farming – Fresh From Our Farm

We have Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Secretary’s Day, Personal Trainer Day, even Pharmacist Day, so why shouldn’t we have a Farmer’s Day?

Farmers are, without a doubt, the most important people in the world!

I saw a post once that said something like this:

We need a doctor when we are sick,
We need a lawyer when we are in trouble,
We need a minister when we need guidance,
But we need a farmer three times a day
– for our food!

Most of us take our food for granted. We go to the grocery store, and we can select from fresh, to frozen, to canned produce and other foodstuffs that we want.

Farming is food, farming is more than food.

Farmers produce the materials for our clothes, whether it’s cotton or leather. There would be no textile industry without the farmer.

Grocery stores and restaurants need the farmer to supply the public with food.

Many industries that package food would not exist without the farmer.

Truckers and railroads would have less to ship.

I wouldn’t want to go so far as to say our economy rests on the shoulders of the farmer but think about it. Everything that grows is planted, maintained, and harvested by a farmer.

Think about it. Really think about it. Where would we be without the farmer?

Thanking a farmer is a great way to celebrate the day, but what are we doing every day?

Here are some ideas.

Buy fruit and vegetables at your local farmer’s market. You are buffing direct from the farmer!

Visit a “pick your own” farm and experience harvesting your own produce.

Support the festivals that feature farm grown produce. In my state we have Strawberry Festivals, Cherry Festivals, Potato Festivals and more! Make it a family affair!
Visit farms. Some have Farm-to-Table events, others provide tours of their facility. It’s a learning experience to find out how much work goes into

And always, support your local farmer.

KeiLin Farm, a producer of farm fresh beef, chicken, pork, and eggs, is located in Davisburg, Michigan. Check out our website to discover all of our products and services.

Cleaning the run

When you raise cattle, chickens, and have horses, there is one more thing you have plenty of – manure!

Horses defecate approximately every two hours, cattle are right up there with the horses, and we won’t even talk about the hens. Fifty pounds of manure a day, per livestock, well, there’s no other way to say it – That’s a lot of poop!

Our farm, like many others, pile it but then we need to get rid of it. You will regularly see our manure spreader on our fields or in our garden putting this black gold into the soil.

If it’s done right, manure will compost and turn into a rich black, earthy material that is beneficial to crops and fields. The animal manure adds organic nitrogen to the soil and plant matter, such as leave, straw, and even wood shavings or sawdust, add carbon. Both help plants thrive.

But there’s more. Yes, compost adds to the soils ability to hold water which is vital to the plants, especially during the dry season. Studies have shown that by adding as little as 1% of organic matter to a field or garden, the soil can hold an additional 1.5 quarts of water per cubic foot of soil. More organic matter – more water holding capacity. This is very important if the soil is sandy.

Spread evenly over a garden or field and plowed or tilled into the soil increases the soil’s ability to grow crops. Better crops lead to a better harvest.

garden