The ReFarmery ReView—Feathered on the farm
Long before The ReFarmery came together as an idea, Jon began to raise his own eggs. In our earliest days, a band of roving birds moved freely across what would eventually become the farm; cleaning up some messes and making new ones, sometimes even pulling up freshly planted foods and flowers. Over the years the flock was corralled and contained, and grew in size and diversity until there were dozens of varieties with the occasional duck or guinea hens moving into our motley crew.
In October we received a shipment of chicks to grow the flock. By the new year they had grown strong enough to join the mature birds and seemed happy to move to the coop. They were settling in nicely, but on January 20 disaster struck; Jon went out to put the flock to bed and most of the birds were gone. The loss was devastating; a new shipment of chicks would need both time and feed to grow into laying hens and we had already sold some egg shares for the coming season. As is so often the case, it is our community that has saved us. Farmer Deno at The Natomas Farm had been planning to grow his own egg flock, but instead generously shared a batch of 3 month old chicks, so that our season would not be delayed. We are incredibly grateful to this man who always has our back as a supporter, mentor, and partner in the crazy life that is small-scale farming. Please visit him at Natomas Farmers Market or online to buy his incredible fruits and jams for your own family. The ReFarmery is now back on track for 2022 egg shares and we owe it all to Farmer Deno.
We go forward into the 2022 season with some repairs and additions that should encourage these predators to move along now that their food source has dried up. Holes dug under fences have been tightly filled, reinforcing the perimeter fences themselves. The fencing of the goose run is an additional barrier and creates open space that predators must cross unobserved before they can reach the coop, which boasts its own improvements, like an automatic chicken door and new metal skirting around the base to keep out smaller critters at night.
The completion of the long-planned goose run is a recent success, as well. Jon designed this run into the original plans for the orchard expansion of last winter. It weaves among the young trees and more than triples the space available to the geese for exercise, foraging, and exploration. The run was a natural addition to the farm because the geese love to eat the wild grasses that are an unavoidable part of the land we tend. As they move through the orchard together they feast on the weeds, fertilize as they go, and help clear the land for both fire protection and egg flock security, as mentioned above. These loud (so loud) and smart birds with whom we share our home are loved, and we hope they in turn love their new run.
