pork with the world and make a little money in the process to keep the farm going. I will jump through all of these hoops against my better judgment. I'll probably end up running power from the house to the milk house. I hope that having a freezer in the milk room (processing, not where I milk the girls) won't cause me not to be able to do milk.<br />
<br />
I get that we need to keep our food supply safe. If I thought for a millisecond that these rules are working, I wouldn't complain. I know that they are not. You just have to watch the local news to find the latest food-borne illness that these rules didn't protect you from. It's time for a food revolution in this country, and I hope to be part of the vanguard.<br />
<br />
Do you want to get your pork from someplace like this: <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://grist.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/hogcafo_463.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Hog CAFO" border="0" src="http://grist.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/hogcafo_463.jpg" width="315px" /></a></div>
Or someplace like this:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZXtIFrZnZd1rYersFwqEncIizKl-s4QZAPCcV0t8UAlnJKCFpGIGQULN2dcSSf1Jf4QXVth2urlxAnOdm-B36HBGfDITYn3m32EA1nnPaNOCdLhyr10h7NyHyhyphenhyphenCX7G136eptIIsaCro0/s1600/Fall+Field.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZXtIFrZnZd1rYersFwqEncIizKl-s4QZAPCcV0t8UAlnJKCFpGIGQULN2dcSSf1Jf4QXVth2urlxAnOdm-B36HBGfDITYn3m32EA1nnPaNOCdLhyr10h7NyHyhyphenhyphenCX7G136eptIIsaCro0/s400/Fall+Field.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
Which side are you on in the food revolution?<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />JeffJustJeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04574511510296447394noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6068294427653426244.post-3563771338764412342012-02-11T18:59:00.000-08:002012-02-11T18:59:49.973-08:00Dueling Vinegar PiesLast weekend, my mom, step-dad, and sister went to the livestock auction with me. On the way home, we stopped at a little restaurant in Martinsburg, where we lived when I was in 1st/2nd grade. This place has the type of food you would find at a dairy stop, but it's more home cooked fare. My mom was reading the daily pie selection on the chalkboard. "Oh, you have vinegar pie!". They have what???? That sounds disgusting. My granny used to fix it for my mom when she was a kid. They only had one slice left (you mean people actually ate it?), so my mom bought it for my sister and me to split.<br />
<br />
We finished our meal and it was time for dessert. We also had a piece of hickory nut pie. I tried that one first. It was good. It was almost indistinguishable from pecan pie. Now, it was time to trie the vinegar pie. It looked like the filling was kind of custard-like and the top looked like a sugary, crunchy layer. I'm not afraid of trying new things, in fact, I rather enjoy it. I'm glad I wasn't afraid to try it. It was delicious! It's not quite as smooth as a custard, but similar. It has an almost citrus taste, and the crunchy layer on top was a nice contrast to the filling.<br />
<br />
I did a little research on-line about vinegar pie. I read that the early settlers would make it after their store of canned fruits had run out over the winter. There are more recipes than you can imagine. I decided to make one. I've always been a Pillsbury pie crust guy, but I figured it was time to make them from scratch. I read a few recipes and settled on <a href="http://smittenkitchen.com/2008/11/pie-crust-102-all-butter-really-flaky-pie-dough/">this one</a>. I really want to try one with lard. David at Spring Hill Farm is going to let me know when they have some in stock. On a side note, I'm on the list for a couple feeder pigs once he has some ready. Ohiofarmgirl has done too much raving about them. I just had to try them.<br />
<br />
I decied to start with this <a href="http://www.heritagerecipes.com/pie-recipes/vinegar-pie.htm">recipe for the vinegar pie</a>. The one that I had tasted didn't have any of these spices in it, but this one sounded good. You cook the filling in a double-boiler until it's thick and then pour it in a pie shell and bake. It came out very dark, since it has cloves, cinnamon, and allspice in it. It reminded me of a really good homemade apple butter like my grandparents and great-aunts used to make. It was very different from the pie I had tried, but still good.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh08XL2dX0Hf9Z1NLJlYDbVMVFSPNQhzrsYxjlIM1JREO4KdB7NlFqE5Dd2MlaZhZoN7KpN4KsayDAqOLUQrnPTq2-Hzb4Qb9zsNUm7JRDU6zibviAbopr4PWTm4uNl7ZmhCb-6VXDe9sNM/s1600/Vinegar+Pie+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh08XL2dX0Hf9Z1NLJlYDbVMVFSPNQhzrsYxjlIM1JREO4KdB7NlFqE5Dd2MlaZhZoN7KpN4KsayDAqOLUQrnPTq2-Hzb4Qb9zsNUm7JRDU6zibviAbopr4PWTm4uNl7ZmhCb-6VXDe9sNM/s320/Vinegar+Pie+1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Contender #1</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
My pie crust recipe made two crusts, and well, this pie just didn't blow me away. I did another Google search for vinegar pie and saw a picture in the 'images' section that looked a lot like the pie I had first tried. I clicked on the picture and found <a href="http://glutenfreeeasily.com/vinegar-pie/">this recipe</a>. It's actually a page for gluten-free recipes. I used regular flower and a pie crust. This one came out looking just like the one I had tried. For the most part, it tasted nearly identical too. I think I may cut back on the sugar and vanilla next time I make it, but it was DELICIOUS. I used some organic apple cider vinegar with 'the mother' in it. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mother_of_vinegar">mother of vinegar</a> is a mixture of cellulose and acetic acid bacteria that gives vinegar some great properties. Do you know all the wonderful things that vinegar can do? If not, I suggest you do some reading. It really is amazing.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK0xDY2d7EKZpNmwbAgZBQoRiu29gp9aLKo28oSDGxw8FIsKtn0D2owXa1R5p1ys9ycn2TH1UA-P8kIHFkFj-sGMPXQiwDcitJkBfaBsHf1xcbUKgGFya43fHoHzz3Scbfs4R8dcyAA5q1/s1600/Vinegar+Pie+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK0xDY2d7EKZpNmwbAgZBQoRiu29gp9aLKo28oSDGxw8FIsKtn0D2owXa1R5p1ys9ycn2TH1UA-P8kIHFkFj-sGMPXQiwDcitJkBfaBsHf1xcbUKgGFya43fHoHzz3Scbfs4R8dcyAA5q1/s320/Vinegar+Pie+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We have a winner!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
You really should try this pie. Take a look at some old recipes. This pie is incredibly easy and inexpensive to make. My pie crusts turned out pretty well, but they're far from perfect. Any of you have any great tips for making homemade crusts? I'm betting the lard will really help.JeffJustJeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04574511510296447394noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6068294427653426244.post-52075831216223296942012-02-07T17:31:00.000-08:002012-02-07T17:31:32.852-08:00Ode to Cheryl....<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
Monday night, I was walking out to the barn to gather eggs. It was oddly quiet on the walk. Generally, my two Chinese white geese, Cheryl and Dodi, greet me loudly. I saw one of them with the ducks. That sent out the message that something was wrong. They're never more than a few feet away from each other. I did a quick scan. I saw white on the other side of the pond. The white wasn't moving. I dropped the egg basket and ran to whomever it was in the pond. I got there and it was Cheryl. She was dead. I pulled her out of the water and saw blood on her head. I looked closer and saw some large puncture marks. It was horrible. I checked out Dodi and he had some puncture wounds as well, but he seems to be doing okay other than being very traumatized. I'm pretty sure it was dogs who did this. I'm pretty sure a coyote would have taken them to eat and the puncture wounds were too large for any of the other typical predators around here.<br />
<br />
<br />
I had raised Dodi and Cheryl(my nephew named them) from goslings along with a third. I had to put the third one down when it developed a horrible neurological condition. That strengthened my connection with the other two. I always wondered why people kept geese because they're often quite mean as the get older. These geese were my best farm friends. They would jump up in my lap and give me goose hugs and kisses. I'd give them dandelions and we'd talk about our days.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnOobXiMw3cNy0RnH4IE8UMqOjhNbIJWgOUEe4EKjEeM8eJoGMhmukBbjsxBU6ZAUcLvDlGEdB9t1Li7tJv79UHdec6Sqb4_PtFz5qjM5AvQ4u6G4Su8o4GDOJzOQGoios8wT9w8TPFJdc/s1600/geese+day+one.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnOobXiMw3cNy0RnH4IE8UMqOjhNbIJWgOUEe4EKjEeM8eJoGMhmukBbjsxBU6ZAUcLvDlGEdB9t1Li7tJv79UHdec6Sqb4_PtFz5qjM5AvQ4u6G4Su8o4GDOJzOQGoios8wT9w8TPFJdc/s320/geese+day+one.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Day I brought the little fuzzballs home.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4Mnx6rH3wnMPG_Xeq2PWFBEfM3a48g7jxBBE3aPozI1s25GIpj4fwD80zFaLVQ5N9Xoddz5wPSdG9D7ajjQKatpp5lYuKj_tdk6TBprEOk6XCDj3RE-DL89-WCdKM2yPWse_W3GjaBvwr/s1600/happy+with+goose.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4Mnx6rH3wnMPG_Xeq2PWFBEfM3a48g7jxBBE3aPozI1s25GIpj4fwD80zFaLVQ5N9Xoddz5wPSdG9D7ajjQKatpp5lYuKj_tdk6TBprEOk6XCDj3RE-DL89-WCdKM2yPWse_W3GjaBvwr/s320/happy+with+goose.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">They always made me this happy!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
