We turned our eight-month-old calves out to pasture on the old horse pasture a few days ago and we love watching them munch happily on the orchard grass and clover. What a satisfying feeling! We remember when that pasture was nothing put brush and popple trees three years ago!
Meanwhile, I’m finishing planting the garden and getting ready to travel to the MREA Fair in Custer, Wisconsin, on Thursday. I’ll be hanging out at the BHM booth so any of you that get the chance, please stop by and say hi.
Will’s busy building pig houses for our two gilts who are going to have baby pigs pretty soon. We have to get up fencing on the pasture, as well, so we’re hoping that they won’t farrow early!
Last week, we went to a friend’s dairy and bought five baby Holstein bull calves who were from a week old to only three days old. These folks have the nicest calves I’ve ever seen, anywhere! We’ll be raising them on the bottle until weaned. We’re developing a decent market for beef quarters and halves, cut and wrapped. It’s a good deal for the buyer as they get good, naturally-raised farm beef for the price of store (yucky!) hamburger. And it’s a good deal for us too as we get more per pound than if we sold the butcher-sized calves at the auction barn. In today’s sagging economy, anything we can do that is moral, legal, and puts a few dollars back into our homestead is a good thing, indeed! Besides, both Will and I enjoy livestock.
Sheryl,
Well, we just may have baby piggies for the next seminar. None, so far, but the mamas are fat!!!
This August’s seminar promises to be good with lots of harvesting and canning of all sorts of foods. May will cover some of the same ground as this May’s seminar but will have some different topics for those of you have already done the spring seminar. August will probably always feature canning as that’s what’s in season, plus other workshopw, as well. I hope you can come again soon!
Jackie
Hello Jackie and Will,
I can’t wait to see pic of the new babies! Please be sure to post. I know that you time some of your livestock for birthing at certain times of the year. Here’s the challenge: can you have baby piggies for the next seminar? Just teasing! I can’t wait till I can come back and learn more. My only dilemma is should I come for the May seminar or the August one? Maybe I should do both. The last one was so awesome and I know the next ones will be too!! Thanks again for all you do, you two are such an inspiration!
Sheryl
Comments are closed.