Spring to Action

Spring is here and that means lots of action on the farm!

Our first batch of chicks has gone out to pasture and have been enjoying the sunshine and steady access to grass, bugs and whatever else their little beaks can find. Our second batch will go out tomorrow and the newest babies are doing great in the brooder - growing out their feathers before they head outside. We'll continue to get new batches of chicks every two weeks until August.

Our cows and sheep are rotating around the pastures, trying their darnedest to keep up with all the spring growth of grass. More lambs will come to the farm in another week once they are big and strong enough to leave their mommas. 

Following behind them, are our flock of layer hens. They scratch through the cow patties, devouring larvae and flies to keep the pest populations down, spreading manure as they go to help fertilize the pastures. Nature knows best!

Our first batch of hogs spent their days foraging under the oaks, rooting up a storm and knocking down blackberries and other undergrowth in the process. Our next batch of piggies will arrive next week so we can continue the rotation through the fall.

It's a beautiful time on the farm, brimming with activity and excitement to see what the season will hold. Everything is coming out of its winter slumbers - lush grass, new leaves on the oaks, blossoming fruit trees and the ever present weeds. We still have our fair share of pasture rejuvenation ahead of us, but we are cautiously optimistic that even just one year of rotational grazing has vastly helped the weed problem from years of overgrazing this farm. Stay tuned for an update on weeds in July. 

Here's to the 2015 season! Let's do it!