Hurricane Farm

It's just about time to pull out all of the equipment and head out to the woods!  This week we have lots in store at the farm...

100's of buckets, lids, tubing, and spouts will need to be rinsed off, loaded into our truck, and driven across town to the sugar bush.  I need to sharpen up the drill bit on the hand-drill, or brace as it is called, and grab a hammer as well.

This weekend I have been working on the roof to the sugaring shack.  Chimney piping has been ordered and I hope to have the roofing up and ready before the piping arrives.  Today I will be working on the venting system (like a long cupola) and then the rest of the roof will go up.

Perhaps the toughest task of all this will be to move the evaporator into the sugar shack.  It is only about 12 feet away right now, but this is a very heavy piece of equipment.  We can take some of it apart, but the 50 or so firebricks that are cemented in place inside of the arch will not be removable.  We'll be enlisting anyone nearby to help with this, I'm sure.  Luckily, the ground is still frozen and icy so maybe we'll be able to slid it as we move it.

And, of course, there is a ton of wood to be split into small, quick-burning pieces...

We plan to set out the supplies in the woods this week and hopefully tap the trees next weekend.  It's still a bit cold here, but things could change at any time here in New England and then the sap will be running!

Winter has set in and we have a solid covering of snow.  Looks like we'll be covered until the maple sap is running in March!  It snowed earlier than usual and has been colder than usual.  Such a combination has resulted in a nice white blanket throughout the state.

Neither the cold nor the snow seem to bother plant and animal life here in Scotland, CT, however.

The geese are still strolling around as if they own the place...That is, until the turkeys emerge from the wooded wetlands and take over.

The turkeys still "free-range" all winter, but there is little for them to eat so we offer them some grain each day.  This helps to keep them from "running away," as well.  In the summer and fall they eat entirely what they find in the woods and the fields, but the pickings are a little bit slimmer this time of year.

Even in the middle of a cold winter, the poultry prefer to remain outside.  The turkeys can enter the barn and roost within, but unless it is snowing outside, they still would rather sleep in the trees and atop the barn and sugar-shed.

These heritage toms and hens will be our breeding stock and hopefully provide us with all the poults that we'll need for this year's Thanksgiving.  We'll see how their production is in the late winter and then determine if we need to supplement our needs.  We're once again planning to expand our turkey operation and raise more birds.  We've been selling out faster and faster each season!

Here's Bertrude:

Here's Hiram:

Even though it's frigid and the water for the animals needs to be changed and dethawed several times per day, it is NOT too cold for a RED SOX cap!

And speaking of the cold:  check out what Erica and Liev dug out of the snow in the garden.  The kale is STILL growing, even in 20 degree weather!  This stuff sure is hardy!  It's now officially a year-round crop for us.  Hooray!

I can't believe that this stuff can still make it through this weather.  AND it's tasty!

We'll be at the Coventry Winterfresh Farmer's Market in Coventry, CT this coming Sunday, December 20.  The market has been running for a couple of weeks, and we will be making our first appearance on the first Sunday of Winter! 

The market runs from 11am-2pm at the Coventry High School at 78 Ripley Hill Road (just off Rt. 31) in Coventry, CT. 

We'll have tons of free-range eggs, grass-fed beef cuts, heritage pork products, and more.

A couple of weeks back we had about what seemed to be non-stop rain for days on end.  The farm had become a mud pit.  Almost like Spring, but without the flowers, grass, and other plants popping up and sucking up the excess water.  So...we had mud, in some places several inches deep.

Just about this time we determined it was time to move the hogs into their winter home attached to the barn.

When we first moved the hogs into the garden for their "Fall tilling excursion," we had all three of them in the same cage.  Not so anymore!  They grew quite a bit while removing all the old roots and grubs and other bugs from the garden.

We were able to get the first two up onto the trailer wihout a problem.  The third one almost broke out of the cage, so we had to wait to move him until we got these two guys settled in.  Check out the rooster along for the free ride!  He rode in on the trailer all the way from the garden.

We backed the tractor right up into the barn and then...

...unloaded the hogs.  A couple of curious hens accompanied the rooster and came out to watch us try to lift, drag, push, and pull the cages down the length of the barn.

It seems we got the hogs moved just in time, for that rain gave way to some snow and we were graced with our first plowable snow of the season.  Moving these guys in 4-5 inches of snow would NOT be fun!

Glad to see we got the "thumbs up" from our little supervisor! 

