Garden Update!

So were almost in September and things are finally coming in......... 

Interesting :) 

Ohhhh!!! And for anyone that's interested in turkeys next year... Here is what a caged Jeanie-O turkey runs. Please order before March! $25 cash/check, non refundable if you back out, deposits are due by 2/28/16.

Friends, Feasts, & Beasts.

Greetings & Salutations! 

{I'm just here for my Glamour shot... }

Not many people can say that their best friend from high school is still their best friend.... I'm one of those lucky individuals! Cassie has been there through thick & thin. She was even my co-pilot when we decided to move to San Marcos, TX! 

Saturday:

I love my Cass!!! Last night Osh made us an amazing, home cooked, farm to table meal the only item that wasn't from the farm was the ground turkey. *major component, but this year was the first year we attempted raising turkeys. It went extraordinarily well -- and the plan is to raise around 8-10 next season. Turkeys are an excellent 'bang for your buck' bird. They are fantastic rangers, good watch dogs, & the meat to feed ratio was well worth it! 

Sunday 8/30/15:

Sundays off are the best thing ever. Typically, I'm off Tuesday/Wednesdays so it's a special treat to have a day off with my husband. The day always seems to be one of those 'forever' days, in a good way of course. The day began with coffee & Sheryl, Jaclyn's cousin aka amazing dog whisperer coming by the house for a training session. Sheryl helped us cover all of the general basics and definitely helped us to hone in on some of the issues we have as far as training Emma. Sheryl suggested to make sure you have clear defined commands. 

IE: stop jumping on me was usually 'down.' BUT down was also the command Osh or I would say if Emma begged for food at the table, or if she jumped on us... Honestly, I had never put two and two together regarding the commands. I'm super excited to continue to train Emma. In time, she will be the perfect farm puppy lady.

Last week she learned how to stay! In just one day! Super intelligent dog -- just needs guidance! My goal is one new trick a week. 

The day succumbed with a 1.5 mile walk with the pups, an organic, grassfed dinner, & a cup of tea. Life is good. 

Thanks for reading y'all! 

 :)

Head B! 

We love pears. 

Like a lot... 

Amazing Walk!

Amazing walk with the pups tonight! Osh & I are trying to take Emma on more adventures so that she is less destructive.... And also it's good for the soul! 

Oh & came home to broccoli that was ready to be harvested! Life is good. 

Free Range Broad Breasted & Hertiage Narragansett Turkeys!

free-range

adjective

adjective: free-range

1. (of livestock, especially poultry) kept in natural conditions, with freedom of movement.

   • (of eggs) produced by birds reared under natural conditions.

There's just something totally awesome about raising your own meat for Thanksgiving. This year, Osh and I decided to test the waters and raise a small brood of turkeys. We decided on 2, one for Thanksgiving and one for Christmas dinner. But, when I got to Farm & Fleet, 3 seemed to be the magic number. 

Raising our own turkeys turned out to be quite the magical experience. To be honest, they are much better foragers than our chickens are. Turkeys are highly entertaining and did great with the other birds. However, there was a slight issue with the Tom stepping on baby ducklings but it wasn't for malicious reasons. He was extremely clumsy, and usually this occurred during feeding time.

The Bronze's have since gone to freezer camp -- a total of 68 pounds of meat in just 4 months! Success!

A few weeks ago, we took them to a meat processor out of Bristol WI. He charges $10 a bird, the birds were professionally processed and wrapped. The whole bringing them to get processed part wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. From the beginning, I had the mindset that they were meat but I did get slightly attached to the Tom. The turkeys were incredibly spoiled and lived an amazing, happy, free range life... I'm excited for that element.

Turkey raising went so amazingly, that we decided to add a heritage breed to our flock. The bronze are still great birds, but because of their large size, they are unable to procreate without being artificially inseminated. Which is why raising a dual purpose heritage breed for many reasons. The main one being to be able to preserve a bird that is currently listed as 'threatened' on the Livestock Conservancy List.

Next year, we hope to be able to raise a few more bronze's for thanksgivings. If anyone is interested in a bird, here is the breakdown of pricing:

$10 Poults
$10 Processing
$5 per bird (gas & driving)
+ $3.50 per lb.
Birds typically end up weighing somewhere around 12-30+ lbs.

Example:
12 pound bird would be $67.  $25 + 3(42) = $67

So basically a $25 deposit that goes towards all of the above.. Please let me know by March  or sooner if you're interested! P.S.
Big thank you to Molly for inspiring me to blog about our life. I'm having a blast so far!

