I can't believe I haven't written anything since April! When friends start asking what is going on on the farm because they haven't seen a post, I know it's been too long.
Let's begin with today...
We have a young Narragansett turkey that we are raising for Thanksgiving. Last night was the 4th of July and we all know turkeys are stupid. Evidently, she was freaking out from the fireworks, probably running in circles, and must have caught herself on chicken wire. When I went out to feed this morning, she was missing an eye. The gash is behind the eye and the skin is pulled forward. She is still alive. I loaded up the wound with Swat, a medicinal salve and insect repellent in one, and moved her into the garage. It is so hot outside, even with the Swat, I fear the flies because as soon as maggots show up, she will be a dead turkey. I plan to leave her in the garage for a few days until the wound starts to hopefully heal.
Lee Trotman was an old equestrian trainer of mine. I used to sometimes think she was so heartless when she would bitch about how somebody's always sick, or sore, or hurt. She'd say, "I'm so tired of always having to deal with some kind of shit on this farm!" I know how she feels. It's always something or somebody. I love living out here, but sometimes it takes its toll. Like right now when the baby has diarreah, the turkey lost an eye, the pigs keep getting into the llama paddock, the baby chick got swept away in the sudden storm the other night, and it has been hotter than Hades for the last two weeks. So hot that I have to hose everyone down and water all day long, my vegetable garden looks dreadful, and it's too hot for the girls to enjoys any outdoor activities. I'm glad my mom-in-law has been here to enjoy these moments with me!
What else has been going on?
My hens don't like to sit on eggs so I bought a small incubator. It fits 40 eggs at a time and I love it!
Our friend Allen is renting the old farm house now. It's nice to have someone living there and seeing a light on at the top of the driveway at night. It is also nice because when James is at work during the day, I have a hand on the farm. I wouldn't exactly call him a farm hand. He is more of a city guy, but I think he is getting used to life out here!
The turkey mentioned above is not the first turkey we've tried to raise in the last few months. I haven't figured out why I can't keep a damned turkey alive! The first one was two days old when it drowned in a shallow water dish. The second got pecked and killed by my chickens. That is why this third one has been living alone.
Bought a boar. I am waiting for a Swine Artificial Insemination class to start at Clemson, but they don't have an ETA yet. So in the meantime, we bought this boar. James hooked the horse trailer up and Allen and I went to the next county over to pick up this pig. He is only 8 months old, not much bigger than Little Ham ( the male we are raising for meat), but it is the only purebred Tamworth I could find. Hopefully, they will breed pretty soon. He is just barely at breeding age, so we are just waiting to see some action out there.
The garden was doing great until this weather got so unbearable. My okra is starting to come in because of the heat. We've been getting plenty of zucchinis and green beans, watermelons are working hard and sweet potatoes will be in the ground until Fall.
There have been a lot of funny stories over the last few months that I should have blogged but didn't. Sorry. I will try to do a better job.
Thursday, July 5, 2012
Friday, April 13, 2012
Spring
Sorry I haven't posted anything in a while. I have been busy busy busy! I feel like everyday there has been a funny farm story and I just haven't had a chance to jump on the computer.
I harvested the last few beets out of the Winter garden on Sunday. The garden is tilled and ready to go for Spring. Just planting the usual suspects this year, nothing fancy. Stella is excited about planting her sunflowers! I never seem to have luck with tomatoes. This year, they are in pots up against the house so I can keep a close eye on them. The garden is just too dry, windy, and sunny for them, I think.
All the piglets are gone except the last boar we are raising for our freezer. They were some funny little critters! I don't know how many times they got out of their yard and I had to chase the little buggers around. Stella adored them. Everyday, "Mommy, I wanna hold baby piggies." and "Mommy, go see baby piggies." If you ask her what we plan to do with the piggies, she says "Eat them!" She gets it.
We plan to breed her in the next week or two to have July babies. I have buyers ready to put down deposits on the next litter as soon as she is bred. James was a little hesitant about this pig business, but he believes me now. Tamworths are a tough breed to find. We got calls from NC, SC, VA, and Ga. When they all sold in 48 hours, James said, "Maybe we should buy a second sow!" We will when we find the right one.
