Spring

Purple Columbine

I cannot believe it's been over two months since I last updated. That must mean that things on the farm are pretty busy. 

Jared attended WSU Shearing School April 4-9, 2011, in Moses Lake, WA. He learned a lot and had an amazing week. He even received a Shearing School Scholarship for an essay he wrote on why he wanted to attend shearing school. He arrived back home in Seattle, bought some shearing equipment and proceeded to shear our entire flock. It took awhile to catch the last few girls but he got 'em all sheared. Fleeces are headed off for processing soon. 

Tyr being sheared

Almost done...

Tyr (back) post shearing, Ithaqua (front)

Thistle gets her turn

Clover says one last "goodbye" to her fleece, post shearing

Jared holding Tyr's fleece

At the end of April, we lost our Cheviot/Suffolk/Hampshire ewe, Scarlett. We found her in the pasture with a large vaginal prolapse and got her to the vet ASAP. The vet did what she could to help get the prolapse back in place but it wouldn't stay. On top of that, Scarlett had a large bump on her face, that when lanced by the vet was full of infection and wouldn't stop bleeding. She died overnight at the vet. In all honesty, Scarlett came from questionable breeding. Both her mother and grandmother had a history of prolapse and some issues with abscesses. Jared and I thought that with some great nutrition, exercise, and love, she could overcome it but sometimes there's no overcoming Mother Nature.  We've learned a lot from this experience about the importance of excellent breeding, with a focus on culling those animals that have health/genetic issues. 

Scarlett Sheep April 2010-April 2011

Our garden is doing well! After keeping most of the plant starts in the house for significantly longer than they should've been, they're finally outside. We still have a garden bed that needs soil and maybe another one to build before all the crops are in the ground. Beans, squash, cucumber, onions, tomatoes, peppers, and pumpkins are also growing! 

Oak Leaf Lettuce

Strawberries

Romaine Lettuce

Beets

Carrots

Chives

Oregon Sugar Pod Peas

Hardneck Garlic scapes

Pink Lemonade Blueberry Bushes

Sage

We've been working with a farmer in Kent who is looking to transfer his 8 acre berry farm to younger farmers. Since the farm has been in berries for a long time, we've decided, with intensive mentoring from Farmer Bob, to continue that tradition. Two weeks ago, we planted 6,000 strawberry starts on an acre of land. The weather hasn't been too favorable for getting the starts into the ground, which means a lot of extra hands on work and care to keep the starts healthy. Our plans for this farm, with this farmer, are far from finalized, we're just getting started! 

T & M Berry Farm, Kent, WA

T & M Berry Farm, Kent, WA

Sophie, Thea, and Justine working hard

Strawberry Planting

After months of waiting and wishing, our first lamb was born on June 1st. Jared and I arrived at the pasture to find Isolde's lamb had just been born, still sticky, active, and BEAUTIFUL! It's most exciting that our first lamb is a ewe, weighing in at 6 lbs., named Ylfa- meaning "she wolf" in Icelandic. She is quite wooly looking and growing like crazy. It feels like she's almost doubled her weight in 5 days! 

Motherly love

Isolde and Ylfa

Clover, taking a moment after all the excitement!

Just born...

4 days old!

Tyr, Ylfa's father, seemed unaffected at the announcement of his daughter's arrival. 

We still have some pregnant ewes, so there are at least four more lambs to come! 

How much longer will it be for Isa? 

All of the chicks that hatched in late March/early April are pretty grown up. We will be tractoring them in the ewe's pasture once we get a couple of tractors/portable hen houses built. In the meantime, we'll be moving the smallest juvenile chickens over to the pasture to begin their role in our pasture management plan, in a temporary portable coop/tractor. Once we know for sure who is a pullet and who is a cockerel, we'll separate any little boys we're not going to keep for breeding and raise them for butchering in the Fall. 

A Wheaton, Copper Maran, Blue Wheaton, and Buff Orpington  

Splash Orpington cockerel, Mr. Silver

A supposed Blue Laced Red Wyandotte, Betty

Orpington/Maran cross, Ms. Smokey

Ameraucana babies

I'm heading to Monroe today to pick up more hatching eggs- Lavender and Black Orpington and Blue Laced Red Wyandotte- for our two broody hens. Because of our large chicken population at the moment, they'll be brooding on the back porch in pet carriers to keep things as organized as possible.

I've put in an application for our farm to participate in the 2011 Seattle Tilth Chicken Coop and Urban Farm Tour on Saturday, July 9th. Once we get the thumbs up, I'll be inviting all our friends down for a day on the farm. 

Enjoy Spring, now that's finally here!

Lydia

Stay tuned...

for a long overdue farm update coming soon.

Quiet...

