I have to say again how humbled I am by all of the love and support my farm family has shown. You are all Just amazing!
We're getting things ready for the new crop of grow out pigs here at the home farm, they will be Hampshire crosses this round as they do well in an outdoor setting, I looked into some Yorkshires, but the Landrace influence does not lend itself to outdoor production, These Types of hogs have been bred for decades to live indoors in confinement and are too delicate for our pasture based system. The Hampshire cross hogs we are getting this year are from an outdoor breeder of show hogs and will do well in our climate. The Mule foots are just getting ready to farrow and won't be ready until fall. The Red Wattles are being reserved as breeders to help improve the critically small population.
The steers have been ultra sounded and marked for re-checking as they approach Market weight on the irrigated pastures and the lambs are growing well despite late lambing this season due to the weird weather.
Baby Jesse is being weaned and her mama is definitely ready for the brat child to have her own space!
The squash, melons, tomatoes, and peppers are going great guns in the garden and we have some wacky heirlooms for you all to enjoy this season. The lettuces... well they became Dawg Food! The little brat got out and had a wonderful time chomping them up! Darn that Goat anyway! Nan-e is going to kid any day, with Floss, Floretta, and Baby G not far behind. Bill-e will be going to a new home and a replacement Buck is on his way from Kansas. We have registered Boer Goats and percentage Market Goats available.
The mini cattle for our research project are doing well but I can tell already that at least for us, these tiny guys just don't add up as profitable alternative. (they would work great as a family project though!) Their daily gain is about 1.5 lb compared to the Simangus at 3.2 and we won't even mention the dairy cross steers. Big Boned and definitely not designed to forage! They all had to come in and be supplemented and summer isn't even here yet!
Comet, the new guard Llama is AWESOME! He really takes care of his sheep and gets along with Lorenzo who is getting up there in age. Tony still lives with his horses and cows, he is just too pushy for sheep work.
The BC's are all tuning up for the season and Tweed seems content to just work the Granny's on the home farm (at 12 all day in the field is too much for his old bones) Gracie (aka The Land Shark) is solidly working the flocks, and Wallace is our Cow Dog extraordinaire! Cricket, Sweep, and Monk are all going to stock dog boot camp with auntie Robin for the summer so by round up time we'll have a great team! I tell ya, a good horse and good dogs really can do the work of 10 people, without the stress of chasing! Just a step and a look makes those critters turn for the chutes or holding pens. A brace makes moving an entire herd or flock a breeze, and there is nothing more beautiful than well trained dogs working healthy stock.
We'll have 8 steers that look like they will be ready to go by the end of next month so hot season orders shouldn't be a problem. We have tentatively scheduled our branding and gathering party for late October and I will keep you posted. Last year's party was a blast and those of you that came out sure got an education!
Until next time, thank you and see ya at the farm!
Thursday, May 24, 2012
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Good thing they called us first!
As some of you know I am part of a group that offers consults for small startup farms, We received a call from a very nice man wanting to start raising a few calves for finishing and he asked us to come evaluate his pastures before he brought in any livestock. What we found when we got there was a tragedy waiting to happen! He had a toxic Garden on that 5 acres! Oleanders along the fence, Nicotiana(Tree Tobacco) near outbuildings, Locust and Chinaberry trees, Nightshades and Star Thistle in the pasture itself, not to mention salt cedars, ragweed, and Fiddle heads. We showed him how to remove the biggest hazards without the use of poisons and suggested fencing off some of the trees so that the animals could not gain access, He is blessed to be able to irrigate so we gave him a few suggestions about what to plant and how to maintain healthy pasturage year round, Nick Volunteered to go out and plow for him and bring in some well cured mulch from the dairy, NICE!
I'm sure glad that he called us rather than just jumping right in blind! he could have ended up with some very sick animals or worse! Here are some stock photos of some of the toxic species I mentioned, so that those of you considering doing some small scale farming yourselves know what to watch for, some of these plants and trees are beautiful, but your livestock will be just as dead! UC Davis has a very comprehensive list of toxic plants that you can review at your leisure as well.
tree Tobacco 
locust 
nightshade 
ragweed 
Fiddlehead 
salt cedar
Star thistle, there are both yellow and purple varieties.
I'm sure glad that he called us rather than just jumping right in blind! he could have ended up with some very sick animals or worse! Here are some stock photos of some of the toxic species I mentioned, so that those of you considering doing some small scale farming yourselves know what to watch for, some of these plants and trees are beautiful, but your livestock will be just as dead! UC Davis has a very comprehensive list of toxic plants that you can review at your leisure as well.