We are trying to get a couple hens to sit on eggs right now. I'd like to hatch about 25 for the freezer this Summer. They aren't all broody so we are having trouble keeping them on the eggs. Maybe once it warms back up next week.
We are looking for a calf right now. Another family wants to go in on one with us. I think we will end up going to an auction for one, I just don't know enough about cows to feel confident at an auction.
We finally finished fixing up the old farm house. A friend of ours is renting it beginning on 1 May. It will be nice having someone around during the day while James is at work. With the two girls, I often need a hand outside like chasing those damned piggies around! I think the farm life will be good for him too!
Enjoy the pics!
I harvested the last few beets out of the Winter garden on Sunday. The garden is tilled and ready to go for Spring. Just planting the usual suspects this year, nothing fancy. Stella is excited about planting her sunflowers! I never seem to have luck with tomatoes. This year, they are in pots up against the house so I can keep a close eye on them. The garden is just too dry, windy, and sunny for them, I think.
All the piglets are gone except the last boar we are raising for our freezer. They were some funny little critters! I don't know how many times they got out of their yard and I had to chase the little buggers around. Stella adored them. Everyday, "Mommy, I wanna hold baby piggies." and "Mommy, go see baby piggies." If you ask her what we plan to do with the piggies, she says "Eat them!" She gets it.
We plan to breed her in the next week or two to have July babies. I have buyers ready to put down deposits on the next litter as soon as she is bred. James was a little hesitant about this pig business, but he believes me now. Tamworths are a tough breed to find. We got calls from NC, SC, VA, and Ga. When they all sold in 48 hours, James said, "Maybe we should buy a second sow!" We will when we find the right one.
We are trying to get a couple hens to sit on eggs right now. I'd like to hatch about 25 for the freezer this Summer. They aren't all broody so we are having trouble keeping them on the eggs. Maybe once it warms back up next week.
We are looking for a calf right now. Another family wants to go in on one with us. I think we will end up going to an auction for one, I just don't know enough about cows to feel confident at an auction.
We finally finished fixing up the old farm house. A friend of ours is renting it beginning on 1 May. It will be nice having someone around during the day while James is at work. With the two girls, I often need a hand outside like chasing those damned piggies around! I think the farm life will be good for him too!
Monday, February 13, 2012
Baby Piggies!
Thursday, Tonya slept all day long. I threw a few bails of straw in the lean-to and in the hole she's been sleeping in lately. I also stacked four bails around the lean-to as extra protection from the wind.
Friday morning rolled around and there were no babies. We were expecting freezing temperatures Friday night, so I was getting worried. From sunrise to sunset on Friday, Tonya nested. Mouthful by mouthful, she carried the loose straw from the lean-to to her spot against the fence. After she leaned out the lean-to, she dragged the four additional bails, popped the strings and spread out even more straw! At nightfall, she finally fell asleep.
Saturday morning rolled around and there were no babies. We were expecting 19 degrees Saturday night, so I was even more worried than the night before. Tonya slept all day on Saturday. She never moved, never ate, never drank.
Sunday morning rolled around and there were no babies. We were expecting 22 degrees Sunday night, so obviously, I was a wreck. When I visited her Sunday morning, she was laying on her side. I had a feeling theywere coming. I went into work to get a few things done. At 2pm, James and I took the girls to a birthday party, and my Mom went out to the local shopping center. I asked Mom to check on T when she got home. We were getting our coats on at the birthday party when Mom called. She walked down the hill and found a bunch of piglets!
When we arrived home, Mom showed me that there was one that wandered off, so I jumped in the yard and carried it over to T. You shouldn't go in for at least a few days because the Mama can get aggressive. I trust Tonya and the baby was squealing and shivering. When I got it over to Mama, she immediately started nursing. At this point, we counted seven.
James and I walked down around sunset, and we heard a desperate, weak squeal coming from the far side of the lean-to. Number 8, whom no one had seen earlier... I jumped in again. Her body was cold and beginning to stiffen, but still breathing shallowly. I knew we were going to lose her, but I tried anyway. I placed her in Tonyas neck, hoping she would warm up and have the strength to nurse.
