Nicole Freed, a self-taught knitting enthusiast, visits Tracy Toth to share some tips on how to get started in this time-honored needlework tradition. Be sure to share this webisode with anyone you know who wants to learn the craft of knitting. It’s not as difficult as it may seem.

Baw Blue, our devilishly handsome Navajo-Churro ram will return to his home farm in a few days. We heeded his owner’s warning and gave him full and free access to the girls. (Translation: we did not venture into the pasture while he was here except for feeding and watering. Blue’s known to be quite territorial when it comes to his “girlfriends.”)

I’ve missed my ewes! Reese will hear my voice from across the yard and call out – at least, I’m thinking she’s calling out to me. She’s probably just making her random matriarchal “baaa-aa.” Yesterday morning, however, I left the pasture after changing out the water buckets and when I was back at the spigot, I heard her trademark “baaa.” I was shocked to see her standing at the open gate that I had forgotten to latch!  Everyone else was too busy chomping at the hay I’d left in the rack to notice the gateway but there she was just standing and alerting me of something “different.”

So, Blue will make his return journey this weekend having spread his maleness (we hope) amongst 11 ewes and we’ll go back to coddling our sheep. It was nice having him around these last few weeks. He added a certain “something” to the landscape.

If there’s one common element that links all of the folks I’ve met on the series, it’s passion. And Mark Lopez is a prime example.

The number of registered Ayrshires in North America has declined significantly over the past 30 years. See the ALBC website for more. www.albc-usa.org/

Mark is a husband, father, veterinarian, and dairy farmer—but not just any dairy farmer. He harvests raw milk from his heritage breed Ayrshire dairy cows. His time, energy, years of education, and love for his herd come to focus upon ensuring the quality of his dairy products. The herd grazes naturally on grass and enters the barn for milking twice a day, every day. Each individual in the herd is known by her name and sweet, subtle quirks.

Mark’s passion is not only for his beloved Ayrshire but also for the dairy operation itself. Harvesting and public sale of raw milk require the maintenance of strict standards in the collection process as well as throughout the collection areas.

Wholesome Dairy Farms is a special place; I’m glad it’s part of the ag community in this valley.

Come along with Tracy Toth, our host, as we visit Wholesome Dairy Farms to learn about raw milk production and the Ayrshire heritage breed of dairy cattle.

Tracy Toth, our host, continues our day at the fair. We learn more of “all things Ag” at the Oley Valley Community Fair in part two of our two-part webisode.

Six years ago we were hurriedly looking at properties in the area and happened to be with a real estate agent driving right by the Oley Community Fair, which was in full swing.

Parked cars filled every available street spot while large fields and temporary lots accommodated the overflow.

I said something to the agent like, ‘wow, look; a county fair!’  She said that it wasn’t—that it was the “community fair.” That, although it’s open for the public to attend, only residents whose townships join the ag-rich Oley Valley could participate in the contests/judging.

Canning Competition Entries

And, oh, what a level of participation! From the numerous volunteer committee heads and organizers who work year-round for the three-day culmination, to the local fire department, to the thousands who turn out, the excitement and anticipation seems to increase with each year’s festivities.

My friends and I will joke with one another about the “blue ribbons” but, kidding aside, it’s not about that at all. It’s about the celebration of a lifestyle and a heritage that we strive to keep alive. It’s a  three-day celebration of a well-connected community… connected with each other and connected to this valley.

Best Display of Jellies

Best Display of Pickles

This is probably a good time to thank Evelyn (again); she was our real estate agent who suggested we might be happy here.

Join our host, Tracy Toth, as she introduces us to a communal celebration of “all things Ag” at the Community Fair in part one of this two-part webisode.

Rebecca Gunther of Jersey West Farm provides more tips about show ring sheep wrangling in part two of our program.

Relaxed Tom

When we began to raise turkeys a few years ago, I had no idea about the “show” they were capable of: the delicate dances, intricate and varietal sounds and calls, and the careful choreography of their mating rituals. Silence does not appear to be in their vocabulary. At any given point during the daylight hours, you can hear the hens and their sharp clucks and the toms gobbling virtually in unison.

Feeding time always brings excitement in the barnyard and the turkeys are no exception—their appearance changes almost instantly!

Unbelievably, the snood (according to the Wild Turkey Federation), which is perched atop the beak, has no known function. It will redden and engorge when the tom is excited and shrink to less than an inch and return to a shade of blue when the tom is relaxed.

Engorged snood, caruncles and dewlap

Excited over feeding time

The “caruncles” are bulbous appendages which appear on the neck and head and the dewlap is the skin which connects the underside of the beak to the neck (both sexes). On toms, both of these areas redden and the caruncles will enlarge when strutting or acting aggressively.

Toms possess a somewhat modified feather called a “beard” which protrudes from the center of the breast. It grows three to five inches a year.

As you can imagine, the toms will put on quite the display with their shades of red and magnificent plumage. Do you know when it came time to make the Big Bird costume on TV’s Sesame Street, they reached for white turkey feathers and died them yellow? 

The turkey: a natural showstopper!