Our field is filling up, our greenhouses are filling with summer crops as we harvest the last spring crops from them, and the produce is starting to flow off the farm. Everything is looking beautiful, and there is so much bounty this time of year, and a lot to be grateful for. Unfortunately not everything is always so peachy on the farm, as we sadly lost almost half our flock of chickens this week to what we believe was a coyote rampage. We have an automatic door that opens and closes every morning and night, and it seems to be working normally, but it must have gotten stuck open because our only explanation is that something got into the coop and wreaked havoc, which we've never had happen in our four seasons here.
We've struggled with coyote predation since last year, and it feels like now that they've found us, we may be forever in trouble. The reality is that it's hard to pasture raise birds because it puts them at great risk, but it's the only way we believe in raising chickens. We are so sad and frustrated by this circumstance, and unsure if chickens have a future on our farm, despite our desire to raise them and offer pastured eggs. For now, we have fewer eggs, but will still have eggs available at the farm, and will list them to members only, when available. Egg Share members should have already received a separate email, as we are unfortunately unable to fill this add-on share for the remainder of the season. We are currently doing everything we can to keep the rest of our flock safe, even if it means going outside for the 20th time of the day at 9:15pm to check the coop door, when we'd prefer to be getting rest for the next early morning.
On a diversified farm, there are always ups and downs, successes and failures, and in the midst of this tragedy, we're remaining focused on the awesome field of veggies we've cultivated this season, and enjoying harvesting the first of it for you. We've got the first zucchini in boxes this week, with many more to come! Our Snap Peas are also the most productive they've ever been, and we have heaps more of this sweet treat for this week. We hope you're enjoying this spring bounty, I know that we are.
Your Farmers,
Ashley, Caleb and the Sungrounded Crew
