Spring Plans

We were driving along one of the local highways the other day and passed a farmer plowing up his field.  Something stirred deep within all of us to see him working out there, to see him preparing his little bit of earth to receive the seeds that will someday be food.  A little thrill coursed through us, eyes gleamed, for we belong to this earth as much as it belongs to us and I think, deep down, every human soul knows this.

Or maybe we’re just tired of this long, cold winter and grateful for any signs of spring.

We’re excited about our own spring farm plans here.  Plans like:

Raising more chickens. Our hens have been hoping to raise up some chicks, and now that the back of the winter has been broken, we’re going to let them.  We’ll clean the deep layer of litter out of the coop this weekend so the setters won’t be disturbed later.  Next week, we’ll set out some clutches of eggs .  Egg production will be a little light for a while as some of the hens go offline, but it’ll be good in the long run.

Adding a new cow. