The farm stand has been up and running since Mother’s Day weekend! We started with just Friday afternoons and Saturday morning. We are now open most days of the week for flowers!
Farm stand
Wrapped Bouquets
Our bouquets are a mixture of focal, spike, airy and foliage florals. We have dahlias, zinnias, sunflowers, gladiolus, sweet peas, cosmos, celosia and mints this summer season. The colours are amazing and the fragrance is delightful!
Wrapped bouquets
Honey, beeswax and lip balm
Summer Rain Farm has 3 hives this year and they are doing great. We look forward to harvesting our honey in August.
Our chicken flock
We have about 30 chickens that roam our property and enjoy all the grass, bugs and worms that they can find. We feed them omega layer ration as well as veggies and fruits from the garden as treats.
They lay one egg on average every 25 hours so we get about 2 dozen eggs a day to package and put out at the farm stand.
Coming this year we will have a lovely farm stand at the roadside to sell our farm fresh eggs, local honey and new for us beautiful home grown flowers for market bouquets!
We fill our freezer every year with 25 roaster chickens. We order rustic rangers in early January from a hatchery for a pickup in mid-May. By then the worst of the cold weather is gone and I can be sure the brooder in the barn will be able to keep the baby chicks warm enough.
The brooder setup
We set up the brooder in one of our empty stalls but a garage or shed with electricity will work. We use 12-inch corrugated paper to make a circle of about 3 feet diameter to start. It is filled with 4 inches of shavings then topped with paper towels which is easier for the chicks to walk on and keeps them from trying to eat the shavings at first. The small size circle will keep the chicks close to the brooder lamp, food and water. It also keeps them from getting stuck in a corner.
We hang the brooder lamp from a chain in the ceiling to be about 10 inches up from the shavings. The temperature should be around 95 degrees Fahrenheit or 35 degrees celsius the first week. I recommend you use a thermometer to check it and to have it all ready to go the day before you bring your chicks home.
The chicks will huddle under the light when they are too cold and move away if it is too warm. We want them moving about comfortably from water to food and under the lamp occasionally to warm up. I also recommend you put the food and water in the night before to allow it to warm up a bit before placing the chicks inside.
Picking up the chicks
On the day we go to pick up the chicks we make sure the heat is right by laying a thermometer on the shavings a little away from the light. The chicks will come in a little perforated box. 25 little puff balls all peeping quietly. Some people order them by mail and the post office will call to have them picked up.
Placing in the brooder
When we get them home we carefully place the beak of each little chick in the water quickly so they know where the water is. We place them one by one into the brooder this way, being gentle and counting them as we go. They should all look healthy and start peeping around the brooder checking out the feed and water dishes. We try to refrain from holding them away from the heat for too long as they need that heater to regulate their body temp. The chicks are very cute at this stage.
Chicken brooder set up
Feed and Water
We use small quart/litre size water dishes and long plastic or metal feeders that all the chicks can get to at one time. Add a splash of cider vinegar to the water to help their guts begin to work. We use medicated chick starter feed for the first 4 weeks. It is best to feed enough that it is always available to them. You will be amazed at how quickly they grow.
Second week
By week 2 you will have to enlarge the area by 2 feet. I cover the area with clean paper towels morning and night. This helps keep them clean and dry and able to walk around easily. By the end of this week, you can probably remove the paper towels and let them be directly on the shavings. They now know where their feed is and won’t be tempted to eat the shavings. We also raise the lamp slightly to reduce the temperature. They won’t need it as much as they start to get their feathers coming in.
As we watch them move around the whole brooder we know they are warm enough. If they huddle peeping under the light then we know to lower it slightly. We take into account the outside temperature of the barn or shed we are using. If we suddenly get a cold snap we will need to adjust the heat lamp. The more they move around in the brooder the better it is.
