Recently I've been looking at the pigs and visualizing pork chops. For the past few months, I think the pigs have been looking at me and visualizing pork chops as well! Anyway, they are atleast 300lbs a piece right now and due to be slaughtered in a few weeks. I bought a deep freezer for the basement and pulled out my Kitchen Aid to practice the delicious art of sausage making. Mom was in town and we bought a pork shoulder and chicken and made about 10 lbs of sausage. It turned out ok. I just bought some basic casing online and wasn't 100% satisfied.
James has been working hard on a firepit in the backyard. I have wanted one since we moved here and we finally got to it on the ENDLESS TO DO LIST. I can't wait to cook on it this Summer!
The weather is warming quickly, but there is still no grass. The llamas are still on hay and searching for that first blade of beautiful green. The chickens tend to lay less when the weather is cold, snowy, windy, etc. So they have been laying twice as many eggs this last week. Stella loves her scrambled eggs in the morning.
We are trying to get as much done as possible on the ENDLESS TO DO LIST before I get any bigger. I am pretty tough but things do get a little hard when you have an extra 15 lbs and are having to watch what you lift.
So as Spring approaches I will have more stories and pictures of gardening, building, buying animals, processing animals, and whatever else may go on at Black Opal Farm. By the way, Opals birthday is 21 February. Happy Birthday to the best dog and best friend, you're always in my thoughts, your box is in our bedroom, and your picture sits in the living room. Love you.
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Friday, January 21, 2011
Is Spring here yet?
I love wintertime. The trees are beautiful when they lose their leaves and sleeping through the cold days of Winter. Apple and peach trees have those long, undulating limbs. The only green I can see is the magnolia across the road and some pine trees. Winter can be a tough time of year having to fight the weather each day, but it doesn't make me like it any less.
Then the day comes when the best part of Winter is planning for Spring!! That day came yesterday for James and me. I really started thinking about it a few weeks ago when some little green lemons started to emerge on my Meyer lemon tree. Up til now, I have only grown house plants and carnivorous plants in my sunroom except for the lemon tree. I have had it for about 18 months and these are the first lemons!
James is going out to scoop poop today, start tilling up the gardens, mix the compost in. This will wake up the dormant soil a little and get some oxygen flowing under the surface. He will also get all the nitrogen rich chicken poop out of their house for the garden as well. Pig poop is rich in phosphate and we need to clean their pen out too, but we will save that for another day. We still have plenty of time while Spring is still two months away...
Then the day comes when the best part of Winter is planning for Spring!! That day came yesterday for James and me. I really started thinking about it a few weeks ago when some little green lemons started to emerge on my Meyer lemon tree. Up til now, I have only grown house plants and carnivorous plants in my sunroom except for the lemon tree. I have had it for about 18 months and these are the first lemons!
James is going out to scoop poop today, start tilling up the gardens, mix the compost in. This will wake up the dormant soil a little and get some oxygen flowing under the surface. He will also get all the nitrogen rich chicken poop out of their house for the garden as well. Pig poop is rich in phosphate and we need to clean their pen out too, but we will save that for another day. We still have plenty of time while Spring is still two months away...
Monday, January 10, 2011
Woke up to a Winter Wonderland
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Snow Clouds Are Rolling In
The sun rose to meet a beautiful sky this morning. It is 5 in the evening and looking a little gloomy. I love this type of sky. The snow will meet us before midnight and continue on through Tuesday morning. Everyone has been fed for the night and now we hope that we don't lose power through the night. One day we hope to be powered by other means, but that takes some big cash. So for now we rely on Blue Ridge Electric Coop. Please, BREC, help to keep the power on. We have a fire place, but we have 19 ft. ceilings :(
I will get some nice pictures of the animals in the morning. Stella will build another snowman.
I will get some nice pictures of the animals in the morning. Stella will build another snowman.
It's Just The Cycle Of Life
I only see the pigs to feed them because they are not really my friends. We've had them since August and I have done a fine job staying completely unattached. I know that Prosciutto and Capicola are part of the cycle of life. They are having a great life here at Black Opal Farm. They have a spacious pen to run around and chase eachother, they not only eat grain and corn, but fresh veggies, fruits, breads, and meats.
The feedlots at industrial pig farms are far from our farm. The pigs never soak up the sunshine, they are only fed grain. The antibiotics they are given keep them healthier because of the crowded unclean living conditions they are forced to endure. As piglets, their tails are cut off because in the feed lot it is so crowded that the pigs will chew eachothers tails off. These pigs reach maturity in 3-4 months which is 7 months less than a normal living pig.
