Hatching!

It's day ten of my very first attempt to hatch chickens.   Of the thirty-four I started with, candling indicates 27 are still viable and progressing nicely.    Can't wait to see how many hatch.   So far the mix includes seven serama eggs, one d'uccle, two sizzles, splash marans and some of my "mutt" eggs.

Eggs in the 'bator.  Marans to the right.

The tiny serama eggs are hiding under the guts of the machine and right over the water well so they get plenty of humidity.

The splash marans are a very pretty and lay dark brown eggs.  This particular group came from a color project so the depth of color in the eggs still needs work.   I plan to purchase a black copper maran rooster in the spring to get deeper brown eggs and possibly blue wheaten marans offspring.

The seramas were not originally part of the plan but a bonus batch of eggs.  After doing some research on this breed of chickens I became fascinated.  Serama are a tiny pet chicken roughly the size of a parrot.  They are very friendly and strut their stuff with a cocky attitude.   If you'd like to see pictures here is a link to the Feathersite page on  Serama

I will also be adding a pair of Cream Legbar chicks from Greenfire Farms as soon as the Virginia permit is granted after the new year.  Also ordered to accompany those two peeps will be a straight run group of Marraduna Basque chickens (Euskal Oiloas)  The Legbar is a British breed of auto-sexing chicken that lays blue eggs.  The Euskal Oiloas is a friendly farm breed developed in the Basque country (between France and Spain in the Pyrnees.)  They are supremely suited to free range husbandry.

Bantam white silkies are also on my list of chickens to acquire for 2012.  They are a small breed that don't fly, are considered "lap chickens" and best of all, they are broody.   Silkies will be my natural hatchers.

The remaining breeds on my wish list are Lavender Orpingtons, Barred Hollands and White Laced Red Cornish.  I will also add Narragansett turkeys, but I suspect that might not be until 2013.   An additional coop will be required for them which takes time to build.

Wishing you all a safe, prosperous and HAPPY NEW YEAR!

The Bee Journey Begins!

The hive and supers arrived on Thanksgiving morning compliments of my in-laws who were kind enough to pick everything up from Dadant's Chatham location.   It is an 8-frame hive with two deeps, a cypress base and a copper topped "garden style" hive cover.  Absolutely beautiful. 

A beehive in multiple boxes

While most people were slogging to the mall at the crack of dawn or earlier, my Black Friday was spent staining the hive bodies.  At first I tried making a pattern of large diamonds but I discovered that stain isn't the best medium for that so I ended up making a huge mess on the edge of the first hive body and covering the diamond pattern.  You can still see it if you look.  I think it looks pretty cool so I'm leaving it.   The second hive body went much better.  Only five medium supers left to stain!

Two deep hive bodies stained and drying.  Yes, they are both the same size.

Of course I had to put the whole thing (except the frames) together to see how it looks.  Pretty smart I'd say :)    I'm still debating on whether I am going to stain the cover green or just polyurethane it in the event the copper top ends up oxidizing to verdigris.  What do you think?  Going to leave the cypress base its natural color.  Also purchasing a screened bottom board that will be stained green too.  Can't wait to bring the bees home in the Spring!  

Assembled hive

A New Roo

One of my neighbors is getting rid of her excess roosters so I brought one home.    This is the little guy I chose.  He is a six month old Silver Penciled Leghorn.  The girls are already sizing him up.   Hopefully I will get some fertile eggs to try incubating soon.

Autumn Artistry

Sunday was a beautiful day to enjoy the autumn weather.   Here are just a few photos of nature's artistry.

Mushrooms on an old oak stump.  Beautiful striations.

Golden maple leaves.

Pixel watching the dogs play.

Miscanthus zebrinus.

River Birch hybrid.  Love the colors in the bark.  Photo doesn't do it justice.

Hope everyone is taking the time to enjoy the little miracles all around us.

It's Official...

We are no longer Shepherds.   The last of our flock left for upstate NY on Sunday.  It's been awfully quiet around here.   Our LGD was so miserable we gave him a bunny to watch.  Boy, does he love his new bunny!  No more competition for his dog food, no more butting ram or little lambs climbing all over him --- just one quiet rabbit that is always where he left it.   Too funny to watch him race back to the rabbit to make sure it's safe.   He is the BEST livestock guardian dog ever.   No matter what he has to guard, he does it well.

A farm is much like a garden, always evolving and never done.   In the upcoming year we will be focusing on heritage and rare breeds of poultry - chicken and turkey.   Honeybees will be arriving in the spring as well.  Can't wait to move on to this new phase.

Apple Harvest

Last weekend we picked the first apples from our orchard.  It was only three Enterprise apples, small but tasty.   We then purchased an assortment of Gala, Empire and Stayman Winesap from the Chesterfield Berry Farm Market.  After taking enough apples to make two delicious pies, we prepared the rest for apple butter.

When I make apple butter I quarter them, and toss them in a big pot with a bit of  apple juice or cider, whole allspice, whole star anise, whole cloves and lemon peel.   Simmering on low heat, the quarters gradually reduce and take on the spiced flavors.

Phase I - Apple quarters start to reduce.

Phase II - Almost ready for puree.

When preparing the puree I use the old fashioned method, by hand.  Instead of the Cuisinart or blender, I use a chinois and wooden "pestle."  It's messy and labor intensive, but I think the flavor is much better.   The mashing allows the skins to add their flavor without the bitterness of pureed skins in the mix.  The spices also release their flavors without adding grainy bits.

Chinois, metal collection bowl and jars for processing.

Messy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Once the pulp is pureed, it's time to add the secret blend of powdered spices - including cinnamon then it is into the roasting pan in a cool oven for a long, slow, simmering reduction. 

Blending in the cinnamon and spices.

Ready to reduce.

12 pounds of apples reduced down to four pints of smooth and creamy apple butter.

Looking back...

There are only two times in the year when I am bit by the cleaning and organizing bug.  The biggest bite comes in Autumn.   Something about the start of school, end of harvest, or perhaps simply the changes in daylight, day length and temperature, makes me think about all that has been accomplished and what is yet to be done.  

So much to do and so little time!  This year we are visiting colleges for my youngest who will fly the nest next year.  Of course Senior year brings its own brand of craziness.   By this time I have usually given the greenhouse its washdown, pulled all the trellis and begun breeding the sheep.   This year I am far behind, and of course we are trying to sell the sheep instead of increasing the flock.    Hopefully we will have some or all sold at the Chicken Swap this weekend.

On the bright side, I finally got to upload photos on my phone to the computer.   Pictures from market last year, holiday events, summer snapshots and even a recent sunrise have all been saved.

Here is one of our booth photos from the Goochland Market last summer.

June 2010 - Goochland Farmers Market

And a few photos from a Christmas Event at the Governor's Mansion.   I would have loved to get more pictures of the architecture, holiday decorations and art which are all quite lovely, sadly it was too crowded.  Didn't get to do more than shake hands in the receiving line but the food was fantastic.

Facade of the Mansion

Govenor McDonnell

Fantastic Buffet

As some of you may know, Tuckahoe Plantation is an historic landmark and the boyhood home of Thomas Jefferson.  What many people don't realize is that it is also a working farm.  Emily and Daniel are two of the tenant farmers who raise beef and sheep (Border Leicesters and Cotswold) along with heritage poultry.   In June we picked up our summer quarter of grass fed beef.  I'm a definite aficionado of grass fed!  If you are in the Richmond area, visit their booth at local farmers markets or their website here:  http://www.tuckahoeplantationlivestock.com/Tuckahoe_Plantation_Livestock/Home.html
This picture is an outbuilding I found particularly attractive.

Outbuilding at Tuckahoe Plantation working farm.

Of course, Virginia is full of historic places.   Colonial Williamsburg is one of our favorite weekend trips.  We've done the tourist thing several times already, now we go to have lunch or dinner - particularly nice on Christmas Eve - walk around enjoying a nice day, and enjoying the shops at Merchant Square (Wythe Candy) or the Kings Arms Bake Shop for rootbeer, ginger cookes, queen's cake and cider.  We also like to look into the gardens for the tried and true.   This year we saw natural plant supports that we are going to try in 2012.