Two Blue Boots Goes Apple Picking...AGAIN!

I just can't get enough of the crisp fall air, the sweet crunch, and the visits to a farm.  Apple picking has certainly become my favorite fall pastime.  Today we visited a new orchard (Maplelane Farms in Preston), which grows their apples on a trellis system.  Each row was labelled and each tree was BRIMMING with fresh fruit.  It kind of felt like going to a library that had every book in stock.  We picked 30 pounds of apples (all different varieties) and filled the fridge for winter!  

Now I'm dreaming of warm baked apple recipes...

Farm Tour: Preston Christmas Tree Farm

This morning I visited a second potential farm for purchase: a 50 acre former Christmas tree farm in Preston, CT.  The property was listed for $299 (the same as the Windham Gentleman's Farm), but with 8 times the amount of property and a location closer to Mystic.

Though geographically closer to Mystic, we found that it actually took longer to get to Preston than it did to get to Windham because it is most directly accessible through windy back roads.  The property was located in a pretty farm-filled neighborhood, right down the street from a large dairy farm, a feed supply, and an elementary school.

The house was, well, a disappointment.  I keep telling myself that I'm not buying a house, I'm buying a farm, but it is difficult to make such a large investment in a home I can't see raising a family in.  After being greeted by a large ash tray on the front porch (a major turnoff for me), the small raised ranch was decorated with a cat or two in each room (another major turnoff).  Most of the kitchen was taken up by a large, non-functioning wood stove.  The layout was sort of awkward, as well.  There was only one bathroom in the house, but it was just as large as the master bedroom.  The other bedrooms were downstairs in the not-so-finished basement, which seemed pretty wet.  The house was livable and decent, but not something to get excited about.

I was excited to tour the property.  The satellite images showed that it extended straight back from the main road - small Christmas tree fields lined either side of a farm road and there was a sizable wooded buffer between the neighboring houses (always helpful for maintaining good relations).  As we began to tour the property, it became clear that those images linked from the real estate site were about 10 years old.

There was a well-maintained grass path directly through the property, but it was difficult to see the land on either side because it was so overgrown.  Several large trees were toppled across the road.  As we walked it seemed like a very large portion of the property was a rock ledge (I climbed all the way to the top, but didn't get a better view of anything).  The opposite side of the road seemed to have a pond - the land was extremely soggy and I could hear what sounded like a small stream.  The Christmas Trees (what was left of them, anyway) were very large and overgrown.

There were two small sheds (formerly used for selling trees) and a larger shed (which looked to me just to be a two car garage) on the property as well.  None of the outbuildings were capable of providing animal housing, but they would make for good storage.

All in all, it was voted a dud!  While the property certainly had potential (I think, though it was sort of hard to tell how much usable land there was between the rock ledge and the pond), it would be far too costly and labor intensive at this point (and after that sizable a down payment) to return the property to farmland.  And I'm still recovering from an asthma attack over the cats, which doesn't leave me with warm and fuzzy thoughts of home.  That being said, it was really good to tour another property, meet a great farm real estate agent, and be able to  cross a property off of my "Possibilities" list.

Up next: we're headed back up to Windham to tour two more potential properties!

A present

Even though I was disappointed that I didn't get to see my chickens today (this will be the longest I've been apart from them since they hatched!), I was very excited to meet K for lunch.  He even delivered a present from the chickens - two dozen beautiful, fresh eggs!  My favorite was this tiny tiny egg on the right.  I'm not sure who laid it, but I can't wait to have it for breakfast tomorrow!

Remembering Eragon

Eragon, my first chick hatched from one of my chickens, has been missing for three days.  Saphera, without her chick by her side, has rejoined the flock.  Eragon is nowhere to be found.  While there is a chance that she may turn up somewhere, there's a good chance that she will never be found.  

Remembering Eragon

Saphera sitting on her clutch of 18 eggs behind a broken window and several pieces of tractor equipment in the garage.  She was missing for two weeks before we found her (to our great surprise!).

 

Exactly 21 days after Saphera went missing, the farm crew was working in the garage when I heard a "peep peep peep!" coming from the corner.  The new chick hatched on August 2, 2011, and I became a grandmother!

Saphera was VERY protective of her new chick.  She attacked me when I tried to go anywhere near them, using her newly grown spurs (females can grow spurs in the absence of a rooster for the purpose of self-defense).  After sitting religiously on her nest, I'm sure she was very excited to be able to leave for short periods of time (though we were still keeping our fingers crossed that another chick would hatch).  I spotted them crossing the driveway on the chick's second day of life and threw them an ear of corn, which they both happily ate.  Though most chicks raised in a hatchery aren't fed until 48-72 hours after they are born (they can survive off the yolk, which is why it is possible to ship day-old chicks across the country), he sure seemed hungry!

Being a grandmother caused lots of worry!  I stayed up late one night to paint this "SLOW - CHICKEN CROSSING" sign to warn passing farm vehicles to watch out for the new chick.  I realized shortly after that there was no need, the chick's little legs moved as fast as lightning! 

After a few days without a healthy chick hatching, I removed the rest of the eggs from Saphera's nest, which smelled HORRIBLE.  I cleaned the nest, treated for mites (which were rampant), and hung fly traps (which were almost as bad as the mites).  It was well worth dawning goggles and a face mask and soliciting helpers - armed with snow shovels and rakes for protection from the very protective mother.

I was sure that the new chick was a male.  The yellow legs and yellow splotch on the back of his head were indicators it was a male in the dominique breed (though the chick was a cross, so it wasn't for sure).  There were also increased odds that it was a male...I hadn't been feeling very lucky (keeping a second rooster on the farm would not be possible).  After soliciting name suggestions from everyone I know, I named him Eragon Dayton-Saunders Augustus-Peep.  Eragon, for short.