Friday, May 4, 2012
Well hello!
I just came back to find a surprise in the sheep pasture! A new ram lamb! Mom must have skipped her preg check because he is definitely a surprise!
It has been an odd day that's for sure! Running to the post office to verify that shipments actually went out because there is no on line data, Yep it's all on its way!
I got grilled by the cutest lady in the parking lot about Beef production! Her name is Addie and she used to live on the Vail Ranch when she was a girl and knew my dad! After telling me some neat stories about what he and Mahlon Vail did back in the day she started asking me about the cows. I figured that she was just curious about how things had progressed in the last 40+ years, but Nope! Addie wanted to know how we were breeding, what improvements we had made over the years and if our White faced calves were Hereford or Simmental crosses. (If a breed of cattle does not have the genes for white faces, the offspring will never have a white face) I told her all about our breed-up program and she was delighted and approved! She also wanted to know if I had a horse kind enough for her to ride out with me some time. I better put a few miles on Red! He's a good boy buy I think Miss Addie will definitely expect better manners! (and a 87 years young she has a right to expect them!)
She is coming by the house in a few days with some pictures and I will be sure to share them!
On another front, I've been talking up a storm since completing the Masters of Beef Advocacy course through the checkoff. I am constantly astounded at the disconnect between consumers and producers. People genuinely don't know where, when, why, and how their food, and especially their meat is grown. Some of the biggies are Why Grass finished takes longer than grain finished, What the differences are, and the questions to ask when thinking about buying meats directly from the farmer or rancher. (I'm working on a printer friendly list of questions for folks to use as a guide.) I do think folks are starting to take a keener interest in their food and appreciate the food choices that are out there, but they don't know quite how to get exactly what they are looking for, or more accurately how to ask for it. If a place seems too good to be true, sadly, it usually is.
Farming and ranching aren't always pretty professions, some facets of production can be downright unpleasant in fact, and we need to show our customers both sides of process. The good and the bad, the miracles and the failures. If they only pet the babies and never see the end result, how are they going to know what actually goes into producing meat for the table?
Some of my best stories come from when families come out on custom slaughter days! The kids are asking what every part is and why it looks the way it does, Mom is wringing her hands wondering if she has scarred her kid for life, and many of the big tough dads are hurling behind the barn! The kids are amazing! So curious, and the butcher takes the time to talk to them and explain each step. Our future foodies getting a first hand lesson in where their food comes from. Just remember, Keep it real, do it right, be humble and beyond reproach, practice transparency and folks still may not like what we do, but they have to respect it!
It has been an odd day that's for sure! Running to the post office to verify that shipments actually went out because there is no on line data, Yep it's all on its way!
I got grilled by the cutest lady in the parking lot about Beef production! Her name is Addie and she used to live on the Vail Ranch when she was a girl and knew my dad! After telling me some neat stories about what he and Mahlon Vail did back in the day she started asking me about the cows. I figured that she was just curious about how things had progressed in the last 40+ years, but Nope! Addie wanted to know how we were breeding, what improvements we had made over the years and if our White faced calves were Hereford or Simmental crosses. (If a breed of cattle does not have the genes for white faces, the offspring will never have a white face) I told her all about our breed-up program and she was delighted and approved! She also wanted to know if I had a horse kind enough for her to ride out with me some time. I better put a few miles on Red! He's a good boy buy I think Miss Addie will definitely expect better manners! (and a 87 years young she has a right to expect them!)
She is coming by the house in a few days with some pictures and I will be sure to share them!
On another front, I've been talking up a storm since completing the Masters of Beef Advocacy course through the checkoff. I am constantly astounded at the disconnect between consumers and producers. People genuinely don't know where, when, why, and how their food, and especially their meat is grown. Some of the biggies are Why Grass finished takes longer than grain finished, What the differences are, and the questions to ask when thinking about buying meats directly from the farmer or rancher. (I'm working on a printer friendly list of questions for folks to use as a guide.) I do think folks are starting to take a keener interest in their food and appreciate the food choices that are out there, but they don't know quite how to get exactly what they are looking for, or more accurately how to ask for it. If a place seems too good to be true, sadly, it usually is.
Farming and ranching aren't always pretty professions, some facets of production can be downright unpleasant in fact, and we need to show our customers both sides of process. The good and the bad, the miracles and the failures. If they only pet the babies and never see the end result, how are they going to know what actually goes into producing meat for the table?