Watch for pasty butt
Issues to watch for
Keep an eye on their bottoms as some can develop pasty butt. This is where the manure sticks to their feathers around their bottoms and can seal it closed which stops them from pooping. It can be caused by stress or from being chilled. If it happens we take a wet paper towel, preferably warm and hold it to their bottoms to soften and loosen the manure. We try to be very gentle and patient as the clump can be stuck on pretty good and you don’t want it to rip their skin by pulling it off. We just remoisten it until it can be gently removed then dry them well and place them back in the brooder near the lamp.
4th week and moving them
By the fourth week, they will have a lot of their feathers and lose that puff ball look. If the weather is suitably warm and sunny we can move them to their adult home. They will need more room to move about.
Inside chicken tractor
Chicken tractors
We use something called chicken tractors for our meat birds. This is a movable tent-shaped structure built to protect the chickens as they eat the grass around the property. It is covered in hardware cloth to deter predators and covered with a tarp to protect the chickens from rain and give shade. We put feed and water inside and move it 2 times a day so they have fresh grass to eat and sleep on. We use 2 tractors, each one holds 12 or 13 chickens. They are 4′ x 8′ in size. We do this for another 7 to 8 weeks.
Poultry processing
The rustic ranger chicken takes about 11 weeks to grow to about 5 to 7 pound chickens. Knowing this we pre-book a time at a poultry processing plant to take them for butchering. They are government inspected at the plant. Some people do the butchering themselves but we prefer to take them in and have them vac sealed and weighed as well as frozen to be picked up the next day.
Great use of property
By doing this we get lots of pasture-raised chicken to fill our freezers. It is a great way for us to use our property and we like the chickens to go through our orchard as it helps fertilize and remove pests. We have also run them through the pastures with the horses and it helps there too. Depending on how many you want to raise you can do this a couple of times a year starting a new batch every 2 months.
Would you want pasture-raised chickens on your property and in your freezer?
Soon after we had our country property we decided to get a few laying hens to have fresh eggs. We ordered 6 layer chickens and built a small raised coop, 4′ x 8′ and only 4 ft tall. we put in a roosting bar and feed and water buckets. This worked well for us for a few years but when we wanted a few more chickens we had to build bigger.
First small coop
2nd coop
This time we wanted a walk-in coop which is easier to clean and has lots of windows to let in the sunshine. We doubled the size to 8’x 8′ and insulated the walls. It has four 1′ x 3′ windows that open outward in the summertime. They are covered on the inside with 1/2 inch hardware cloth to keep out predators.
Big and little doors to coop
Roosts
The walls, floors and nesting boxes are painted white as well as the roosting bars. We put in 4 nesting boxes and a 4 rung roosting bar that started at 2 ft and stepped up to 4 ft high. We used 1’x 2′ boards for the roosts so the chickens can cover their feet in the winter. The roosts are 4 ‘ long and the top one is at window height.
Inside coop
Nesting boxes
The nesting boxes are 14″ x 14 ” x 14″ with a sloped roof to prevent them from sleeping on top of them. We fill the nests with fresh straw or shavings to keep the eggs clean. This also protects the eggs in the winter cold. We have 30 chickens now and they all share the nests. There is sometimes a lineup of chickens waiting for their turn in the nest.
Feed
Free-ranging chickens
We buy omega layer feed for our chickens as well as scratch grain, kitchen scraps and mealworms for treats in winter. In the summer they have a lot of fresh greens from the garden as well as some free-range time when I can watch them. We tried to totally free-range when we first got them and if I let them out in the morning they would end up as far as the neighbour’s deck by afternoon. Our neighbours are very kind and thought it was cute but I’m sure that would not be tolerated for long.
Having a run for them
Laying hens in the run
We put up a large fenced-in run that is 50′ x 25′. It gave them plenty of room to hunt and peck and we place garden scraps and trimmings from around the property for them to investigate. This way they are not only happy and safe but now the neighbours don’t have to worry about chicken manure on their deck.
Breeds of chickens
A chicken lays on average 1 egg every 25 hours. This means that we get about 25 -30 eggs every day from our 30 hens. We have 2 types of chickens right now. A red sex link is a brownish red hybrid that is a top-performing layer of brown eggs. The other breed is Ameraucana which lays blue eggs. We have 10 of these. They are a little less productive. There are many other breeds out there and if you want a pretty flock rather than egg production you have a lot to choose from.
