Employee of the Month: Cuckoo (again). Cuckoo had been MIA for a while but would come around every once in a while with the attitude of a hungry, broody hen. Cuckoo hatched three baby chicks, strategically hidden in overgrown trumpet vines. Here's a video of the crew in action.
Stay tuned next month for the tale of another mama hen who hatched nine baby chicks in the same trumpet vine!
The greenhouse chickens like to make their rounds about the property but are obedient and respectful of no chicken zones (i.e. the garden). They also do a great job scratching through and eating fly larvae, keeping the fly population down. The hogs enjoy their company, too!
Our moon garden is filling in nicely, and the cats enjoy laying in the cool dirt amidst the sweet smelling flowers. The moon garden is filled with evening bloomers like tobacco, evening primrose and vining moon flowers that smell amazing and feed the night pollinators.
Alpacas are beautiful little divas. Unlike most of our livestock who can eat most produce snacks as is, alpacas need their treats thinly sliced and hand fed. They don’t have top front teeth, just a hard dental pad, so they can’t bite through hard items and easily choke. Dusty loves her zucchini treats while Daisy prefers her stolen dog food.
The vining arches are filling in nicely. Pumpkins, winter squash and beans are winning the race while cucumbers are growing in a little less aggressively. Last year the cukes tasted bitter up until September, but this year they taste exactly as they should. It just goes to show how important it is to have nourished soil and good drainage.
Canning season is here, and so far I've canned dozens of pints and half pints of sweet banana peppers, tomatillo salsa and pickles. I also have a freezer full of pesto, zucchini, cherry tomato sauce and green beans. Up next, tomatoes!
Always fun at KrafftyFarms!
Updated Egg Stand Hours: Friday-Saturday (cash only)
As the seasons change and the chickens slow down their egg production, we reduce our hours of operations.
