FARM HAPPENINGS
Even with all the crazy weather this past week, we are feeling pretty good about our spring calving season so far, as we are three for three with girls. Another of our young Guernsey cows, Ladybug, delivered a nice little heifer on Sunday, which we knew was imminent because her udder was huge on Sunday morning. We haven't decided on a name yet but Lizzie is in the running.
Then Rosie decided to have her calf early Monday morning in the blizzard, fortunately she was smart enough to deliver her calf in the corner of the cow shed on the clean dry straw so it worked out fine. Mama cows and calves are all doing well. Two more expected this month we are hoping to go Five for Five with the heifers!
Pictured above the hens are seeing a lot of green stuff sprouting up in their winter forage area next to the hoophouse. We are keeping an eye on the 10-day weather forecast and hoping that if snow is done for the season we can move them out to the pasture shelters in the next couple of weeks to make room for baby chicks in the hoop[house. Egg production has been very strong so we have removed the three dozen limit most weekdays.
WE ARE HIRING!
As we approach our busy season, we are in need of a few good people to join our farm team. We need a “Weekend Warrior” that can help out in the farm store on our busy Saturdays and Sundays, and possibly some days during the week as well. Strong customer service skills and a desire to share healthy eating knowledge a must for this job.
We are also searching for a Dairy Operations Manager to run our raw dairy enterprise. Ideal candidate has 2-5 years experience milking cows, preferably growing up on a small dairy farm. Must love cows for this job! Learn more about these jobs on our website career page.
“MEET THE MAKER” EVENTS SCHEDULED
We have an exciting lineup of local food growers and artisans scheduled in the coming weeks:
Saturday, March 21st - My lovely wife and farming partner Anna will be helping out in the farm store from 9 AM - 1 PM. Feel free to stop in and say hello and ask her anything about our farm - she loves to talk about cows, calves, raw milk, no corn/no soy eggs, laying hens, soil health…pretty much anything but broiler chickens! Or ask about her childhood summers spent on her Grandma's farm in Poland for some great stories about how they did things in the old days!
Saturday, March 28th - Meet Fisherman Mark from Bering Bounty as he discusses fishing the ice-cold waters off Alaska, his favorite fish recipes, and samples of his catch. 10AM-2PM.
Saturday, April 4th - Meet Chef Ernesto, maker of El Molcajete organic tortilla chips and mole sauces. Sample a few of his sauces and learn what it takes to make mole.10AM-1PM.
Saturday, April 11th - Meet Willie the beekeeper, of Willie's Honey. He will discuss beekeeping, different bee products, varieties and seasonal variations of honey, and answer any bee or honey-related questions. 10AM-1PM.
Saturday, April 18th - Meet Molly of Molly's Kitchen, our fantastic sourdough baker who managed our farm store for two years before children happened. She will be sampling many of her delicious baked treats and can answer all your sourdough starter and baking questions. 10AM-1PM.
FARM STORE UPDATE
Our grass-fed beef and pastured-pork inventory is very strong right now. For those out there with chicks we have organic starter feed in stock now as well, order ONLINE or pickup a bag at the farm store. We will be getting the organic No Corn/No Soy Starter feed in by late next week in preparation for our first batch of chicks arriving March 31st.
Fresh organic produce in the store this week includes Meyer Lemons, mangos, Papaya, ginger root, red beets, avocado, carrots, Parsnips, celery, green cabbage, cauliflower, garlic, yellow onions, sweet potatoes, Igl Potatoes, Michigan apples, and microgreens.
That's it from the farm this week. Please remember to bring us your leftover shopping bags and egg cartons so we can re-use them.
Cheers,
Cliff, Anna, and the Farm Team