This morning it was so cold outside. I found her little lifeless body. T had pushed her away a little and covered her with some hay. The other 7 are healthy, but cold. Mommy and babies have been sleeping in the sun all day today. Tonight we are expecting some snow and sleet, first of the season. I am about to go down and get some type of cover of them. The first 72 hours are crucial for piglets because there internal thermometer isn't working yet, just like any other animal. The difference is they can't get completely under Mama like a dog or cat because Mama is 500 lbs.
I feel pretty confident, but cross your fingers they all make it through tonight.
Friday morning rolled around and there were no babies. We were expecting freezing temperatures Friday night, so I was getting worried. From sunrise to sunset on Friday, Tonya nested. Mouthful by mouthful, she carried the loose straw from the lean-to to her spot against the fence. After she leaned out the lean-to, she dragged the four additional bails, popped the strings and spread out even more straw! At nightfall, she finally fell asleep.
Saturday morning rolled around and there were no babies. We were expecting 19 degrees Saturday night, so I was even more worried than the night before. Tonya slept all day on Saturday. She never moved, never ate, never drank.
Sunday morning rolled around and there were no babies. We were expecting 22 degrees Sunday night, so obviously, I was a wreck. When I visited her Sunday morning, she was laying on her side. I had a feeling theywere coming. I went into work to get a few things done. At 2pm, James and I took the girls to a birthday party, and my Mom went out to the local shopping center. I asked Mom to check on T when she got home. We were getting our coats on at the birthday party when Mom called. She walked down the hill and found a bunch of piglets!
When we arrived home, Mom showed me that there was one that wandered off, so I jumped in the yard and carried it over to T. You shouldn't go in for at least a few days because the Mama can get aggressive. I trust Tonya and the baby was squealing and shivering. When I got it over to Mama, she immediately started nursing. At this point, we counted seven.
James and I walked down around sunset, and we heard a desperate, weak squeal coming from the far side of the lean-to. Number 8, whom no one had seen earlier... I jumped in again. Her body was cold and beginning to stiffen, but still breathing shallowly. I knew we were going to lose her, but I tried anyway. I placed her in Tonyas neck, hoping she would warm up and have the strength to nurse.
This morning it was so cold outside. I found her little lifeless body. T had pushed her away a little and covered her with some hay. The other 7 are healthy, but cold. Mommy and babies have been sleeping in the sun all day today. Tonight we are expecting some snow and sleet, first of the season. I am about to go down and get some type of cover of them. The first 72 hours are crucial for piglets because there internal thermometer isn't working yet, just like any other animal. The difference is they can't get completely under Mama like a dog or cat because Mama is 500 lbs.
Friday, February 3, 2012
Preparing for Tonya's Birth
Tonya is due in 10 days. We expect her to deliver 10-12 piglets, hopefully all healthy and alive. Due to three weeks of on and off rain, her pen is a wreck. She has also knocked down most of her lean-to and pulled down most of the chicken wire from scratching her ass on the fence. The chicken wire runs along the lower half of the fence so the babies can't slip through the cattle fencing.
Today was like a Spring day, as every other day seems to be right now. James and I mended all the chicken wire, straightened out the lean-to, and planned where we will build a run for everyone. Next week I will buy 8 bails of straw to stack around the lean-to and spread out for some bedding. This Winter has been so mild, I really worry that we are going to get an ice storm near the due date. All I can do is insulate her house as much as possible and hope for the best.
About two weeks ago I told James I was worried that she may not be bred. In the last few days, her size has doubled and her milk has come in. Yes, she is definitely bred and ready to go!
Today was like a Spring day, as every other day seems to be right now. James and I mended all the chicken wire, straightened out the lean-to, and planned where we will build a run for everyone. Next week I will buy 8 bails of straw to stack around the lean-to and spread out for some bedding. This Winter has been so mild, I really worry that we are going to get an ice storm near the due date. All I can do is insulate her house as much as possible and hope for the best.
Monday, January 2, 2012
What IS Growing on Black Opal Farm?
