Blizzard, Piglets and Birds

This week the blizzard hit. Looking out it didn't look like much snow just amazingly windy. It was -5 degrees C this morning and dropped to -10 later in the day.I went up to the barn around noon to check in on the chickens. The drift up to the barn was up to my thighs! All the birds were staying in the coop except for two that were laying. That's when I realised I have a few patches to make in the barn as one poor chicken was nesting lightly dusted in snow. Poor girl.
I'm waiting until it's over to take my camera out.
I spent the morning on the phone trying to find new piglets. Hopefully I have a lead just north of Truro. I want to stay with the Berkshire breed. Not only is it a heritage breed which I love but their temperament, size and flavorful meat was wonderful. It will be interesting bringing them back to the farm from that far away. Also I'm buying a ton of chicks this spring. The total amount looks too freaky to say. I need to make up my mind as to where I will keep them, either in a part of the barn or a new outbuilding. We'll see. They will be Buff Orpingtons. A beautiful dual purpose breed, good for both egg production and large enough for meat birds. They will start laying eggs in the fall. Until then I'll have my ornamental Phoenixes.

Storm Prep

Wood waiting to be stacked

Yesterday after the kids went to school I started to get ready for the coming storm. Thankfully an oil delivery had just come and a cord of wood was waiting for me outside the wood shed. It was freezing out. By the time I got out there around 9am it had warmed up to -14 degrees C. What a joy, not.

Filled wood box

I started splitting and I must say I was in heaven. The wood was Ash and it nearly fell apart on it's own. Such a joy.  Within the hour I had enough to take inside to fill the wood box. It should last about 4 days. Then, I stacked the remaining in the wood shed.

Knowing the seedlings would be needing some sun, I carted all of them up to the little greenhouse for the day once the inside temp was over 5 degrees C.

Then I made some phone calls, planted more seeds and did some chores around the house like laundry. Which I'm still doing without a clothes dryer by the way! Sheets have to wait for a sunny day with less wind.

Once the kids were home we played hockey and soccer up at the barn. What a hoot!

Dinner was pork tenderloin in a Hoison sauce with veggies and rice. The meat was spectacular! It was ours after all.

After dinner all the little seedlings came back down and went into holding pattern until after the storm. The onions are starting to smell, well, like onions. Fabulous! Most are now about 3 inches tall and I'm both excited and dreading transplanting all the little suckers. 

We'll see how the greenhouse holds up. It should have enough protection from the wind tucked next the the barn. I'm believing it will be fine.

At the Butchers

I got the phone call. "Hi, I've got your 2 pigs. Are you able to come tomorrow night for butchering them at 6? I'd like you to be here so you get what you want."

"Yes, yes of course." Thinking to myself, AAAAHHHHH! What have I gotten myself into? Breathe girl. You're good. Thankfully I kept it cool on the phone. "Great, I'll see you then." He gave me directions and said I didn't need to bring anything.

Well, life is sure full of experiences and frankly I wouldn't have it any other way. I arranged for a babysitter for the boys and did my best to keep an open mind. Many people once again were telling me I was nuts, that it would be awful and giving me pity.  I instead was keeping a smile on my face and staying calm.

The next day along with regular chores was organizing the freezers. I had no idea how much meat I was about to come home with. Also, I contacted a number of interested customers advising them they would be able to purchase pork from me starting tomorrow. I noted down any particular cuts they wanted.

5:30pm came. I set up the new babysitter who was great. I felt much better knowing the kids were in good hands. Off I went. I became a little anxious as I was sure I was lost at least twice but kept going and suddenly there it was. The farm was amazing. The sun was still up so I was able to see the big farmhouse, numerous huge outbuildings and rolling pasture disappearing in the distance. A lady came out asking if I was there for the meat and pointed me to the white door. As I approached, a nice man came out and introduced himself. We went in and he showed me the shop. Small, very well set up and very clean. His wife joined us and we got started. He opened the cooler door and brought out the first side. A track with a hook on it held the meat. That's what it was, meat. It looked exactly like what anyone would see in any butcher shop. I immediately felt better. Any trepidation went out the window. Instead I was racking my brain trying to remember all the names of the different cuts of pork and what part they come from. I was back into my cooking mindset. 

We had a great time. As usual I'm full of questions which each of them answered with smiles. He did all the major cuts and she made the kabobs. I mainly watched and helped where I could, labeling mostly. They told me they appreciated me being there, that it's nice to have company. I really enjoyed it.

He explained a reason for why I had missed out on being there when the pigs were slaughtered. As it's already a hard thing to do in life and the men didn't know how I'd react, it was easier for them to get it done on their own. I completely respect that and I was thankful he had explained it to me.

We talked about the differences in pig breeds, recipes, snowmobiling, kids, dogs. Towards the end they were starting to quiz me on all the different cuts. There were a lot! It was fun.

He loaded up my trunk, we settled the account, said good-byes and off I went. I had approximately 240lbs of meat!

Driving was a little tenuous. A very heavy fog had descended so I had to slow down to 15km/hr, even stopping sometimes to identify where exactly the road was. The kids were already in bed when I got home a little after 8pm which was awesome. I am very happy with my new babysitter and the boys are too. 

Soon it was time to get to work unloading. I backed the CRV right up to the porch. I could only lift the small box, the big ones I had to empty from there. My cat came out and sat watching me. She was very interested in what was happening as she could smell something yummy. I layered the meat in the freezers with both already frozen items or bags of ice. Everything else went in the fridge or a cooler for the night with ice blocks. It was cold out and by the time I had packed it all away I was frozen and exhausted. What an adventure. I am so proud of myself for doing this!

In the next 48 hours, nearly all the pork was sold. I still have some steaks and roasts available. but I was amazed and happy it went so fast.

