>The first chicks of 2011 are here!

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It was an exciting day around here yesterday.  We got the first batch of chicks for this season.  They’re all safe and sound in their brooder where it’s a toasty 95 degrees under the lights.  They’ll need that kind of warmth for about the first week, and then we can begin to taper it off.  They’ll need to be in the brooder there it’s safe and warm for about three weeks before they can be moved out to the pasture where they’ll be exposed to the elements.  

>Honey bottling and Winter Greens

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Well there’s lots going on at the farm! I’ve got the first of the broiler chicks coming on april 5th and the preaparations for their brooder are just about complete. Susan’s honey business has been booming lately. Above is a picture of Ed and Samantha bottling in the honey house. You can find it on store shelves at Mustard Seed Market, and most recently Heinen’s. Get in touch if you want more details on getting some off this delicious local honey! Below is a picture inside the high tunnel where some winter growing has been going on. Lots of salad greens, and there’s some kale down there somewhere too! It’s technically spring now so warm weather is almost here. Stay in touch!

>The hens are back in their summer home!

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After 3 long months of being cooped up in the barn for the winter, the hens are finally back on the open range again. Of course they weren’t confined the whole time. I would open up the house for fresh air and leave the door open on warmer days, but when there was snow on the ground they were just not interested in setting foot outside, even if it was above freezing during the day. These hens stay at my parent’s house not at Schmidt Family Farm where I will be raising my meat chickens this year. They have plenty of layers of their own over at Schmidt’s so if your coming to pick up meat birds this summer you should definitely plan on picking up some of their eggs, honey, and vegetables that will be available.

I don’t have much of an update on the organic certification other than the application has been submitted, and all that’s left to do now is wait for inspection. I’m told that may not be until June, but the chickens won’t be ready until then anyways. The pasture that they will be raised on is still under organic certification, just not the livestock production. It’s all in place though, and the first chicks will be here in just 2 weeks!

>Building the Brooder

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This is a picture of the “Ohio Brooder” that I built.  It is so named for the Ohio Experiment Station that came up with the design in the early 1940’s.  designs such as this have been largely forgotten about since the vertical integration of the poultry industry and the demise of the small farm.  It is a simple yet practical design.  Notice that there is a gap of about 4 inches between the floor and the bottom of the brooder, this allows the chicks to run in and out as they need to to stay warm.  Think of it like a big mother hen.  When the chicks are hungry or just want to explore they can leave the brooder to get food or wander, and when the get cold they simply run underneath just as they would run under the wings off their mother.  We don’t need anything fancy like a thermostat because mother nature has built one right into the chicks, and she’s been doing this for a while.