Different kinds of waterers
Watering
We have 2 types of waterers for our chickens. In the summer we use large plastic waterers that are easy to clean and refill. They need a lot of water when it is hot out. We usually put extra pans out for them to walk in as it cools them down this way too.
In the winter we use metal waterers that can be put up on a heated platform. This keeps the water from freezing at -25 degrees Celcius. It also keeps the water raised up and out of the shavings which can get kicked around a lot in the coop. We have electricity run to our coop so we can have the heaters and light inside.
Lighting
Lighting can be for 2 reasons. One so you can actually see what you’re doing at evening chores in the winter when the sun goes down at 4:30 pm. You need to collect eggs, check their feed and water and do a headcount before you lock up for the night.
The other reason is to keep your chickens laying throughout the winter. Chickens need at least 14 hours of daylight t continue to lay eggs. In October the nights are starting around 6 pm and increase to 4:30 pm by December 21, the longest night of the year or winter solstice.
We add programmed timer lights that add 2 hours of light at first then increase to 6 hours by December. Then we reverse this as the daylight hours increase. Some people feel that giving the wintertime break to their chickens is the way to go so it is up to you whether to light the coop or not.
Mixed flock
Gateway livestock
Of course, having laying chickens led to meat chickens, turkeys, Muscovy ducks and now geese. I’ll share more about these animals in upcoming posts. Will you start your hobby farm with some chickens?
When we decided to move to the country, a large reason for this move was to bring our 2 boarded horses home. We had boarded our horses where we took riding lessons and it was expensive. After 4 years of learning all we could about horsemanship and taking care of the animals, we took the first step by finding a country property.
Why we call it a hobby farm
We consider our little place a hobby farm because having horses for us is a hobby! We compare our hobby to other hobbies like golfing or classic car owners. Our horses don’t make us money. They are not used for farm chores other than eating the grass but we still have to mow occasionally. They are not our prominent mode of transportation. We do ride them as much as possible but just watching them graze our land and having them come to us for an apple is a pleasure for us.
Preparation for their shelter and pasture
Our property is 6 acres of land with some rolling pastures and a small creek running through it. We built a 3 stall horse barn and fenced in about 2 acres for pastures. Our trainers who owned the boarding farm brought our horses to our farm in their horse trailer. In the 10 years we have had our horses, we have not needed a horse trailer but it is something a lot of horse owners have.
Horse fence and run-in
Building run-ins
Over the years we have built 10′ by 10′ run-ins in 2 of our pastures for shelter from wind or rain. Our horses mainly stay outside all year round. They only come into the barn for the vet, the farrier, to be brushed and saddled or if the weather is particularly nasty. Only freezing rain, blizzard conditions or hail causes us to bring them in. They prefer being outside otherwise and it is much healthier for them to get exercise and fresh air.
Rotational grazing
We have added 2 more fenced-in pastures and practise rotational grazing to help keep the pastures in shape. Horses will graze on the tenderest grass first and eat it down to the ground. They will pick an area to go to the bathroom then will not eat the grass in those areas. If you don’t move them from this pasture they will kill the new grass and only weeds will grow. With 4 pastures we can usually allow each pasture 3 weeks of new growth between grazing time. This pasture management works well in the spring and fall when the growing season is good.
Beautiful rolling pastures
Pasture maintenance
We use a rough cut mower on our tractor about 3 times a year to cut down the weeds. In June, August and late September we mow it down to an even 4 – 8 inches. We also fertilize the areas that need it and overseed them in the spring to help keep them lush. Only one field in the winter is used. We picked the highest and driest pasture to keep the horses out of the mud. It is also closest to the barn so we can use 16 gallon heated buckets and fill them from our hoses. Our horses can feed on pasture from May to October in our area.
