What IS It About Goats?

I unlatched the outside door to the goats' stall and what did I see?  

This!

The two of them had stuck their heads under their inside door and were stuck fast.

I walked around to the inside door and they looked at me and bleated.   

If you'll remember, a few months ago, while tapping maple trees I came off the mountain to this: 

Rosie and Violet got off easy.  I just had to open the stall door.  But I ask, 

"What IS it about goats and getting their heads stuck?"

“A herd of goats is just like a bulldozer.”

~ Christine Genevier

via Quotesdaddy.com

Be sure to catch my previous post about catching up on the farm!

Catch Up Time!

It was recently pointed out to me that I haven't blogged in awhile.  July has been a crazy busy month and I thought I'd give you a review of what's going on.  

The goats have grown up and have become much more people friendly.  

They get out everyday to get some fresh grass and weeds.  I had hoped they would help keep weeds at bay, but they don't eat enough!

Fern, the pig is growing up fast!  This weekend she will go to her new home as a breeding gilt.  

We're working on new fencing for the pigs.  We want to do some rotational grazing and we need to separate Tigger and our gilt and sow until we're ready to breed them.  

Tigger eats heartily.  

The bees are VERY hard working.  I hope to pull some honey soon!

Our Bourbon Red Turkeys let us down.  I hoped that the 20 eggs they sat upon would hatch, but after waiting much longer than the gestation period for turkey eggs I had to "test" one (break it open).  Blecch!  Not a good smell!  All the eggs had simply gone rotten.  The turkeys will get moved to their outdoor enclosure and maybe they'll have better luck out there!

The high tunnel is growing by leaps and bounds.  I'm in processing of vegetables mode and having a hard time keeping up!

Zucchini flowers.

Trellised cucumbers, cantaloupe, and watermelons.

Ripening cantaloupe

Ripening watermelon.

Green peppers

Green tomatoes.

Cucumbers.

Green beans.

Yellow beans.

Mmmm. Strawberries!

Ripening raspberries.

The blueberries are almost ready.  Now if I can keep the Japanese beetles away from them!

Not a drop of Roundup has been used in this garden.  And this brings me to the garden fails.  The weeds have taken over my outside garden.  I hope to get to them.

The corn is gamely trying to grow through the weeds.

As well as the sunflowers.  

Beautiful tiger lilies. 

Weeds even get into them!

And the grass always needs to be mowed.  If I had a flat, square yard to mow it would be an easy task. But there are so many nook and crannies to our farmette!

The cute little puffball chicks have grown up and spend their time with the big chickens now.  They've joined the daily chicken explosion.

Time; for me to get to work!  I hope you enjoyed this quick catchup of life at Fitzgerald's Family Farm!

Bear Damage?

This is a heart stopping sight to come upon in the morning. 

Of course its one of our best hives. 

I thought a bear had come in and tried to get into the hives.  But after looking at it, I found the 2 x 10 that the hives had been sitting on had given way and the hives tipped over.  The bees didn't seem too upset about their world being turned on its side and we pretty easily got them back upright.  

But it still made me nervous about bears.  So the electric fence is well charged and we put in place our summertime motion detector.  Its a driveway alarm and we put the receiver end in our bedroom to turn on at night.  So far the only thing we've had a problem with is an opossum.

The rest of the home hives (these hives are at our house) are doing well.

Why is it, that no matter how nice the front entrance to the hive may be, the bees will use a little hole in the back if its available?

The summer garden is coming on nicely now.  We've had garlic scapes, basil, summer squash, and cucumbers, so far.  

I'm off to the new bi-monthly Farmers Market at the Charles Cole Memorial Hospital by the gift shop!