Innehållsförteckning för July/Auust 2019 från Hobby Farms

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced the results of the 2017 Census of Agriculture in April. The census spans “some 6.4 million new points of information about America’s farms and ranches and those who operate them,” the USDA says. The census was first conducted in 1840 and every four to five years after that until 1982, when it officially went to every five years. It accounts for all U.S. farms, ranches and farmers from a nationwide standpoint — as well as state and county level information — where at least $1,000 of growing fruit or vegetables, or raising some food animals, takes place. More than one-third of the farms surveyed reported sales of less than $2,500. The USDA counted 2,042,200 farms — 3.2 percent fewer than 2012 — and identified…

Tomatoes are arguably the most popular garden crop here in the U.S., but they’re not without their problems. BLOSSOM-END ROT is a physiological disorder that appears as a sunken, dark lesion on the bottom-end (or blossom-end) of the developing fruit. It developes when there is a lack of calcium in the growing fruit. The trouble is not necessarily that the soil is calcium-deficient, but rather that the calcium can’t get into the plant. Calcium comes into a plant with water, and when plants are subjected to dry periods, the calcium can’t move into the fruits where it’s needed for proper growth. The key to staving off this disorder is proper mulching and watering. BLOSSOM/FRUIT DROP might occur from lack of proper pollination or because the plant is stressed. Some plants…

The Harlequin is a new miniature sheep breed gaining popularity in the United States, developed about 35 years ago by Kathleen Sterling of Black Sheep Farm East in Virginia. A careful blend of several breeds was used to establish this one. Most Harleys (as they're called) are born with black and white spots and naturally have no horns. Some might have blue eyes. The fleece of mature Harlequins develops into brown, tan and white and is desired by spinners for its staple length and exceptional quality. Harlequins are a hardy breed and lamb easily, often having multiple lambs over many years. Despite being relatively rare, Harlequins are affordable. Because of their small size and sweet temperament, Harlequins also make great pets. In the show ring, Harlequins recently debuted at the…

Animal welfare is part of being organic, so animals must be treated when they are ill or injured. The USDA has certain standards for treatment, but beyond that, your organic certifier might have additional requirements. “For the most part, when you use medications not on the certified list, that animal is no longer organic, and that goes for a milk cow as well; its milk will never be able to be sold as organic again,” says Jonathan Townsend, D.V.M., Ph.D., the director of extension programs at Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine. “There is a requirement that an animal be treated humanely, and if it needs to go to non-organic therapy then it needs to be done. The animal comes first.”…

If you want additional acres to hay but aren’t necessarily interested in purchasing more land, consider working out a deal with a neighboring farm. You might find someone nearby who doesn’t want their older fields abandoned but can no longer care for them. In exchange for restoring the hayfield and performing the haymaking work — cutting, raking, baling — you get the hay crop (or at least part of it). In the right situation, this can benefit both sides, as the landowner can keep the farmland more valuable and looking nice while you get to farm additional acres.…

The Japanese have cultivated shiitake mushrooms on logs for more than 1,000 years. In the beginning, a live Japanese chinquapin tree would be cut down and dragged alongside a standing tree full of wild shiitake mushrooms. “Shii” means oak and “take” means mushrooms in Japanese. Spores from the standing tree would disperse and inoculate the fallen tree. Sometimes this was done when a male child was born so he would benefit from this growing treasure. A horticulturist wrote the first book on shiitake growing in Japan in 1796. So in a global sense it’s not a “cutting edge” crop. But it has always been a highly desirable one. Stories are told in Japan of shiitake wars that started when people stole logs rather than starting their own. But shiitakes have…

State and local health departments reported a record number of cases of tick-borne diseases in 2017, , the most recent year a complete tally was taken, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Cases of Lyme disease, anaplasmosis/ehrlichiosis, spotted fever/rickettsiosis (including Rocky Mountain spotted fever), babesiosis, tularemia and Powassan virus disease increased from a total of 48,610 reported cases in 2016 to 59,349 cases in 2017. Reported cases are a fraction of what’s believed to be out there among humans. The reported cases also do not reflect the burgeoning number of tick-borne illnesses in companion and livestock animals. A recent study by the Companion Animal Parasite Council stated, “The results of this milestone study show increasing risk for Lyme disease in endemic areas and pinpoint regions in…