As they got older, they did get mean to most other people. They pretty much were only nice to my step-dad and me. If the target of their aggression would stand their ground, the geese would usually back off. Their aggression wasn't limited to humans and included dogs and goats and most other birds. None of that mattered a whit to me. I still loved them. They would always greet me when I came home from work or any time I walked outside. Tonight, it was very, very quiet when I got home.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ_cGjuvwq0PvWxTdXUuAMNDSBqvQdbrL10hvBbJFAOMj_a73gWCfVJQhoI1kGm4pGiOWL3B1wc8ucj9H-Md4eOH58M0dp57Omf2tD5tGdLzLyVouz4VeSTaYYDCRBfnH_bc-GB1z-pD2X/s1600/Chad+lap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ_cGjuvwq0PvWxTdXUuAMNDSBqvQdbrL10hvBbJFAOMj_a73gWCfVJQhoI1kGm4pGiOWL3B1wc8ucj9H-Md4eOH58M0dp57Omf2tD5tGdLzLyVouz4VeSTaYYDCRBfnH_bc-GB1z-pD2X/s320/Chad+lap.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This was when they still liked Chad</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRKtN5RObdHCJmT-i8zOmJpcGa6ogsm_-9v9vnYWeZQFW2nlgUm-ZmmIyeFPMligpveLhO4cL_FsuIwcAiVrxKcmrwgH-tT5-NYURPcTEvbDCxUqxF65DzzL4rbWbYw7eIj8OJYTKMiMiL/s1600/geese+and+friends.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRKtN5RObdHCJmT-i8zOmJpcGa6ogsm_-9v9vnYWeZQFW2nlgUm-ZmmIyeFPMligpveLhO4cL_FsuIwcAiVrxKcmrwgH-tT5-NYURPcTEvbDCxUqxF65DzzL4rbWbYw7eIj8OJYTKMiMiL/s320/geese+and+friends.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here's the awkward stage between fuzz and feathers</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJMxPImthLFC132HRUf5Ghqz3VU7DPElo9-wIzOH8O2ZnGxKawNeA9a-qC0T0CufyDduQhLu_hfGLSE5jkTZGp14WWkFTXU2yl1fEUTNphLagrTCTMke3tIGIG16BJMGk40Ls7oiwn6wUn/s1600/cheryl+prebump.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJMxPImthLFC132HRUf5Ghqz3VU7DPElo9-wIzOH8O2ZnGxKawNeA9a-qC0T0CufyDduQhLu_hfGLSE5jkTZGp14WWkFTXU2yl1fEUTNphLagrTCTMke3tIGIG16BJMGk40Ls7oiwn6wUn/s320/cheryl+prebump.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cheryl before she got her bump on her bill</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghJDteZN9mlW-iD6xIes8stLLWErQrkKV4zoY0yctCmli_3BKqXZyQ0BoSyHV2bO0ArORi3rl8XIMG0U5v119MzDLL7XBEjb1SBq_J08zfiXTO7-y_ap-sy1XNwlMSHDEXuXxGK-rXr2A4/s1600/geese+chipmunk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghJDteZN9mlW-iD6xIes8stLLWErQrkKV4zoY0yctCmli_3BKqXZyQ0BoSyHV2bO0ArORi3rl8XIMG0U5v119MzDLL7XBEjb1SBq_J08zfiXTO7-y_ap-sy1XNwlMSHDEXuXxGK-rXr2A4/s320/geese+chipmunk.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">He doesn't turn his back on them any more. There's Chipmunk who we also lost last year.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlejI6Vc44l9p_9D45EtadNs1KmwtgGc8XbThxFqwTCw40uNHN1xFr6UJpuxLPe-caEURNcrQNJkjXa3mCKL_vVpIbYEdKC0Bp_1lbAatAkBqfFh48og25n8xfB_uM0BUD9MTKBrcE46c6/s1600/Get+that+thing+away+from+me.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlejI6Vc44l9p_9D45EtadNs1KmwtgGc8XbThxFqwTCw40uNHN1xFr6UJpuxLPe-caEURNcrQNJkjXa3mCKL_vVpIbYEdKC0Bp_1lbAatAkBqfFh48og25n8xfB_uM0BUD9MTKBrcE46c6/s320/Get+that+thing+away+from+me.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cheryl sometimes didn't mind the paparazzi</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-KjRXoE1G2Hdw7xNv9rB-XeG9_iEZ47OhREO8dCbZfXmtyDfNgy7mN9jEJo7gez3M3_TbfrOOGx9CJgo03y-sJlXkYCJA4KkH8EL8R4BhstHjIsfaOMYb_xOveZY0Xdt4mX12s23RpSxU/s1600/Goose+close.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-KjRXoE1G2Hdw7xNv9rB-XeG9_iEZ47OhREO8dCbZfXmtyDfNgy7mN9jEJo7gez3M3_TbfrOOGx9CJgo03y-sJlXkYCJA4KkH8EL8R4BhstHjIsfaOMYb_xOveZY0Xdt4mX12s23RpSxU/s320/Goose+close.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">But when she did....</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQnXRqYhgORQgMqQDQvYAX2G3ebynOhu1KlfrpdrPk_rXJLZEqq8KKBqlDEZsod3Xeyst5PPfny_uJy1ViwfJJkoz4ZjvnPhtP_fzYQVC6f0jReS708bmK_g9kpskm2XzorRhoLYfqdClW/s1600/I+warned+you.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQnXRqYhgORQgMqQDQvYAX2G3ebynOhu1KlfrpdrPk_rXJLZEqq8KKBqlDEZsod3Xeyst5PPfny_uJy1ViwfJJkoz4ZjvnPhtP_fzYQVC6f0jReS708bmK_g9kpskm2XzorRhoLYfqdClW/s320/I+warned+you.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Well, she let you know!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO72kbhZXidXBeJxONZemf5zVTTp-k-_Vclzl9pqmAUYLUVnzpNSWw3Rm9IFRMSfI9YENobrFibs3wG21r0F9yKiCPWrQWsHHWBfDcnKjuyoiBBY1RzvqGmXYxluM5WnpWhGAjdcNKFYfs/s1600/geese+pond.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO72kbhZXidXBeJxONZemf5zVTTp-k-_Vclzl9pqmAUYLUVnzpNSWw3Rm9IFRMSfI9YENobrFibs3wG21r0F9yKiCPWrQWsHHWBfDcnKjuyoiBBY1RzvqGmXYxluM5WnpWhGAjdcNKFYfs/s320/geese+pond.jpg" width="236" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here's a beautiful picture of them taken by our good friend Cherie Helman</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Cheryl, I am a better person for having know you and will miss you more than you could ever imagine. Goodbye, friend...JeffJustJeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04574511510296447394noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6068294427653426244.post-66367225810928408772012-02-01T17:45:00.000-08:002012-02-01T17:45:46.382-08:00Aromatherapy for pigs and Wile E. Coyote impersonations<div>
Since moving to the farm, I've tried to use things that are more 'natural'. I've been reading up on medicinal herbs, aromatherapy, and things of this nature. I'm a big fan of Molly over at Fiasco Farm. She has completely embraced natural healing and even sells medicinal herb mixes for goats.<br />
Well, last week we experienced our first case of hoof rot in our goats. I did a little research and found that tea tree oil is a treatment for hoof rot (also for dandruff and I put it in my shampoo). I trimmed away as much of the dead material on the hoof and put a few drops of the oil on the affected area. It may have been my imagination, but Millicent seemed to be getting around a little better that afternoon. We're applying it twice a day.<br />
<br />
That got me thinking. I have noticed some scaly skin on Nigel, our Old Spot/Large Black pig, in his ham region. I've been applying it twice a day for him as well. It's definitely improving. As an added benefit, the barn smells better too.<br />
<br />
One of our Black Copper Marans(breed of chicken) pullets(young female) got out of the fence and decided to take up residence across the road in the neighbors' pine trees. When they're in the barn, they come running to me because I = feed. Since she has heard the call of the wild, I = The Warden. My first attempt was to rely on the Pavlovian conditioning I've imposed on her. To set the scene, I'm in my plaid, fuzzy robe wearing pajama pants and muck boots. I went to the barn and got some cracked corn in the scoop I always use for the chickens and my butterfly net (and you thought the scene couldn't get funnier). I go over to her new home (with the net behind my back). I shook the scoop and did my usual 'heeeere chick, chick, chick'. Here she comes! It works! I let her eat for a bit and ready the net. I wait for her to bend down and peck up a few more kernels. Swoosh goes the net. 'Bock, bock, bock', goes the pullet as she runs back to the pine trees. "Grrrrrrr" goes the farmer as he chases after the chicken, followed by lots of wheezing and coughing. I love getting reminded by a chicken that I'm not the spring chicken here...<br />
<br />
Once I was able to keep enough oxygen to get the wheels turning again, I came up with an even more brilliant plan. Chickens are flock animals, right? Well, I figured she might come around one of her flockmates. And no, I wasn't going to end up with two chickens on the lam....really. I took a length of twine and tied it around the 'bait chicken's' leg. I took her over to the runaway chickens new abode. We sat there for a while with the bait chicken trying to untie her leg. Little Miss Runaway started heading our way! I wasn't going to try the net again. I was sitting on the ground by the bait chicken. This time I was going to go for the leg with my lightning reflexes. Yeah, see the last sentence of the previous paragraph. The chicken is still on the loose. I went out with a flashlight tonight to see if she was roosting, because they're easy to grab when it's dark. No such luck. Tomorrow, I'm trying some bird seed and an Acme anvil. Stay tuned.<br />
<br />
This is a video of the first time the pigs ventured outside. They just look so happy. It breaks my heart that so many pigs never get to be a pig. They are locked in buildings and many never even see the sun, let alone root in the dirt. Our pigs will get to be 100% natural pigs. Tell me they don't look happy. Now the goats on the other hand look terrified LOL. It gets more interesting about 15 seconds in or so...<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dwXM0qNDHieVUTz08Xy2gv7wq7TrAsXB7Ikd3CP6NJ36ueBGQyHBd1vIHTOLK-uUV9n2hF1_sUQzPBHN0Dd' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
I have some exciting news. Chad and I worked on the scents for our line of goat milk soap. We came up with two scents and we're going to do one that is unscented called Raaw ;-). We'll decide the mixtures of all the ingredients that go in with the goat milk. We found someone to make the soap as well. We really like her bars. We'll use our own goat milk as soon as we have some....c'mon Shaasta and Staar. It's really fun coming up with the recipes for the soap.<br />
<br />
What's going on in your neck of the woods?<br />
<br />
</div>JeffJustJeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04574511510296447394noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6068294427653426244.post-11527850267759332802012-01-17T16:50:00.000-08:002012-01-17T16:50:03.782-08:00Crazy ducksI got ducks back in the spring as about week old ducklings. Of course, they start laying just as it turns cold. They lay in one or two communal nests, and I guess draw straws to see who has to sit on them. I just let them sit and took a few eggs here and there, 'cause you know duck eggs are great for baking.<br />
<br />
I never dreamed that they would hatch out in this weather. Well, they did....on a 16 degree day. I found out when my dog came running into the house with what I thought was one of her squeak toys. As she got closer, I could tell it wasn't her squeak toy. Yep, it was a duckling. She didn't kill it, it just didn't make it because it was too cold. I couldn't believe it hatched. There were actually three. None made it. That hen is going to be a good brooder in warmer weather if she can hatch them when it's this cold.<br />
<br />
We've been seeing a lot of the sad side of the circle of life recently. Hopefully, we'll get to see the happier side soon with the arrival of several healthy doe kids. On a side note, I'm still being entertained by the pigs. I think it's mainly because I don't know much about them. They're vicious little beasts to each other, and all they do is eat, sleep, and poop. They're coming around to us, probably because we usually show up with something they want. Gotta keep the bacon happy. We'll get them on pasture soon where they belong.<br />
<br />
What's going on today in your world?JeffJustJeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04574511510296447394noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6068294427653426244.post-40715860178997873422012-01-16T09:47:00.000-08:002012-01-16T09:48:10.089-08:00The pigs have landed...They're here. They're here. Saturday, I made the two hour drive to H and H Farm in Norton, OH to pick up my registered gilt (young female) and two feeder (bacon) pigs. The Hoffman's have a <a href="http://www.handhfarm.com/">beautiful farm</a> where they raise heritage hogs, turkeys, chickens, and Limousin cattle on pasture. I also picked up some of their pork to get a taste of what I was raising...more on that later.<br />
<br />
I loaded the pigs into a dog crate. I had originally planned on only getting one feeder but decided if we do get into a farm market, it would be nice to have some to sell, so ended up getting two feeders.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid1Cn3AlY37nyltNJV67OyJBqHDNYGyw3Gf_8sgItm_1Q9zzDZKD8TmZby00pljgQnbjWrP4uE8naaQ39brw0qfxPpiqTOcjG6S02-vgwzNbAQ3hzkOX3_DchhmpDSRdUOYfqD19cuOf6G/s1600/2012-01-14_14-52-26_43.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid1Cn3AlY37nyltNJV67OyJBqHDNYGyw3Gf_8sgItm_1Q9zzDZKD8TmZby00pljgQnbjWrP4uE8naaQ39brw0qfxPpiqTOcjG6S02-vgwzNbAQ3hzkOX3_DchhmpDSRdUOYfqD19cuOf6G/s320/2012-01-14_14-52-26_43.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
Now, I'm here to tell you that a two hour drive with three pigs cuddling in a crate is not a pleasant experience. the pigs didn't seem to mind. They like to snuggle together when they sleep. After about an hour, the heat went off, as it was only enhancing the smell. That's when I remembered that Chad had bought me a Carhart hat with a pulldown facemask and it was in my pocket! I drove the rest of the way home looking like a bank robber but was in olfactory bliss.<br />
