Of Tools and Signage - October 29 2009
Today was quite a rainy and cold day so we decided to spent a little time in the workshop. After a vigorous morning of catching all of the sheep and giving them medicine, the group had a nice morning meeting to catch up.

Next we headed down to the workshop where we had a list of things to tidy up from the 'haunted workshop' before we could begin our project. Everyone worked together and we were able to get the job down quite efficiently.

After lunch we headed down into the workshop where Ben presented the group with project options. Everyone decided to create signs for their bedrooms.




They learned how work with the jigsaw to cut their signs into nice shapes.
After the shape and the letters or illustrations were done, Ben used the torch to burn the wood a little so that the signs looked a little more rugged.

Gliding in the Barn - October 14 2009
From paper airplanes, to chickens, to our imaginations, today was a day of flight.

We begun our day with our chores and morning meeting as usual. But afterwards, we soared in the barn. We played with paper airplanes as a way of having a little fun with math.

Everyone made a standard paper airplane from the same template, did test flights, and then made personal alterations. We laid out a ten meter testing track and the competition began. This was no ordinary race, however. We were carefully recording distances for 4 attempts and calculating our personal glide ratios.

A glide ratio is a way of taking away any advantages due to the height of the thrower. The distance from the floor to the top of the shoulder of the thrower is the launch height (H). The distance flown is D and the glide ration is represented by G. The equation for calculating the glide ratio is:

D / H = G

Another rule of the contest is that the airplane cannot fly above to thrower's shoulder or they have to re-throw. We learned that you don't have to throw it really hard to get it to fly far. We also learned that deep breaths before the throw helps the thrower get into the Zen of the paper airplane.

Sadly, our intern-extraordinaire, Natalie, was unable to prove that she was the queen of the paper airplane. Better luck next time!

Later in the day we finally were able to catch the rascally chickens who are able to fly over the fence and destroy parts of our gardens. We clipped the flight feathers on one wing of each of these chickens. This seemed to help for 24 hours, but unfortunately those hens have found a new way out!

For the last hour the Leaders exercised there imaginations and came up with possible plans for a shelter up on the mountain. Next week Ben plans to teach us some skills that will help us build it.

A Litter Safer Now - October 07 2009
From now on, we can all hike a little easier now that the Farm Leaders know how to make and use a litter. They also learned how to stabilize and injured arm. Natalie used some of her wilderness first aid training to teach the boys these important skills.

And, this was not a moment to soon! After lunch we recieved a call from Ben that there was an 'injured' hiker out in the woods and could we check it out. We radioed back and we set off. We found the hiker had slipped on a slippery log and his arm was hurt. The leaders introduced themselves and asked if he needed help. They worked together to stabilize his arm and walk him out of the woods and to safety.


We also made a special lunch together - Pasta e Fagioli. We picked some fresh shell beans and cooked them up wih our onions and herbs. We tossed the pasta with the bean mixture and, yum! Several helpings were had.
And, the BIG news - The Farm Leaders finally were able to beat Natalie at the game, My Precious! The game starts out like 'red light, green light', but after they all get to her, they need to take her water bottle and work together to secretly get it back to the starting line before she guesses who has it. Well done!

How Sweet it is! - September 23 2009
Our third week of the Fall Farm Leaders program has just come and gone. We are getting to know each other and settling into a groove. So far we have done a complete chicken inventory, worked on fencing, crafted journals, and checked in on the fort that we started working on last spring.

Today, we spent some time helping to harvest honey. We met up with Ted and Caroline in the program building where they were waiting with the 'supers'. These are the boxes on the tops of our hives where the bees craft honeycomb and fill it with honey. Once the cells are filled, the bees cap it with beeswax so that it is sealed up and ready for storage (or harvesting).

Our first step was to use the electric knife to cut the caps off of the filled honeycombs. We gently sliced the caps of and watched the golden honey begin to ooze out.



The next step if to use a little toothed scratcher to be sure that each and every cell is open so that the honey can get out.




Once all of the cells are open, we put the tray (and five others) into our extractor to spin out all of the honey.

Of course, there was just a bit of sampling of the honey-laden wax that we had scraped off!