Let's start with veggies. Right now I am harvesting fresh crunchy spinach. Cauliflower, beets, and cabbage are steadily growing. I just filled the open spaces in the garden with last years compost and lots of llama poop. Our compost amount has diminished since most of the leftover food goes to the piggy now. Come Spring, I will order some more worms from our local worm farmer/expert, Scott Harke.
Tonya the pig is super hungry. She's eating for a dozen, you know. She is on freshly milled corn from Campobello, SC, restaurant scraps by the bucketfull, our kitchen scraps including the leftover breatmilk and formula from Skylars bottles (there isn't much after my chunky monkey eats), and Stella helps me gather acorns for her. She is so big, whatever she runs into normally knocks over. As we get closer to her due date, 13 February, we will fix up her lean to. She doesn't sleep in it much. I think she prefers the stars. I'm sure she will choose to use it for her little ones. When tax season rolls around, we will extend the fencing in the pig area. We plan to sell the piglets, but I have had inquiries about raising the pigs to slaughter size for some people who live in the city. that means more fencing.
We still have a small handful of chickens to process. We are only processing roosters. The 11 hens have been moved to the Big House with Sid. He is going to be the brooder rooster. The meat on most heritage breeds is pretty tough, but tasty. Sid is a Dominicker which is a dual purpose breed as well. We plan to cross the Naked Necks with Dominicker to get a fatter, more tender bird. The ladies are just starting to lay eggs. We expect a dozen a day.
Why are the ladies in the Big House? Because we lost everyone except Sid. My ducks are gone and so are the few Silkie Bantams we had. Not only do we need to watch for wild predators, but neighbor dogs were coming over and running off with them. I think my dogs trusted them because they would come over and play and hang out in the yard. We trusted them too... You can't remove a labradors instincts I guess.
Needless to say, the front gate that we used to keep open, now stays closed at all times. We will let the hens out to graze on Sundays when we are home all day so we can keep a watchful eye.
Overall, things are pretty good on the farm.
Tonya the pig is super hungry. She's eating for a dozen, you know. She is on freshly milled corn from Campobello, SC, restaurant scraps by the bucketfull, our kitchen scraps including the leftover breatmilk and formula from Skylars bottles (there isn't much after my chunky monkey eats), and Stella helps me gather acorns for her. She is so big, whatever she runs into normally knocks over. As we get closer to her due date, 13 February, we will fix up her lean to. She doesn't sleep in it much. I think she prefers the stars. I'm sure she will choose to use it for her little ones. When tax season rolls around, we will extend the fencing in the pig area. We plan to sell the piglets, but I have had inquiries about raising the pigs to slaughter size for some people who live in the city. that means more fencing.
We still have a small handful of chickens to process. We are only processing roosters. The 11 hens have been moved to the Big House with Sid. He is going to be the brooder rooster. The meat on most heritage breeds is pretty tough, but tasty. Sid is a Dominicker which is a dual purpose breed as well. We plan to cross the Naked Necks with Dominicker to get a fatter, more tender bird. The ladies are just starting to lay eggs. We expect a dozen a day.
Why are the ladies in the Big House? Because we lost everyone except Sid. My ducks are gone and so are the few Silkie Bantams we had. Not only do we need to watch for wild predators, but neighbor dogs were coming over and running off with them. I think my dogs trusted them because they would come over and play and hang out in the yard. We trusted them too... You can't remove a labradors instincts I guess.
Needless to say, the front gate that we used to keep open, now stays closed at all times. We will let the hens out to graze on Sundays when we are home all day so we can keep a watchful eye.
Overall, things are pretty good on the farm.
Monday, November 21, 2011
Chicken Processing
Well, we processed 7 chickens today. Nikky was sick and couldn't make it, so I had to help James. It is a very simple process and with practice we will get cleaner and faster.
I cried during the first bird... I'm sure all of you can imagine how it must feel the first time...
We set up about 50 yards down from the backyard on a little bit of a slope so the blood and water would run downhill. On the back of the pickup, we placed a sheet of plywood covered with a plastic tablecloth for evisceration and along side the tablecloth was the tabletop chicken plucker. We filled the crawfish boiler with water and set up pickle buckets for ice baths.