Happy Tuesday!!!!!!!

Welcoming Miss Emmie to the Family

I remember the day so clearly-- I had just run inside the Jewel on 14 in Crystal Lake to grab a few miscellaneous things. I plopped my findings in to the trunk, looked up, and the Pet shop was calling my name. 

You know.. when you get that feeling that comes over you.. it's almost like a gravitational pull from your destiny.

My logical-self talking me out of looking & my craving for another puppy persuading me.. I decided to just take a look.......

Side note, Otis is a great dog but he's totally Osh's dog. The plan was to get 2 dogs all along, we we're waiting to fence the backyard.Which we had just done, score!

I love dachshunds. I had two of them growing up, and they were amazing. Super loyal, lovable, and of course super cuddly. So in to the pet store I went.

{Before anyone comments on how I'm terrible person for looking at dogs at a pet-shop, 3 out of 4 of our current pets were adopted/feral! So please no grief!}

Unfortunately, there were no dachshunds, so I checked Craigslist when I got home and stumbled upon the post with Emma in it. A young family was re-homing her to due to her being a little too rough with their dachshund. I saw those eyes in the post, and just knew that I had to go check her out. I messaged the gal that afternoon and set up a time to go meet Bella aka Emma.

After dinner, Osh and I headed to the bank for cash & out to South Elgin to pick up our girl.  She was pretty timid upon the meeting, which I have come to learn is a pretty common trait of the Weimaraner breed. However, she warmed up to us pretty quickly. Especially, when she discovered that we had a huge backyard and an Otis that loves to play. It was love at first sight. I knew she was the 'mama's puppy.'

Emma has been a total joy, with of course, all of the bonuses that come with puppyhood such as cleaning up turds at 12am.... BUT it could always be worse.

Otis & Emma get along like a dream.

Puppy soulmates.

Osh and I love her so much already and can't wait to see what the future holds for our beautiful Em. {Hopefully, less stains on our carpet. :) }

Happy Monday y'all and thanks for reading! 

Muscovies for Everyone!

Well, hello there!

Johnson Microfarm has been growing at a tremendous rate! This year we added quite a few chickens, turkeys, & ducks! Also, Osh put in lots of garden beds. I think there is close to 25 of them.... You could say he went a little garden bed crazy this season. However, next year, things should be much smoother! {We hope!} 

Muscovy Ducks:
It appears as though our muscovies have excellent fertility! This year we were overloaded with baby ducks. We began the season with 2 drakes, Chocolate Man & Alfred & 6 mama's. The only one that has a name is 'Nibbles' for obvious reasons, and the other 5, I just call 'Mama.'  The first few batches of ducks were sold to pay for feed, bedding, and various other chicken-y things. This last batch was sort of a 'surprise' from 2 of the original mama's that like to nest together. They hatched out 21 babies. So if anyone is in the market for a few, let us know!






So lets get in to why muscovies are fantastic creatures to have on your property.

Practical Reasons:

1. Great brooders & mothers to their young.
2. Delicious eggs
3. Amazing natural pest repellents. BUT if we have a really wet year, you literally need like 30+ ducks to make a noticeable difference. 
4.  They are quiet! If you live in an area that you are not allowed to have chickens, I highly suggest looking in to these ducks. They do not quack, the ladies make a 'pip' noise but not often. Muscovies could be a solution for you if you are looking to add a little yard candy without the extra noise. 
5. If you have an allergy to chicken eggs, most of the time, duck eggs will not have the same effect. 
6. They have excellent resilience to cold weather which is crucial in our climate and at the Johnson Microfarm. Our barn is not heated for various reasons, the main one being safety.  I remember going out to check on them many of times over the winter & they would be taking a snow bath. 
7. Beautiful Colors! This could be in either category, but for our reasons, I will put it in the practical category. On our farm, we raise mostly rare colors of muscovies. This year our Chocolate Drake created beautiful offspring! We were even lucky enough to get a lavender barred chocolate female. She is for sale and is currently $40. Super rare color and very hard to find. If anyone is interested, feel free to email me, or comment on the blog. We do not ship any birds. All birds must be picked up on the premise. 

Impractical Reasons:

1. They are adorable. 
2. They wag their tails when they see you. 
3. Get super excited for tomato-y treats.
4.  Companionship {This could really go in either category, just depends on what you're looking to get out of your livestock.} 

We will try to post on here weekly! Stay tuned for more farm updates. <3