Chicken Thistle Farm Coopcast

This week’s updates around the farm and gardens: First batch of broiler chickens moved out to pasture, Pig updates, Turkey updates, The new garden shed, Summer heat in spring and its impact on the gardens and the CSA. This weeks Rumination: Stress of the "uncontrolled" world of farming, How to manage the unexpected and being overwhelmed. This week on Farm U: Moving broilers to the pasture, Getting the chicks comfortable in their new environment, Tips and tricks to making the move to pasture easier and less stressful on the chickens.

This week’s updates around the farm and gardens: CSA started and the veggies look great, More unexpected hot weather, Chicken-scaping the front pasture, Preparing to move the Cornish Cross (Cornish X) out to pasture this year, Weaning piglets, Enjoying strawberries pasture to plate. In the Coopcast Community: A listener with guinea keets, Zach processed his first birds and Chad offers a tip on ice for processing, Someone listened to us and bought a geothermal system! Eddie is looking for tips on getting started. This week on Farm U: The magic in preserving strawberries, General food preservation discussions (Kelli's favorite website for preserving food : )

This week’s updates around the farm and gardens: Piglets getting porked up; getting names and getting weaned, New layer chickens now in coop with the rest of the flock, Cornish X chicks in the brooder had some pecking issues, Managing hurt chickens and turkeys, New brooder for turkeys, Veggies planted, seeds planted, mulching has begun - the gardens are in, CSA starting this week! In the News: Factory farm and its treatment of animals - Baby chicks made 300 people sick over 8 years - ohh the horror - CDC Report on foodborne Salmonella numbers - This week on Farm U: Building a chicken brooder, What makes a good brooder, Differences between broiler chicken / egg laying chicken and turkey brooder design, Some tips for managing your brooder to make life easier for you.

Happy Memorial Day. A special thanks goes out to all out troops both serving and retired. We appreciate your sacrifices in protecting our freedoms and liberties. This episode and the Pledge of Allegiance is dedicated to you. This week’s updates around the farm and gardens: The loss of Snow the piglet and what we did, Snowflake the chick hatches, Ollie moves to another farm, Turkeys are growing in the brooder, Broiler chicks arrived, Planting the gardens now that's it's frost free time and 95 degrees and dry! In the CoopCast Community: Over 100 iTunes reviews - thanks "pickle kicker", Toni asked about maintaining asparagus beds and controlling slugs with salt, What are some general insect control methods we use, Mendy asks "How do you introduce or change the pecking order of a chicken flock when you add / remove birds".

This week’s updates on: "Limpy" the piglet is getting better,  Ollie or AI discussions continue,  Turkeys have arrived!,  Gardens going in under row covers,  Roadside stand seems to be a success! In the Farmers Choice: “What are your thoughts on alternative energy / sustainable farm solutions?”:  Why we selected geothermal over solar or wind,  Rain water collection systems,  Making sustainable decisions for your farm - slowly. In the CoopCast Community: Shelby from TX asked about pigs and what they do to a pasture,  Amber asked about controlling worms in a flock of chickens, We discuss some of the fun reviews and other feedback,  Melanie wanted to know if when we go out to eat, are we difficult?,  And Mike was inspired by Nugget and used his own broody hen to hatch out his own clutch of 7 chicks!

This week’s updates on: The 10 piglet cohort is doing great,  Hermione gets sick, or, not,  You only get one mistake and that's one too many on the farm,  The farmstand is up and running. In the Farmers Choice: "How do you eat cute animals?" Can you eat pork that grows from a cute piglet? Do you want to look your meat in the eye? In this weeks Farm U: Piglet castration - what's involved and why do you do it,  Boar taint - what is it and how do you deal with it,  Unexpected events in the best planning.

This week's brief updates on: New sign for the farm,  Chickens and chicks,  Planting for the CSA has begun (love those soil blocks).  Instead of doing the CoopCast Community this week we are asking our listeners to post something about us on THEIR sites and social haunts. Post a review on your web site or blog of the coopcast, link back to our Facebook page, share anything to help us grow the CoopCast Community! In the Farmers Choice: We retell the story of how the week unfolded including the signs and steps of farrowing.  Share some of the magical moments that make being part of raising food so powerful.  The most unexpected event of the entire farrowing process!

This week: Chickens and chicks (chooks) are all doing fine,  Pigs ready to farrow,  Late spring snow storm,  The hoophouse is filling up with seedlings.  In the The Coopcast Community: Global reviews on iTunes - how cool!,  The Urban Farmer for a Green Sustainable Living Community,  Guineas, guns and Doug from the Michigan DNR.  On Farm U: Planning the sequence and timings of starting seeds for production,  Planning the frequency and quantity of CSA harvests,  Tips, tricks and tools for starting seeds and know when to harvest the plants.

This week: An aerial assault by a Harrier Hawk on the chickens,  Moving pigs to new pasture,  Gardening update in the greenhouse,  A system for planting the right seeds,  Observations about what engages people with regards to farming.  In the The Coopcast Community: Preventing foxes and other predators from getting into a chicken pasture pen,  Growing your own pineapple,  Listener recommendations for great movies to watch about the food movement,  When it comes to food, "Does voting with my wallet work?".  On Farm U: Moving livestock and chute design,  What NOT to do,  Types of chutes and materials for construction.

