by Jennifer Sartell of Iron Oak Farm A thought occurred to me the other day while at Tractor Supply Company. There are milestones in each of our lives. Learning to tie your shoe, to blow a bubble with bubble gum. Learning to ride a bike or your first car keys. For some of us, the […]

by Jennifer Sartell of Iron Oak Farm A thought occurred to me the other day while at Tractor Supply Company. There are milestones in each of our lives. Learning to tie your shoe, to blow a bubble with bubble gum. Learning to ride a bike or your first car keys. For some of us, the […]

by Jennifer BurckeThe other day I was presented with a chicken keeper’s dilemma.  I was at my local feed store to pick up a bag of OrganicLife feed for my flock.  While the owner rang up my purchase and processed my payment, we took the opportunity to make conversation. That’s nothing new.  I enjoy trading […]

by Wendy EN Thomas of Lessons Learned from the Flock  Apparently I ruffled a few feathers with this post. Let me clarify, baby chicks don’t absolutely need to have roosts in their brooders, chicks raised without roosts in the brooders will still grow up to be well-adjusted chickens. However, roosting is an instinctive behavior and […]

by Wendy EN Thomas of Lessons Learned from the Flock I have to admit, when I was offered eight tiny, baby chicks four years ago, my first response wasn’t, “Oh yay, we’re going to get fresh eggs.” Instead I looked at those small fluffy packages of joy and thought to myself, boy are my six […]

by Meredith ChilsonThe last day of the year. The sun never really shines through the overcast skies, the snow keeps piling up, and evening comes in the afternoon.  It’s the time of year that I dig out my notebooks, reflect on the past few months, and make plans for the next twelve. My journals contain […]

by Meredith Chilson Photos by author Finally.  There are beginning to be a few more eggs in the nest boxes.  The older hens are finishing up their molt—the new feathers are looking lovely, all strong and shiny.  I’ve been adding a bit of protein to their diets in the form of mealworms, and I think […]

Meredith Chilson Photos by author Two days of cooler weather! The early morning sunshine coming down our valley burns off the fog, the humidity is lower and it begins to feel a bit like fall. Children are gathering school supplies and just around the bend in the road, a family is preparing to send their […]

by Meredith Chilson Photos by author “To introduce,” according to my well-thumbed American College Dictionary, means, “to bring to the knowledge or experience of something.” My newest chicks are now 9 weeks old, and in their short life they have been “brought to knowledge” or have experienced many, many things. I was thinking about all […]

by Jennifer Burcke Photos by author I grew up celebrating Independence Day with sparklers and barbecue. I lived in Kansas then and we didn’t really need an excuse to eat barbecue. We viewed a warm weather holiday as an opportunity and seized it. Fourth of July parades and celebrations seemed to be as ubiquitous as […]