A while back I was stuck in the mud with my Farmall Cub tractor.  I was furiously running the throttle up and down, back and forth trying to get enough momentum to break free and get the tractor moving forward instead of downward into the mud.  I eventually drove out (with the help of some come-alongs), but I had bent the throttle rod slightly.  I thought that I could bend it back, but when I tried the throttle adjusting lever that connects the rod to the governor broke off.  Ooops! 

The solution at the time was a washer and some cold welding compound.  I used J-B Weld, which seems to always do the trick.  The first two photos show the piece with the welded washer. 

This worked for a while, but I knew that I had to get in there and put a new piece in before the snow starts to fall and before it gets too cold to want to mess around with small parts under the hood of an antique tractor.

The unfortunate thing was...I had to remove the hood/gas tank to get the old part off.  After unhooking the lights and a few bolts, off came the hood.

While I was in there I was able to tighten up a squeaking belt by adjusting the alternator, so I was able to get two tasks done at once.

I wanted to replace the belt on the alternator, but that required removing the fan, the main drive belt, and a bunch of other things that were in the way.  Simply tightening the belt, however, worked out in the long run. 

Once I had the hood off, I thought that I could easily slip off the broken piece on the throttle lever/governor unit.  No so.  I had to take off the entire governor.  I was a bit nervous, but it went right back together.  I snapped several photos to be sure to have evidence of where everything went in case I got lost on the re-assembly.

I wish I had the luxury of having the hood off when I was wiring the tractor up for lights, switches, and the amp meter...everything is so easy to get to!  I remember bashing my knuckles trying to remove the manifold with the hood on.  It would have been alot easier with the tractor like this!

Here is a close-up of the welded piece.  It served its purpose, but I didn't think it would last the winter with the workout that plowing snow puts on the tractor.

Below is the new piece all attached and ready to receive the throttle rod.  They don't manufacture this piece anymore, but I was able to find a used one, all sand-blasted and painted, from a used tractor parts dealer in Texas.

The next shot shows the extent of my dismantling...I had to remove lots of parts--parts that were not even near the area that I was working on.  Amazing engineering on these little tractors.

Here is the governor just about to be pushed back together.  It was a perfect fit, lucky for me.

While the throttle rod was unattached, I was able to straighten it out.  Now that everything is back together, the throttle travels the full range perfectly.  Also, no more alternator belt squeal! 

Bring on the snow!

Just got word today from a wood-cutter friend several towns over that he has 76 more cedar logs for us. 

Perfect timing for some of my upcoming building projects.  I was starting to use up the first load with all the fencing that we put up in our satellite field and with the construction of the sugaring pavillion.

Now I can build pole buildings in each of the pasture areas for the livestock who stay out all summer as well as a nice lean-to alongside the brook out in the woods.  Everyone should have a nice quiet place in nature to which to escape--even if for a few moments.

If I have enough larger logs, I might even get a start on the hay shed and the machine shed (my Farmall Cub would surely be happy to be in out of the elements!).

We finally found someone to shear our sheep.  We'd placed an ad and had several reponses, but people tend to get busy, time slips by, and before you know it the sheep are sporting dreadlocks.  (And not the nice ones like Erica's!)

We eventually found a "shearer" through our friends at Terrabyte Farm in Canterbury, CT who was not only willing to come over, but who was interested in bartering for some of our meats as well.  Nice.

We ended up with a couple of usable fleeces, and the rest went to various other uses, including bedding for the cat, nesting for some birds, and unknown uses by whatever animal dragged it off into the wetlands (whatever it was left a nice trail, though).

I won't go into the details of our own attempts to shear the sheep in the past.  Suffice it to say we used the old-fashioned hand shears and took about 1000% longer than we should.  We gave it our best, a couple of times even.  But now that we have so many other tasks to keep up with on the farm it was not practical for us to spend so much time at what ended up taking a "real shearer" only a few minutes.

Our "shearer" will return in the Spring to take care of the fleeces on the lambs.  And so the cycle continues.

Is there a term that I should be using instead of "shearer"?  Maybe.  But I kind of like the sound of "shearer."

Hello electric shears!

Erica returned to WNPR, Connecticut Public Radio, on Monday, November 9th.  Find the link to a recording of the interview segment here.

She was involved in an engaging discussion about the feasibility of eating meat with author Jonathan Safran Foer.  The discussion of his new book Eating Animals provided an opportunity to juxtapose the sustainable practices of local farmers with the ecologically unsound practices of large factory farms.