The leaders wanted to know what we do with all of the beeswax. No, we don't suck the honey out of it all! We clean it and make candles. So, that is what we did. We each made fabulous drip candles to take home. They smelled just like honey.

Spring 09 - Farm Leaders Week 10 - June 10 2009
What is all the Buzz about honeybees? Well, we found out today. Our Bee Keeper, Ted, showed us how a hive works today. We discovered that in the hive boxes that we use, there can be upwards of 40,000 bees. There is a Queen bee, drone bees (males) and worker bees (females). One tray, or honey super, can weigh 40lbs! Those are some pretty busy bees. Ted was going to feed the bees with a sugar syrup later, but he let us all sample the bee food. The leaders thought that it was pretty sweet!

After lunch we worked in the garden for a while. We had to mulch our potatoes so that they don't turn green. In the middle of one row were some volunteer Dill plants. We sampled the dill leaf, some of us for the first time ever. After finishing a couple of rows of potato mulching, we headed into the woods for a bit to work on our shelter.

The last few minutes was spent watching the RGF Youth Corps getting their lawn mower training. The leaders are very excited for the year that they turn twelve so that they can start working on the farm as Youth Corps members.

Spring 09 - Farm Leaders Week 9 - June 03 2009
What a great day to be at Red Gate Farm! The weather was warm and sunny, and the animals and farmers alike were in good spirits.

Chores went smoothly in the morning. We all marveled at how much the chicks have grown. They are now able to fly over the fencing and scratch around in he garden. Not good. We will really need to do something about this.

We worked in the garden for an hour before lunch. We worked to build a large tipi frame for our Portuguese Pole Beans. We dug deep holes with post hole diggers to make sure that the main three posts are securely anchored. We then secured the frame with baling twine and planted our beans.

After lunch we set out for some woods time. We followed the stream through the woods until we came to a special spot. A tree had fallen down a hill and arched over the stream. It was decided that a shelter needed to be built. The leaders decided a lean-to would work best. We collected a bunch of fallen branches. It is a work in progress, more next week.

We met up with Ben and Ted at 2:30 to help them move the timbers for a garden shed from the workshop to the Big Red Barn. It was tough work, but we were able to complete the job with no problems. Although one Leader was heard to say (with a chuckle), "But, I am just a boy!".

Spring 09 - Farm Leaders Week 8 - May 27 2009
Today was a wet, raw spring day. It rained hard in the morning, and was chilly all day long.

Chores went well despite the rain. In addition to our regular feeding schedule, we gave some Sulmet medication to our flock of sheep. This wet weather is causing our annual flare up of coccidiosis in the lamb population... fatal for the young sheep if it isn't addressed carefully.

After snack, we went on a long expedition up to the beaver ponds at the end of Cemetery Road. There we stalked silently to the edge of the different ponds and swamps to see if we might see a feeding moose or industrious beaver.

Unfortunately we saw neither, but were still treated to some spectacular misty views of the water and many divebombing swallows feeding off the nearby insects.

We set up a tarp for lunch and warmed up with food and jokes. Afterwards we hiked back to the trailhead and headed home for a short bit of free time before our day ended.

Spring 09 - Farm Leaders Week 7 - May 20 2009
This morning's chores went fast and smooth. With almost all of the animals out on pasture, no hay needed to be doled out. The chicks are growing like crazy and loving their time in the garden. After snack we brainstormed about ideas that each leader had for our final days together this spring. It should be fun to explore new areas of the farm together!

Today we had to asses the health of our sheep. We tested each of them with a FAMACHA score card. This basically has shades of pink printed on a card that we compare to the inside of the bottom eyelid of each sheep. They get a score based on the color, red being the best and very light pink almost white being the worst. This helps us determine the parasite load in the sheep and how they are dealing with it. Most of them were ok, but a few of the lambs scored on the lower end. These lambs were separated and are being given extra nutrition to give them a boost.

Our storytelling unit continued today with a few exercises on using expression and pauses in our telling. We also worked on 'story mapping'. This is essentially a rustic comic strip that allows us to learn our stories. They are little pictures of important parts of the story that we can put in order as a visual clue as we are learning to tell our stories.

