April 2010

Apparently the March edition of the Cattle Rattle was never meant to be. Easily in April, I kept thinking it would get done. . . . now, it's the end of the month and time to write April's update. The last two months have been full ones.

At the end of February, the whole family headed to Yankton, SD - just north of the Nebraska border. We went for The Grassfed Exchange. Friday was full of panel discussions, Friday night was a banquet with grass-fed beef and Alan Nation spoke (the editor of The Stockman Grassfarmer and one of our favorites) and Saturday was a cattle sale. Kurt enjoyed the discussions and the girls loved the pool at the hotel - I think we swam 4 times in 2 days! Allison's favorite by far though was the cattle sale. She had tears because we were going to leave early. By the time we finally did leave, she was able to estimate the weight of the cattle within 100 pounds or so - may be a useful skill at some point.

The next weekend found Anna, Kurt and I in Olathe hosting a Tips and Tastes party. Kurt's brother and his family were wonderful hosts and we had a great turnout - don't think I've ever cooked for 34 before! I am continually humbled by our family and friends' willingness to support our young business.

There are several reasons we have been so busy the last few months. One of them has been my involvement with the high school forensics team. In a two week period, I went out 5 times with the kids. They've had a great season and are preparing to go to State Competition this Saturday.

We've also been busy getting the garden going - we're almost done - only pumpkins and watermelons left to plant. This is the first time EVER I've had the garden up and growing before Mother's Day. The girls were so excited yesterday to see a baby head of broccoli - they'll enjoy watching it grow. Now, if I can just keep the goats, the chickens and Anna out!

Speaking of goats, two wethers (named Fizzy and Chicken) have come to live at the farm. They're Allison's 4-H project and Kurt's pasture experiment. Allison has been great with them and can get them to eat out of her hand. I've also been proud of how brave Natalie has been - going in to the pen without an adult. My understanding is that it's not "if goats get out but when." Last night, we had our first goat escape. Kurt and Allison had expanded the goat pen so they would have more room to roam and be able to munch on the young elm trees that are sprouting everywhere. Fizzy decided to check out the hot wire and instead of jumping back, he leaped forward through the wires. Thankfully Kurt and Allison were close and very patient. Getting Fizzy quickly became a family endeavor. Anna finished her supper and didn't fuss. Natalie and I held Yeller - far away from the excitement. He was dying to go help but in his enthusiasm, he probably would have chased Fizzy to town. Allison got Fizzy to follow the can of food until he was safely back in the pen.

Chicks have also shown up on the farm. They're still cute but at almost 2 weeks, they've moved past adorable. We have 100 Rhode Island Reds and 25 Aracuanas in the brooder and expect them to start laying around mid-September - before the others start to molt and quit laying. The layers are pretty hardy and and even the chicks have handled swings in spring temperatures well. We're excited to be selling eggs at the local cafe and hope to double our production in the fall.

Our first broilers are due to arrive the first part of June. We won't have fresh chicken until July but we're pretty sure it will be worth the wait. Turkeys won't be too far behind them.

One more note on the layers. Currently, our layers have taken to laying eggs wherever it seems to be convenient - the dog house, by the mailbox, the mulch pile, by the garden on the ground. . . We will work harder to train this next batch better - we don't enjoy our daily egg hunts!

It is definitely greening up! We've had almost 2 inches of rain over the last week and it's so good to see plants growing. Guess we'll have to start mowing - hmm. . . .am I will to get sheep to take care of that?

The cattle are also enjoying the green grass. It's always fun to watch the calves play and Kurt has excitement trying to tag the new babies. Sometimes the momma cows aren't real interested in letting ANYTHING near their babies. When the girls drive pasture with Kurt, they're often in charge of getting the ear tagger ready. Then, they proceed to cheer for the momma if she gets a little protective - poor Kurt!

The spring flush has also been good for our steers. Kurt recently took 4 steers to the processor - two were over 1400 pounds, one was around 1300 pounds and one was closer to 1100. Contrary to what conventional agriculture may say, cattle can get fat on grass. Kurt calculated their rate of gain somewhere just under 2 pounds per day. We were also very pleased with their hanging weights - 60-65% of the liveweight. this translates to a great deal (more meat) for our customers who are buying quarters/halves. By the way, we have a quarter and a half still available in McPherson and a quarter and a a half available at Minneola. If you (or someone you know) is interested, please contact us ASAP. They will be ready in just a few weeks and we won't have quarters and halves available again until fall.

With all the rain and green around, Kurt decided it was time to clean up a few piles of bush and trees left over from ice storms and the tornado. Not quite all gone but it sure looks better!

Kurt wanted me to share that his parents will both celebrate their 80th birthdays this spring. Both are still very active on the farm!

Several of you already know but the farm has had a facebook page for the last few months. Once or twice a week, we try to share updates. We'd love for you to become a fan!

I almost forgot, quick kid update:

Allison is busy with 4-H and school. Shes looking forward to this summer.

Natalie is almost done with preschool and is very excited about kindergarten round up. She is finishing up gymnastics until summer and is almost ready for their performance.

Anna is truly a little shadow - following her sisters everywhere - sometimes to their chagrin. Maybe by next month , we can share that's she completely potty trained.

Hope you and your families are able to enjoy this great spring weather.

Andi