On Friday, November 6th, my wife Erica was a guest on the Colin McEnroe show on WNPR, Connecticut Public Radio.  She discussed our farm, the farming life, and locally raised meats. 

You can find the link to stream a recording of the radio show here.  It went well and she was invited back for a segment with Jonathan Safran Foer, author of the new book Eating Animals.  They had an engaging conversation that aired today.  Link to follow.

The days are getting shorter.  So much in fact that we had to carve our annual Halloween pumpkins by lamplight at 3:00 in the afternoon!  Overcast conditions coupled with Standard Daylight Time makes for some early evenings.

The kids and I worked hard to open up and empty out the squash while Erica was at the smokehouse picking up the latest round of bacon and ham.  The kids were especially attentive to the separation of the meat from the seeds.  They love roasted pumpkin seeds.  Amost as much as the hogs love the rest of the pumpkins!

We grew many different types of pumpkins this year, including a unique heirloom "Cinderella" variety.  The sugar pumpkin that Violet is working on in the above photo earned me an "I told you so" upon Erica's return.  It seems that we were saving all the sugar pumpkins for pies.  Violet had mentioned something about not carving those...ooops. 

The pumpkin scrapers that the kids are using above were given to them for Christmas by their Aunt Julie.  I had no idea where they were but Violet and Liev found them on their first attempt.  Maybe I'll get the two of them to organize my sock drawer.

We carved a few on our own, and then when Erica returned the fancy carving began.  Erica has made some elaborate carvings in the past, including a sweet "PHISH" logo (google it, it looked just like that!), a pumpkin that sported our name, HURRICANE FARM, and a scary witch this year.

The kids have their own carving tools and they did an excellent job on their very own Jack-O-Lantern designs.

They worked for hours on about 10 or so pumpkins.  I think that they have me licked on this.  The one that I carved pales in comparison to the masterpieces the rest of the family created.  Spooky!  Scary!  Funny!  Check out Liev's with the four square eyes (bottom right below).  The witch on a broomstick is in the top right.

And there they are, hard at work keeping evil spirits at bay, welcoming wayward trick-or-treaters, and serving as the sole beacon of light in the ever-increasing darkness of Standard Daylight Time.

Last weekend we started to put the roof together for our sugar shack.  It will ultimately be an open-walled pole structure to house our maple syrup evaporator.  We'll be able to make much more syrup once we're able to get a roof overhead the whole operation.  No more standing around in the cold drizzle!

The first task in getting up the roof was to set the ridge pole over the center of the framing.  I got the longest 2 x 8 available, but I still wish it was a few feet longer so I could have an nice overhang on the end.  I have an idea as to how to make an overhang in a slightly different way, so it will still probably work out.

Next we had to measure out the angles for the rafters.  I personally do not enjoy doing math, so we measured out the first rafter while holding it in place.  We got the perfect angle on the second try.  Not too bad.  This rafter became the "cookie cutter" by which we measured and cut all the others.

Measuring out the first rafter was a two person job.  Luckily, we have enough ladders.

As a side note, the weather is starting to become hat-weather...Nice.  My favorite time of the year!

A cluster of turkeys watches our progress from the background, while their constant gobbling urges Erica further up the ladder.

The first rafter is measured and set.  We ended up completing 1/2 of the rafters.  Today the plan is to finish up the roof and get ready to put on some covering and make a cupola from which the steam from the evaporation process will escape later in the week.

Did you know?  Rafters make great race-car ramps!

The frost has hit and the squash is done.  Sadness creeps into the picture as one looks around at the dying plants.  The sqash was commanding the garden mere days ago, but its leaves are now turning a sickly dark color.  The frost sneaks in and kills quickly, just as quickly as the early morning sun whisks it away.

While we are short some squash patches, we have gained some pig areas.  The hogs have been moved into the garden and will be rotated throughout in order to clean, till, and manure the spaces that will hold next Spring and Summer's crops. 

Even though the entire garden is fenced in, we set up some movable hog panels (16 foot long rigid fence sections) to encourage the pigs to keep to a specific area as they work.  We have many crops remaining that do not need the help of the pigs at this time.  They might like the strawberry patch or the kale rows, but we do too!  Pigs keep out, please...

We'll let them work their wonders in the squash patch, then move them through the corn and other crop areas in the coming weeks.

Did I mention that they work for free?

It is come upon the end of the season for our borrowed field down the road.  The cattle did a wonderful job clearing out the overgrown field and we have high hopes for superior hay next season.  I'll be brush-hogging the remaining saplings and whatever else may be left.