Some of my best stories come from when families come out on custom slaughter days! The kids are asking what every part is and why it looks the way it does, Mom is wringing her hands wondering if she has scarred her kid for life, and many of the big tough dads are hurling behind the barn! The kids are amazing! So curious, and the butcher takes the time to talk to them and explain each step. Our future foodies getting a first hand lesson in where their food comes from. Just remember, Keep it real, do it right, be humble and beyond reproach, practice transparency and folks still may not like what we do, but they have to respect it!
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Farm work day recipe.
When folks come to help out on a scheduled work day here at the home place we like to feed them! As many of you know I follow a Primal lifestyle and have dropped over 200 lbs doing so. So here is one of my favorite Easy, crowd pleasing, guilt free recipes for a work day or any large gathering. (serves 10-12)
Most of my recipe's are geared for a dutch ovens hung over a fire pit but can easily be adapted for stovetop or the oven.
Beef Burgundy
6lb stew beef or Ox tails (Grass fed and Finished if possible)
3 lg onions roughly chopped
3 cloves Fresh garlic Minced
4lb crimini or button mushrooms. (small ones may be left whole, cut larger ones in half or quarters)
1/4 C. Organic, no soy, Steak sauce
1/4 C. Brown Sugar (may be omitted)
2T pepper
1t. dry mustard
2C water
1 750ml bottle GOOD red wide. (if you wouldn't drink it DON"T cook with it!)
1/2 C. Almond or Yucca flour.
Place a heavy stock pot or dutch oven over the heat source and while it is heating dust the meat with the flour.
add to your pot in batches and brown the meat. You aren't cooking it through, just browning the outside of each piece.
Remove the meat from the pot and set aside.
Put everything except the mushrooms into the pot and bring to a slow simmer. Add in the beef, cover and let cook for 2-2 1/2 hours. Add in the mushrooms and simmer an additional 2 hours. remove from heat and let sit covered 20 minutes, Serve.
I serve this over Cauliflower when it is in season or Sun Chokes. Potatoes work really well for those of you not following a Primal lifestyle.
A nice Spinach or mixed green salad with a good Olive oil and Balsamic vinegar dressing is a great side for this dish.
Enjoy!
Most of my recipe's are geared for a dutch ovens hung over a fire pit but can easily be adapted for stovetop or the oven.
Beef Burgundy
6lb stew beef or Ox tails (Grass fed and Finished if possible)
3 lg onions roughly chopped
3 cloves Fresh garlic Minced
4lb crimini or button mushrooms. (small ones may be left whole, cut larger ones in half or quarters)
1/4 C. Organic, no soy, Steak sauce
1/4 C. Brown Sugar (may be omitted)
2T pepper
1t. dry mustard
2C water
1 750ml bottle GOOD red wide. (if you wouldn't drink it DON"T cook with it!)
1/2 C. Almond or Yucca flour.
Place a heavy stock pot or dutch oven over the heat source and while it is heating dust the meat with the flour.
add to your pot in batches and brown the meat. You aren't cooking it through, just browning the outside of each piece.
Remove the meat from the pot and set aside.
Put everything except the mushrooms into the pot and bring to a slow simmer. Add in the beef, cover and let cook for 2-2 1/2 hours. Add in the mushrooms and simmer an additional 2 hours. remove from heat and let sit covered 20 minutes, Serve.
I serve this over Cauliflower when it is in season or Sun Chokes. Potatoes work really well for those of you not following a Primal lifestyle.
A nice Spinach or mixed green salad with a good Olive oil and Balsamic vinegar dressing is a great side for this dish.
Enjoy!
Monday, April 23, 2012
Streamlining is a lot of work!
We have implemented a CSA and some new membership options like buying in for a whole year, Holiday meats , exotics and the like. And I can't spread things out like we once did. We have had to really streamline and try to get on a set schedule. This has been my biggest shortcoming from the start. I raise great animals, can run the day to day operation like a well oiled machine, but delivery schedules with a good time buffer seem to escape me. Thanks to Tim and Christina I am learning how to be as efficient off farm as I am on farm. I am so grateful for these great teachers!
Our research project is half funded and we have a way for you to donate in place. I am looking forward to doing a peer reviewed study of the benefits of Grass fed production over confinement raising. With scientific data to back everything up rather than the pseudo science and Celebrity tie ins we see so much of. My heroes come from the real world, with hard work and verifiable knowledge to back the claims that they make. I like that my customers can see what we do, and can ask questions without being worried that we will avoid answering or ignore their concerns. Now if I can just get the deliveries on time I will be Golden!
