Harvest time.... ugh!

I like to classify myself as a bad gardener. I do all the things that bad gardeners do: I don't weed, I won't thin plants, I never plant anything on time or like the books say I should, I believe all seeds should be sown the same way regardless of being bush beans or pole peas or hill squash, I never water the garden no matter how little rain we've had, and I almost never venture into the garden until it's so full of vegetables that people driving by stop and comment on them. And yet, my gardens grow well in spite of all my lack of efforts. I try to show the plants that I am a bad gardener by neglecting them and leaving them to the wilds. They just keep on growing and producing and coming back next year. I wish they would get the hints sometime.

Then there's harvesting time. Normally this is a time of year when all the better gardeners are singing the bounties of their green thumbs with joy and many adjectives. For me, it's a time of year that is stressful and regretful. I stress over trying to carve out a few minutes each day to pull the stuff from my gardens. Then I stress over the work involved in cleaning and storing the stuff for later use. Then I stress over finding recipes to use the stuff and remembering to buy the right ingredients to make those recipes. Then I stress over the left-overs and making sure that all the wonderful garden stuff gets eaten properly. I also spend a lot of time each harvest season regretting things. I regret that I planted arugula and not radicchio. I regret that I didn't make the garden bigger but instead just crammed everything so close together that I can't find me peas under my cucumbers. I regret that I didn't get out soon enough to harvest the beans before they turned chewy. I regret that I didn't use all the broccoli before it got shoved to the back of the freezer and hopelessly freezer burned. Suffice to say, harvest time is not a very fun time for me.

Maybe someday I will become a better gardener and actually take care of the plants. Hopefully my care will lead to the plants to get the hint and stop producing so much so that my harvest time is nicer. Maybe...

Elite Farmers

I find that sometimes there is hostility between the different types of hobby farmers in the world. I define "hobby" farming as keeping and raising animals without making a profit from them at the end of the year, and without managing the animals as units of business that are subject to consideration due to profits and losses. The hostility I see is between hobbyists who believe that the only way to raise an animal is to do so without shortcuts, chemicals, or modern interventions. The other side believes that the only way to raise animals is to use modern everything and fill them full of chemicals. I try to stay in the middle of those types. I have been attacked by people who when I mention using a milk machine or using chemical sanitizers are taken aback by my losing contact with the natural rythms of the farm. I have also been attacked by people who think I need to drown my animals in chemical dewormers and chemical pesticides every two weeks or else the animals will drop dead.

The reasons why I like modern shortcuts and some chemical formulas are: I have to work full time, off the farm in order to support my family with adequate health insurance. My husband has his own business which, although he makes plenty of money to support our family, he has no access to good health insurance for us. So off to work I go. Also I have a child. She's 1 year old and in to everything. Because my husband has his own business, he is very busy and so the childcare is my responsibility for the most part. I don't mind it because I can still get stuff done around the farm, but that stuff either gets done very slowly while I watch the kid or very quickly when I cram it in after bedtime for baby or during nap time. There have been projects on the list for weeks that need to get done but they just haven't gotten too. If I can find a shortcut or modern intervention that can help me speed up these projects, I am going to jump on it!

I don’t mind using chemicals when I have to. I quite like many modern chemical products. Bleach is one of my favorites and very important if you run a hobby dairy farm. Bleach and other sanitizers are very helpful at getting milk and animal products off of your dairy utensils. It is nice to have clean and sanitized dairy equipment to work with. Nothing is worse than walking into someone’s milking area and smelling sour milk that never got properly cleaned out of the cracks and corners. Bleh!

Also some chemical medicines can be very important when raising animals. Parasites, bacteria, and viruses have great mechanisms for infecting animals and making them sick. Sometimes the only way to kill these germs is to use harsh chemical medicines. I always keep several types of chemical dewormers and several different antibiotics on hand. These have been literal lifesavers in some situations.

The reasons why I shun modern shortcuts and some chemical formulas are: Not everything new is good for you. At what point do you save your animals by treating them with chemicals and at what point do you kill your animals through liver failure and chemical overdose? There’s a fine line in that situation. You want enough chemicals to kill the parasites but not so much that you kill the goat instead.

