Around the Farm

Thad and I spent the day in the kitchen yesterday making batches of jam. The peach blueberry jam looked particularly tasty. The blackberry is pretty special too. We plan to be out at the Farmer's Markets soon. The next batches will be garden salsas. All flavors: hot, medium and mild.

Potatoes are in the ground, along with some beets, tomatoes and peppers. I'm shooting for bushels of beets this time. We're going to try our hand at sweet potatoes too. I may have to break some more ground.

The chickens have been pretty consistent layers until the rain set in. I'm not sure whether it's the weather or if it's coincidence. They seems to be happy birds. I've still got my sites on a few more when the right birds shows up. Just looking for a few good hens!  

Historic Garden Tour 2011

Spencer Penn Kitchen is a great place to be starting a cooking related business. Not only is there a kitchen but there are a lot of opportunities to meet the public.

First Time in Vendor Heaven

Tuggle Farms did our first tour as a vendor yesterday during the Garden Club's Historic Garden Tours. Another first, we brought on our first employee. We set up in the Spencer Penn Kitchen and Bob sold jams and jellies while Thad kept the pots boiling and fresh product coming. Thanks to Thad's skill as a cook, Bob was able to answer questions about canning and home preserving while the process never slowed down. We provided free samples of jams, jellies, preserves and salsa. Carrie Denny, the kitchen manager, provided homemade yeast rolls which enhanced the Tuggle Farms goods. How could someone not buy a jar after tasting jelly on a hot buttered yeast roll? All in all, a lot of hard work was involved, but the joy of providing local foods products, loving prepared was plenty of reward. Pictures will follow soon!

Tuggle Farms Catering

We catered our first event last Saturday for a local Health and Wellness Coalition. In celebration of the work they do, Tuggle Farms Catering supplied healthy menu items including Quinoa in the Chicken Casserole and baked 'fried' apple pies. Many thanks to the folks at Spencer-Penn Centre and especially to Carrie Denny for providing such a wonderful venue for a planning retreat.

Chicken News

The two hens that I got last Friday have been producing about an egg a day each.  I'm up to 7 eggs. More than an omelette. Thursday morning will be the grand opening of the first Tuggle Farms' egg.  Time will tell how it will be prepared. It will surely involve Tuggle Farms Salsa on the side.

Big news. Six more hens have joined the ranks. Thanks to Gregory Poultry Farm near Stuart. Three Barred Rock hens, two Silver Laced Wyandottes and one Black Austrolorp have joined the two New Hampshire Reds and the very proud cock bird of undetermined parentage.

The rooster was happy but not so much the hens. The darker red hen, which I think is a New Hampshire Red, just to the left of the pole in the photo, immediately set the new ones in their places by trying to pluck out their neck feathers. She calmed down a bit after fifteen minutes or so.  The new ones would run behind the rooster when she came after them.

I've saved room for two more. I'm looking for two Buff Orpingtons to fill out the harem. So far chickens are fun. But profitable? I figure after about 30 dozen eggs, I'll break even.

Woo Hoo!! An Egg!

Can't believe it. When I went out this morning I only saw one hen. Oh no! But then I noticed the rooster was in one of the nesting boxes. Bless his heart. Trying to lay me an egg. And in another box was the other hen.

The rooster squeezed his big self out of the box and strutted around a bit. The other hen didn't want to get up. But she did and started putting up a big ruckus. Stood at the nesting box opening and fussed big time; Then she came on out. Low and behold there was this beautiful egg. Juevos numero uno! I truly believe she was so irritated at me she popped an egg out. Oh well. I think it's a good omen. Not quite an omelette, but a start.

Bringing home the chickens.

This fellow was quite the handful. Thanks goes to Matthew at Dancing Creek Farms for catching the protesting bird and loading him for me. Once inside the Jeep he quieted down. Everybody loves a Jeep.

Once inside his new home, his first action was to check out the window. Don't think he had ever heard of glass. It must have looked like a way out to him.

The hens are a different story.  She didn't seem to mind me lifting her out of the cage.

After about five minutes, they started exploring and scratching. When I checked on them 2 hours later, they seemed right at home. The chickens have arrived!!