<br />
Let me introduce the pigs:<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG5oEZTap9Cc3wsFyBPuyBSS3tHlC0SrmCeLXYPUH7f99fGf7oAA83yA2fpaa4G7PVJati6jxDB2oNPTFuz2cYK_L6thl467wkD_LtVwwCbmAXVzG8oGU_lYi2qn93AmSxivPngbb-XCW6/s1600/2012-01-14_20-02-29_137.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG5oEZTap9Cc3wsFyBPuyBSS3tHlC0SrmCeLXYPUH7f99fGf7oAA83yA2fpaa4G7PVJati6jxDB2oNPTFuz2cYK_L6thl467wkD_LtVwwCbmAXVzG8oGU_lYi2qn93AmSxivPngbb-XCW6/s320/2012-01-14_20-02-29_137.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Martha</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsSZ9kvW8QLuwKK-hGwXNX23kfnxk2shOIHRyA8nZv0Pd7tJHOot5iiOaPkEh0efIgs-xvlZEdo3tiVcj6ReQLD_AxTRY-D8YJvi4d8fUMdvaUpAyg5TjLDHZ1QfGdyIZtC74Lt95QAwUO/s1600/2012-01-14_20-00-30_810.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsSZ9kvW8QLuwKK-hGwXNX23kfnxk2shOIHRyA8nZv0Pd7tJHOot5iiOaPkEh0efIgs-xvlZEdo3tiVcj6ReQLD_AxTRY-D8YJvi4d8fUMdvaUpAyg5TjLDHZ1QfGdyIZtC74Lt95QAwUO/s320/2012-01-14_20-00-30_810.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nigel</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6xm5bTQNs1n_Cw-NHdyFyXQrlB9MFjSAdIKPtZH7JcytgZCbYDKBTBpYLBLiUnJDe3dwcmgd5IjzTALMDYdB8d_kGmBWruPYhEUhUwLH0MXdusujdbOVTKFpssnXUaR6DrJAJ8TwkL81b/s1600/2012-01-15_21-04-15_597.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6xm5bTQNs1n_Cw-NHdyFyXQrlB9MFjSAdIKPtZH7JcytgZCbYDKBTBpYLBLiUnJDe3dwcmgd5IjzTALMDYdB8d_kGmBWruPYhEUhUwLH0MXdusujdbOVTKFpssnXUaR6DrJAJ8TwkL81b/s320/2012-01-15_21-04-15_597.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mr. Humphries</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Since these pigs originate from England, we tried to give them British sounding names. We love the 70's British sitcom, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Are_You_Being_Served%3F">Are You Being Served</a>, so named one after Mr. Humphries. Martha is named after Martha Stewart. Nigel just was the most British sounding name we could think of.<br />
<br />
Martha and Mr. Humphries are both pure Old Spots. Nigel is 1/2 Old Spot and 1/2 Large Black. The <a href="http://albc-usa.org/cpl/largeblack.html">Large Black</a> is another heritage breed that is also listed in critical status by the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy. I really like the looks of Nigel. He's only a week older, but considerably larger than the other two.<br />
<br />
We have the little porkers in the barn until we get the pasture all squared away for them. I never realized what a vicious world it is for pigs. They do not like to share at all. They take turns standing in the middle of their feed dish and biting the ears of the others that try to eat( just like in Mr. Humphries picture). I'm finding that pigs can be a bit picky too. They don't like raw carrots but scarf down cooked ones. I've taken to throwing all the cooking scraps into a pan and boiling them. Yes, I'm cooking for pigs. Trust me, it will all pay off in the end. Yesterday, I fixed them a nice, big bowl of oats for breakfast.<br />
<br />
Now to the important part, BACON. I bought some bacon, sausage, and a roast with the pigs to see what I was in store for. All I have to say is, if that was bacon, what the hell have I been eating the rest of my life. It was nothing like Oscar Mayer. It was thick and meaty and substantial. It was delicious. It also didn't have any ingredients in it that weren't completely naturual. I can't wait to try the rest.<br />
<br />
We're really hoping we can make a difference with this breed. We can't let them just fade off the planet like so many other species. I think we're in the middle of a food revolution where people actually care what they're putting into their bodies. I'd be very proud to be part of that revolution. Pigs weren't meant to live in closed up buildings never seeing the sun except maybe when they're loaded on the truck to take them to the slaughterhouse. They are meant to root around in pastures and forests. The stuff that you buy on slabs of styrofoam wrapped in plastic is not what pork is. It's some engineered product that we are told is pork. If you don't already know, you'll see when these pigs become pork.<br />
<br />
Are you going to be part of the revolution?<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>JeffJustJeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04574511510296447394noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6068294427653426244.post-42931645272872132012-01-08T08:44:00.000-08:002012-01-08T08:44:14.935-08:00Today is one of the sad ones.This morning we were running around a bit hectic. Chad is playing a benefit show in Columbus, so we were taking care of the animals before we left with Ma and Pa. I was feeding the goats and I noticed that Esmerelda was bleating a lot and not coming over to eat. I went over to pet her and check her out to see if anything looked wrong. Well, something definitely looked wrong. She had something about a foot long hanging out of her lady parts. The lighting wasn't the best in that corner of the stall, so I ran to the house to grab a flashlight, towels, and Chad. It's amazing how fast you can move when that adrenaline is pumping.<br />
<br />
I called the vet and found out who was on call this weekend. It ended up being Dr. Monica from the Fredericktown vet clinic. Pa was in the stall with Esmerelda when I got back to the barn. He's seen lots of farm critters give birth in his many years. He said it looked like what comes out after. Dr. Monica agreed. We talked a bit more and she advised that if I was comfortable with it, I should try to go in. I knew that day would come and definitely hadn't been looking forward to it.<br />
<br />
I pulled the membrane we saw out. You should only do this if you've been advised by your vet or have WAY more experience than I do. I examined the membrane and saw something odd. I examined closer and realized that Esmerelda was miscarrying. It was a fetus that wasn't very far along. I called Dr. Monica back and she said that I didn't need to go in, just watch and make sure she was ok and looked like she passed everything and to give her penicillin twice a day for the next 3 days. I thanked her again and sat with Esmerelda hoping I was providing at least a little comfort to her.<br />
<br />
Shortly, Esmerelda started pushing again. I figured this was just after birth. It ended up being another kid that was breech. This one was much farther along. In fact, I was hoping there might be a chance that it was alive. It wasn't. It was a little billy.He didn't have fur yet, but had the coloring on its skin.He looked likehe was going to be colored just like his mama.<br />
<br />
I called Dr. Monica back just to let her know the whole story. She said it was very odd to have the two fetuses of different development levels. I asked her if we should try to milk Esmerelda if she develops and she recommended not to. We'll keep a close eye on her and pamper her even more than usual over the next week or so.<br />
<br />
It's interesting looking at everything in hindsight and all the a-ha moments. Yesterday, Esmerelda was very talky which is unusual for her. Her teats were bigger which we missed. She recently had pinkeye. One of the types of bacteria that cause pinkeye can also cause abortions.<br />
<br />
You have to take this as a learning experience, but it's very sad. The farm can be a brutal classroom at times. I'm sad for Esmerelda, sad for us, and sad for the little kids. We'll bury them in a nice spot so they can go back to the earth and nourish the farm they would have called home had they lived. It's all very cyclic on the farm.JeffJustJeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04574511510296447394noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6068294427653426244.post-25114005647694395542012-01-07T11:46:00.000-08:002012-01-07T11:47:17.196-08:00That's some pig...I'm working on training the barn spiders on web writing. So far, it's just a bunch of cobwebs. The time is steadily approaching when we're going to pick up our first pigs. We decided on Gloucestershire Old Spots. They are a heritage breed out of England. They do well on pasture and were once called orchard pigs, as farmers kept them in their orchards to glean the fallen fruit. Legend has it that their black spots are bruises from falling apples. They are classified as critical by the <a href="http://albc-usa.org/cpl/gloucestershire.html">American Livestock Breeds Conservancy</a>. There was so little genetic diversity in the stock in the US that they used a <a href="http://www.gosamerica.org/id1.html">cyclic breeding schedule</a> where only certain color groups are bred together to build up genetic diversity.<br />
<br />
We are getting a gilt (young female) for breeding and a feeder from <a href="http://www.handhfarm.com/">H and H Farm</a> in Norton, OH. We're hoping to be ready for them by next weekend. Last night, Jo sent me pictures of our little gilt. She's some pig....<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivBIdkLI3-qxrVe2p_Kogc1c0I9Xr16nir8-4NgnoIDYf2nHigQMPUJCkj3YA23KYOUxwf0xlP-gn5BcXklBZGJyavNFw2XbVrHdpL-C1Zz61y5tIxMBO4cVTmclMpDmjqySmerqIsiyTz/s1600/000_0005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivBIdkLI3-qxrVe2p_Kogc1c0I9Xr16nir8-4NgnoIDYf2nHigQMPUJCkj3YA23KYOUxwf0xlP-gn5BcXklBZGJyavNFw2XbVrHdpL-C1Zz61y5tIxMBO4cVTmclMpDmjqySmerqIsiyTz/s320/000_0005.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look at that face! Look at that length!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7o_9sNfxVqbLF6LRKc33mnhlSQ0ZgvLx7IBuYG6uGWIICnqT_mi9OUf253XHw-usr9UfLzgA4IvTe9Leam2nKguwsRdh6h-JiDgtnG_dYLtusEEMn5MIHnu-G1zQQ5gkne-tYOOKhoKVt/s1600/000_0004.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7o_9sNfxVqbLF6LRKc33mnhlSQ0ZgvLx7IBuYG6uGWIICnqT_mi9OUf253XHw-usr9UfLzgA4IvTe9Leam2nKguwsRdh6h-JiDgtnG_dYLtusEEMn5MIHnu-G1zQQ5gkne-tYOOKhoKVt/s320/000_0004.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look at that ham. Hopefully, she make lots of little piglets with nice hams as well.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoZNt_3eyNtB0SF5CQP3oLcmXQEYtjg4GDQqTh5PVYKBZY32wNjjsqEEDygjfd3NSDr_pUyXmg6tKDjdfmYM1Ls8mpsiH02bom3l-udlryX2T4qGJzAj7Hin6URShf-fyeC6smVS_G28Yv/s1600/000_0001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoZNt_3eyNtB0SF5CQP3oLcmXQEYtjg4GDQqTh5PVYKBZY32wNjjsqEEDygjfd3NSDr_pUyXmg6tKDjdfmYM1Ls8mpsiH02bom3l-udlryX2T4qGJzAj7Hin6URShf-fyeC6smVS_G28Yv/s320/000_0001.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look at that bacon, look at that loin. OFG, you drooling yet?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIXS1D8Mj8L2CgafczFrrgPre_FQ2r0EfYUOfuB0JSoRZfbsXArKU2S2W8_RvFmUYJS6dbL-mOS39jnWKdZdt1NBaNAf8JrWaVXZQ4wv0sIVQy7X64gt_ok-1T1SMPe9CPMrTmlhZmz6Jm/s1600/000_0006.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIXS1D8Mj8L2CgafczFrrgPre_FQ2r0EfYUOfuB0JSoRZfbsXArKU2S2W8_RvFmUYJS6dbL-mOS39jnWKdZdt1NBaNAf8JrWaVXZQ4wv0sIVQy7X64gt_ok-1T1SMPe9CPMrTmlhZmz6Jm/s320/000_0006.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some pig....</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