Some modern shortcuts aren’t really short at all. Using a power saw at the barn to cut some boards might be a great time saver but if getting the saw set up and running power to it takes more time to cut the board, then you might as well get out the hand saw. The same goes for milking. If cleaning the milk machine after use takes more time than the actual milking of the goat, then you might as well stick to the bucket and hand milk.

In the end, I think it is important for every type of farmer to support their fellow farmers. One type is not better than the other. Each farming situation calls for its own set of rules and tools to keep the animals happy and productive. All of us “hobby” farmers need to stick together and support each other regardless. And always remember, the animals come first no matter what.

When "Free" Animals Aren't "Free"

A friend of mine emailed me today asking if I wanted a rabbit. She had acquired the rabbit at the local Family Dollar where at the entrance she was assaulted by two small crying children and their ratty cardboard box with a sign "Free bunny-very loving-loves to cuddle-we cannot keep her". Apparently the children had gotten the rabbit as a free Easter bunny this spring. The landlord of their apartment found out about the rabbit and told the family that they would have to add $40 to their monthly rent to keep a pet in the apartment. They couldn't afford that so they had to give the rabbit away in the quickest way possible (which was to stand outside the Family Dollar and hand the bunny to a random stranger???). The rabbit was thin and full of fleas. The family obviously not only didn't have $40 for added rent fee but also didn't have $10 for proper rabbit food. My friend rescued the rabbit. She took it to the vet and got it started on flea treatment and a proper diet. She can't keep the rabbit indefinitely due to having too many pets in her house already, so she asked me to take the rabbit once she gets it nursed back to health. I agreed and would be happy to have a use again for my empty rabbit hutch.

While I am glad the rabbit found a happy ending to its story, I am sad to hear about how the animal ended up this way. It happens all the time when people get "free" pets and animals, only to bring them home and learn that keeping an animal is nowhere near "free" to do. Animals require lots of things to stay healthy and happy, and those things cost money. First, they need food. They need a food that is designed for them and provides the proper nutrients, minerals and vitamins to keep them healthy. Second, they need a place to live. Small animals, like rabbits, need cages and large animals, like horses, need pastures and sheds for shelter. Third, they usually need some sort of interaction. While rabbits and cats don't usually mind a lack of interaction, horses and dogs need a lot more interaction, some of which may cost money and all of which will cost time.

This is why I don't make a habit of giving animals away for free. I figure that if a person can't pay $20 for a rabbit or chicken, then they obviously can't pay the weekly fee it will cost to feed that rabbit or chicken, let alone pay for the other things they may need that will cost more money. I would rather eat my rabbit or chicken who I can no longer pay for than to give it to someone who can't pay for it either. At least by eating it, I will be making some of my money that I put into it back. Of course, this doesn't work for dogs, horses, and cats but those are animals that need to be carefully considered before getting, no matter whether they are free or not.

Summer Update

All is well on the farm at the moment. It's the hottest day of the year here. We're very lucky because up here in the North Country, the "hottest day of the year" means that it is 90F, breezy, and cloudy. It's actually very pleasant right now. We've made out pretty well so far this year in terms of weather. It was a snowy, cold winter -- which is normal for up here. It was then a wet, cold spring -- somewhat normal. That gave way to a sunny, cool summer -- also normal. We've avoided most major weather problems. No crazy blizzards, no ice storms, no hurricanes, no tornadoes, no drought (yet), and some flooding. Hopefully the summer will give way to a nice long fall and we can start all over again.

The goats are good. Gloria, Lucy, and Cookie have settled into their lactations. All are being milked twice a day and doing well. They all look pretty good this year. Even the over-achieving Gloria has been able to keep some of her calories out of her udder and maintained good body condition. The kids are good. Most of them have gone to new homes. I have 2 doelings left that have a home lined up but the people aren't ready for them yet. Hopefully they will leave before November. The boys and girls have been separated. The buck, Rosco, has matured quickly and now must stay away from the girls or else there could be some unintended rendezvous! He is happily living in the buck pen with the Angora wether.