Unfortunately, the chickens weren't very close by, maybe 200 feet away. One by one, James would pick a chicken and walk the green mile to the processing area. I held the cone while he slit the jugular. Each chicken bled for about 3 minutes, then it was on to the water, set at 145 degrees. Each bird was dunked for 60 seconds to open the follicles before plucking.
The tabletop plucker is motorized. Rather than dropping the chicken into a barrel, the tabletop plucker requires you to hold the chicken up to the spinning rubber fingers. Since we had to hold the bird to the plucker, we had to pluck a few feathers by hand on the ends of the wings and the bottom of the legs. I helped a little with the plucking.
James did all the evisceration. He used to duck hunt in Louisiana, so he has had plenty of experience cleaning birds. First he had to cut off the head and legs, cut the oil gland, sliced into the breast to pull out the windpipe, went up the bottom and pulled the guts and organs out. That is evisceration in a nutshell.
They got washed off and dropped into an ice bath until they cooled off, bagged, then into the freezer. James cooked the heads and feet for Tonya, the dogs got the organs for dinner.
It's gonna be a lot easier next time.
I cried during the first bird... I'm sure all of you can imagine how it must feel the first time...
We set up about 50 yards down from the backyard on a little bit of a slope so the blood and water would run downhill. On the back of the pickup, we placed a sheet of plywood covered with a plastic tablecloth for evisceration and along side the tablecloth was the tabletop chicken plucker. We filled the crawfish boiler with water and set up pickle buckets for ice baths.
Unfortunately, the chickens weren't very close by, maybe 200 feet away. One by one, James would pick a chicken and walk the green mile to the processing area. I held the cone while he slit the jugular. Each chicken bled for about 3 minutes, then it was on to the water, set at 145 degrees. Each bird was dunked for 60 seconds to open the follicles before plucking.
The tabletop plucker is motorized. Rather than dropping the chicken into a barrel, the tabletop plucker requires you to hold the chicken up to the spinning rubber fingers. Since we had to hold the bird to the plucker, we had to pluck a few feathers by hand on the ends of the wings and the bottom of the legs. I helped a little with the plucking.
James did all the evisceration. He used to duck hunt in Louisiana, so he has had plenty of experience cleaning birds. First he had to cut off the head and legs, cut the oil gland, sliced into the breast to pull out the windpipe, went up the bottom and pulled the guts and organs out. That is evisceration in a nutshell.
They got washed off and dropped into an ice bath until they cooled off, bagged, then into the freezer. James cooked the heads and feet for Tonya, the dogs got the organs for dinner.
It's gonna be a lot easier next time.
Sunday, November 20, 2011
pigs, chickens, turkeys, oh my!
Both dogs got to take a ride in the car last weekend for their rabies shots, woot-woot! They don't care where they go, they just love to ride in the car. They may be dirty farm dogs, but they are always on their best behavior when we take them off the farm.
Tomorrow is D-Day for the chickens. We have a makeshift processing facility set up outside. Our friend Nikky is coming over to help James. I want to be a part, but I'm not sure how much help I will be this first time. I think I can dunk, pluck, and eviscerate, but I know I can't slit a chickens throat. Maybe down the road.
Thanksgiving is becoming a tradition on the farm. My Mom and Sisters party of five come from NC, James' Mom drives up from LA, and his brother and wife fly in from TX. We all bunk in the house for a few days of eats, drinks, and games. I can't wait!! On Wednesday, James will smoke a ham from the freezer and I will make my Grandma's potato salad. For Thursday, I plan to sage-brine a turkey and stuff it lightly with root vegetables accompanied by roasted acorn squash, garlic romano mashed potatoes, cornbread dressing with fresh chorizo, orange-ginger peas (Stella's favorite veggie), and fresh French bread. For dessert, I am making a sweet potato cake with marshmallow meringue topped with drippy, gooey pralines---Yumm! My sister is bringing some homemade quiches, Mom is making Saurkraut Balls! We will have some great wines (TBD) and beers, maybe even Makers Mark and Eggnog.
Stay tuned, I will let you know how the processing goes...
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