These are our cows and calves (breeding stock), or as we call them 'the girls'. (Spring 2016)

Moving the bulls to a new pasture (paddock) for afternoon grazing.
This happens once a day, every day. (Fall 2015)

During the winter most of the pastures are dormant. However, our beef is still grass fed.  We feed hay and alfalfa from the spring/summer time. This year we are really working on diversifying the grasses in our pasture. (Winter 2015)

Reviving and nurturing the land is hard work.  When you see results of sustainable farming practices it makes it worth the effort. Notice the distinct line down the middle of the pasture.  This is from one season of broiler (meat) chickens.  We moved the tractor (portable chicken house) once a day with the chickens inside.  The left side is what the whole pasture looked like at 'normal', before.  The right side is the after affects of chickens.  The difference is staggering!  It's amazing how nothing goes to waste.  The droppings from the chickens fertilize the pasture and bring the soil up to health. Then the healthy pasture and grass provides food and nutrients for the chickens to eat and grow, in-turn providing you with a healthy and nutritious meal. All of this is possible without any addition of chemicals for the pasture or growth hormones and additives for the animals. As an added benefit our cattle can graze through this pasture after the chickens which provides them with high quality, naturally fertilized grass!
​(Spring 2014)

Here are the broiler chicks at 1 week old.
​(Spring 2015)

At 4 weeks old they are strong enough to handle the elements and they get moved out to the pasture in a mobile coop (chicken tractor). (Spring 2015)

There is always a project to do around here. This project is a pass through we made so the cattle can walk through a creek and some woods to get to another pasture on the back side of the farm. Not pictured: a bobcat and tractor for the heavy lifting and moving! You didn't think we would do all of that by hand, did you? (Fall 2015)

Every year we mimic natures patterns by burning our prairie grass. This natural conservation method helps keep down weeds and adds nutrients to the soil. This is an old tree stump after the burn. (Fall 2015)

This is our egg mobile (concept from Jole Salatin of Polyface, Inc.). Every morning we let them out to range and forage through the pastures where the cattle have been.  Each evening they know to go back inside and roost.  We shut them in to protect them from predators and weather during the night.
​(Summer 2015)

Farming has taught us to think outside the box. 
Using our car as a makeshift truck worked for bringing hay to the 'ladies'. (Winter 2015)

We were so surprised by how friendly turkeys can be.  They will follow you almost anywhere. 
They also proved to be very beneficial to the growing chickens.  They are great protectors and ward off certain predators. (Fall 2015)

We have started on our winter feed barn. This is an exciting and much needed project. The purpose of this barn will be to feed and shelter the cattle in the winter months. By concentrating the animals it will allow us to collect their manure and compost it. Then once it has decomposed and mixed with other organic matter such as extra hay and sticks we can spread it on our pastures as fertilizer.  This barn will keep the cattle safe and warm while giving us an abundance of organic fertilizer. Nothing goes to waste! (Spring 2016)

Here is a view of our fall/winter cover crops.  In efforts to continually improve soil and pasture conditions we plant a mixture of cover crops.  The main purpose is to cultivate and add nutrients (the natural way) to the soil.  An added benefit is our cattle can graze through these crops.  We try to give our cattle a very diverse diet of grasses to forage for the best nutrients possible. Here is a mixture of pearl millet, cow peas, daikon radishes and turnips. (Fall 2015)

We have enjoyed raising pigs. This is a newer animal to our farm. We decided to start out with three to learn about them and find the best place for them on our farm. Of course they were nicknamed the three 'little' pigs. (Summer 2016)

Here the pigs are foraging and rooting through the forest. They loved wallowing in the creek and napping in the late afternoon. (Summer 2016)

This is the before and during of our water line project. This was a big task but well worth it. We laid pipe across large stretches of pasture. The pipes are fed by gravity from our ponds. There are spouts along the pipe that we hook our water tanks to. This allows us to graze more pasture because the cattle have water access. Previously these pastures we not used in the summer months because the cattle had no water access. This year (2016) we are enjoying the benefits of that hard work by simply turning on the spigot and having fresh flowing water for the animals! (Summer 2015)

Morning on the farm. We feel very fortunate to live here and raise happy animals in the most natural unaltered way possible. Thanks to all of you who support us and other local sustainable farms! (Spring 2016)

This year we had a lot of babies around the farm, especially cattle. We are heading in the direction of red angus mixes in our breeding stock. (Spring 2016)

One mama hen let's us know that she's onto us while a kitten meets the baby turkeys for the first time.

The cattle are busy doing what they do best. Grazing! The summer grasses are in full growth and all heads are down to the ground. (Summer 2016)

The broilers (meat birds) are almost 8 weeks old and getting very plump. These birds only take 8 weeks to mature to 3-5 pounds. They love all the greens and goodies they find in the pasture. (Summer 2016)

Checking in on the pigs and to no surprise they are rooting and foraging through the forest. Doing what pigs do best!

Our breeding stock (mamas and babies) are heading to their next grazing paddock. They get so excited for the next paddock they will run and jump for joy. They literally jump! (Fall 2016)

The left picture is our chicken tractor that we raise our meat birds in. On the right is the egg mobile where our egg laying chickens live. Two different structures. Both move daily and both allow the chickens to live happy and healthy lives. (Fall 2016)

So much concentration. It really is amazing that one bird can lay on average 240-280 eggs per year.

Mother Nature Keeps us on our toes...
This summer we woke up to over 120 of our laying chickens dead. A coyote (our best guess) ripped 2 holes in the wall of the chicken tractor. Amazingly 16 birds lived. There are so many variables in life, especially in farming. This was devastating to say the least. We've poured days, weeks and months into raising these birds. We face set backs constantly but rarely ones on this scale. With every set back we choose to press on so we can learn and grow and "get back on that horse". You put your trust in our family to care for and raised your families food and it is truly a privilege. Even with days like this we are thankful and would choose this lifestyle again and again.  (Fall 2016)

Winter time means more fences to be built and repaired and we let our chickens take a "vacation" and demolish our garden from the season. If there is one thins chickens LOVE to do that is scratch and dig. They tear down our garden for us and create the best compost for planting into the next year. The garden you see here is the remains of our straw-bale garden. This year (2017) we are experimenting with a new method called 'back to eden' gardening. (Winter 2016)

Although it looks terrible this is just the middle stages of prepping the garden. The birds are spreading and scratching through the mulch and dropping their fertilizer all around the garden as well. (Jan 2017)

We try our best to avoid calving in the winter but sometime it just happens. Usually everything goes as planned (left) and we monitor closely to make sure mama and baby do alright in the winter nights. Sometime things don't go as planned (right) and this little fella was born right before sun down on a very cold night. We saw him just in time and brought him in to get off the ice that was forming. Once we warmed him up we reunited him with mama and they were on their way. This was fairly calm compared to last year when we had to put a calf in the bath tub...don't ask! (Winter 2016)

A beautiful sunset on the farm. We are blessed beyond measure and we love what we do. Thank you for your support of our family farm!

​All pictures and content are property of Farrar Family Farm, LLC.