This week: Locally acquired chickens (support a local business),  Around the farm updates,  Preparations for pig farrowing,  Limping Andy and animals on concrete,  Pasture to Plate simple dishes.  In the The Coopcast Community: Chicks in a brooder - Use a red bulb in your brooder,  What is the best breed of pig?  A gift book and visit,  A listener "uses" his broody hen.  This Week, In The News: The FDA decided to "recommend" that no on farm antibiotics be used without a vets prescription.  While this sounds like a great thing, with less than 10000 large animal vets in the country, what's the real impact to small farms? ( discusses antibiotic resistance in the Farm U segment)

On this coopcast: Listener feedback on YOUR farming projects (cool!),  Chicken coop chicks updates,  Pastured chicken pre-orders have started,  Status of the gardens and seeds,  The peas are in - must mean spring in NY,  Knitted farm animals (Indigo Moon's Chicken Thistle Farm Collection),  Sugar Mountain Farm's Kickstarter Project - here,  Prepping for piglets in 21 days!  On Farm U: What is High Tensile fencing,  Basic fencing design,  Electric fence energizer basics.  Other notes: Up until now we have been publishing the coopcast/farmcast/podcast every week in both m4a (Apple's format) and mp3 (the worlds format). The challenge is only one version can be included in the "feed" and recently we have had several requests for the mp3 to be in the feed. Given that, we are switching to mp3 and unless anyone speaks up we will be dropping m4a altogether starting with this coopcast.

On this coopcast: 5 on farm hatched chicks in the coop now, Soil blocks and seeding in the hoophouse, The new farmstand, some general small farm / farming updates. A new segment called The Coopcast Community: What is that picture on Facebook?,  Do you know the breed of your chickens?,  What do coop hatched chicks eat?,  A Small Farm Kickstarter Project worth supporting.  Questions, Conversations and Rumination: Visiting a pasture pig farm,  Managing our pig herd in the future,  Analysis Paralysis by "Expert" Input,  A plan for farm fencing.

On this coopcast: An update of Nugget and other incubating eggs,  Managing pigs in unexpected heat,  Warm spring and it's effects on the gardens,  Soil block frustrations (again)!  A new segment called Questions, Conversations and Rumination: What is a farm?  And in this episodes Farm U segment: Portable pasture netting for poultry,  Management of netting,  Energizing the netting,  Where to find the netting.

On this coopcast: Managing a farm while you are on vacation,  Buying produce from the store (gross),  General farm updates,  The adventures of "Nugget".  And in this episodes Farm U segment: Buying / selling meat chickens,  The importance of good "forms",  Pricing of chickens.

On this coopcast: Updates on the coop hatched chicken named "Nugget",  Grade School Science Fair,  Some good listener questions.  And in this episodes Farm U segment: Small farm tractors,  Brands and dealers that matter,  Types of tractor tires,  Size and selection.

On this coopcast: Thanks for all the reviews and feedback - keep it coming - a great community of listeners,  Andy is losing the guinea discussions,  A soil block love affair,  Good eats with pork steak and preserved vegetable stir-fry,  A new firearm comes to live with us,  Hatched in the coop chickens.  And in this episodes Farm U segment: Final part of our Cornish Cross (Cornish X) chicken discussion,  Putting the birds on pasture (tricks and tips),  Pasture pens, Water, feed and other considerations for the pastured Cornish X birds,  A consumer's perspective on pastured chicken.

On this coopcast: Kelli managing the farm and Andy's business trip,  Crazy weather (really, it never ends),  General animal updates (pregnant pig and broody hen).  In our Listener Feedback/Questions discussion: Great feedback and reviews this week,  Questions about feed,  Other discussions.  And in this episodes Farm U segment: Second part of our Cornish Cross (Cornish X) chicken discussion including;  Where to get the chicks (hatcheries and strains),  Food, feed and feed restrictions for Cornish Cross chickens,  Managing the chicks in the brooder.

On this coopcast: A Bourbon Red Turkey in the oven,  Soil block germination rates,  Managing mice in the greenhouse,  Broody hen update.  In our Listener Feedback discussion: A plea for feedback and ratings on iTunes,  Bucket waterer tips for chickens,  Egg prices around the states,  Breeds of chickens in our laying flock.  And in this episodes Farm U segment: First part of our Cornish Cross (Cornish X) chicken discussion including;  How do they breed a Cornish Cross broiler,  A little history,  Consumer demand for the Cornish Cross carcass.

On this coopcast: Soil block update,  CSA status,  Upcoming farm stand,  Our plans for a broody hen.  In our Chicken Talk discussion: How we set up our chicken coop for our climate,  How we pasture (range) our birds.  And in this episodes Farm U segment: Chicken manure management,  Carbon to Nitrogen in manure management (deep litter),  Coop cleaning.

On this coopcast: What's with this winter weather,  A Pig-noucement,  Super Bowl (big game) foods,  Seed orders and annoying birds in the coop.  In the Farmers Choice: More memorable turkey moments.  And in this episodes Farm U segment: Seed starting suplies,  Lighting considerations for seed starting,  Soil blocking.