To that end, we spent an afternoon moving Fuzzy back up to the field behind our barn.

Liev decided that he would be responsible for the rope.  The trailer is a bit high off the ground, so we end up roping the cattle to help coax them aboard.  We use the rope as a sort of leash and aboard they climb.

Erica decided that she, too, would be a "wrangler."  We're lucky to have neighbors that allow us use of this 5+ acre field.  We plan to fence in a second pasture next Spring as well as put in a large pumpkin patch (right where the truck is parked just behind the cowgirl in the photo).

And here we are backing the trailer up in order to unload our passenger, Fuzzy.  It was hard to tell whether he was pleased to be back at the farm or if he missed his summer home. 

After the weekend, we loaded him back up again and Erica took the long trip to deliver him to be harvested.  I think it is great that our children, and the children who visit the farm, are aware of the sources of their foods.  What could be more natural than a connection to the very essence of life that sustains us all?

Hurricane Farm in Scotland, CT is currently offering a Holiday Meat CSA. 

Many people inquired about and have been on a waitlist for our Summer Meat-Based CSA.  We are now pleased to be able to expand our CSA to a second season and we welcome new members.

Members have the opportunity to get fresh meats straight from the farm.

Here are a few shots of some veggies fresh from the garden.  The frost is still only threatening, so we're sure to have a few more meals on the table right from the garden.

A little veg.  A little dip.  Yummy.

Once the frost comes, there will still be plenty of colder crops left, like the kale below.  We have three kale patches, though we recently turned out the new piglets into one of them.  They like fresh veggies just as much as we do!

There are still plenty of squash to bring in.  We have some heirloom varieties of winter squash that are weighing in at over 30 pounds!  They are much too large for the basket below...My favorite, though, is butternut.

And of course, let's not forget the homemade stuffed pizza!

Who loves the rain?

The sunflowers are still hanging in there, but we're sure to have a frost soon.  It's amazing what you can notice when you take a moment to look closely at the swirling, buzzing, busy workers that surround you on an early Autumn day. 

The bumblebees are busy, grabbing that last bit of pollen to store away as part of their winter rations.  Will they survive the winter--if it comes without mercy--to see another Spring?  Or will their stores give out in early March, just as the winter season begins to yield to the earliest of Spring flowers?

First he lands on the flower and feels his way around, slowly becoming accustomed to and aware of every inch of his landing zone.

Check out the pollen covering this little guy in the photo above!  He works until his entire body is laden with the riches of the flower and then makes his triumphant return from whence he came.

Watch closely as they take off...stumbling at first as they become acclimated to their new, heavier selves.  Slowly, though, their courage builds and their balance is restored.  Off they zip to their hidden hive.

Watch next time you manage to notice one...they work at once slowly and quickly.  Amazing!

Look at the photo below, just above the flowers on the right-hand side.  There, quick!  Off he flies to his sanctuary--perhaps in the hollow of a tree, perhaps into a hole and under the dry earth, perhaps nestled within the walls of an old barn.

This past Tuesday an small film crew arrived to shoot footage for an independent documentary at our farm.  They are working on a film about the state of farming here in Connecticut.  This film will be a companion piece to their earlier documentary, "The Farmer's Voice."  We'll try to post any footage that makes it way back to us before the film is complete. 

During the filming, several folks came by to be interviewed.  This included one of our CSA customers, a woman from across town who allows the use of her sugarbush during the maple sap run, and another farmer from the other side of town who lives on one of the original farms in the town of Scotland.

We had a great time showing the crew around, answering questions, and eating freshly picked watermelon!  All the kids on the road came over to sample the sweet melon after Violet and Liev picked it on camera.

Plans are in the works for additional visits to shoot footage during maple sugaring season as well as in the late Spring when all the new livestock "arrives" at the farm.

A local Connecticut restaurant, Zest, has some wonderful dishes on the way prepared with local ingredients including ribs grass-fed, dry aged beef.  If you are in Northeastern CT, stop by their 1750's farmhouse restaurant and try the taste and flavor of local foods!

http://www.zestofct.com/

One of our customers recently tried some of our Heritage pork and offers this recipe:  "Slap Ya Mama Heritage Pork Chops."

Please follow the link to their Food Blog and, perhaps, try it out yourself!

http://acoupleinthekitchen.blogspot.com/2009/08/slap-yo-mama-heritage-pork-chops.html