We're very excited to start raising pigs, as well as a little nervous. We're also very happy to help preserve such a wonderful heritage breed. The feeder we'll be raising is an Old Spot as well. I plan on using them to help me wrangle some invasive Japanese Knotweed and get our gardens ready for spring. We will have plenty of eggs and hopefully whey to help with the feeding. I'm going to use <a href="http://adventuresinthegoodland.blogspot.com/2010/12/how-to-grow-out-feeder-pigs-on-cheap.html">Ohio Farmgirl's method for growing out a pig on the cheap</a>. I'm going to try to arrange a visit to <a href="http://springhillfarms.us/index.html">Spring Hills Farm</a> which is very close to me. David raises Tamworths on pasture, another heritage breed on the ALBC's list in 'threatened' status.<br />
<br />
On a side note, we got enough good alfalfa mix hay to last the winter and probably spring for our goat girls and the kids. The hay that we had been getting just wasn't up to par. It was way too dirty. We went to the Danville livestock auction and won a load of 67 bales for $5.50 a bale. In some parts of the country, this would be a steal. We were paying $4 for the crappy stuff, so it's not too big a jump. The girls are certainly loving it.<br />
<br />
We're enjoying spring-like weather here in central Ohio. I'm sure we'll pay for it soon. We have everyone out of the barn whether they want to or not to enjoy this fine weather. We have some chickens that just don't like to go outside. I have a feeling that it's due to rooster politics.<br />
<br />
I know we're enjoying the spring weather. What's it like in your neck of the woods?JeffJustJeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04574511510296447394noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6068294427653426244.post-36362978336798928932012-01-04T18:28:00.000-08:002012-01-04T18:28:01.288-08:00Lost and found...My mom and step-dad have been visiting since before Thanksgiving. They're staying in their travel trailer parked out by our barn. It's bigger than our first apartment. We love having them here, they're very helpful around the farm. They love the farm. My step-dad is a good ole boy from the Ozarks of Arkansas. He has never met a stranger and has done just about everything.<br />
<br />
He gives us lots of farm advice and works hard. He sometimes tends to do things his way and most of the time that turns out okay. He's the one who went to the livestock auction and came home with a surprise alpaca...<br />
<br />
In my blog from earlier this week, I told you that we were going to be getting pigs soon. When I got home from work/school last night, he told me that he had stopped by the local sawmill and bought some wood for the pig barn and they were going to deliver. He got a really good deal on some 'irregular' lumber that wasn't quite standard. He's great at finding bargains like that.<br />
<br />
He told me the sawmill guy asked how the 'banker and the telemarketer' were doing (I'm not a banker, I work for a bank setting up their telephone line and Chad works for a health insurance company dealing with doctors' offices around claims and their contracts). Immediately all the stories that he could have been telling them are running through my head and I picture burly lumberjacks rolling in laughter at our shenanigans. My step-dad said, "Oh, they're lost." The lumberjacks stopped rolling and looked at me in shock awaiting my reaction. And then I snapped out of my daydream.<br />
<br />
That struck right at the heart of me. I wasn't mad, hurt, or anything like that. Lost? I couldn't think of a word that would describe the way I feel less than 'lost'. In fact, I would have to say that if anything, I feel 'found'. At no point previous in my life have I had a more clear picture of what I want to achieve and I think the same thing goes for Chad. We look back and can't believe the progress we've made and the things we've learned. We both have a burning purpose in our lives that we've never had.<br />
<br />
After I mulled it around a bit, I was a little hurt, but not much. Whatever hurt I felt didn't stick around very long. My step-dad has a huge heart, unfortunately, it's not in control of his mouth muscles. I think maybe we just do things differently than he may have done them. Neither one is right or wrong, they're just different. In fact, I ended up a little grateful. It helped me realize just how lucky we are to know exactly what we want and to be on the path to it. That is a wonderful gift that I think many people don't get to experience.<br />
<br />
I think Chad and I may need to put on our fanciest duds and do a little shopping at the sawmill.... We don't want to deny those lumberjacks their laughter ;-)JeffJustJeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04574511510296447394noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6068294427653426244.post-89210656051777606602012-01-01T20:38:00.000-08:002012-01-01T20:46:15.548-08:00The Year in ReviewI think too often we focus on the things that didn't get done in the preceding year. I've found myself doing that often since moving to the farm. I decided to inventory what we did accomplish and was pleasantly surprised...<br />
<br />
First and foremost, we bought a house. It wasn't just any starter house either. It was my dream house in the country. For Chad, I think he thought it may end up being his nightmare house, but he finally learned how wonderful it is to live in the country. I told him until I was blue in the face, actually, I was more red 'cause he wouldn't just take my word for it and pack up and head for greener pastures. He is hooked completely now. We've both been happier than we ever dreamed possible. When people ask me about living on the farm, I say, "I've never worked harder in my life and I've never been happier". <br />
<br />
We acquired a barnful of animals. While this may not sound like an achievement, it really is. We've learned so much about the animals we have and luckily for them, most of it has not been at their expense. Most of the animals, we got by choice. <a href="http://tilton1823.blogspot.com/2011/10/glorious-fall.html">Taabitha, we got by accident</a>. Most of you haven't met Ivy yet. She is our first alpaca. My step-dad went to the livestock auction one Wednesday and came home with her. Who does that? An alpaca is not a typical surprise gift! Well, she was surprising, I'll give him that. She's very entertaining, and we've grown fond of her.<br />
<br />
We've started Tilton Hollow on the road back to becoming a farm. In the coming year, we hope to provide most of our own food and a little extra to sell. We should be having goat kids(which means creamy delicious goat milk) in the next couple months and we will have pigs any time now. We plan on raising and breeding Gloucestershire Old Spots. We have a gilt(young female) and a feeder(raised for meat) coming in the next few weeks. <br />
<br />
So, when you take a look back, don't focus on what you didn't get done, focus instead on all of the accomplishments. What you didn't get done either isn't important or it can stay on the to-do list. We sat down today and made a list of 2012 goals. I'm a firm believer that you can't get where you're going if you don't know where that is. I like to write my goals down on a piece of paper or put them in a computer file that is visible all the time. I like to keep them in the forefront so they don't get forgotten.<br />
<br />
In closing, we did suffer a couple of losses in 2011. We lost a super sweet little banty hen, Chipmunk. She was one of the original 8 chicks I got at TSC. We lost her partner in crime, Puff. He wasn't very sweet, but he was spunky. All in all though, it was a great first 'year' at the farm and we're looking forward with great excitement to 2012.<br />
<br />
What are your goals for 2012?<br />
<br />JeffJustJeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04574511510296447394noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6068294427653426244.post-76313649023189089292011-11-18T18:42:00.001-08:002011-11-18T19:11:58.408-08:00Sometimes you get just what you expect...We experienced our first minor health issues with the goats this week. There have been a couple that are coughing and just haven't got better or worse. Then, Gabby got the runs. I called the vet and he told me to give Gaabby some Pepto-Bismol and to stop by and pick up some sulfa pills for her and the two with the cough. <br />
<br />
I drove to the vet who is about 30 minutes away. I'm supposed to be at work so I call my boss and let her know I'm going to be late. I pick up the pills, the Pepto and hurry home. I head out to the barn to administer the medication. I start with Gaabby and the Pepto. Right off the bat, I kneel down by Gabby and put my knee right in a pile errr puddle of runny goat poop....in my work clothes. I give her the Pepto. She and I end up wearing less than half of it so I think it's a success. Now for the pill. I fight with her to get her to swallow the pill. I hold her mouth shut and run her throat. Finally she swallows the pill. I get ready to give Taabitha her pill. I go through the same fight with her. I turn around and there's the pill on the hay in front of Gaabby... How do you get a goat to take a pill and keep it down when they are cud-chewers. They can swallow it and bring it right back up and spit it out.<br />
<br />
Finally, I get all of them to keep their pills down. I repeat this battle the next day...twice. The next day, I pick up some molasses treats at the store. I take them into the pen with me and have the pills in my hand. Esmerelda comes up and starts sniffing the hand with the pills in it. I decide to try to just give her the pill. She sniffs the pill and takes it and chews it! Ok, lucky. I try it with Taabitha. Same thing! Can I get lucky enough to have it work on all three girls? Yep, Gaabby chews it up and swallows it.<br />
<br />
I went into this expecting to have to force them to take the pills and that's exactly what I got. What's that saying, don't assume or your goat will make you look like an ass??? Teehee. I'll try not to assume next time. What else can a goat teach me? We'll see. Any of you ever learn something from an animal?JeffJustJeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04574511510296447394noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6068294427653426244.post-59989247255899748772011-11-13T17:30:00.001-08:002011-11-13T19:45:19.719-08:00Pumpkin deliciousnessWow, where is the fall going? I especially love fall at the local orchards and hopefully soon at our own orchard. The apples, the pears, the cider, and THE PUMPKINS. I love anything pumpkin, but this year I wanted to expand my pumpkin horizons.<br />
<br />
I brought home my pumpkins and cooked them down with<a href="http://adventuresinthegoodland.blogspot.com/2010/10/how-to-murder-pumpkin-and-cook-it-up-in.html"> instructions</a> from my farm guru, OhioFarmGirl. The first recipe I tried was Pumpkin Cannelloni with Sage Brown Butter Sauce from <a href="http://www.countryliving.com/recipefinder/pumpkin-cannelloni-sage-brown-butter-sauce-recipe">Country Living magazine</a>. I pretty much follow the recipe, except I added some sage sausage from a local farm. This is made the top 5 meals I've made so far list. It's AMAZING.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJtUq0GectgB2PLnekAMbc6mPPLbB4RzvjruS14MYfkZ1Tub227CZkqVNCULeFvv-IXIeTSEmj_WGkAc4ECFZ8U0XUR4-U4IFe4Mi00G4P-bAHm5BE-eXvw0-4lOmxNrUaouXYFa8qv8lm/s1600/dinner.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJtUq0GectgB2PLnekAMbc6mPPLbB4RzvjruS14MYfkZ1Tub227CZkqVNCULeFvv-IXIeTSEmj_WGkAc4ECFZ8U0XUR4-U4IFe4Mi00G4P-bAHm5BE-eXvw0-4lOmxNrUaouXYFa8qv8lm/s320/dinner.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