Spring 09 - Farm Leaders Week 6 - May 13 2009
The pond was teeming with life this morning. We ventured out with Farmer Ben to learn about life in our pond. Into the wagon went a fish tank, dip nets, buckets, id cards, books, microscope, pipettes, and little plastic jars. We discovered frog eggs, tadpoles, salamanders, mayfly larvae, and many more critters. We also met the predacious diving beetle larvae - the fierce Water Tiger.

In the nearby pond we caught some really unusual larvae that were a tad bit freaky. We were also able to catch a few tiny fish with our bare hands!

The afternoon found us in the garden transplanting some parsley. Well, maybe not some, but a whole lot of plants! So, any interesting parsley recipes would be welcomed.

Spring 09 - Farm Leaders Week 5 - May 06 2009
Today the Farm Leaders went on a trek in the woods searching for a hidden tupperware container using only a coded message, a compass, and a GPS unit. What, you ask, were we doing exactly? And why is there a hidden tupperware at Bear Swamp? Well, we were GeoCaching!

Wikipedia tells us that "Geocaching is an outdoor treasure-hunting game in which the participants use a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver or other navigational techniques to hide and seek containers (called "geocaches" or "caches") anywhere in the world. A typical cache is a small waterproof container (usually a tupperware or ammo box) containing a logbook and "treasure," usually toys or trinkets of little value."

We started out at the Apple Valley Overlook. What a beautiful place that is. From the hilltop you can look down into the Apple Valley and Red Gate Farm. Upon completion of our snack, we decoded the clue and booted up our GPS. With all their brains, the Farm Leaders were able to find the hidden box quite quickly. They discovered that the box was full of trinkets that have been traded in and out for over five years! The leaders scrambled to locate trinkets in their pockets. They were able to trade a clothes pin and a carabineer for a Colorado quarter and a matchbox car. We wrote in the log book and went on our way.

The search for the second box was much harder. In the end, our GPS said that we were right on top of it (with a 19ft accuracy reading). Alas, it could not be found. We started back to the farm with the feeling that next time we might be more successful. And, just for the record, a lot of people who searched for that one also had to come back twice!

After a quick lunch, we were treated to an hour's worth of storytelling from a farm friend, David Arfa. He told us some great stories and taught us, by example, some ways to be an engaging storyteller. It was a really great time.

The last moments of the day were spent poking around the pond and reading our stories out loud to each other.

Spring 09 - Farm Leaders Week 4 - April 29 2009
Nine O'clock brought us five farm leaders and very little chores to be done. Since all the animals except the chickens are out on pasture, we just had to be sure that everyone had plenty of water. We discovered that Lightning and his new found friends (2 Karakul Sheep whethers from Tregelly's Fiber Farm) have been starting to get along.

We worked hard to pick out our stories for our storytelling project. Most of us chose scary stories - so prepare to be spooked!

After lunch Farmer Ben took over. He really need the leaders help to create a new pasture fence and move the sheep onto fresh grass. I must admit that they did a great job at make the fence quite straight and sturdy.

The way I heard it, most of the sheep decided that the new pasture looked a lot better than the old one. They ran quickly for the new grass. However, a group of the lambs came to the realization that change was scary, so they hid in the barn. The leaders had to catch them and carry them to the new pasture to reunite them with the flock.

As I look out the office window, they seem happy to have a lot of room to run, and lots of fresh spring grass to munch on.

Spring 09 - Farm Leaders Week 3 - April 15 2009
Today we welcomed the new baby chicks to the farm. They are tiny and fluffy. They are also very fragile and need attention. We spent some of the morning inspecting them and putting fresh bedding in their brooder. Baby chicks can get 'blocked up', so they need us to check their vent and make sure it isn't caked with poop. If it is, then we (or Jen) needs to pick it off to clear the vent. It is a gross, but necessary part of raising chicks.

We had a little time for more storytelling, and reading of stories. Most of the stories read were from the book, "Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark". We also perused different fables and myths in an effort to each choose a story for our project. We were unable to find our stories before lunch. We will set our minds to it during the next class.

After lunch was had, we decided to take some time to find a big, dead tree on the mountain. There is a tree that died suddenly on the mountain, and we wanted to find it and figure out what killed it. It turns out that another group had tried to locate it, but could not. This group was up for the challenge. They decided to take a compass bearing, hike to a spot they thought was nearby, and then bushwhack. It took a while, but we located the tree. The leaders examined the dead tree and decided that they thought that the tree had been struck by lightning. Seemed like a great explanation.

