Having goats for soap and cheese has always been part of the farm ‘dream’ but what if it was possible to borrow a few goats for a short time to see what it’s really like? Poultry and a pot-bellied pig are one thing but goats that require milking and other care are definitely another.
It so happens our friend and neighbour Judy has some does she is willing to lend (and eventually sell) to a good home and it got me thinking. She smirked when I said we’d like to try them out for the summer with the option to bring them back if it doesn’t work out but I think she assumes that they are here to stay.
This morning we went over and loaded up two does: Avigail and Emilie with her young buck who is still milking. They are a little scared at the moment but seem to getting used to their new surroundings. They will be sleeping with Pitou tonight so that will be the first test, getting them into the pighouse for the night.
With all that has been going on this Spring, I’ve neglected to do the nightly head count in the coop to be sure that all the chickens are accounted for. One was definitely not there for the past few weeks and I guess we’ll never know where she was, the important thing is that she came back…
and with her came 10 new chicks! Some hens like more privacy than others when it comes to sitting on eggs and this definitely applies to her. She may have been in the barn or just in the tall grass in the barnyard and I guess we’ll never know. Now we’ve ‘trained’ her to bring the chicks into the dog crate for the night and we bring the crate into the coop for extra security. Phew…we were definitely lucky that she made it through 21 days of sitting. Another barnyard miracle and several busy weeks ahead for the Momma Hen taking care of these ten!
This time last year we were moving in and trying not to miss the growing season. We had this one plot about 25 x 40 feet and crammed everything we could into it, tomatoes, potatoes, corn, sunflowers, herbs, etc and I put in some Nasturtiums for colour and to attract bees. Simply put, harvesting was a challenge.
We now have 4 plots of the same size plus a couple of strawberry bed and a mixed herb and perennial bed. We kept the original plot for root crops, greens, peas and beans. One of the new plots is devoted to potatoes, (next one over) the next to peppers and tomatoes (next one up) and the last for cucumbers, squash, and pumpkins. We’ve had an interesting Spring so far with the temperature on March 28th being the same in this area as it was in Miami. The maple syrup ‘sugar shack’ visitors were going out in shorts and flip flops for the first time. The next little while went up and down in temperature but not much in the way of rain.
The tomatoes are pretty scrawny and going into June things didn’t look too promising but with recent rains (1.5 inches in 24 hours according to my gauge) and now some heat, things should pick up. At the moment we have lettuce, spinach, arugula, kale, radishes as well as greens from the beets and rutabagas. Farm gate sales (fresh picked) by chance or by appointment: 613-275-9901.
Spring is a time of celebrating new life and there has been no shortage of joy this year. We started off with Shirley, Lorraine and Helga in March, followed by a trip to the hatchery for some day old chicks in April and many new additions in May. Three Muscovy ducklings are now running around the yard learning how to be ducks on their own. Unfortunately they were hatched under a hen and the female Muscovies took no interest in raising them. The mother hen was too busy with her other three chicks to worry about the ducklings and I’m not sure she could teach them much anyway. Luckily, they are all healthy and eating and growing day by day so for now we’ll just savour each moment of their youth.