I also had a <a href="http://www.countryliving.com/cooking/recipes/our-best-pumpkin-recipes-1008?click=main_sr">Pumpkin Biscuit recipe</a> from Country Living magazine (seeing a theme?). It has ginger and cayenne for a little kick. Here they are ready to go into the oven:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt1DhXOKEoJLn2NP3b-wWWQ6oHtb2ZnIBOHKBoK4KVycfwvfzqtYqUeNs-hbmIzlbwEklLO9hbSdJFp3Wy8RiTo3fudQtBRaPfv7T37dX8Cy2HhAuyktkjutzKWa91SzWShZF55VaWh_s9/s1600/Dough.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt1DhXOKEoJLn2NP3b-wWWQ6oHtb2ZnIBOHKBoK4KVycfwvfzqtYqUeNs-hbmIzlbwEklLO9hbSdJFp3Wy8RiTo3fudQtBRaPfv7T37dX8Cy2HhAuyktkjutzKWa91SzWShZF55VaWh_s9/s320/Dough.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
And here is how they came out. They practically rose sky-high:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSqW_R3ENsWGNzeGQ1odCXVEuUJzc0rWGWrBcFbPPFnBaYwpCwKjl8DMLSi1VmKcP56Ag9_tVLz4o_K2s__-HG9teSwk7ReEfMau01Dp6f68KtEthony8vP7syuGyEvjrk-ngJVT5f1di9/s1600/Fluffy+biscuits.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSqW_R3ENsWGNzeGQ1odCXVEuUJzc0rWGWrBcFbPPFnBaYwpCwKjl8DMLSi1VmKcP56Ag9_tVLz4o_K2s__-HG9teSwk7ReEfMau01Dp6f68KtEthony8vP7syuGyEvjrk-ngJVT5f1di9/s320/Fluffy+biscuits.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
This recipe got me thinking. I really like poached eggs. Chad is our Eggs Benedict chef at Tilton Hollow, but I wanted to give poaching a try. I poached some eggs fresh from our girls, melted some Blaak cheese from <a href="http://beekman1802.com/">Beekman 1802</a> on some Canadian bacon, and topped it with some arrugula from our fall/winter garden and put it all on the warm pumpkin biscuits. They were absolutely delicious. We accompanied this with some mulled wine made with cider from a local orchard. Great fall evening meal!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_bXwn4tC1AEbGLZ8ZtkUzYoJxACeHdDzLuhWMqWkinSKa_sNG-zpXStaFBWSeI9JhCldi6HdyPIb43nNte9oLI7Q_v8m6DuNTTDFaGb_w1yUCDetax0eF3GdTPod0S83LisStJbHJN7My/s1600/poached+eggs+kicked+up.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_bXwn4tC1AEbGLZ8ZtkUzYoJxACeHdDzLuhWMqWkinSKa_sNG-zpXStaFBWSeI9JhCldi6HdyPIb43nNte9oLI7Q_v8m6DuNTTDFaGb_w1yUCDetax0eF3GdTPod0S83LisStJbHJN7My/s320/poached+eggs+kicked+up.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Ok, maybe the picture is a little pretentious, but we wanted to share it with Country Living and Beekman 1802. It really was delicious.<br />
<br />
We are having Thanksgiving for both families this year. I'm starting to work on some fall decorations. I'm steeling myself up since we're providing the turkey or turkeys depending on how they dress out. I harvested some bitterswett and made this wreath. I like the kinda organic, primitive look. We have a bumper crop of bittersweet here on the farm, so I'll be making some other fall fabulousness.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHuWhQR1V5FyTz55QwEOziauT-XG402cK_Q544fOYCTosM76G_oZ1JX7ZJp3mM9AMGlfKFstXDw0xMtwv-ciVXeO4_kiZZ46WkCmFyjStINEiWONCXZfvBQmdcDUjsfb9sOBAaADFx97hm/s1600/Bittersweet+wreath.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHuWhQR1V5FyTz55QwEOziauT-XG402cK_Q544fOYCTosM76G_oZ1JX7ZJp3mM9AMGlfKFstXDw0xMtwv-ciVXeO4_kiZZ46WkCmFyjStINEiWONCXZfvBQmdcDUjsfb9sOBAaADFx97hm/s320/Bittersweet+wreath.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
What are you doing in preparation for Thanksgiving?JeffJustJeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04574511510296447394noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6068294427653426244.post-3876251490165369962011-10-26T20:46:00.000-07:002011-10-26T20:46:07.842-07:00Meet the New GirlsWell, we've finally brought home the mini's. They were waiting to be bred before we brought them home. We have a mini-LaMancha, Shaasta, and a mini-Nubian, Staar. They are both super sweet. Staar is pretty much attached to my leg when I'm out with her. Shaasta just loves a good head scratch and giving goat kisses.<br />
<br />
They're getting along pretty well with the other girls. Esmerelda of course is the herd queen and doesn't let the new girls forget it. She came from the same farm. She doesn't bother Shaasta too much but rams poor Staar every time she's in her sights. It's settling down a little bit. Gaabby likes to ride the new girls and give them a jab with her horns if they try to eat 'her' food. Taabitha is her usual non-troublemaking self. She just wants to eat and play and get along with everyone.<br />
<br />
The new girls should be bred for February/March kids. Esmerelda should also kid in February. I can't wait!!! The breeder had an 8 week old mini-Mancha. I swear she was less than a foot high and as round as a basketball. I wanted to stick her in my pocket and run. She almost would have fit. Shaasta has Nigerian Dwarf ears, but was bred to a gopher-eared (no ears, just earholes) mini-Mancha buck which means all of her kids will have elf ears(tiny, pointed ears).<br />
<br />
Without further ado, let's meet the new girls:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrani7zcmhPM6PcDb2d1fRgioLOHq4H-KZlej-w5PR8hxTyBCljZz1Y5rmsm9W-bsz0Qmr4ysvB286HARBqcq0pFQLwehGoL2OyFtB6b2X8Qq3aMwtGpM2jDEJr5cSTENc-6eBBbDHTraN/s1600/2011-10-25_17-40-26_776.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrani7zcmhPM6PcDb2d1fRgioLOHq4H-KZlej-w5PR8hxTyBCljZz1Y5rmsm9W-bsz0Qmr4ysvB286HARBqcq0pFQLwehGoL2OyFtB6b2X8Qq3aMwtGpM2jDEJr5cSTENc-6eBBbDHTraN/s320/2011-10-25_17-40-26_776.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSufufzmF1i-YDe6ruwX-65F25P8UwPsrE6tIyZEHuGRhvwuORtC1fFzW4t1nRy0hgfZFyR18DXH3x3YuhhVg9J5I4WG42PW3hTlW49i-dVNqjvd5sGNmJCINi73KAU1If1ZS6ntAO730d/s1600/Shaasta+Lamb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSufufzmF1i-YDe6ruwX-65F25P8UwPsrE6tIyZEHuGRhvwuORtC1fFzW4t1nRy0hgfZFyR18DXH3x3YuhhVg9J5I4WG42PW3hTlW49i-dVNqjvd5sGNmJCINi73KAU1If1ZS6ntAO730d/s320/Shaasta+Lamb.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shaasta reminds me of a sheep.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-hKUXCnl3O7k7WPc5HWbAbxvIvOAwrx40Kt9PNq1XL2qQWWZO3UsdhvT8L4N6-j7WrLy1Yk6sE58v-TtwP4Kv4Q3rgaqJWwIvAt-Pwbjd1mut1qdsEyuV1wqXDWH2pSDAeyMPGv8cC_En/s1600/2011-10-25_17-49-50_777.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-hKUXCnl3O7k7WPc5HWbAbxvIvOAwrx40Kt9PNq1XL2qQWWZO3UsdhvT8L4N6-j7WrLy1Yk6sE58v-TtwP4Kv4Q3rgaqJWwIvAt-Pwbjd1mut1qdsEyuV1wqXDWH2pSDAeyMPGv8cC_En/s320/2011-10-25_17-49-50_777.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">She has beautiful blue eyes. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSVT7zr3s-AboFA4_TTYPvlYCeGSSeJoIZTjhwC-vOHA_9wPz8eGIvD-9jxpbaDmY4l8xLj4xb1BpzwwYGR-o_TOQ-cY-naV6-ADw-J1NfF910xHIbw_tbC6CISC-OeF93aibvRW0Ztaea/s1600/Shaasta+Graze.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSVT7zr3s-AboFA4_TTYPvlYCeGSSeJoIZTjhwC-vOHA_9wPz8eGIvD-9jxpbaDmY4l8xLj4xb1BpzwwYGR-o_TOQ-cY-naV6-ADw-J1NfF910xHIbw_tbC6CISC-OeF93aibvRW0Ztaea/s320/Shaasta+Graze.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">She has wattles too.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNUQgkyGwSM8q0aQOjI8H2LRb-QNO44-47nxzj_sC3fQ4zVc5Ul6nIUvp6SessIBQfFd8hgdINyieJFvBeaC3j63l7lxg1YzS6CzZRMbLLep_63Ho4xrU2AxSZsxaZrNyavmEMK638I0dL/s1600/Staar+Face.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNUQgkyGwSM8q0aQOjI8H2LRb-QNO44-47nxzj_sC3fQ4zVc5Ul6nIUvp6SessIBQfFd8hgdINyieJFvBeaC3j63l7lxg1YzS6CzZRMbLLep_63Ho4xrU2AxSZsxaZrNyavmEMK638I0dL/s320/Staar+Face.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Staar is beautiful and has ginormous ears. I'll have to watch her in strong winds.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE9WTxJ6AM_CBLtztfnc_-odPhXHtLcxW82ix5_pKuCeyT-SQNFIG-L0_grwfKL__YSHVLcYHHJsVMRf7fpcswIyCCLS2c7LS-mJ33d4d_sEDo1eywGnJ2dAiboHN3IMdb5Pbtwo_Kilci/s1600/Staar+Ear.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE9WTxJ6AM_CBLtztfnc_-odPhXHtLcxW82ix5_pKuCeyT-SQNFIG-L0_grwfKL__YSHVLcYHHJsVMRf7fpcswIyCCLS2c7LS-mJ33d4d_sEDo1eywGnJ2dAiboHN3IMdb5Pbtwo_Kilci/s320/Staar+Ear.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">She has kind of frosty polkadots and frosted ears and muzzle. Nubians have always been my favorite goats based on looks(but all of my girls are beautiful).</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpS0ww_fR3yjJKrujf3YURhjPSc45mBraXljoSMs4HmPGgxkpIpP_iMkc3dIwzqbijxJMl6yLsOb43YTevxwuWlYD0Vk25HxfAXOtpCIVpA8sBPPtIlEoayRGcUnw5qpDJMNXKUmCjYHK3/s1600/Whole+Herd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpS0ww_fR3yjJKrujf3YURhjPSc45mBraXljoSMs4HmPGgxkpIpP_iMkc3dIwzqbijxJMl6yLsOb43YTevxwuWlYD0Vk25HxfAXOtpCIVpA8sBPPtIlEoayRGcUnw5qpDJMNXKUmCjYHK3/s320/Whole+Herd.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here's a nice pic of the herd grazing peacefully.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyG5SxN-mjQXgjiixtR3XWrYVRJnAUHN4CE7brTndOdmK53vF0S6k0qSIYCs4Sw7ZPw_0QvtrVHI5vdOr2oIOxC_XM_IoT9OeDDrSh_2u5j0-1WeszfFoh2a0Qedqz_LdrT_0XdQYTPOFR/s1600/Taabitha+Stand.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyG5SxN-mjQXgjiixtR3XWrYVRJnAUHN4CE7brTndOdmK53vF0S6k0qSIYCs4Sw7ZPw_0QvtrVHI5vdOr2oIOxC_XM_IoT9OeDDrSh_2u5j0-1WeszfFoh2a0Qedqz_LdrT_0XdQYTPOFR/s320/Taabitha+Stand.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Taabitha trying to climb the electric pole to get the nettles that clearly taste better than the ones at ground level.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvWAkYPJg78INGrs_-pxtdt1PAaSsfVN4fMOURkUT-mpgOZhqTEhlicYegYWDnaIH5opZ1uvqfHflTWVq9JKZrzbevdlMuK_AvJ1yUwlAXfCKb3QVaES5nYvjVUAp0CqF5mFt0VZN3oF4D/s1600/Gaabby+Graze.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvWAkYPJg78INGrs_-pxtdt1PAaSsfVN4fMOURkUT-mpgOZhqTEhlicYegYWDnaIH5opZ1uvqfHflTWVq9JKZrzbevdlMuK_AvJ1yUwlAXfCKb3QVaES5nYvjVUAp0CqF5mFt0VZN3oF4D/s320/Gaabby+Graze.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gaabby grazing. I just love her 'zebra' stripes on her face.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLF4NARPH8DvP55QZTV8GHfLNfadmyJILYtqLxCLRG4hA1kcRzr_o_028Ad68ljMGhTDboT4zP6MBPLeFT73a2xHz0cLrJ1JwowMFnfPtVgItvvWsYP3MTX3NzfFb97-UaqwfhvjxO_G4i/s1600/Shaasta+Baby+Daddy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLF4NARPH8DvP55QZTV8GHfLNfadmyJILYtqLxCLRG4hA1kcRzr_o_028Ad68ljMGhTDboT4zP6MBPLeFT73a2xHz0cLrJ1JwowMFnfPtVgItvvWsYP3MTX3NzfFb97-UaqwfhvjxO_G4i/s320/Shaasta+Baby+Daddy.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shaasta's baby daddy, Tinker Toy. Notice the lack of ears. If Shaasta has a girl, I think I"m obligated to name her Tinkerbell aren't I?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV3Gnga-n2HiJZnL8ENfJ05caHJW1z6GMAkDXSxiQTIXVKXnsaIVKmN0GFC3xgKm4EUNTAtkVN3VcD58G6YJWQoPa0bZGZX-gq0Znm2Udqk75BT-Z1m9medcLiq0V7ZZan4SsRju3PWZ0W/s1600/Staar+Baby+Daddy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV3Gnga-n2HiJZnL8ENfJ05caHJW1z6GMAkDXSxiQTIXVKXnsaIVKmN0GFC3xgKm4EUNTAtkVN3VcD58G6YJWQoPa0bZGZX-gq0Znm2Udqk75BT-Z1m9medcLiq0V7ZZan4SsRju3PWZ0W/s320/Staar+Baby+Daddy.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Staar's baby daddy, Firecracker. He's from a good lineage.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Don't you think these matings will make some adorable kids? Are there really any kids that aren't adorable? This is going to be a long 155 days. I am soooo anxious. Stay tuned for more goat stories.JeffJustJeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04574511510296447394noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6068294427653426244.post-3394768695573679002011-10-22T18:14:00.000-07:002011-10-22T18:14:59.207-07:00Bittersweet Farm Rite of PassageFor those of you who don't want to hear about the realities of farming/homesteading stop reading now. If you're still with me, I'm not going to put any pictures in this post. This evening, I harvested my first chicken. It was a youngish rooster I purchased at the livestock auction in a lot. We have way too many rooster. They pester our hens so much that we keep the hens in their own coop and have a separate area where we let them out.<br />