We had ribs last night for dinner and they were fantastic! I'll be making a pot roast in the slow cooker this week. Next time I'm keeping more for us.

I'm looking forward to getting new pigs this spring, maybe more then two...

Deer by the barn

This morning we had 3 deer visit. 2 adults and a yearling. A late Spring is taking it's toll on their food supply so here they are eating the bushes.

 Outside the front door

By the barn

Slightly better view

Shortly after this they went after my young fruit trees. Great, just great. I'll need more fencing.

Life on the farm

When I made the decision to have animals I knew I had to be prepared to see all sides and instances of their lives. From the joy of birth, their shenanigans while growing up and the hardest part, the sorrow of death. Most people have become so disconnected from where they get their food. A lot of people even think it's quaint to have a garden as "Why would I need to? The grocery store is right there". Some people think I'm crazy being willing to put in so much effort into feeding people. My farm is mainly vegetables but in order to have balance you need animals. Of course it's a challenge. Anytime you are working with Mother Nature you never know what will happen. You just have to do your best. Plan, give yourself lots of options and well... Believe. When things go wrong move on to plan B, then C and so on.

I've had so many firsts here and I've only been the proud owner of this farm for 6 months! I've already done massive renovations to the 150 year old farmhouse. I've gone into the woods and cut down trees to make fencing. Planted my garlic. Built a greenhouse. Have my own chickens and pigs and so much more.

I went into this with my eyes open and ready to do what needed to be done. I had no illusions. This choice was going to be great but very tough.

Which brings me to today and the pigs I've raised for the past six months. Each time I've gone to feed them I've checked them over, ensuring they were healthy and happy. I made sure they had lots of space to enjoy and a warm place with lots of hay to cuddle up together. They have done a great job turning the earth and have brought many smiles to our family. I've learned a lot of lessons about having pigs. I remember reading all these books about how to take care of them and how many thousand of things could go wrong. Frankly I think most of these books just scare people off when in fact it was almost too easy. I just practiced good sense. 

I bought Til and Ler from a reputable farmer who has been so wonderful, answering any questions I had always with a smile. Both gilts checked over to be in excellent health. I started right away with working to calm them and get them used to me, giving them rub downs at feeding time. They went on good grain and fresh kitchen scraps, always upping their feed when needed. When I measured them a couple weeks ago they were 227lbs and 236lbs. No wonder they could knock me over if I wasn't careful! 

It was time to make a call. 

A very kind man came yesterday to check them out to make sure they were ready. I really appreciated it as this was my first time and it's always great to have a pro check them out and give another opinion. He said he'd be here the next morning at 9am. With mixed feelings I agreed and thanked him and started to prepare myself. This was a moment I needed to experience. If I'm to raise these animals I need to recognise all stages and know.

I went into town last night with friends and left to come home before the sun was up. I can't voice my disappointment to arrive and find it was already over. He hadn't wanted me to see it done. He had come almost an hour before I was scheduled to be back. He took care of business. 

To me it felt too easy, like I failed them. I needed to say thank you and see for myself that they died well. Maybe I care too much, maybe I'm too hard on myself. I just felt responsible. I asked if it was quick and he said yes. He said they were good pigs and I'd done a great job. That the butcher would call me Tuesday, smiled and off he went.

He was great and I am so thankful to have found this support around me. This is the life I've chosen. It's not even 10am and today has already been one of the hardest days being the farmer. Still it's time to move on, set up for the next pigs who will be joining the farm this spring. I'm a farmer and I'm proud of it.

Believe it or not Spring is here

It may not seem like it, but Spring is here. It's right at the onset where not many people even realize it. The ones that do are usually gardeners. The earth is being released from it's grip of ice and snow and life is returning. This weekend it is approximately 8 weeks until the average last frost date in my region. This means "Oh My Goodness it's seed starting time!"
So far I have 17 flats of seeds sowed which include yellow onions, red onions and my favorite Italian onion Cipollinis, leeks, rosemary, purple and green asparagus plus flowers of Heliotrope, Snapdragons, Painted tongue and more. Need the flowers to help the bees and also they are gorgeous!

Flower seedlings 

Onion seedlings

Tomorrow and the next few days I'll be starting my peppers, eggplant, kale, collards, cabbage, broccoli, tomoatoes (over 15 varieties!), plus thyme, lavender, pansies and calendula.
The smell of damp earth has been heaven.
The opposite side to all these smiles has been finding the right locations for all these seed trays. Nearly all of them want something different. Some want light, others complete darkness, warm temperatures, cool soil. Each a combination. However the main problem I was faced with was not having a usable greenhouse. More specifically I have one, it's just not assembled. It's a gardener's dream 20x48 foot greenhouse which is currently up in the barn in pieces. It was back ordered until December and that's when the winter storms hit.
So I decided to build a little one which is still larger then other ones I've seen. 8x8ft with a slope roof 6ft in the front and 8ft in the back. It's now ready!

 Greenhouse framing

Plastic is on!

Main work counter

Front shelf

My little seeds are sprouting all over the house and yesterday I was very happy to make the seemingly unending trips taking them up to the greenhouse. What a workout! Unfortunately, Paul called about noon to talk me into bringing them all back down to the house that evening. He was worried about the storm coming that night and wanted to make sure the greenhouse would survive the wind. Fine. I agreed, better to be safe then sorry. The kids have been awesome being my doormen.
Thankfully the greenhouse has survived! It warmed up to 11 degrees Celcius yesterday with complete cloud cover. The ground inside is defrosting. I've moved some black water basins in which will help moderate the temperatures. Exciting! I'll take all the flats back up tomorrow morning. As more seeds are sowed we'll be installing more and more shelves. I'll keep you posted :)