Another great week for the Farm Leaders. We have a week off for vacation, then we meet back up for some more exciting adventures and dirty work.

Spring 09 - Farm Leaders Week 2 - April 08 2009
Despite the calendar telling us it is spring, the weather proved grey and blustery today. No matter, Farm Leaders were not deterred. We began our day with Xavi as our leader. Chores were done in a fair and efficient manner. We were actually done in record time.

We began our season long unit on storytelling today. I know a few stories and I shared one with the leaders. Everyone was revved up about the idea of learning stories or writing a story to share with our small community. We talked about the many different types of stories out there, and everyone seemed to have a favorite.

On Monday we are expecting the newest additions to our farm family - one-day old baby chicks! As you can imagine, we need to have a warm and secure place for them to live. The Leaders helped us set up the brooder, ensuring that it was safe and clean. Next week the big red barn will be full of 'cheeps'!

Ted came over after lunch to teach us all about working with the oxen, Jack and Joe. It can be a little intimidating to work with such large animals, but everyone seemed to have no problem with it. They each, in turn, took control and told those oxen what to do.




We learned some basic commands such as 'whoa', 'get up', and 'haw'(turn left).





We also learned that Jack and Joe can sometimes get excited to be out of their pasture. They can get distracted by new things to eat.


But, in the end, everyone was able to let the oxen know who was the teamster! Walk on, Leaders!

Spring 09 - Farm Leaders Week 1 - April 01 2009
Today was the first day of the spring session, and it went off without a hitch. We talked about revisiting the idea of having a student leader for each day of the session. Also re-introduced were the five threads that weave together to create the strong fabric of our community: Respect, Courtesy, Awareness, Commitment, and Trust. All of our talks have assured me that this spring is going to be fabulous!

After snack, we went up to the sheep barn to inspect the lambs. We looked at each lamb and inspected their eyes (for entopic eyelids or cloudiness), their new ear tags, their bums (for caked poop), their hooves, and their size and posture. Everyone checked out ok. There were two lamb who we decided need to be monitored in the future, one for their poop bum, and the other for a cloudy eyeball. Monitoring the lambs like this is a very important part of our daily operations at Red Gate Farm, and we are lucky to have the Farm Leaders helping us.

Speaking of monitoring, we walked our Bluebird trail today. We saw plenty of Robins, but no bluebirds. We did spot a few interesting animal tracks in the plentiful mud!

The end of the day found us back inside with our Trebuchet - now named 'Truebu-Z'. Work has begun on painting the trebuchet, and designing the emblem.

Keep up the good work, Leaders!

Winter Session FL - Week 9 - March 25 2009
'Fire in the hole!' was heard echoing through Apple Valley today as we tested out our new Trebuchet that we designed and built. The whole group worked hard over the last few weeks to learn about the physics of trebuchets. They modeled their Trebuchet after an old French design they learned about from Nova. It has a swinging counterweight that allows for variation in the amount of weight used. Also, the counterweight takes the recoil to eliminate the need for wheels.

The treb worked beautifully and was able to throw objects such as a golf ball, matchbox car, and, of course, a diseased 'my little pony'!



What does a trebuchet have to do with a farm? Well, in learning about the physics of catapults and trebuchets, we also learned about the different types of levers. This knowledge can help us when we have jobs to do in the spring, such as repairing rock walls, moving big logs, and who knows what else may arise! But Farm Leaders will be ready for the challenge.

I am looking forward to the start of the next session. It should be a great spring.

Until next time!
Jen

Winter Session FL - Week 8 - March 18 2009
There was a sweet smell to the air at Red Gate Farm today. Not only were the birds signing, the chickens scratching, and the fresh wind blowing, but there was also sap boiling away all day. We started the fire in the new evaporator this morning with pieces of the logs that the Farm Leaders hauled out of the woods over the winter. All of the hard earned sap was boiling within 12 minutes!

We met the three new lambs this morning. This one is Everest, a ram lamb born to Candi.