<br />
Something needed done to reduce the rooster population. We've gone into this knowing that we were going to eat some of our livestock. We're not vegetarians. The thought of knowing everything that happened to the animal you eat is comforting. We make sure our animals have the best life that we can give them while they are in our care.<br />
<br />
I've read somewhere that usually the first time you butcher a chicken, everything that can go wrong does. I sadly was not able to disprove this theory. The rooster escaped and took off running. He followed the ducks who started running because a chicken was running. The rooster flew right into the middle of the pond. Luckily, he could swim and I collected him when he reached the shore. I thanked him for the nourishment he was going to give us and set about the business again.<br />
<br />
I'm not going to go into all of the grisly details, but the actual deed was quicker than I expected which I was thankful for. I was also thankful that I felt sad that the rooster had to lose his life to feed us. I think many of us have become detached from the realities of our food and that is turning into a very bad thing. Some say ignorance is bliss, but I think ignorance is shameful.<br />
<br />
I'm very glad that I was able to do this. I also hope that it never becomes easy....JeffJustJeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04574511510296447394noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6068294427653426244.post-81546913455215358412011-10-14T16:36:00.000-07:002011-10-14T16:36:47.673-07:00Fall GardenI hope you are sitting down, but this is the second post in a week! Can you believe it? <br />
<br />
My fall garden is actually good enough to post pictures of. My summer garden was best forgotten. Right now, I just have row cover ready for frosty nights. I want to build a<a href="http://www.motherearthnews.com/organic-gardening/hoop-house-zm0z11zmat.aspx"> hoop house that I saw in the latest issue of Mother Earth News magazine</a>. I may have to modify it some, because the pvc needed to make it is kinda pricey. Their method has the plants covered by row cover and then a hoophouse made of pvc hoops covered in greenhouse plastic. Elliot Coleman claims it's the equivalent of moving your garden 1,000 miles to the south using this method and grows year round in New England.<br />
<br />
Now, you can't grow tomatoes or cucumbers in the winter with this method. It works for mainly root vegetables and greens. Here's what I'm growing (and yes, I know I'm behind on weeding...this weekend, I promise)...<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFD0moMYz_aHXhj88t1aR523-dzoAiY6bY5w3ahAlk5N9uWTLzCvZbeOh5uaWeVl8CvA7gCiTC6dYOrbd8sskIMAUc4sxEVzuTw9YuPU36wO4wE21ikkv9_dK5kLJ2nKIZguGNIVYfE155/s1600/Python+Spinach.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="179" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFD0moMYz_aHXhj88t1aR523-dzoAiY6bY5w3ahAlk5N9uWTLzCvZbeOh5uaWeVl8CvA7gCiTC6dYOrbd8sskIMAUc4sxEVzuTw9YuPU36wO4wE21ikkv9_dK5kLJ2nKIZguGNIVYfE155/s320/Python+Spinach.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Python spinach. I planted another variety and two plants sprouted. This one is growing great!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbB9klY699pb2UhEbCK7irFmPdo43A0msCF3I2LVykja8Cm5kz4IqC7U58v5nnv9PNrfJqwDqLhaFgcah7pY7BNO9SANJdvI2nblTiHqz9C7kruiMW1nxBm7dsJcbushB4K9CAF05OF90I/s1600/Radishes+and+lettuce.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbB9klY699pb2UhEbCK7irFmPdo43A0msCF3I2LVykja8Cm5kz4IqC7U58v5nnv9PNrfJqwDqLhaFgcah7pY7BNO9SANJdvI2nblTiHqz9C7kruiMW1nxBm7dsJcbushB4K9CAF05OF90I/s320/Radishes+and+lettuce.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Radishes and lettuce</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizMMG8v-5ehf-XwJcNk99zEPN-hbaMVa6lkoCRMWja6s93s16HRjwfLi3fJt-UyOKenszKK9VdixL8LlOJeFkBKcWitZDbmNdqIHQn7YsJBCMc-DA5Rtx4CmG9d-aXIs93E4cjP4-g16o2/s1600/Red+Beets.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizMMG8v-5ehf-XwJcNk99zEPN-hbaMVa6lkoCRMWja6s93s16HRjwfLi3fJt-UyOKenszKK9VdixL8LlOJeFkBKcWitZDbmNdqIHQn7YsJBCMc-DA5Rtx4CmG9d-aXIs93E4cjP4-g16o2/s320/Red+Beets.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red Beets</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF3FN6F1FaanialpT-CW8nxiFUZVbrUloo-DsWMoPIvcYxmRPukBLKh6ribK09j8BBPWR4tl1aXKf_VrJ7H3vEvlXrD2eS3y69hm6Z_5Ket9J3AbcXTVXlPKN9dEsAtlqY7uEASgoQFlp2/s1600/Red+Chard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF3FN6F1FaanialpT-CW8nxiFUZVbrUloo-DsWMoPIvcYxmRPukBLKh6ribK09j8BBPWR4tl1aXKf_VrJ7H3vEvlXrD2eS3y69hm6Z_5Ket9J3AbcXTVXlPKN9dEsAtlqY7uEASgoQFlp2/s320/Red+Chard.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red Swiss Chard</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF7GHg1tf4xDxfMaCHmXC7SDnKo066w6MPFgY9aR0ux9OU_FtIFfvQ4-4AWmDLXY1wO3UBA8vmRF-DTx8gLUdoPm3_2aa8fqLortSBGror2bj4WInWErvTHw__gnsYK2ciiYZ3toxMEqP1/s1600/Rocket.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF7GHg1tf4xDxfMaCHmXC7SDnKo066w6MPFgY9aR0ux9OU_FtIFfvQ4-4AWmDLXY1wO3UBA8vmRF-DTx8gLUdoPm3_2aa8fqLortSBGror2bj4WInWErvTHw__gnsYK2ciiYZ3toxMEqP1/s320/Rocket.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rocket (arugula) This is my favorite green. It grows like weeds and has a wonderful nutty flavor.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiFbm18o3sblPmapAjdZaGuDra8XoMbBmwsJeBpkjQ1LM0p-RrrzEYIVSyLq-3kGzMOmDsKCU7rF5jjmSJeHEDAC8ZJMt6N9Eq5EuLtrMuLBg8VcXFynarvitr_cT9PWOz6m8-B43eHijv/s1600/Snow+Peas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiFbm18o3sblPmapAjdZaGuDra8XoMbBmwsJeBpkjQ1LM0p-RrrzEYIVSyLq-3kGzMOmDsKCU7rF5jjmSJeHEDAC8ZJMt6N9Eq5EuLtrMuLBg8VcXFynarvitr_cT9PWOz6m8-B43eHijv/s320/Snow+Peas.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Snow Peas</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE72FTuFDUjxFgxDHph7swMggs8nTm2iiO0yJOW3SpzOJ6L3ne24eiwB8meBsmISLOJHcBGuX9eV4hH0LGfJf1b-e6aQ3-yy3mZT7Q4HP2uA5SGlNBg6mvE7CzxdJkUSDbZrdYmq86jaTf/s1600/Super+Snappy+Peas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE72FTuFDUjxFgxDHph7swMggs8nTm2iiO0yJOW3SpzOJ6L3ne24eiwB8meBsmISLOJHcBGuX9eV4hH0LGfJf1b-e6aQ3-yy3mZT7Q4HP2uA5SGlNBg6mvE7CzxdJkUSDbZrdYmq86jaTf/s320/Super+Snappy+Peas.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Super Snappy Peas</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi28Efcg-1adKYMnqNv7j7ojQCdQTc2KIllY-dB1cbJBbToCpHelu0oSfWCS5H74lw8ZMfi0tEFptAOYnus4BaVhxeS-u8G-gHNbn3hMnXgbO0yzQew2lat8uYsoKDtfacCuZU_GHGKB2fq/s1600/Tatsoi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi28Efcg-1adKYMnqNv7j7ojQCdQTc2KIllY-dB1cbJBbToCpHelu0oSfWCS5H74lw8ZMfi0tEFptAOYnus4BaVhxeS-u8G-gHNbn3hMnXgbO0yzQew2lat8uYsoKDtfacCuZU_GHGKB2fq/s320/Tatsoi.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tatsoi. It's an Asian green. This is the first time I've grown it. It has a grassy taste with just a tiny kick. It's still very young so we'll see how it matures.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghDDE8Lb6g_EbH0VRP6JQ3qIYV8vmmBQR6o6DgY8clUGsYhJPwGr0c4cFjvdiJmqxBzIf7w5Qo4BqriYIi0PabM1aCXVmPxX_Fh-FRUItZ3p0ghLGKzzTUCtTJaj5Yvt6ylfFGa5iOcOxS/s1600/Turnip+Greens.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghDDE8Lb6g_EbH0VRP6JQ3qIYV8vmmBQR6o6DgY8clUGsYhJPwGr0c4cFjvdiJmqxBzIf7w5Qo4BqriYIi0PabM1aCXVmPxX_Fh-FRUItZ3p0ghLGKzzTUCtTJaj5Yvt6ylfFGa5iOcOxS/s320/Turnip+Greens.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mustard Greens. I love these when they're small on sandwiches and in salads. They have a horseradish kick.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwKwakal-3YZvpQ0zoJjzjX85rVoWGpeP9Z2xm66FM36bXC_f7F6320PaIAijeLjxn37zc7hyphenhyphenL6Kyho9dajNJ46m-CzvHFDAfijmG1WlHPPwPPXxkjl4Hg7T6Mw90ZVT82yst0TLRuKRPW/s1600/Purple+Turnips.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwKwakal-3YZvpQ0zoJjzjX85rVoWGpeP9Z2xm66FM36bXC_f7F6320PaIAijeLjxn37zc7hyphenhyphenL6Kyho9dajNJ46m-CzvHFDAfijmG1WlHPPwPPXxkjl4Hg7T6Mw90ZVT82yst0TLRuKRPW/s320/Purple+Turnips.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Purple top turnip</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw3eBOhwRjye_BkkzmNuyH3liEw4NjXgAV930dGxugVlZDwlOvX1SnU9qKBBGgWK8h_le_UvZmu1SKRVsW_w1CDUDRMTe1QWsSyflpYZNooXM5UQQdBWNmyuakT2SBvyCqql3fbP1YXnFX/s1600/Purple+Top+Rutabaga.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw3eBOhwRjye_BkkzmNuyH3liEw4NjXgAV930dGxugVlZDwlOvX1SnU9qKBBGgWK8h_le_UvZmu1SKRVsW_w1CDUDRMTe1QWsSyflpYZNooXM5UQQdBWNmyuakT2SBvyCqql3fbP1YXnFX/s320/Purple+Top+Rutabaga.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Purple top rutabaga</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbqNKgDwmv_qnt_q6D6bS_Zyb4v-1AA-D3UumStVzk0RufwLV_NK7Ey7d6gjbsoBeqySrSyoa50Zw9X-9U3kRmGm_YyXGYmsdCh8Ava4WprXKwQI0NwtiInTYpnTE0Xqp1cXv01g5Kl1C2/s1600/Kohlrabi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbqNKgDwmv_qnt_q6D6bS_Zyb4v-1AA-D3UumStVzk0RufwLV_NK7Ey7d6gjbsoBeqySrSyoa50Zw9X-9U3kRmGm_YyXGYmsdCh8Ava4WprXKwQI0NwtiInTYpnTE0Xqp1cXv01g5Kl1C2/s320/Kohlrabi.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kohlrabi</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1sgozD7YKeY-ZFTKD8ZhHG-dVzq0Sh8e75Qb2x4nmUBZlVHXaimX2bZz3qLw0AUSJUSI-wtUuOP250cnM4vUHPDVCZxnjthabZjRA5lcAaSzvLlcII30Af6NGB0pPnVoYQvVGiWL1HE5h/s1600/Leeks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1sgozD7YKeY-ZFTKD8ZhHG-dVzq0Sh8e75Qb2x4nmUBZlVHXaimX2bZz3qLw0AUSJUSI-wtUuOP250cnM4vUHPDVCZxnjthabZjRA5lcAaSzvLlcII30Af6NGB0pPnVoYQvVGiWL1HE5h/s320/Leeks.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leeks</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGOQ-8LNNCwQwNh43C9wWh3_qAQzBHJvdLzi4yqaqJN5bPtwKVjeBD8O5_V3rWUTiA47S_icVp5YTR7sj6HK1UOeHyiFlaAY73uRBQWHDY4rYf4hpiqp2RPlob985ylLNvjR68G-aBP_zX/s1600/Mixed+Beets.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGOQ-8LNNCwQwNh43C9wWh3_qAQzBHJvdLzi4yqaqJN5bPtwKVjeBD8O5_V3rWUTiA47S_icVp5YTR7sj6HK1UOeHyiFlaAY73uRBQWHDY4rYf4hpiqp2RPlob985ylLNvjR68G-aBP_zX/s320/Mixed+Beets.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mixed beets</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguYw6uU2YYi8zS0L9owsqXV0VGF0P-8_izm5haNKRsJ-pTqz-vBM60Z5Lu3-_Gpft-EkkeSqCxodsOIp0YOQWQVKsEUuJwv1K2pQqvSDSqE9r_SeAryO31d4VUxeXkPtFZRlVcC8G0fe83/s1600/Onions.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguYw6uU2YYi8zS0L9owsqXV0VGF0P-8_izm5haNKRsJ-pTqz-vBM60Z5Lu3-_Gpft-EkkeSqCxodsOIp0YOQWQVKsEUuJwv1K2pQqvSDSqE9r_SeAryO31d4VUxeXkPtFZRlVcC8G0fe83/s320/Onions.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Green onions. They're not growing great.