Springtime is an exciting time! The weather starts to warm up, the sun spends more time in the sky and the overall mood seems to be lifted in the air.
It is also a busy time on our farm.
We are planting seeds.
We are hoping to have a larger garden and expand into a flower market this year (if the plants are cooperative). In order to give the seeds a jumpstart, we started using heating mats. In the past, I simply kept the seeds in the main living areas of the house where it is warmer but decided that I didn't want our living areas to be overrun with projects. By moving the seed starts to the basement, it is a cooler temperature that necessitated the heat mats. I discovered that the heating mats were quite helpful in providing the desired environment for germination.
I purchased these from Amazon and was so happy with the results that I ordered several more! The plastic in these trays is stronger and thicker than other trays that I have used in the past.
Seed Starter Kit with Heating Mat
We welcomed a group of baby bunnies.
Patty delivered a litter of seven kits. They are a mixture of colors and are beautiful.
At first, Patty was showing herself to be a good mother by keeping them warm and well fed (they are fat little things!). She must have been needing more nutrition in her diet because she began cannibalizing the bunnies. We lost one of the babies but were able to save the others. We removed the bunnies temporarily while we treated the wounds. We provided Patty raw bacon in the food bowl for several days. She ate the bacon and hasn't shown any further aggressive tendencies towards her babies. She is actually become quite protective over them since she didn't appreciate having them removed while we were treating their wounds. We are keeping a close eye on her and the bunnies for signs of any further issues.
We are on baby watch for Bessie.
Bessie is our black Jersey heifer. She was a Valentine's Day present to me from the hubby. We have been spending this time getting to know each other and training her to our routines. She still doesn't like having a rope tied to her collar, but she is becoming easier to lead to and from the pasture.
The hubby built a milking stanchion. We are practicing the milking routine every morning. We feed her a treat in the stanchion and then proceed to brush her down. She is becoming very comfortable with this process. We hope that by working with her before she delivers the calf that she will be more agreeable to her role as our family milk cow when the time arrives.
We hatched another batch of baby chicks.
If you have an incubator and a supply of fertilized eggs, it only stands to reason that you will continuously try to hatch out chicks. Our first batch resulted in fifteen healthy chicks that have been integrated into our larger flock.
The second batch resulted in nine chicks that are currently residing in our brooder. We do not separate the various breeds in our flock, so these chicks are turning out to be what is called a barnyard mix. They are producing some beautiful colorings, and we are hopeful that they will be great additions to our farm.
We currently set up another batch of eggs in the incubator. Our son is developing another SAE project with FFA and plans to market and sell his chicks. He has very little financial input into this project as the incubator was a gift and the eggs are being given to him from us with the understanding that any chicks that do not sell become the property of the farm. We are hoping that it will be a successful venture for him!
If you are interested in the incubator that we use, here is a link: Manna Pro Harris Farms Incubator
Elvis is working hard to breed our Nigerian Dwarf goats.
We borrowed the services of a buck. His name is Elvis due to his wonderful hairdo.
He appears to be doing his job in breeding our does. We are marking our calendar in anticipation of possible baby goats later this year.
Things are starting to warm up around here, but we are trying really hard not to start our outdoor work too early. We can always be surprised with another cold snap!
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