After snack, we learned a little more about the physics of trebuchets with the help from our friends at NOVA. We then decided on our Trebuchet plans and sketched out the size and measurements of the major parts. Next week we build!

The afternoon brought us more work in the Sugarbush. We emptied all of the buckets into our very large collection tank. We raised the level in the tank by maybe 2 inches. Like I said, it is a big tank!



Think pancakes with sweet syrup!

Winter Session FL - Week 6 - March 04 2009
On our approach to the sheep barn this morning, we were wondering if today might be the day that our first lamb is born. Alas, it was not to be. All of the ewes, though a lot bigger and more slow-moving, showed no signs of labor. They were, however, very excited to see us and the alfalfa that we brought for them. We decided that the lambs will come very soon, because the ewes' udders are starting to fill up with milk.

After chores and morning meeting, we did a little self-survey about our trash habits. We all did pretty well! We talked about the 4 R's (reduce, reuse, recycle, and reject). Everyone looked at their survey again and pulled out one thing that they think they could do better on. Some ideas were to start a compost pile, always use both sides of paper, and talk to grandmothers and show them how to recycle and reduce.


After lunch, things got very exciting! I was involved in tapping Maple trees for the first time ever! I know that it may seem commonplace to a lot of people, but for a long time I lived in a place where Sugar Maples are not common. Watching those first drips of sweet sap was exciting for everyone. Some of us even leaned over and let the sap drip into our mouths. What a treat it will be to sample the syrup after we boil it. Did I mention that I make a mean buttermilk pancake?

Until next week!
Jen

Winter Session FL - Week 5 - February 25 2009
What a sunny day it was! After our morning chores and snack, we set out with snowshoes on our feet. Our mission: to check on current Kestrel and Bluebird nesting boxes, and install some refurbished nesting boxes. We decided to let Ben carry the large ladder and then we piled the rest of the gear into a sled to drag behind us.


In the three Kestrel boxes that we checked, we found nest materials and feathers. We couldn't be sure if the feathers were from a Kestrel. We marked all of the bird houses with our GPS, so that we can import their locations to our maps of the farm.

In the afternoon, we cleaned out a pen to use as our first lambing jug. This wil be were the first ewe who goes into labor is placed so she can have a safe birthing experience, and we can keep a close eye on the newborn lamb(s).

We also took a look at the condition of the sheeps' wool to determine which fleeces we will keep for farm programs. We were looking for the cleanest, most healthiest looking white fleeces. When our shearer, Kevin Ford, comes on Friday morning, we will already know which fleeces to keep.

Until next week,
Jen

Winter Session FL - Week 4 - February 11 2009
This morning started with a promise of spring. A nice, warm respite from the winter was in store. Layers were shed, and chores done with smiles.

After compiling the data from last week's chicken tagging project, Ben asked us to clarify the identities of a few Buff Orpingtons. Seven chickens were caught and examined for age. We were able to figure out which chickens were less than a year old and which three were older hens that had lost their original tags.

The afternoon gave us sunny skies, warm temperatures, and great snowshoe trails. We donned our snowshoes, some of us for the very first time, and headed out. We took along the GPS so that we could create 'waypoints' along the way. These 'waypoints' allow us to pinpoint locations of interesting tracks, forks in the trail, our old fire spot, and a downed tree that needs to be cleared.

When we got back to the office, we met up with Ben who helped us input our GPS data and put it on the satellite image of our area. We could see a lot of our trail, or 'tracks'. We also identified our 'waypoints'. Very Cool.

Adios,
Jen

Winter Session FL - Week 3 - February 04 2009
Today started out with a daunting task. We had to catch every single hen and either record her tag number and description, or put new metal bands on their legs. It tooks some time, but with skillful chicken catchers and an attentive record keeper, we where able to identify every chicken. Ben is compiling the information and we will get the final report next week.

After this lengthy morning task, we ate an early lunch and learned about chinese new year. We also discovered our chinese astrological signs for our birth years, months and even hour (our secret animal). We came to the conclusion that they may have been on to something since all of our animals seemed to fit.

In the afternoon we helped Ben and Adrienne trim the goats hooves. They didn't like it too much, but they were good sports about it. In the end we rewarded them with some grain.

Another fun week has come to pass, and with it a healthier farm.

Until next week!
Jen