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRGVhfxmfZq7c1-I7opeeKaqqaFGQKnkTpCl9SO6TLT8VPX5ebnDtBRhyphenhyphencZfIXjW-qr-C77BLHo1e-VVsloTdoh_Gc4npODDP35kppQQB5wbIAUB_tWUSCEU8gICGoQJeLKP-uqyqJFjWZ/s1600/Cilantro.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRGVhfxmfZq7c1-I7opeeKaqqaFGQKnkTpCl9SO6TLT8VPX5ebnDtBRhyphenhyphencZfIXjW-qr-C77BLHo1e-VVsloTdoh_Gc4npODDP35kppQQB5wbIAUB_tWUSCEU8gICGoQJeLKP-uqyqJFjWZ/s320/Cilantro.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cilantro</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAgoNkzm7qQnWt3PK9r_47nD8SJzZizZoiPLzJQHo2iC1RQSKDJmzlh2JAPw8kr5yk4wASMK0Bl1mI2gqhRG9ZoBey2ZGFnmcOjWdGECWwavDVPXHhkcFISYcImWxCzqmK1wg0d9t2coBI/s1600/Chicory.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAgoNkzm7qQnWt3PK9r_47nD8SJzZizZoiPLzJQHo2iC1RQSKDJmzlh2JAPw8kr5yk4wASMK0Bl1mI2gqhRG9ZoBey2ZGFnmcOjWdGECWwavDVPXHhkcFISYcImWxCzqmK1wg0d9t2coBI/s320/Chicory.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chicory</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifrFryJT2JjqFPoaukNPXotyJPpaB0qgz8QVttM0pSDU5DL8f0ZBwJRgCnV9jPz-0xoPAh0Q7Cugb_Ip8Z3t1GVKCHxVrJOf9I0yN7P4aT58KmEYNEZ1lqARHQqAlW2-V_dNK5lEuUGYjS/s1600/Carrots.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifrFryJT2JjqFPoaukNPXotyJPpaB0qgz8QVttM0pSDU5DL8f0ZBwJRgCnV9jPz-0xoPAh0Q7Cugb_Ip8Z3t1GVKCHxVrJOf9I0yN7P4aT58KmEYNEZ1lqARHQqAlW2-V_dNK5lEuUGYjS/s320/Carrots.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Short Sweet Carrots</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBV8YWuIXAKkh3YRQDWIt0aEjFSJK0-Q7Ovz32mtEbWOUb_1eayK1-Ux-C6WASGc4z3pJVqnbhKonu6y9QpkJI5SMoJuOtOMuKGAe9afytaQWXkWbRETdH7eWHTeBujgkfmOnAgZIxtMfd/s1600/Bright+Lights+Chard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBV8YWuIXAKkh3YRQDWIt0aEjFSJK0-Q7Ovz32mtEbWOUb_1eayK1-Ux-C6WASGc4z3pJVqnbhKonu6y9QpkJI5SMoJuOtOMuKGAe9afytaQWXkWbRETdH7eWHTeBujgkfmOnAgZIxtMfd/s320/Bright+Lights+Chard.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bright lights chard</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I'm probably going to plant a few more things. I'll also reseed some things as I pick them. It's still not too late to get some fall stuff in the ground if you can build a hoophouse. You'd probably even be ok for a month or two with row cover. Hopefully, you'll be seeing pictures of all this bounty on our table at Thanksgiving. JeffJustJeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04574511510296447394noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6068294427653426244.post-78705875230629930722011-10-11T20:19:00.000-07:002011-10-11T20:35:01.117-07:00Glorious fallFall has started to wrap its arms around the farm. The nights are getting chilly, the trees have put on all of their best finery for the farewell to summer celebration. It's a glorious time that is a little bittersweet. There's still so much that I wanted to get done before winter, but I'll focus on the things I did accomplish and make a list of all the things I want to get done in winter. It's so much fun experiencing the seasons for the first time on the farm. It's just gorgeous.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZXtIFrZnZd1rYersFwqEncIizKl-s4QZAPCcV0t8UAlnJKCFpGIGQULN2dcSSf1Jf4QXVth2urlxAnOdm-B36HBGfDITYn3m32EA1nnPaNOCdLhyr10h7NyHyhyphenhyphenCX7G136eptIIsaCro0/s1600/Fall+Field.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZXtIFrZnZd1rYersFwqEncIizKl-s4QZAPCcV0t8UAlnJKCFpGIGQULN2dcSSf1Jf4QXVth2urlxAnOdm-B36HBGfDITYn3m32EA1nnPaNOCdLhyr10h7NyHyhyphenhyphenCX7G136eptIIsaCro0/s320/Fall+Field.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt4aun8gyMmCT5Sj48PQsKh4N5FeccClaOer-1kloKrCcIjt2rc2cpRIlKgwGBsUFJhPNbzscpi_zLkYafnLtyzdmzQyFZF12LvnVQePqQU259QOs1qU56jpdscojS8hFeJZQ_JzeYdvRq/s1600/Fall+Pond.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt4aun8gyMmCT5Sj48PQsKh4N5FeccClaOer-1kloKrCcIjt2rc2cpRIlKgwGBsUFJhPNbzscpi_zLkYafnLtyzdmzQyFZF12LvnVQePqQU259QOs1qU56jpdscojS8hFeJZQ_JzeYdvRq/s320/Fall+Pond.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
This weekend is supposed to be the peak weekend for fall colors. So much has happened around the farm since the last post. Of course, that may be because it has been so long since the last post. I'll hit the highlights.<br />
<br />
My mom and step-dad came up for my brother's wedding and stayed with us. My step-dad and I really accomplished a lot. There were sitting in the kitchen having coffee one morning while I went out to let all of the animals out and feed and water them. I walked in the barn and all was well. I opened the door to the pasture and didn't see the fence. We use electric netting for the poultry and goats (for now). I thought part of it had fallen down. I couldn't imagine how that would happen. I walked out to do a little checking and over 100 feet of the fence was just gone. I walked to the section where the fence was still there. I saw fence dragged around the corner of the barn. I walked around the corner of the barn and saw this:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKujO8N8eQzBKw4hUGXWVhlfPQv2_RkaDB12uKRQc0e_H8bMexbgUky0R5VwaRPX2QxjVRM4HjZ6SD8Lg2MudkGA0IrYDTfv5AHy0Ui3LsnBM84_8rEkzU6-LxTA3FS9lpBeNaLhYjZh3v/s1600/Deer+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKujO8N8eQzBKw4hUGXWVhlfPQv2_RkaDB12uKRQc0e_H8bMexbgUky0R5VwaRPX2QxjVRM4HjZ6SD8Lg2MudkGA0IrYDTfv5AHy0Ui3LsnBM84_8rEkzU6-LxTA3FS9lpBeNaLhYjZh3v/s1600/Deer+1.jpg" /></a></div>
An eight point buck was tangled in the electric netting and had pulled the fence clear around the barn. It was only attached to the barn at one end. I ran into the house to get my step-dad, huffing and puffing. He followed me to the field in disbelief. We assessed the situation and decided to run the deer around the tree:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLp9C3YYXpayhB910M-p1mFRJIAi6E58U-H09-BmOcsjwtXEm8P39hq-IE6COoLn7tFyAJl8keqFNsoDl1m-3W6UL1i9TDwkVzZhApkodzU58l2BPcdXZQ6qNYJbw6HEG35cojEOvCj_MM/s1600/Deer+Tree.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLp9C3YYXpayhB910M-p1mFRJIAi6E58U-H09-BmOcsjwtXEm8P39hq-IE6COoLn7tFyAJl8keqFNsoDl1m-3W6UL1i9TDwkVzZhApkodzU58l2BPcdXZQ6qNYJbw6HEG35cojEOvCj_MM/s320/Deer+Tree.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
Cover his eyes to calm him down (which worked like a charm):<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9v65vjvuhalQWcfz0Al4jXUOBfbiRsj6L1_9unsbl_zHMNS9lwa86vs1oid8-TlYLB1lfLC7J6F0dHn8O8LQT53I5TpOp6rjbgiGlO620oLzlJtHBi5GFH4Mnn-eA2pZlOrqncOC75BQi/s1600/blindfold.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9v65vjvuhalQWcfz0Al4jXUOBfbiRsj6L1_9unsbl_zHMNS9lwa86vs1oid8-TlYLB1lfLC7J6F0dHn8O8LQT53I5TpOp6rjbgiGlO620oLzlJtHBi5GFH4Mnn-eA2pZlOrqncOC75BQi/s320/blindfold.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
And then hogtie him so he wouldn't do us a mischief:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhelL9UA0Zmvts3jOipRuJ1-4BovXBRjv30pj9JNzHLshD7yY4e-q3grD_m4pNeKsiSr8dAFvj5f7ltMnQFlgZwN7YFurxCbuC9xxgaqiN28U_0IbUKRQjK6Lon6XZPPa3krrVnfp55n-i/s1600/Hog+tied.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhelL9UA0Zmvts3jOipRuJ1-4BovXBRjv30pj9JNzHLshD7yY4e-q3grD_m4pNeKsiSr8dAFvj5f7ltMnQFlgZwN7YFurxCbuC9xxgaqiN28U_0IbUKRQjK6Lon6XZPPa3krrVnfp55n-i/s320/Hog+tied.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
I worked on untangling the fence from his antlers. We only had to cut one strand to get it loose! And the deer had only broken one strand! I think I should send my story to the fence company and do a testimonial for some free fence. When the fence was off, my step-dad loosened the rope and I held the blanket. We counted to three....one.....two.....three. We both ran away from the deer. The deer leaped to his feet in a flash and was aimed straight at me. We both paused about a second and ran in opposite directions. I bet that deer is still running. Nothing like wrestling a deer to the ground to get the heart pumping. <br />
<br />
The next big story is that we are officially goat owners. I went to the livestock auction just to check things out. I wasn't planning on buying a goat and then this little black and white beauty came out. I'm a sucker for black and white animals. Good thing they don't sell zebras. My auction card flew in the air and the next thing you know, I was a goat owner. My 13 year old niece was with me. I have a Jeep SUV. She was going to hold it in the back for the 30 minute ride home. I went to put her in the back and just as the hatch was about to close, out she came. The chase was on. The farm that belongs to the Amish gentleman who owns the auction house is very close....and he has many goats. They all started cheering on the goat on the lamb (pun intended). Some other auction-goers saw our dilemna and helped us capture the little fugitive. <br />
<br />
I put her back in the Jeep and went on our merry way. About halfway home, I called Chad to let him know to get the pen ready. I didn't tell him what I was bringing home and acted like I was getting bad reception. He didn't fall for it. Hey, it's easier to ask for forgiveness than permission. I swear I didn't plan on buying her, but could you resist this?<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizM-AGD1wVzULzkzJB9BZLimdXJysg4HKD5kFwEbtU62txKEz2QthObFHxG3QLbJHTjppuJpVkfhejeBXVLsijTTvEhE9SEbzS-3rAP4g_QltEOogdDNyUor0JRRxI6UFvGqtQximrA8Eu/s1600/Trip+Tropping.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizM-AGD1wVzULzkzJB9BZLimdXJysg4HKD5kFwEbtU62txKEz2QthObFHxG3QLbJHTjppuJpVkfhejeBXVLsijTTvEhE9SEbzS-3rAP4g_QltEOogdDNyUor0JRRxI6UFvGqtQximrA8Eu/s320/Trip+Tropping.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here is Gaabby trip-tropping over the bridge. Luckily, the troll wasn't home.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
This leads right into the story of how we got goat number 2, Taabitha. Chad makes me put two A's in their name when it's in the middle. I figure I owed him that for springing a goat on him out of the blue. I went back to the auction with my step-dad. He is one of those people who has never met a stranger and LOVES telling jokes. I notice this guy walk past me wearing an eyepatch. I hear my step-dad behind me, "Don't get mad at me when I say this." I start looking for a place to hide. "Do you ever tell your friends you'll keep an eye out for them?" Nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. Luckily, the guy thought it was hilarious and they hit it off.<br />
<br />