Our research project is half funded and we have a way for you to donate in place. I am looking forward to doing a peer reviewed study of the benefits of Grass fed production over confinement raising. With scientific data to back everything up rather than the pseudo science and Celebrity tie ins we see so much of. My heroes come from the real world, with hard work and verifiable knowledge to back the claims that they make. I like that my customers can see what we do, and can ask questions without being worried that we will avoid answering or ignore their concerns. Now if I can just get the deliveries on time I will be Golden!
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Garden Finally going in!
The weather has been so darn crazy that we are just now getting plants in the ground. (plus we had to wait until the last hog was ready before we could till) heirloom tomatoes, squashes, old varieties of sweet corn, pole beans and a bunch of wild and wonderful new things we've never tried before. the U-pick garden will be a lot of fun for members this year! Lemon cukes and ghost eggplant, peppers, and of course our almost famous chiles! yes Aaron there will be pequine's!
The salad bowls are sprouting and we have decided to do some hanging baskets for our apartment dwelling members! we have berries in the Pallet gardens, and tubers where the hogs will go this fall! The herb garden is sprouting and I can't wait! My bay tree made it through the winter so dried bay leaves will be available this season! YAY! We also planted the Hugelkulture mound and will see if it really is as amazing as we hope! I will list everything we will have to offer as soon as I know what made it!
I am so proud of our farm family! Many of you are planting at least some of your own food this season and that is AWESOME! Now for some livestock news!
Lambing and calving are done for the season and the shearer was here last week so that's done too! Pigs are secured for next month and we will have 8 to grow out in addition to those Paul raises for us.
The hens are laying and we will have broiler chickens ready to butcher in a few weeks, Who wants to help? Ray will be giving a class so it will be a great learning experience for those that want to participate. Turkey Poults will arrive any time now and with 75 spoken for we will only have a few extra for those of you that didn't pre-order.
We are half way to having the matching funds for our cattle comparison project and we have found a way to make it easy for you to donate if you wish, so watch for the link in the next week or so.
We have also been working our way through a TON of red tape to set up shipping to Hawaii and I think we have finally got all of the ducks in a row! Sheesh was that ever stressful!
I apologize for being lax on the blog but time should allow for more frequent posting soon! thank you all for your love and continued support! without all of you, we wouldn't be here!
The salad bowls are sprouting and we have decided to do some hanging baskets for our apartment dwelling members! we have berries in the Pallet gardens, and tubers where the hogs will go this fall! The herb garden is sprouting and I can't wait! My bay tree made it through the winter so dried bay leaves will be available this season! YAY! We also planted the Hugelkulture mound and will see if it really is as amazing as we hope! I will list everything we will have to offer as soon as I know what made it!
I am so proud of our farm family! Many of you are planting at least some of your own food this season and that is AWESOME! Now for some livestock news!
Lambing and calving are done for the season and the shearer was here last week so that's done too! Pigs are secured for next month and we will have 8 to grow out in addition to those Paul raises for us.
The hens are laying and we will have broiler chickens ready to butcher in a few weeks, Who wants to help? Ray will be giving a class so it will be a great learning experience for those that want to participate. Turkey Poults will arrive any time now and with 75 spoken for we will only have a few extra for those of you that didn't pre-order.
We are half way to having the matching funds for our cattle comparison project and we have found a way to make it easy for you to donate if you wish, so watch for the link in the next week or so.
We have also been working our way through a TON of red tape to set up shipping to Hawaii and I think we have finally got all of the ducks in a row! Sheesh was that ever stressful!
I apologize for being lax on the blog but time should allow for more frequent posting soon! thank you all for your love and continued support! without all of you, we wouldn't be here!
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
A Producers Perspective
MY FARM IS BETTER THAN THEIRS!
Sorry friend you aren't any better, just different. And we NEED to EMBRACE those differences rather than paint our competition as UGLY and Uncaring. I've wanted to address this for quite a while and finally decided to do just that.
We are primarily a Cow/calf operation which means that we breed cattle for sale at weaning to finishing or backgrounding operations. We hold back a percentage of our calf crop to finish out on grass for our customers that choose to enjoy grass fed and finished beef.
I get asked pretty regularly how come we sell the rest, the reason is simple. We need to keep the ranches going and don't want to over graze our pastures. Pastures are living ecosystems that require care and attention. You have to know when to turn cattle on to a given pasture, how many head and how long that land can carry those cows without a negative impact, and when to rotate the animals off of that piece of ground. It is a much a science as feeding cattle in pens. Just with a different methodology. We have the forage analyzed, as well as the soil and water, to make sure it is suitable for the herds at any given time. Anyone can pull a cow out of the scrub and call it grass fed. But that doesn't mean it's going to taste good! Finishing is an art, and thanks to sound scientific technology, some of the guesswork has been taken out of the equation. Ultrasounding has really revolutionized our operation. allowing us to be certain that an animal is ready for slaughter rather than guessing that it might be ready because it looks good on the outside. We can determine the amount of backfat that animal is carrying and therefore get higher premiums because that animal will actually Grade.
