What is a Typical Day at the Farm?

So it's time to go to work at the farm. Something to keep in mind is, no day at the farm is the same, (you never can be certain what happen with livestock), but I am going to describe to you a typical day at the farm.
First, is feeding and watering the animals. At the farm I work at most of the animals get hay.
Goats- hay
Alpaca's -hay and grain
Sheep- hay
Pigs- grain or food scraps
Chicken's- grain

Then, of course every animal's water bucket needs to be refilled.

Second task, poop, poop and more poop. This is when it's time to grab my shovel and the wheelbarrow and shovel out some of the waste in the stalls. Not doing this regularly can cause harmful bacteria to erupt. It is not necessary to clean out the entire stall everyday, just the fresh waste. Then it's time to load all the waste into the compost pile, because believe it or not, poop makes great compost!

Third, it is to clean up the barn. I will sweep the barn of all the hay that gathers up during the day. It is important to sweep all the dirt, hay, etc  to keep the barn healthy for the animals and people. Breathing in dirt and hay can be hazardous.

Now, if it is wintertime like it is currently, this is the time I would usually shovel around the farm, creating clear paths to get to the water pumps, the greenhouses and other entry's.

In summer or springtime planting is a big project. If you have already planted your seeds, you need to  make sure they are being watered.  You can also check on your harvest and take whatever is fully grown. Once you have harvested, cleaning the produce is critical to keep the food edible.

Depending on the time of year, is what you can work on. Obviously, you cannot plant lettuce in 30 degree weather.

That is a typical day for me when I work at the farm.  (with the occasional distraction to take a selfie with a goat.)

With the copious amount of projects that are in action on a farm, I have found that there is always something to do.

Happy Farming!
-Jamie

'Tis the Season of Planting!

The time to prepare for this season's harvest has come! Thanks to our many greenhouses at the farm we have been able to grow produce during the cold months. We have a great harvest of spinach sprouting as well as lettuce and cabbage. It is very important to start seeding early that way you are all ready to go when the ground is ready for planting. 

When it comes to the soil, compost soil is most natural and effective soil to use. Using natural fertilizers like leaves keeps the soil rich and chemical-free. 

Happy Planting! 

Welcome to the World Baby Benjamin!

Baby Ben was the second kid born in the barn. He is such a sweet baby goat who loves to follow you around like a little puppy. He is growing very fast. He loves to be held in your arms, his mom however, doesn't feel the same. Mama goats are very protective of their young. If they can't see their kid they will start to freak out and make crying noises. Baby Ben is growing fast and doing great!