Victoria born 130 pm today
May 20, 2009 by edgwickfarm
Clip of newborn Victoria
May 20, 2009 by edgwickfarmNice article on life cycles unit at local school
May 20, 2009 by edgwickfarmDog story
May 20, 2009 by edgwickfarmI have two dogs. Sam, the house guard, a monster sized German Shepherd, a sweet hearted big lug of a guy and Delilah, the farm collie who works the farm and is sharp and bitchy and demanding and knows every command. They balance each other out well and make all of us happy. I have thought about a third dog…a jack russell or something small that will work the farm, kill the rats and belong to Gabe. Well, a new dog has been visiting us and Gabe is enamored as you can see from this clip.
Bernice and her mom Zooey
May 15, 2009 by edgwickfarmKisses!
May 15, 2009 by edgwickfarmWelcome Bernice!
May 15, 2009 by edgwickfarm
After a long day of law work in NYC, I came home to farm chores and after milking, Zooey delivered this beautiful doeling that we named Bernice. She is the first offspring out of POG, my new herd sire, a purebred nubian buck. She took colostrum out the bottle and then stood and nursed directly from her mother. Xena and Giselle are close as well; I am sure they will deliver within days. I am not sure about Dreamer and Elizabeth. Maybe a few weeks?
Thursday morning barn report
May 14, 2009 by edgwickfarmThrough my bedroom window, I am watching the sky grow pink as the sun comes up behind blue clouds. I am on my second cup of coffee and almost ready to walk the dogs and head to the barn to milk.
After a brief heat wave in April, we returned to spring weather in May, showers, temperatures in the sixties. Yesterday was a stunningly beautiful spring day and I was able to extend the winter pasture in the lower grassy meadow for the goats to graze. However, rain is predicted for today and tomorrow and through the weekend.
Ten turkey poults hatched on Mother’s Day out of the twelve that incubated for the last 28 days. I started another batch of twelve that will hatch in early June. The poults are at the Cornwall Community Coop for a few days as a teaser for Thanksgiving sales. I lost one juvenile turkey so I have eight of the first batch left, five of the next, the ten that just hatched and maybe forty in my incubator and incubating at schools. I ordered enough electric poultry fence for a quarter of an acre and will next experiment with free ranging the turkeys in that. I hope it will confine them but some have precited they will just fly out.
On Mother’s Day weekend, I got into the vegetable garden and planted more seeds and cleaned up beds. I ordered electric deer fencing that I will add to the existing fence to expand the garden. Once that is up, I will put everything else in.
I have about a thousand heritage tomato seedlings in pots and flats. The coop is selling them and I will put out a table this weekend at the end of my driveway. I have Brandywine, Mortgage Lifter, Bloody Butcher, Red Currant, Jubilee and Roma.
I still have five pregnant does. I am hand milking six does, four of which still have their kids on them. I am making lots of feta at this point as well as the usual chevre and farmer’s wheel cheese. I will turn to cheddar this summer and try mozzarella as well. I am attending a class in Vermont with Peter Dixon in June about starting an artisan cheese business. The four bucklings will go soon. The doelings are growing well. I need to handle them more and am thinking of asking a young lady to come spend time with them on a weekly basis. The thrill of baby goats has worn thin for my kids at this point.
The chicken house got mucked out and the roosting bars replaced. The chickens are much happier with that arrangement. I am selling eggs to the coop.
Butterhill sent home the two ducklings they hatched. There are over a hundred duck eggs in the various schools and hatching begins starting next week. I will have all of those ducklings that hatch coming back to the farm in June.
The turkeys are calling to me from the yard so I’d better get going.
It runs in our blood.
May 2, 2009 by edgwickfarmMy brother has an amazing project just finishing up in Florida. I envy his season only because it can coordinate with the school year.
http://vimeo.com/4367393 Watch it!
Thanks Mom & Papa. What will all the grandchildren do?
Fox!
April 28, 2009 by edgwickfarmWhen I was milking this morning, the duck flock came charging into the barn, quacking like crazy. When I went into the barn yard, I caught sight of a red fox and sent Delilah after her. Delilah faithfully did her duty and chased the fox off the property. I have one duck missing and three ducks with minor puncture wounds. I found a pile of speckled sussex feathers so the fox may have got a hen as well. If she came back repeatedly like I suspect she had done before I caught sight of her, she probably has kits and will return again. I called and warned my farmer neighbors about the fox. I went to the range and practiced with my new 22. Everyone got locked up extra tight tonight.
