Teresa & Mike CHS - Our journal

[Baymule]

Why do they stack the corn stalks? What do they use them for? If I had Amish neighbors like that I'd probably go buy my canning veggies too. But I don't so I'll continue to grow mine. LOL

 

[Baymule]

@goatgurl I will probably be sending my 2 year old ram to slaughter in a few weeks when I take wethers. I'm going to upgrade my ram. My daughter requested a standing rib roast instead of chops. I'm excited to try that.

 

[Mike CHS]

Why do they stack the corn stalks? What do they use them for? If I had Amish neighbors like that I'd probably go buy my canning veggies too. But I don't so I'll continue to grow mine. LOL

We asked one of the farmers a ton of questions last year since we are out that way often enough that they tolerate us.

The corn is probably almost dry enough to start husking but not completely. Stacking is intended to keep the corn from contact with the ground where it would absorb moisture. This is all field corn which is used for both their livestock and themselves to eat.

 

[CntryBoy777]

Thanks GG. We won't be processing any more lamb for ourselves unless it is one that is having problems and do appreciate the larger cuts of meat. The only time we could tell a difference was with the ribs that seemed a wee bit stronger but that was probably due to a larger layer of fat.

Just for clarity, are ya lessening lamb in the diet, or just the processing of it?

 

[Mike CHS]

Just the processing Fred. We are about 50/50 with beef and lamb supplemented with some pork every once in awhile. We are just going to let them get full grown since it doesn't cost any more to get 80-100 pounds vs 40-50 pounds. Our lamb ewes are 7-8 months old and they weighed between 90 & 120 pounds when we worked them the other day. The males would be even bigger if they weren't castrated but the one left in that group is 130 pounds.

 

[Mike CHS]

We just finished canning that bunch of tomatoes we bought the other day plus we already have enough total that we shouldn't need anymore until we start picking our own again next year, The camp stove did well
even with the wind and rain that we have going on.

The baby chicks in our incubator started hatching. Several are already out of the egg and quite a few are working on it.

 

[CntryBoy777]

Awww!!....peepers are always so cute and sweet...we still only have 1 so far....duck that is.....hope most hatch for y'all, is it a mixed batch?

 

[Mike CHS]

These are a mixed bag of ours, a neighbors and Jays. These will replace the 10 that Jay lost to the dog or however many he wants. A couple you can already tell will be Black Sex Links which came from ours

 

[Mike CHS]

I thought Teresa said she put 40 eggs in the incubator but it was 30 instead. 14 have hatched since this morning and so far doing good.

We processed pickles and tomatoes today till we finally called "Uncle" but got it all done except for about 15 pounds of small cucumbers that a neighbor wants to buy for some pickles for them.

 

[Pastor Dave]

We have Amish down South and West of us. No wholesale prices on their wares. Of course we also have Shipshewana up North, but that has commercialized so much that it's hard to call it Amish.

Your wife's pasta with cottage cheese and cream cheese sounds good. I make a layered "lasagne" with elbow macaroni because it is so much easier to scoop out than cut and lift out. I WILL BE trying the cream cheese addition!

If I understood you right, you are at 1/2 and 1/2 with lamb and beef the way I am with our rabbit meat. Haven't bought chicken in I couldn't say how long, and hardly any pork. Can't avoid the pork steaks and racks of ribs though. There's hardly any fat on the rabbit, and well, the ribs are no bigger than somewhere between a toothpick and popsicle stick.