The family is good. Tom is busier than a one armed paper hanger right now. He's been building rock walls, doing landscaping, cutting trees, climbing trees, chipping brush, and building septic systems. As long as the weather cooperates, he is out working. People shouldn't complain that there isn't any work out there. If you need something to do, call Tom. He'll give you something to do!

Emily is good. She loves water and swimming! She gets so excited during bath time that she starts to cry because she wants to be in the water right away. Her daycare has a little pool and a sprinkler. It's always a fight to get her to come home from daycare when she is out in the pool. She wants to stay and swim all day!

Summer is rolling on, all is well.

Teasing out the Truth

I got in a debate with someone over the safety of a particular medication used in goats. During the course of the discussion, the person quoted from a website that sells a homeopathic alternative remedy. The website had all sorts of information claiming that the chemical medication was bad news and that it can cause brain damage. Now, I am not saying that this information was wrong or that it wasn't the truth -- the problem I had with it was a) it came from a website that was trying to sell an alternative to the product in question, and b) the website contained no references, citations, or sources for their information. Nothing at all in the text of the website hinted in the least from where this information had come, or what date it was produced. When I questioned the person who I was debating on the accuracy of their choice of quotation, their rebuttal was that this was just a copy of the information that they had seen in multiple places on the internet -- thus it must be the TRUTH!

The problem I have with that logic is that just because it is copied on multiple websites all over the internet, that doesn't make it truthful or accurate information. Millions of people can "cut and paste" whatever they want from wherever they want. Copyright infringement means almost nothing in the land of the internet. The amount of times a particular piece of information is repeated does nothing to make it more correct. I urge everyone who is doing research on anything via the internet (or any other media form for that matter) to be sure to check references, look for citations, and go to the source of the information. If the theory in question does not have any substantiated scientific proof to back it up, then you should keep on moving. Of course, there are some ideas on the internet that aren't scientifically researched. Those ideas should be examined very carefully and numerous sources should be looked into.

It's incredibly easy for one piece of terrible information to be "THE TRUTH" and live a life of its own on the internet. Look at the whole idea that vaccines cause autism. This idea has be debunked so many times and the original creator of this massive falsehood actually had his medical license revoked and his journal publications rescinded due to the misleading nature of his research into the matter. There isn't one shred of scientifically-backed proof to lead to this idea and yet, it continues to live and breath to this day on the internet. It's taken on a life of its own to the point that parents actually refuse to get their children vaccinated for such horrible diseases as mumps, measles, polio, and hepatitis.

I behoove you to be skeptical when looking up stuff on the internet. I behoove you to look closely at your sources before you use them as proof of your argument.

What is a farm?

What is a farm?

What qualifies a piece of land as a farm?

Does it have to be a certain number of acres? Or located in a certain area of the country?

Or have a certain number of animals on it? Perhaps a certain type of animal or a certain percentage of different types?

Does a place with only 70 chickens count as a farm? What about a place with only 5 horses?

To be a farm, is livestock required? What if you only grow fruits and vegetables but have no animals, does that count?

Or maybe you have to make a certain amount of income from the land to be considered a farm?

What percentage of food consumed needs to be grown at home to qualify as a farm? What if you don't grow anything but you have six pet goats, two horses, and a duck? Is that a farm?

Do you have to breed the animals to be a farm? What if you buy the animals and have them neutered or just don't feel like breeding them?

What if you breed the animals but only live on 1/4 acre in town?

Do you have to come from a farming background to be considered a "farmer"? Is there a genetic or familial qualification that makes people farmers? What if you grew up on a farm but don't have animals or grow food? Are you still a "farmer" because of your background?

How long do you have to have animals or a garden to be a "farmer"? Is there a number of years that makes you qualified to call your place a farm?

What is a farm?

Emily Turns 1!

Emily turned one year old on Monday, June 6. She is a big girl now. Here she is ready to go to the mall and do some shopping. All she needs is a little push to get her going! Before long she really will be going to the mall and not hanging around boring-old-mom and dad!



Emily had a party and I got her special made cupcakes. I had to get them with farm animals on them, of course.



Here is a close up of her goat cupcakes!



Here's the birthday girl ready for her party!!

It all goes by too fast!!