Thursday, November 19, 2009

Farm Updates

I haven't had much to say about the farm lately because it just seems kind of small to me. However, I have been enjoying having all 5 cows back home on our property. Lizzy is needing to be bred again. Since we don't have a bull, we will have to have her A.I. We will wait until we know for sure what we are doing about moving before we go to the trouble of that.
This is the next cow that will be in the freezer. She is the granddaughter to the cow in the above picture. She is half angus and half scottish highland. She is the product of a bad fence, a naughty cow, and a neighbor's bull. It works for us. We were able to get two calves without owning a bull!
Our chickens are growing nicely. We have still had some predator issues which is extremely frustrating to me. We lock the chickens up in the coop every night. It is the naughty chickens that won't go into the coop at night that is having issues. If we can keep them all safe, we should be enjoying some eggs in early spring. I can't wait. Our family eats at least a dozen eggs a day. On some days, we eat more!
I had a wonderful report concerning our horses recently. They are doing well and the girls have been riding them. I still miss them, but I know that they are happy and healthy. I am sure that until we know for sure if we are moving or staying that we will not be adding any new animals to the farm. It is a quiet season here, but one that I am enjoying.
grace and peace,
julie

5 comments:

mitsy said...

May I ask how many acres you have on your farm? My husband and I have talked at length about having cows once we find our farm - but maybe just a dairy cow and one meat cow. We are excitedly looking into a 6+ acre mini-farm outside the town of Rogersville in Hawkins County - the area seems like a great mix of mountains and farm land. How far away from your farm is this, if you don't mind my asking?

TnFullQuiver said...

scmtgirl,
We have 17 acres. A lot of our land has been wooded. We chose to clear out the pines, which were in bad condition due to pine beetles. We still haven't had the time/money to make pastures out of our cleared land. If we had all of our land in pastures, we could have a lot more cows than just the five. I LOVE Rogersville. It is a quaint little town with beautiful views. The downtown is great. It takes about 45 minutes to get there from our home. Of course that depends on what area of Rogersville you are going to. Our original farm had 7 acres, and it was plenty for our needs. We had a LARGE garden area and our neighbor had at least 8 of his cows housed there. At the time, we didn't have cows so we allowed him to use it. In return he kept it mowed. We also had 4 pigs and 2 goats while living there. Tennessee is a great state. We don't pay state income taxes, but we do have a slightly larger sales tax than some other states. Our property taxes are MUCH cheaper here than many other places we have lived in the past. Plus, most of the people here are precious. Let me know how it turns out for you!
grace and peace,
julie

Boysaplenty!! said...

I remember the story behind that cow in the second picture. Isn't that the one you almost "returned" to your neighbor??? teeheehee...I can laugh because I could see myself doing the very same thing!!
You really should consider writing a book!

Mountain Mama said...

All of your food accomplishments look incredibly yummy. Tell me again, when is dinner? Don't be shocked if your doorbell rings and there are 10 people standing on your doorstep! :)

I was saddened to read that you may have to leave your farm. On the flip side, I am excited to see what God has in store for your future.

blessings,
ashley

Unknown said...

julie: the same thing happened to pam at boysaplenty only she didn't try to return the calf, hahaha.the fence was no barrier!