“Spring is the time of plans and projects.”
- Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina
As we all welcome the return of warm weather, sunny days, and green grass, the Thankful Harvest farm is in full spring mode.
Fields and gardens are being prepped for crops and plants, projects that were paused for the winter are starting back up, and most importantly (and cutest), baby farm animals are being born each day.
Join us for a virtual tour of the farm to meet these baby animals and see what else we’re up to!
Calves
Starting around mid-March, we begin to see calves run alongside their mothers as we move them from one pasture to another. These Angus/Devon cross calves are enjoying their freedom in our green pastures.
Lambs
To many, lambs bring to mind images of springtime and Easter. It’s fitting that a couple weeks ago, right before Easter, our crossbred Katadhin/Dorper ewes started lambing. Currently we’re up to 14 lambs, with singles, twins, and even one set of triplets!
Chicks and Chickens
Broiler chicks arrived about a week ago and probably rival the lambs for the most iconic springtime animal on the farm. Currently the chicks are running on their tiny legs inside, but once they’re a bit bigger, they’ll move outside to be able to run in the grass and eat insects, grass, and seeds alike.
Our laying hens are enjoying their free reign outside following being inside during the winter and like finding new spots in which to hide their eggs and keep egg gathering interesting.
Kittens
Walk anywhere around our farm place during the spring and you’re sure to spy a kitten or two chasing after its mother. As we go from building to building doing chores, most get used to human contact and would probably let you hold them after a short game of tag.
Sage
While not a baby herself, Sage, our resident farm dog, enjoys springtime just as much as the other animals, if not more. You can find her helping with the cattle and sheep, trying to herd chickens and cats, and generally getting into mischief. She can also be found close behind the heels of whoever is currently outside working on chores.
Fields and Pastures
As we move into spring, we have been getting our fields ready for crops, including small grains. We have also been working on improving our fencing to better facilitate our rotational grazing practices.
Adding small grains into our crop rotation allow us to grow our own poultry feeds while improving the biodiversity of our farm through the addition of oats, wheat, flax, field peas, barley, and more new crops, interseeded with alfalfa and clover between the rows.
What’s your favorite part of spring?