Most grassfed beef is what is referred to as NO Roll because it won't make grade and ranchers don't want to pay for a lower grade score when they can bank on the Grassfed and finished moniker and still make money, The First time!
Repeat business is reliant on a consistently superior product, and what better way to ensure quality than by being able to grade choice on grass? I see farms touting their feeding methods, playing to emotions and outright making things up to sell products. It might get you that initial sale but folks aren't going to come back if they aren't getting what they like. Both Large and small operations need to stop trying to pull the wool over people's eyes and tell it like it is.
One of my favorite small farms is owned by my friend Jan, she raises Heritage breeds and doesn't claim that they are better than anything else, She calls them what they are! Living Antiques, I like that! Because that is what they are, and yes they need to be preserved and what better way to do that than offer them for the table.
When her animals win an award or get special recognition she lists the show, shows pictures etc. every step of production is open to inspection. We do the same and it is important! People need to see what the results of our growing practices are. I wish there were more than a few market classes to showcase Grassfed Beef and Lamb. I think that people would enjoy seeing this and it could only help the industry as a whole.
Right now we have 2 bulls on the Show circuit and they could never compete as purely grass fed animals. Classes are divided by age as well as weight and a grassfed animal at a year old could never be as well finished as a grain fed animal of the same age. The same goes for junior Bulls and replacement heifers. I do think that it could even out for Senior Bulls though.
For those of you interested in what it takes to fit an animal for the show ring, I'll explain that in another post.
Sorry friend you aren't any better, just different. And we NEED to EMBRACE those differences rather than paint our competition as UGLY and Uncaring. I've wanted to address this for quite a while and finally decided to do just that.
We are primarily a Cow/calf operation which means that we breed cattle for sale at weaning to finishing or backgrounding operations. We hold back a percentage of our calf crop to finish out on grass for our customers that choose to enjoy grass fed and finished beef.
I get asked pretty regularly how come we sell the rest, the reason is simple. We need to keep the ranches going and don't want to over graze our pastures. Pastures are living ecosystems that require care and attention. You have to know when to turn cattle on to a given pasture, how many head and how long that land can carry those cows without a negative impact, and when to rotate the animals off of that piece of ground. It is a much a science as feeding cattle in pens. Just with a different methodology. We have the forage analyzed, as well as the soil and water, to make sure it is suitable for the herds at any given time. Anyone can pull a cow out of the scrub and call it grass fed. But that doesn't mean it's going to taste good! Finishing is an art, and thanks to sound scientific technology, some of the guesswork has been taken out of the equation. Ultrasounding has really revolutionized our operation. allowing us to be certain that an animal is ready for slaughter rather than guessing that it might be ready because it looks good on the outside. We can determine the amount of backfat that animal is carrying and therefore get higher premiums because that animal will actually Grade.
Most grassfed beef is what is referred to as NO Roll because it won't make grade and ranchers don't want to pay for a lower grade score when they can bank on the Grassfed and finished moniker and still make money, The First time!
Repeat business is reliant on a consistently superior product, and what better way to ensure quality than by being able to grade choice on grass? I see farms touting their feeding methods, playing to emotions and outright making things up to sell products. It might get you that initial sale but folks aren't going to come back if they aren't getting what they like. Both Large and small operations need to stop trying to pull the wool over people's eyes and tell it like it is.
One of my favorite small farms is owned by my friend Jan, she raises Heritage breeds and doesn't claim that they are better than anything else, She calls them what they are! Living Antiques, I like that! Because that is what they are, and yes they need to be preserved and what better way to do that than offer them for the table.
When her animals win an award or get special recognition she lists the show, shows pictures etc. every step of production is open to inspection. We do the same and it is important! People need to see what the results of our growing practices are. I wish there were more than a few market classes to showcase Grassfed Beef and Lamb. I think that people would enjoy seeing this and it could only help the industry as a whole.
Right now we have 2 bulls on the Show circuit and they could never compete as purely grass fed animals. Classes are divided by age as well as weight and a grassfed animal at a year old could never be as well finished as a grain fed animal of the same age. The same goes for junior Bulls and replacement heifers. I do think that it could even out for Senior Bulls though.
For those of you interested in what it takes to fit an animal for the show ring, I'll explain that in another post.
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