2009 Goals/Planning
Farm: Keep status quo/Feed family and have farm support itself/Educate for new areas/Repairs
Goats
Recordkeeping/Care
Update Goat notebook regularly/ Hard copy in file in case of computer failure (double system)
Develop annual calendar of routine care
Goat medicine
Milk
Milk for family
Try to get 4 or 5 families taking milk shares and other farm products
Fridge on back porch (freecycle?)
Cheese
Make and market chevre, feta, cheddar, farmer’s wheel
Educate myself on how to set up cheese operation
Read books I have
Visit goats farms making cheese
Business plan
Baby goat marketing
Dehorn and neuter so I can keep them to a larger weight
Bucks
Available for breeding
Develop separate quarters to control breeding
Location
Rotate pastures every month
Clear back of property
Barn repair
Chickens
Move old hens and extra rooster off to Mexicans
Continue selling eggs
No new chick purchases
Hatch eggs in incubator?
Ducks
Continue selling eggs
Hatch eggs in incubator and sell ducklings
Have schools hatch ducklings
Turkeys
Visit other turkey farms to gain knowledge
Read turkey book and find an online listserv to moniter
Find way to get three hens and tom into shelter at night
Buy incubator
Collect and hatch eggs to gain experience
Buy poultry netting
Build movable turkey tractor
Raise poults free range but in poultry netting and movable tractor to gain experience
Keep track of costs to make sure pricing is right
Butcher in small batches to fine tune butchering skills and add to butchering tool collection and train help
Sell to individual customers to gain experience in packaging and pricing and labeling
Review NYS Ag & Market laws in this area
Pigs
Educate myself about GOS heritage breed
No pigs this year
Bees
Educate myself
Intern with Sally
Prep for bees for next year
Maple syruping
Not this year/definitely next year
Garden
Make garden with friends
Heritage Tomato seedlings for sale?
If yes, start asap
Vegetable garden
Plan in late winter
Grow enough for eating and putting aside for winter
New garden fence
Start seeds indoors
Spring crops
Summer crops
Fall garden
Build multiple compost bins around property to build up soil
Hanging flowers on front porch
Clean out old flowers beds in spring and maintain better
Grow blue morning glories somewhere
Plant sunflowers across front? Or cleome?
Orchard
Continue laying manure to prepare site
Educate myself with books I have and visit small orchards
List of trees and sources by year end