This guy is a homesteader who raises goats. He ended up sitting with us for the auction. We're half watching the auction and chatting about all things goat. He's talking about something and I'm nodding agreement and kind of watching the current goat on the block. We continue talking and the auctioneer bangs his gavel, "SOLD to the guy in the second row." I look up and he's looking right at me. "Number please?" I look over to my newfound friend, "Did I just buy that goat?". "I think you did", he said with a smile. "How much did I pay for that goat?" I asked. It eneded up it was only $65 and was a grade Alpine with papers. I felt like I was in a sitcom. I didn't think those situations really happened in the real world. I think the next time I go to the auction, I'm going to try to find one of those contraptions they put on you when you break your neck and also sit on my hands. Of course, I now have carte blanche to bring home anything and say, "I wasn't bidding on it. I was just nodding and bought a __________!"<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwrFWesDHLzVsnRHkr7NxcHwH_uN8RtjODUz1CC2aqVH4ypNLRZ0PaGfhHJUnHc3_TcbnF2f1HzvbtJZ6rlKnevPnZSYlnpE6yHb5-miQ9F2ZQ7mtrMaXLaYl6rwsgcHC91SN2n2FGPXXW/s1600/Auction+Goat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwrFWesDHLzVsnRHkr7NxcHwH_uN8RtjODUz1CC2aqVH4ypNLRZ0PaGfhHJUnHc3_TcbnF2f1HzvbtJZ6rlKnevPnZSYlnpE6yHb5-miQ9F2ZQ7mtrMaXLaYl6rwsgcHC91SN2n2FGPXXW/s320/Auction+Goat.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here is our accidental goat, Taabitha.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Just a couple more updates. We have two more goats (that I bought on purpose) that are getting bred before we pick them up. Babies in February if everything goes right. We're getting a mini-Nubian(Staar) and mini-LaMancha(Shaasta). Shaasta has Nigerian ears. She's being bred to a gopher-eared buck which means she will have all elf-eared kids. The names are subject to change. They're both beautiful and very sweet.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTx6cS1SUxCjiOVC4A0KnsYnt6fY2hQDbhVMrFb2622xaLnLV8mvHdn0Yx-kPEPRsiNHdjUZ2lXi-NMHH6mkmCW9Fe1uvPzE35R-Z1itFpb5ionjWJLfn88XQHlMI5iPg_IOsTsKkSgM2N/s1600/Star+Shasta.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTx6cS1SUxCjiOVC4A0KnsYnt6fY2hQDbhVMrFb2622xaLnLV8mvHdn0Yx-kPEPRsiNHdjUZ2lXi-NMHH6mkmCW9Fe1uvPzE35R-Z1itFpb5ionjWJLfn88XQHlMI5iPg_IOsTsKkSgM2N/s320/Star+Shasta.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Staar and Shaasta. The two faces by my hand. Shaasta has blue eyes!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The woman we're getting the girls from had a Nigerian doe that has horns. All of her other goats are disbudded or polled. Gaabby has horns. She gave us Snickers (who became Esmerelda) since she has horns and is unregistered. She's a beautiful Nigerian, just a little people-skittish. She was with a Nigerian buck for the last month so chances are... What do you think? Isn't she pretty?<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuyF8eJJ1VxoYm1rWYhUWNi57DsnAK8LCt9_fKBxk6i0LunWGvLKNym8qJ_9y6d6CTpWmZNs_ykz6HjGwvBzRL_Ubw0WtMEUur6BpcNQ4CXQkb2v_AMSu44ebFLPO5TvmK0zgjQfE48VOg/s1600/Esmerelda.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuyF8eJJ1VxoYm1rWYhUWNi57DsnAK8LCt9_fKBxk6i0LunWGvLKNym8qJ_9y6d6CTpWmZNs_ykz6HjGwvBzRL_Ubw0WtMEUur6BpcNQ4CXQkb2v_AMSu44ebFLPO5TvmK0zgjQfE48VOg/s320/Esmerelda.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Esmerelda fka Snickers</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
My step-dad and I built this luxurious pen for the new goats:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtlLG4MFLv8WMUpU27E-zgbsnr5_M4yLvnVSFQqettJS0I-Mdf2FCDisxsVkNw1DCAPCq9kwg8NmqON-J_1YCo4tfAHcD8O1l1Vf7rlZSqrczGKOakn3263pT_QwtWILShXyjjMQnv_eJu/s1600/Goat+Pen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtlLG4MFLv8WMUpU27E-zgbsnr5_M4yLvnVSFQqettJS0I-Mdf2FCDisxsVkNw1DCAPCq9kwg8NmqON-J_1YCo4tfAHcD8O1l1Vf7rlZSqrczGKOakn3263pT_QwtWILShXyjjMQnv_eJu/s320/Goat+Pen.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
I think we're going to have to build another because Esmerelda is a grumpy herd queen and the little ones are constantly cowering in the corner.<br />
<br />
Oh, oh. I probably should have put this story first. We went to the Country Living Fair in Columbus, OH, stood in line for about 2 hours, and MET<a href="http://beekman1802.com/"> THE FABULOUS BEEKMAN BOYS</a>. They really have inspired us in our farm endeavors. Their reality show on Planet Green was what finally helped me talk Chad into moving to the country. I owed them a HUGE thank you (and probably Chad a smack in the head, but we all have to do things in our own time). We bought their heirloom cookbook which is chock full of great recipes and has places to add your own to become heirlooms for future generations.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkcIvmY3nL-7ZntsXdRQq4zb6kWkNUMFD2l_dpdGKQSrpgqCVmuEFmhl0wUBtGwSAHB3F_oBlBSjdYamBxzrb26x0Yx1nnFQB4wsWIT3B7D2P09t2BXPEF3xLG5NEKd4O3yAt1uUMbQ-Tv/s1600/Beekman+Boys.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkcIvmY3nL-7ZntsXdRQq4zb6kWkNUMFD2l_dpdGKQSrpgqCVmuEFmhl0wUBtGwSAHB3F_oBlBSjdYamBxzrb26x0Yx1nnFQB4wsWIT3B7D2P09t2BXPEF3xLG5NEKd4O3yAt1uUMbQ-Tv/s320/Beekman+Boys.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
My last update is my fall garden. The summer garden was a complete bust. It got in late from all the spring rains and it was just too much for me to take on right when I'm moving into a new place. I think the fall garden is going to redeem my green thumb. I have all kinds of root vegetables ( beets, turnips, kohlrabi, carrots, rutabagas), onions, greens (turnips, mustard, lettuces, tatsoi, mache, arrugula, chicory) among a few other things. It is growing GREAT. I have row cover over it now. I plan on building a hoop house out of PVC pipe and greenhouse plastic to put over the row cover. This is the equivalent of moving your garden about 1000 miles south. We're hoping to provide most of the food for our Thanksgiving this year (already have the turkeys fattening).<br />
<br />
How is fall treating you?JeffJustJeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04574511510296447394noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6068294427653426244.post-12247914704998186002011-08-30T19:13:00.000-07:002011-08-30T19:13:05.863-07:00General updatesForgive me if this post doesn't have a real flow. I've been lackadaisical in my blogging (I know, no one is surprised at all). It's just that blogging seems frivolous and unproductive. I know it's not. It chronicles what we've accomplished. It teaches others (hopefully). It's a good reminder if you need to go back and figure out what you did if it slips your mind. Where did I plant that plum tree??? Oh, yeah. Ok, so on to the updates...<br />
<br />
Pecky Sue started laying eggs. She's the first of our hens we raised from a chick to start laying. We're getting two eggs most days. The rest of the hens <i>should </i>start laying any day, or at least that's what I keep telling them. Several of our hens had taking to staying up on the roosts in the coops instead of enjoying the great outdoors. It was all due to our overabundance of amorous roosters. I don't know how much you know about chicken romance, but there's no such thing. Roosters are raging hormones who will jump on a hen any time the mood strikes them. This in turn makes the mood strike any other rooster in earshot. You can picture the rest. So, we built a temporary pen outside that we put the hens in when they chickens are out in the pasture. Now, not all the hens are bothered, it's about 6 or 8. They are much happier now in their "No boys allowed" clubhouse. Hopefully that will get them laying soon.<br />
<br />
I've been trying to hatch lots of mail order eggs. Right now, I have 9 chicks and two turkey poults that I've hatched out. I'm not going to tell you how many eggs that was out of. It's just depressing. Eggs weren't made to be mailed. One of the hatchlings is our first farm baby, MJ. He's a product of our Wheaten Marans hen, Marie, and our White Leghorn rooster, Jesse. He's white like Jesse with feathered legs like a Marans, even though Marie doesn't have it.<br />
<br />
Our summer garden was a COMPLETE bust. It was all my fault (and a little bit the fault of the late planting due to all the spring rain). I just didn't have time with all of the other tasks of moving from a house in the city on 3/4 acre to a 6.5 acre farm an hour from work. To redeem my green thumb, I'm planting a fall garden. I plan on building a small hoop house or hoop rows at the least to stave off the cold weather. I'm going to be growing lots of root veggies (beets, turnips, carrots etc.) and lettuces and greens. I'm very excited. We want to provide most of the food for our family Thanksgiving. The Blue Slate turkeys, Blitzen and Basil, are growing nicely. They should, they chase everything away from the food bowl until they get their fill. Hopefully, one will be big enough for the family. If not, maybe we'll have a Thanksgiving guinea or duck. It will be interesting to see how that goes.<br />
<br />
I guess that's the major updates since the last blog. Don't forget to buy local whenever you can and organic is even better. Hug a farmer!<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
JeffJustJeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04574511510296447394noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6068294427653426244.post-32930844324071385452011-07-31T12:28:00.000-07:002011-07-31T12:28:16.063-07:00We Have a NameWelcome to our blog if you're just finding us. Thank you for making the trip if you were following us on the old blog. First, let me introduce us. We're Jeff and Chad. We're both 40-somethings living in the country. A while back, I gave in to that persistent suggestion in the back of my head that was tellimg me to move to the country....and I dragged Chad along with me. Well, towards the end he was mostly on board with the whole idea, but there was lots of yelling and ultimatums before that.<br />
<br />
Now we're here. A beautiful farmhouse on 6.5 acres nestled in a valley, or hollow as they are called if you live in the country, or holler if you're waaay country. We couldn't be happier. If you want to read what has happened over the last couple months you can click<a href="http://farmandadream.blogspot.com/"> here</a>. <br />
<br />
All caught up? Ok, we've been debating a name for the farm since before we moved in. A farm should have a name right? We've recieved many suggestions from friends and coworkers. I gues if you looked at the title of the blog, you figured out what we decided on. Let me explain why. Tilton comes from the original builders of the farm. We had to tilt our hats to them. We found out that the farm was surveyed in 1799! The neighbors across the road have the survey stone along their driveway. The farm was originally hundreds of acres, but like most farms, smaller parcels were carved off over the years as the family farm fights to stay off the path of the dinosaurs and the dodo. <br />
<br />
Hollow came from, well, we live in a hollow. We included that because it's hard to describe that feeling of 'tucked-in' and cozy you get when you live at the bottom of a small valley.<br />
<br />
Well, we have a farm and it has a name. It's time to get to farming. We have done quite a bit in the few months we've been here. We have quite the poultry flock. Beware the chicken math! Those of you who have chickens are chuckling. Those who don't are scratching your head. You start off with a few chickens. You go to TSC or peruse the farm/garden section of Craigslist and see a couple cute chicks for sale or even better, someone looking for a good home for them. What's 2 more? It's a slippery slope from having a few backyard chickens to being the focus of a special, two-hour edition of <em>Animal Hoarders</em>.<br />
<br />
Well, if you're new and reading, I hope I've hooked you enough to check back. If you're already a follower, I promise to provide more regular updates. Talk to you all soon.<br />
<br />
JeffJeffJustJeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04574511510296447394noreply@blogger.com3