Potential for Shake and Catch Harvesting of Hazelnuts Research funded by the Western SARE Farmer/Rancher Grant Program is helping us look at alternative harvesting options for our hazelnuts. Conventionally, hazelnuts are harvested by sweeping them off of the orchard floor every fall. This “sweep harvest” method necessitates keeping orchard floors very flat and free of…
Becca and Ben had the pleasure of learning from Melissa Fery from the OSU Extension service about how to measure the number of tons of forage per acre. She taught us three different methods: “The Plonk Method” – Turns out there is a tool called the aplate meter that you can “plonk” down in various parts…
April Maple flower fritters may be a tradition. When the maple trees bloom, their delicious blossoms can be eaten raw in a salad, or in this case fried in cayenne beer batter and served with pineapple spicy dipping sauce.
Our friends at Humble Bee Honey live down the street. They often keep a number of hives on the farm seasonally. It is always fun to visit with them when they come to take care of their yard. This day they were making new hives. The bees multiply in number and can outgrow their bee boxes. The…
There are multiple benefits to running the pigs through the hazelnuts after harvest. We set up a paddock in the oak trees adjacent to the hazelnut orchard. We are able to keep the pigs in the forest and open up the young orchard to supervised day grazing. One of the main pests for a hazelnut…
Moving pigs a quarter of a mile without fences, a photo diary. Ready to move Following the leader Big corner game Following the pigs ship Down the road without fences Safely in the pond paddock So tired, must veg We half expected to be chasing the pigs around the property the rest of the day, but they…
Before we started farming the property in 2013, the farm had been leased out to a grass seed/annual rye grass farmer. The farm is around 320 acres, so we take back portions of the property as we can manage them. We needed a large grazing animal to help us manage the space and restore soil health. Fortunately the…
Take 1/3, Trample 1/3, Leave 1/3. This is the grazing mantra we try to graze by. Anyone that works with livestock knows this is not a perfect process but some tips for grazing management we try to follow include: Grass is king, protect the crown! “The primary function of the root crown is storage of energy reserves for…
Cover crops can benefit your soil and ultimately your bottom line. We plant cover crops in the pasture, orchards and garden using a no-till drill. Not only do cover crops help correct nutrient deficiencies in the soil, they also make excellent forage for the livestock and mulch for the garden. Cover crops reduce soil erosion, increase…
This weekend some members of the farm team made the trek to the Western Bison Association Stampede Auction Show & Sale in Ogden, UT to bring back a new bull calf. This calf will grow into the head breeding bull in the herd. Every few years we have to mix up our genetics. We run…
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