It's Sunday evening and house is positively peaceful. The dogs are sleeping, the girls are in their rooms, and Jared is on his way to Moses Lake for a week of Shearing School through WSU Extension. It has been over 6 years since Jared has been gone for more than an overnight so things feel a little off balance for the moment. I wonder if that's how he felt when I went to Thailand last year for an entire month? 

I'm so excited he has this opportunity, after waiting more than half ones life to follow a dream of being a shepherd I say it's about time. I hear he'll be shearing some heavy weight sheep, like 250 lb. Suffolks for about 5 days. I guess that means that shearing our sheep will be a breeze after that and boy do they need it. Except for Ithaqua, whose already been shorn, pretty much all the Icelandics have fleeces that are breaking all over the place. The other girls just need a shearing because it's Spring and they're probably a little weighted down. 

More on shearing school adventures to come...

Lydia

Rain, Rain Go Away...

Yes, it's still raining

Magnolia Blossom

Chick Chicken making the most of the sogginess

Garden beds ready for planting

Transplanted strawberries

Beans, Peas, Corn, Summer Squash starts

Summer Squash

Corn

Peas

Cabbage

Pencil and her chicks (notice the yellow fluff under her right breast)

This hen has her work cut out for her

Please send sunshine...

Lydia

Making Chicks

This past weekend, our first ever attempt at hatching chicks using an incubator was SUCCESSFUL! Of the nine fertile eggs remaining, after two candlings, all eggs hatched and we have nine beautiful chicks- six Ameraucana- two white and four standard, two Orpington/Maran cross in dark and lavender colors, and one dark (possibly blue/black) Orpington. 

It all began with a pip on Friday night

First chick drying off on Saturday morning

Second chick just out of the egg at 9:45, Saturday morning

First and second chicks snuggling together

First chick, fluffy and hanging out in the brooder by early Saturday afternoon

Fifth Ameraucana chick just about to hatch

It's throwing out a wing...

...then a foot...

...a final rush of energy to burst forth from the shell...

...Welcome little chick!

By 7:30 Sunday morning all the eggs had hatched and the chicks were ready to move from the (st)incubator to the brooder to dry off and snuggle with their fellow "siblings". 

Newly hatched Maran/Orpington cross

Orpington chick

Lavender Orpington/Maran cross

Freshly hatched chick in Jared's hand

Maran/Orpington egg, post hatch

One of the Maran/Orpington eggs wiggled around in the incubator for a day and a half with not so much as a pip but was hatched out and ready to go on Sunday morning. The other Maran/Orpington was in a partially pipped egg for about that same amount of time however they probably hatched within minutes of each other.

On Sunday evening, they were all vaccinated for Marek's, along with some of our older chickens who hatched on our farm and had yet to be vaccinated.  

It just so happens that our Blue Orpington, Pencil, decided she was really and truly broody so Sunday evening she was relocated to a brooder in the south yard to prepare for chicks. We let her have one egg to keep her sitting and occupied overnight. Monday afternoon, Jared and I gave all nine chicks to her for raising. She was clucking instantly, lifting up her breast for them to crawl under and be snuggly warm. Once they were all under her, the peeping ceased and it was completely silent. We checked on everyone yesterday afternoon and all seems to be well. The oldest chick keeps poking it's head out under Pencil's breast taking in the scenery, while the others pop out to eat and then head back under for sleeping. Pencil has yet to leave the nest, so I'm guessing she's waiting for the weather to stop being so windy and rainy before she leaves the chicks to grab a bite to eat.

Eggs in the Brinsea Incubator

In just about a week our second batch of 25 incubated eggs is due to hatch. Jared and I candled them on Sunday evening and chose not to discard any eggs, though there were some whose development looked questionable. We'll candle again this Saturday evening and remove any eggs that aren't obviously fertile.

Despite what feels like unending rain -and wind- chicks are always a definite sign of Spring on our farm.

Lydia

Signs of Spring

Plum Blossoms

Asparagus

Garlic, planted last Fall

More garlic, planted last Fall

Greek Oregano

Ornamental Plum Blossoms

Forget Me Nots

Hyacinth

Guess who turns 16 tomorrow? 

Guess who turns 16 tomorrow? 

Seed Starting

We got a late start on starting seeds but as of Sunday they are mostly in trays and ready to grow! 

Lots of Seeds!

 Hard working farmer hands

Corn, Summer Squash, and Pumpkins

 Topping off with starter mix

Beans and Peas

 Plant markers awaiting use

 Next stop, seeds! 

 Tomatoes started and ready to grow!

Seed starting mix on the dining room table

Potatoes are still on their way as are blueberry bushes. We have strawberry starts on the porch wrapped in napkins and a plastic bag over the roots to keep the moisture in until we can get them into the ground. 

Next on the "To Do" list, finish garden beds and fill them with compost, sand, and soil. Seed carrots and some lettuce, then watch and wait...

Lydia