I love chickens, and not just because they give me eggs. I love watching chickens strut quirkily around the yard, hearing their guttural mutters and caws, feeling the weird, warm body when I reach under a broody hen to retrieve a clutch of eggs. I love standing in a farmhouse window and seeing an alert rooster protecting his group of hens as they forage on the forest’s edge. And I love it when my kids casually stroll by carrying a chicken. (All three have a favorite.) But I can’t say I love broiler chickens, also known as Cornish Crosses, which are, in my mind, different creatures from their egg-laying cousins. I mean, I understand that a chicken is a chicken, and broilers have just been bred to monstrous extremes for…

MEAT SHEEP are breeds that grow quickly and have great carcass qualities. These breeds don’t usually produce exceptional fleeces. Common meat sheep breeds are Suffolk, Babydoll, Hampshire and Dorset. WOOL SHEEP give high-quality fleece reliably. The quality of the fleece is determined by the micron diameter of the fiber, the lanolin percentage and the staple length. Common wool breeds are Merino, Rambouillet and American Cormo. Rare breeds include Harlequins. DAIRY SHEEP breeds include East Friesian, Lacaune and Awassi. You might have a certain ewe of another breed that is a great milk producer; often these more common breeds are used for milk production when a particularly productive ewe is discovered.…

It’s important to avoid eating food from treated animals before the withdrawal interval ends. Otherwise, there is a good chance you’ll consume the medication, which can be unhealthy and even dangerous. As per a study published by the American Journal of Medicine in 2009, 10 percent of the human population is allergic to penicillin. Consuming antibiotics you don’t need can lead to drug resistance. Some drugs might even be toxic. And if you sell meat, milk and eggs, you can be held liable if inspectors find drug residue in your products. There is a broad spectrum of withdrawal intervals for medication in all livestock species. For instance, as per the Food Animal Residue Avoidance Databank, all FDA-approved, correctly administered medications for laying hens have a 0 day egg withdrawal. Penicillin…

Some versions of Google Earth (www.google. com/earth) allow users to view historical aerial imagery of a particular area, sometimes going back a few decades. If the historical images of your property are of high enough quality, this could help you learn where certain large obstacles might lurk. Lost fence lines or junk piles might not be obvious now, but they might be clearly defined in photos from 20 years ago. The historical images can also help you identify the areas of the property that were in use most recently; this might help you decide which fields to restore first.…

Mycologist Tradd Cotter is also a home brewer. The author of Organic Mushroom Farming and Mycoremediation combined his two passions in 1995 by adding dried and powdered shiitake to his beer recipes. He describes his technique in his book. He says that you could add fresh shiitake to your homebrew, but the naturally occurring yeasts and bacteria could stir up some unpleasant flavors. He advises sidestepping this problem by autoclaving the dried and powdered shiitake in a pressure-cooker. He also suggests to “gently roast the powder, browning it just before you add it, to impart a unique flavor.” Cotter sometimes adds the powder to the grain and mash to unlock flavors and bitterness. But he might also add it to the fermentation container along with the hops for complex aromas.…

KEEP ’EM COMING Email us the very best digital images of your small-farm friends to hobbyfarms@hobbyfarms.com, with “Say Cheese!” in the subject line. Include your name and address in the body of the email. We hope to see your photos in an upcoming issue!…

Between weeding, watering, harvesting crops, caring for livestock, repairing equipment and performing sundry other tasks, maintaining a robust presence on Facebook, YouTube or Instagram isn’t exactly top-of-mind for most busy farmers. Even so, Jimmy Myers, owner and operator of Front 9 Farm in Lodi, Ohio, put in a remarkable effort last spring. “It did take a fair amount of time,” he admits. Looking to grow his CSA and increase general awareness, Myers worked with a few talented friends to create an original, three-minute music video, “So Farm Fresh and Clean — A Market Farmer CSA Rap.” “I released it on YouTube last year a little bit into the season,” he says. (View the video from the farm’s website: www.front9farm.com.) To date, he has been thrilled with the results. “Our customers…

The Food Animal Residue Avoidance Databank, commonly called FARAD, is a component of the Food Animal Residue Avoidance and Depletion program. It’s a university-based scientific program that lists recommendations for safe withdrawal intervals. The site also includes recommendations for extra-label withdrawal. If you have a more detailed question, you can contact FARAD for help. www.farad.org Food Animal Residue Avoidance and Depletion Species Page is FARAD’s species-specific sister site with in-depth information about each species, including honeybees and wildlife. It also has information on treatment and withdrawal intervals for organic farms. www.usfarad.org Youth Quality Care of Animals is a national multispecies educational and certification program for ages 8 to 21 that focuses on food safety, animal well-being and character awareness. www.yqca.org…