Watering the horses in winter and the hay hut
Feeding hay in winter
Come wintertime we use hay bales to feed our horses. We researched and decided early on how to get our hay and how it would be delivered. There are large bales and small square bales available to us.
If you don’t have a tractor for moving large bales then using small bales is the way to go. The small bales weigh between 40 to 70 pounds and can be cut open and used as flakes. These are compressed layers that come apart easily to feed in portions or you can put the whole bale out in feeders. We use a hay hut and it has saved us a lot of wasted hay.
We use our Kabota tractor to move our large square bales that weigh about 500 pounds. This allows us to put a bale in the hay hut and depending on how cold it is, the hay can last from 1 to 2 weeks.
Blanketed horses in winter
Feed and treats
Hay and grass are the majority of feed needed for a healthy horse. We only give apples and carrots in the warmer months to have them come over and be friendly. As our 2 horses are over 15 years old now, we give them a scoop of senior feed in the winter. Each morning feed allows me to see them up close to check on their appetite, their gait, their eyes etc. to catch any problems early.
Horse maintenance
Now all horses should have some regular maintenance. The vet should see them once a year for their annual shots and checkup. The horses need their teeth checked as well to see if they need to be filed down. This usually needs to be done every second year as their teeth can get sharp edges that will irritate the inside of their mouths. A farrier needs to come out and check their hooves and make a schedule for trimming or horseshoeing as needed. This is usually a 6 to 8-week interval and longer intervals in the winter as their hoof growth slows.
Inside of stall
Tack needed
Other items you will need for your horses are headstalls and leads to move them around safely on your property. If you plan to ride them you will need saddles and bridles.
You can buy blankets and rainsheets for different weather situations. We have bought brushes, horsepicks, curry combs, shampoo etc for grooming purposes as well as feed and water buckets to use for feeding.
The sky is the limit for buying items to pamper your horse as well as training items like pylons, barrels, wooden jumps and poles, lunge lines, sand rings. OK, I will stop now but I think you can see how this hobby can be addictive.
We love having horses on our hobby farm and therefore wouldn’t be here if they hadn’t been part of our lives. Do you want horses on your hobby farm?
Our most recent acquisition of farm animals has been a gaggle of geese. We wanted something that would graze the grass and weeds around our small pond. We had previously raised muscovy ducks but they are not grazers and the area became a small jungle.
Buy from a reputable breeder
We got five goslings that were 1 day old from a breeder that was close to us. We ordered them in early winter and we had a choice of four breeds, Brown Chinese, Embden, Saddleback Pomeranian and Toulouse. The Toulouse breed was chosen both for the size and the looks as well as not being as aggressive as some breeds.
Goslings in the brooder
Use a brooder to keep them warm
We put the goslings in a brooder with feed and water and shavings for absorbency. Geese love water and will make quite a mess with it. A heat lamp was used and kept the temperature at 90 degrees Fahrenheit for the first week. We lowered the temperature by 5 degrees every week as their feathers grew in. It took about 4 weeks for the goslings to have their adult feathers and look like full-grown geese. By now the weather had improved outside so we move them to their new home.
Goose house and yard
Our geese have a 6′ by 8′ wooden insulated house with windows and a door on the south side to let the sun in. It has a wooden floor and we lay down shavings and straw for absorbency and warmth in the winter. It gets topped up every couple of weeks and then in spring and fall it gets a total cleaning. They have a rather large run which includes a pond, trees for shade and a lot of pasture to roam. We let them out every morning rain or shine and then close them up at night for their protection.
Goose house
Fencing against predators
Their yard is fenced in with hardware cloth on the lower 4 feet and the cloth is bent outwards at the bottom to prevent animals from trying to dig their way under. Then the fence has 1-inch chicken wire about 5 to 6 feet high on top of this to prevent predators from jumping over. We used 8-foot steel posts to hold the fence and buried them 2 feet in the ground. The total area is about 50 x 50 feet. This year we hope to fence in around our apple tree and expand their area a bit.
