The Ups and Downs of a Farm

   Last week was a stressful week for me. When I went out to the barn last Tuesday morning for morning chores I was greeted by one of our silver laced Wyandotte chickens savagely killed. Feathers were all over the ground and her head was totally gone. This is nothing anyone wants to see at 6 a.m. to start their day. She was one of our young chickens who was being kept in a large dog crate with her little flock at night, because they haven't yet learned to go into the chicken coop with the older chickens at sunset. Whatever got her tried to pull her through the spaces of the wire cage, pretty successfully. The rest of these little chickens are now living in the chicken coop with the big chickens at night courtesy of me chasing them and personally putting them in the coop each night. What a workout! I hope they get the idea of going in on their own soon.
   To further add to my stress Annabelle, our then 2 week old calf, needed to be dehorned. A job I hate. All dairy calves should be dehorned so as not to injure themselves by getting their horns caught on something, injuring other animals on the farm, and especially their handlers. Although a simple process if done at a very early age ( it involves shaving a spot where you can feel the horn buds coming in and then applying a caustic paste to the area the size of a quarter) it does really burn the poor calf for about an hour after applying the paste. After that they forget about it and the result is no horns. Annabelle was a wonderful patient with hardly any complaints. She held up better than I did. I actually didn't sleep well the night before, anticipating the deed. How silly!
   This week seems to be going much better, all the animals are happy and healthy. The gardens are doing beautifully with sunny days and weekly rain showers. We have even enjoyed our first beets and are still picking strawberries. The cut flowers are abundant, with different varieties coming on each week. Homegrown rewards for all the hard work of gardening!

At 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. Annabelle drinks one 1/2 gallon bottle of raw milk from a local farm

And oh how she loves that bottle of milk

She also loves grass and clover

Our new barn star

Happy Birthday George and Martha

   Today is George and Martha's first birthday. They are now officially sheep and no longer lambs. Wow, where did that year go? The breeder I bought them from named the twins George and Martha. What else would you name lambs born the day before George Washington's birthday? We knew immediately we would keep those names. They are the friendliest and sweetest sheep we have, and they always seem to be into something to make me smile.

Martha (cream colored) and George

 

   I am starting to feel the excitement of spring preparations. First off I ordered 6 new day old chicks to add to our flock, 3 silver laced wyandottes and 3 golden laced wyandottes. They will be arriving on April 11th.

Silver laced wyandotte chicken

Golden laced wyandotte chicken

 

Secondly, I have been starting some flower and vegetable seeds. Most of my garden seeds are direct sown outside in the spring, but I do start tomatoes, peppers and some of the cutting garden flower seeds such as the celosia, stocks, delphiniums, and johnny jump-up violas inside weeks before they will be transplanted outside in the spring. I reuse my plastic seed starting pots and trays each year. I prefer plastic pots to peat pots, because they retain the water better and do not have the tendency to get moldy like the peat pots do. I first sterilize the pots and trays with Clorox to kill any bacteria from last year's plantings. I just do it in the sink and spray them with Clorox clean-up spray, being sure to rinse the Clorox off completely. I then just air dry them and then they are ready for the seed starter potting mix and new seeds.

 

   Use a bucket and mix water and seed starter potting mix until you get the desired consistency of damp but not soggy soil. Then fill pots and plant seeds according to the directions on each seed packet. Some seeds need light to germinate so they cannot be covered with soil, while other seeds require darkness to germinate, so they will need to be covered with soil. Be sure to carefully read the packets!

 

   All trays should be covered with clear plastic wrap (such as saran wrap) until seedlings emerge, then it is important to remove the plastic wrap so the seedlings are exposed to the air and can grow. At first misting the seedlings with a water bottle is acceptable, but as soon as they start to develop leaves and begin to form roots, watering from the bottom tray is advised. A fluorescent light hung closely over the young seedlings is a must for growing strong healthy plants. Depending on a sunny window will yield spindly plants which always strain towards the light. I know this first hand!

   A very weak liquid fertilizer should be used in a couple of weeks after seedlings emerge, but again follow directions very closely so as not to burn out the tiny plants. Now just sit back and enjoy the miracle of nature. Have a great weekend and maybe start some seeds!