Yes, my pigs have a very nice life. They are physically and mentally healthy. Sometimes when they are playing and throwing around their hay, they make me smile. This doesn't mean that I won't be able to eat them, oh no. It means that I think I will cherish the meat even more than I once thought I would. And sometimes when they are being cute, I do get a little sad that they will give up their lives for me. Then I remember that in every bite of homemade sausage that my daughter eats, I know exactly where it came from and what that animal ate.
Our first slaughter will be tough on me, and I know that. The next time will get a little easier. Thanks for listening.
The feedlots at industrial pig farms are far from our farm. The pigs never soak up the sunshine, they are only fed grain. The antibiotics they are given keep them healthier because of the crowded unclean living conditions they are forced to endure. As piglets, their tails are cut off because in the feed lot it is so crowded that the pigs will chew eachothers tails off. These pigs reach maturity in 3-4 months which is 7 months less than a normal living pig.
Yes, my pigs have a very nice life. They are physically and mentally healthy. Sometimes when they are playing and throwing around their hay, they make me smile. This doesn't mean that I won't be able to eat them, oh no. It means that I think I will cherish the meat even more than I once thought I would. And sometimes when they are being cute, I do get a little sad that they will give up their lives for me. Then I remember that in every bite of homemade sausage that my daughter eats, I know exactly where it came from and what that animal ate.
Our first slaughter will be tough on me, and I know that. The next time will get a little easier. Thanks for listening.
Monday, December 27, 2010
The Frozen Tundra
Well, we had a beautiful white Christmas on Black Opal Farm. It started to snow Christmas morning around 10 o' clock and didn't stop until midnight.
Stella's second Christmas was a white one and she LOVED it! We built her a snowman and toured the farm with her little red wagon.
What was not so fun was tending to the animals in this weather. The pigs were staying pretty dry. They get under their hay like a blanket, and the trees above kept most of the snow out of their pen. The llamas need a full hay basket because there is only a blanket of snow on the ground. This means we need to keep Remus, the dog, out of the basket. He likes to lay in there when the weather gets bad to stay warm. The chickens and ducks were hiding in their covered coops in the chicken house. We have to keep knocking the snow off the roof of the house so it doesn't cave in on them.
Yesterday was still dark, cold, and snowy. We lost power for a few hours in the morning and had to sit by the fire. Kept busy trying to stay warm inside and outside. This morning the sun is shining brightly. It is barely going to get above freezing and we are having huge wind gusts. Stella and Grandma tried to go out and feed with me this morning, but it was just too windy.
Due to the snow, I have been unable to use my new Christmas present from James. He bought me a golfcart with a big cargo shelf on the back! It will make my life easier as I am pregnant again and it will get tough feeding in the morning with Stella by my side. The cargo shelf will also be great for planting and harvesting!
Stella's second Christmas was a white one and she LOVED it! We built her a snowman and toured the farm with her little red wagon.
What was not so fun was tending to the animals in this weather. The pigs were staying pretty dry. They get under their hay like a blanket, and the trees above kept most of the snow out of their pen. The llamas need a full hay basket because there is only a blanket of snow on the ground. This means we need to keep Remus, the dog, out of the basket. He likes to lay in there when the weather gets bad to stay warm. The chickens and ducks were hiding in their covered coops in the chicken house. We have to keep knocking the snow off the roof of the house so it doesn't cave in on them.
Yesterday was still dark, cold, and snowy. We lost power for a few hours in the morning and had to sit by the fire. Kept busy trying to stay warm inside and outside. This morning the sun is shining brightly. It is barely going to get above freezing and we are having huge wind gusts. Stella and Grandma tried to go out and feed with me this morning, but it was just too windy.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
COLD
Yep, it's cold out here on the farm. No precipitation, just nights below 20 degrees. Any temp below 20, we feed everyone twice a day. Everyone gets their regular diets in the morning, then in the afternoon, they get another helping mixed with hog feed. We used to mix it with cracked corn, but since we got the piggies, we've learned that hog feed has 9% more protein than normal cracked corn. The protein is was warms the body up on the cold nights. Keeping everyone hydrated is the other key to surviving Winter. Dumping all the frozen buckets of ice and refilling with fresh, ice cold water...sometimes twice a day.
Other than that, nothing too exciting happening out here. The ducks have permanently moved into the chicken house. And as usual every winter, Remus, the Great Pyrenees, sleeps in the llamas hay basket at night. One night he is going to fall through the damned thing. It's just made out of rusted rabbit cages. Some good pictures on the way!
Other than that, nothing too exciting happening out here. The ducks have permanently moved into the chicken house. And as usual every winter, Remus, the Great Pyrenees, sleeps in the llamas hay basket at night. One night he is going to fall through the damned thing. It's just made out of rusted rabbit cages. Some good pictures on the way!
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