New chicks grow so quickly, especially with so much love and attention from mom!  At just over a week old, Eragon already had wings and tiny tail feathers peeking through!

At two weeks old, with warm August nights, Eragon and Saphera abandoned their nest and moved outside - sleeping at night in the large forsythia bush near my house.  Under Saphera's watchful eye, Eragon spent most of the day foraging around the yard.  I loved watching him learn how to fly (including onto the garage roof!) and watching him communicate with Saphera through peeps and coos.  It's was amazing to see how strong and capable he was living outdoors, especially compared to the chicks I brooded in my house.

The little guy at one-month old, sporting a fuzzy hairdo while his real feathers begin to grow in.

Saphera and Eragon survived Hurricane Irene outside, but under the cover of the bush.  I was shocked to see them emerge after the storm unharmed.

At eight weeks old, it became clear: Eragon was a GIRL!  She looked just like Saphera and had all of the physical characteristics of a female pullet - straight tail feathers and hardly any comb.  Both of them had begun to eat and spend time with the rest of the flock.

Saphera and Eragon

~~~~~~~

Will Design T-Shirts for Scholarship Money

Let's hope this design is good enough to win a scholarship to the Young Farmers' Conference at Stone Barns this December!

Farm Tour: Windham Gentleman's Farm

This afternoon I went on my first real farm tour - with a real estate and everything.  I had seen this gentleman's farm in a free showcase catalog I picked up at the bank and couldn't stop thinking about it.  I inquired about the property over the internet and an hour later I was on the phone with a real estate agent, making an appointment to view the property just a few short hours later.  It's probably for the best that it happened so quickly, before I could talk myself out of it.

Touring the property was certainly a good exercise in farm searching.  Rather than just driving by or wondering about different things, the real estate agent was able to knowledgeably answer all of our questions and we were able to really explore.  The house is a 1948 saltbox design, but was beautifully maintained with mostly updated features (roof, plumbing, paint, etc).  Hardwood floors, two closets in EVERY room, a screened in sun porch, immaculate basement, and enough windows to be able to see the entire farm at all times - I was pretty impressed.

The farm also had a beautiful chicken coop (plenty of room for all of my girls!), a three-stall horse barn with a large hay loft that even had a heated tack room (perfect for brooding chicks!), a fenced two-acre pasture that looked very well maintained, an old apple orchard (though most of the trees seemed dead, they could easily be replaced), and a very large workshop.

The workshop was originally designed for boat building, but instantly seemed like the perfect space for a classroom - for a cooking school or other educational programs.  It was a building full of potential.

The location of the farm seemed great as well - about 35 minutes from my parents house, close to town, and in a beautiful residential neighborhood that included a few other small farms.  The property was 6 level acres, a size that I feel I could easily maintain by myself but full of potential.  Though I'd never visited Windham before, it seemed like a well maintained town worth researching.

The only challenge, of course, was the price.  While the property is listed under my "budget" at $299,000, I'm still a little unsure about my budget.  It's based solely on what I could afford as a down payment, but that would leave me with $0 in savings and monthly payments that are probably too large to maintain by myself until I really have solid footing.  At 6 acres I worry that I would be setting up more of a large "homestead" rather than a "farm" (in other words, providing the food needs for myself and my family, with little excess to sell).  Income on the farm would need to come through educational programming, which I would love to do, but would take longer to get established.  But, looking briefly at other properties in this part of the state, this gentleman's farm certainly seemed like great value.

All in all, I have lots of thinking to do!  It was exciting to visit a property that I could "potentially" afford that is in perfect condition and essentially ready to go (till the garden, brood the chicks, buy a few piglets and I'm golden!).  It's also clear that I'm still at the beginning of my search and that I can't be allured by the simple path that would give me the infrastructure I would need to start my future, but without a reasonable cushion to start my business.

I'm looking forward to hearing back from the real estate agent tomorrow with more potential properties perhaps a little closer to my parents.  And I'm still researching and pursuing the process of leasing land.  Putting my eggs in many baskets, if you will, which is certainly a lot harder to keep track of.

Farm (and Sea) to Table: The Oyster Club

After a Saturday morning spent doing the usual chores, lunchtime hit and we were feeling awfully fancy.  We decided to head down the hill and visit the newest restaurant in Mystic: The Oyster Club, which just opened this past Wednesday.

I'd been looking forward to the restaurant opening for the past few weeks after documenting the renovations from a garden shop turned french fry bar turned beautifully designed restaurant.  It's a landmark on my daily walk through town.  I fell instantly in love with the philosophy and "Farm and Sea to Table," a commitment to feature locally grown, seasonally harvested produce, meats, and seafood.

And I continued to fall in love the moment I stepped in the door.  The restaurant was pretty much empty (they're still working on spreading the word), but we were greeted by several friendly staff members wearing matching plaid shirts and jeans who seemed genuinely excited to have guests.  They happily held the door open for us while we entered the dining room and marveled at the rustic wood walls and exposed beam ceilings - reminiscent of a beautiful barn.  The tables were also made of beautiful wood and set simply with small vases of locally grown flowers.

The menu was short (featuring only one soup, one salad, one pasta, one burger, a lobster roll, and a few desserts), but everything sounded delicious and was prepared with locally sourced ingredients from some of the lesser-known, smaller farms in the area (something I very much appreciated).  I ordered the burger, which came on a sesame brioche roll with heirloom tomato, mesclun greens, sweet pickles, and jalapeno aioli, with a side of perfectly cooked fries.  Everything was perfectly seasoned,  artfully presented, and entirely enjoyed.

The Oyster Club was definitely a hit with my family!  We can hardly wait to return for dinner and taste even more of the local fare!