The Call Again Farm Journal

I'm sorry I haven't posted for a couple days.  I've been having a lot of computer trouble.  I'll do the best I can to fill you on what you missed during my computer-free days.

On Friday, the turkeys were so much fun to watch.  Blue, our oldest and highest-ranking hen (female) in the pecking order, spent much of the day leading the rest of the flock in a march up and down the pasture.  She had a spring in her step the whole time!

On Saturday, the chickens went on an adventure.  They previously hadn't ventured far out of the garden, but that changed.  They crossed the driveway and spent the day under the bushes along the house, happily digging under the fallen leaves.  They did make quite the fuss when Dianna drove the car out of the garage, down the driveway, and to the grocery store!  (King Louis XIV, our rooster, especially did.  Kaaaaaa, baak, baak, baak, KAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA, baaak baaak baaak!)  They were good little chickens, though, and all went back to the chicken coop when dusk came.

Also on Saturday, we got our biggest chicken egg ever.  We've been getting a lot of 1.75 oz eggs lately, but yesterday we got a 2.25 oz egg!  It's now sitting next to a 1.25 oz egg in an egg carton, making the 1.25 oz egg look like very, very tiny.

Today, I didn't let the chickens out because a red-tailed hawk was perched right by the chicken coop when I came out to feed them this morning.  They weren't too happy about that.  They also refused to lay their eggs in the nest-boxes we made them yesterday.  I'm rather annoyed.  I'll just have to make the nest boxes more appealing, I guess.

When am traveling and tell people I live near Buffalo, New York, they invariably say something about snow.  Many people think Buffalo is like Alaska, with snow all year round.  (That, too, is a misconception.  I've been to Alaska, and can personally attest that the summer weather is lovely - warm, but not too hot, with tons of flowers all around.)  Buffalo does get its fair share of snow, but there are other places in New York state that get more.

I woke up this morning to the first snow of the winter to "stick".  (I know it's not technically winter yet, but it sure seems like it!)  There was about three inches of snow on the deck in the morning, and then it snowed all day.  At times, the neighbor's field looked like a Christmas card picture, with lots of big snowflakes being blown by a gentle wind.  It looked lovely, but the snow and the cold made butchering more unpleasant.

Also, because of the snow I now have a hurt shoulder.  The chicken coop is only four feet high, and is accessible through the roof.  Bob swept the snow off the roof this morning, but more kept accumulating all day.  Even an inch of snow makes the roof a lot heavier.  I lifted the roof with a little bit of snow on it, and now my shoulder is quite sore.

After butchering turkeys was done, I took a long, warm bath.  It was a great way to warm up, and it felt good to soak my poor shoulder!

We have a problem with the turkeys.  Bob found a worm in one of the turkeys we butchered today.  Many people de-worm their birds in the fall, but we never have before.  Now I have to research natural/organic de-worming products for my remaining turkeys.

Who: interested consumers, farmers, gardeners, etc.

What: The annual winter conference and workshops of NOFA-NY (Northeast Organic Farming Association of New York). 

Where: Rochester, New York

When: January 23rd through 25th

Why: There are workshops on everything relating to non-conventional food!  Topics range from building better soil in a garden to homeopathy for cows to gathering mushrooms.  It is amazing and inspiring the number of people from across the state who come!  Last year, it was in Saratoga Springs, so if you live in Western New York, this is an amazing opportunity to attend a NOFA-NY function without having to drive across the state.  Costs depend whether you're a NOFA member, your age, and how many days of the conference you'll be attending.  Registration before December 5th is discounted.

Last evening, when I went to put the turkeys away, it seemed like there were awfully few of them.  I puzzled over that for a good thirty seconds.  I finally attributed that to the fact that the turkey were wet and huddled, in stead of fluffy and puffed out like usual.  Then Dianna mentioned that the flock looked so small with the four turkeys missing that Bob and I had butchered the day before.  Mystery of the tiny turkey flock solved!  My flock looks still smaller today because Bob butchered four more.  It's amazing what a difference a few turkeys can make!

What a miserable day!  The temperature is hovering right around freezing, and a what the radio calls a "wintery mix" (alternating rain, sleet, and snow) has been coming down all day.  I couldn't have chosen a worse day for turkey pick-up.  I showed a new customer my turkeys, and they were so wet and miserable that the toms (males) wouldn't even make the "gobble" noise for her!  I am also having pick-up tomorrow and Wednesday, so I hope the weather is better then. 

I only got one chicken egg today.  Bob needs to put the second light up, and get a fence up around the garden so the chickens can go outside when the weather is nice enough.  After those things are done, the additional light should stimulate them so their rate of lay will go back up some.

 

With Thanksgiving just days away, it seems like a good time to reflect upon the past year of farming.
 

First and foremost, I'm thankful for my family.  Without them, my little, ever-growing hobby would be impossible.  Yeah, yeah, I know everyone says they're thankful for their family, it's a defacto requirement for any speech, book, or just talk around the table at Thanksgiving dinner.  However, I really am so lucky and so thankful that I have the wonderful family I do.

I'm thankful for my customers.  Meeting them is one of my two favorite parts of my hobby!  When I'm talking to a customer, showing them around my little farm, all the hard work, all the frustrations, all the letdowns of running a hobby farm melt away and I can suddenly only remember the best parts, the parts that really matter.

Which brings me to my other favorite part of hobby farming - baby birds!  I love those little poults (baby turkeys) and chicks!  The simple joys of watching a successful hatch or watching week-old poults all sleeping side by side, one individual melting into the next can not be explained, but only can be experienced.

I never thought I'd say it, but I'm even thankful for the new incubator, which I'd dubbed "The Root of All Evil".  Yes, it did mess up my big plans for hatching this year, but admittedly it taught me that I need to pay closer attention to detail (and demonstrated the danger of even a degree or two of global warming!)

Finally, I'm thanful for new opportunities.  I successfully expanded into keeping chickens this year.  I met wonderful new customers who bought chickens.  My chickens just starting laying eggs three weeks ago, and oh! how pretty they are!  Light brown eggs, dark brown eggs, eggs with little "freckles", eggs with big "freckles"!  Who'd want to buy a boring white egg after they've seen the variety in my dozen eggs?  (I certainly wouldn't!)  Of course, I've also started this blog, and I'm so thankful that I'm getting this great opportunity to communicate with my customers.