John Fisher gave a presentation at the annual Grazer's Conference in Lancaster last week. I thought I'd share it with you here. If you don't know him and his brother Alvin Fisher, this will give you a good idea about what they have been up to the last 2 1/2 decades.
We had a break in the weather this week which melted the snow. The creek waters rose, the animals nibbled on some new sprouting greens, and we enjoyed the tease of Spring. I’m happy to report that of the two downed milk cows from the brutal cold last month, one of them, Dilly, we were able to get back on her feet with physical therapy and massage and save her life.
Two cows went down. One did not make it. We are trying to nurse the other back. Besides the regular milking, bottling, feeding, and making butter, the daily routine now includes feeding the animals behind wind breaks, breaking ice in watering troughs, bringing many into the shelters, especially the sheep whose lambs are more susceptible to predators at nighttime.
As we finally shift to Autumn after this long dry Summer, we want to bring your attention to our slow-cooked hearty meat dishes. Stock up on our Soup Bones, Marrow Bones, Osso Bucco Bones, Chicken Broth, Beef Broth, Turkey Broth, Beef Cubes (aka Stew Beef), and Roasts for warm, rich soups and stews.
Here at Burke’s Garden, we received 12 inches of rain in 2 days. Our power is still out and cell service just came back on line. Here at the farm, we have been juggling cleaning up fallen trees on sheds, roads, power lines, drying out household items from the flood waters, and keeping the animals from escaping through broken fences, rotating them to new pastures, and fed.
This Summer has been our busiest Summer yet. Typically, Summer slows down for us to make hay and than picks back up in the Fall. Not this year. You have keep us busy as beavers keeping up with all your orders of our Grass Fed and Pasture-Raised Meats and our Raw A2/A2 Cheeses.
100 hundred years ago, there was no such thing as organic because most all farms and food were organic. It wasn’t until World War II when experiments with industrial fertilizers and GMO-foods hit the scene to “feed our troops”.
Hay Season Begins! We dusted off all of the equipment, sharpened the blades, and harnessed up the horses. This week we cut, raked, and baled our first test run of haylage. The grass is ready and we are too. Last year we produced about 1000 bales from June to August. We are hoping to produce 1500 this year.
Here at Burke’s Garden Farm we raise some the healthiest sheep, and thus, lamb meats in the USA. Sheep thrive on 100% pasture grasses and hay. Sheep also consume plants, such as noxious weeds, that most other animals will not touch. This means that sheep are an integral component of an all grass-fed rotational grazing ecosystem along with other livestock.
I spent this morning leisurely walking the property and basking in the beauty of where we live and where our livestock graze and grow your grass fed food. Not everyone gets an opportunity to experience this majestic land first hand, so I’m bringing you with me in photos. Scroll slowly through these pictures, take a deep breathe, smell and listen to each one, and really drink from Nature’s full cup of glory.
As the weather sways back and forth from Spring back to Winter and back to Spring again, we are beginning to feel life preparing to POP!! Daffodils Bloom. Tree buds express. Grass is beginning to grow. Baby animals are being born. On the farm, it’s time to wrap up all final winter fence and water system repair projects, test out the equipment and get ready for the next 6 months of rotational grazing and hay making.
I was having a difficult time getting excited about Spring. Even with the pure white Dogwoods, the Eastern Redbuds bursting along the highway, the Daffodils and Forsythia blossoming and bedazzling, the baaa-ing new baby lambs, and the pasture so ready to burst with new life, I still was feeling dull and depressed. Here at Burke’s Garden, we buried several of our good friends and members of our farm family.