Geese yard and pond
The goose pond
Our pond is only about 15 x 15 feet and maybe 2 feet deep. It is just a wider area in our creek that runs through our property. If it’s a wet year the pond stays full for most of the time but if we don’t get a lot of rain the pond can dry up and we supplement with a large trough for them to swim in. In winter the pond will freeze during the coldest weather so we use heated buckets of water for them to drink from. Geese need to be able to submerge their heads to clean their nostrils and eyes.
Feeding Geese
Geese are grazers much like our horses. They eat grass and weeds during the warm seasons when the grass is available to them. During the winter we give them hay and game bird feed. We give them a flake of hay every week and that seems to keep them very happy. Geese are probably the easiest keepers on our hobby farm.
Are they noisy?
Geese can be a bit on the noisy side so if you have close neighbours it could be a problem. They have a warning honk that they use whenever they sense something different in the area. It could be people, an animal, a bird, a blowing bag or a cloud in the sky and they let each other know about it. This can be a good warning alarm for your farm but you would need to see what the issue is each time. We find the males are the protective ones. They will stretch out their necks and give a little hiss to warn you to leave them alone. Otherwise, they go about their business of eating grass and waddling about as a group.
Our gaggle of geese
Eggs and meat
Our hope for our little gaggle of geese is that they pair up and produce a few goslings this year. We will let the geese raise them up and then process them at about 18 weeks or in November. Giving us a Christmas goose to put in the freezer or sell to others is our goal as well as trying a few of the eggs as they begin to lay in the spring. A goose egg is the equivalent of 3 chicken eggs so a goose omelet will be on the menu this spring too.
So do you think you would enjoy having a gaggle of geese on your hobby farm?
My daughter and I had boarded our two horses where we took lessons for 4 years. We learned so much about taking care of them we found we were prepared to design our barn for what our family wanted.
Barn in the distance
Planning
After going to our municipality and asking what we were allowed to build we had plans drawn up. This depended on our property size as well as where we could put it on our property. We had to have set backs and distance from our property line and neighbours’ homes. We love that it is a bit of a walk from our home especially in the fly season.
Our plans included three stalls, an area for hay and a tack area. Another item on the want list was a water line to the tack area and heat to keep that waterline from freezing.
Another item was a upper viewing area or loft for my daughter to hang out in. This really wasn’t needed and became a storage area in the end.
Construction
Inside of stall
When we were ready to build we had a concrete floor put in and rubber mats in the stalls. It was framed up and we had aluminum siding put on that matched our home. We added the stalls and accessories ourselves like insulated bucket holders and corner feeders. Of course, nameplates and halter hooks were included for convenience.
Rear of barn
We use our barn for our horses, barn cats and chicken brooder area. As you can see our farm animals seem to approve. What kind of animal shelter are you going to have?
So you’ve found your little(or big) slice of heaven. Congratulations!
You’ve moved in and looked at all that space. What can you do with it now?
I’m going to list some ideas for you to pick and choose what interests you most. A few things should be first if your looking down the road. These are just general suggestions. I will go more in depth for each suggestion in later posts. Check in the categories for updates.
List of ideas
Orchards should be planted first as they take a little time to establish. If you want to grow fruit, I advise researching your zone and get planting.
Vineyards also need to be planted a couple years until you can harvest grapes and make wines or jellies.
Berry bushes and strawberry patches usually produce in the second year.
Gardens can start to produce right away.
Animal shelters and fencing should be thought about before bringing that first cute animal home.
Shelters can be as little as a 4′ x 6′ shed for a few chickens or ducks or as large as a full size barn for horses, cows or goats and everything between.
Goose house
Think about where the fencing will go. Fencing makes good neighbours as well.
Take a real look at your property and see what is already there. Is there a shed that would work, or fencing already installed? Can it work for what you want?
Is there a water source close enough to use for plants or animals or will you have to truck buckets around?
Pastures
Is the land flat, sloping, rocky or forested? All these attributes have uses such as pastures, gardens or tapping for maple syrup.
I would love to know what your property will be used for.
