Greenhorn Radio

At this year's Southern SAWG conference in Little Rock, I had the pleasure and good fortune of meeting Severine von Tscharner Flemming. Severine is an agriculturalist, activist and organizer based in the Hudson Valley, NY. She is the director and chief logistician of the Greenhorns project, which is a small, land-based non profit for young farmers.

Severine recently invited me onto her radio show, Greenhorn Radio, which is radio for young farmers by young farmers, and includes a weekly phone interview session surveying America's cutting edge, under-forty farmers.

Listen to the show here, and check out the Greenhorns here.

Ecotone Pork in Competition

In late January, executive chef at Miel Restaurant, David Maxwell, cooked with Ecotone pork in the Tennessee Pork Producers Taste of Elegance 2012 Dinner.  We're thrilled that David won 2nd place in the cook-off competition!  Congratulations David!

Here are a few photos of an Ecotone pig at Miel's whole hog dinner, which includes instruction in cutting up a whole hog, dinner with said pork, and wine!  Plus you get to take some home with you!

Spring Lambs

Well, spring is springing, and with it the season's bounties.  Since the first lambing a few weeks ago, we've had five more lambs born on the farm!  There is one ewe still to go, so we could end up with more yet!

Here are some photos of the newest addition - who seems to have abnormally large ears - as well as a paltry shot of the flock as a whole.

Midwinter Spring

Grassroots

Grass clutches at the dark dirt with finger holds.

Let it be blue grass, barley, rye or wheat,

Let it be button weed or butter and eggs,

Let it be Johnny-jump-ups springing clean blue streaks.

Grassroots down under put fingers into dark dirt.

-- Carl Sandburg

First Lamb!

Yesterday we welcomed the first lamb born at Ecotone! Here are a few photos:

Winter Piglets

Well, I awoke yesterday to the forecast of snow and realized it was going to happen. Our Berkshire gilt - Black Betty - was going to farrow. After waiting around for a week and a half, the onset of winter weather was the perfect opportunity to give birth. Sure enough, she failed to show up for breakfast, and we began our final preparations.

With some extra straw and a heat lamp, we let Betty take over from there. Over the course of the day she farrowed five piglets, with four remaining this morning. Though this is a smaller number of piglets than we'd hope for, this is her first farrowing and they do tend to be small. All appear to be happy and healthy, however, and we're proud to announce the first Red Wattle / Berkshire heritage hybrid hogs from Ecotone!

Turkeys Lurking

To start off the new year, we thought we'd post some farm folly highlights from the last.  Highly ranked among these is the fall's turkey burglary.  Jennifer's father, Peter, was in town for a visit, and Jasper and I took him to the farm one nice day for a visit.  Entering through the house, we were greeted by a calm group of turkeys taking in the living room's afternoon sun.  This video says the rest.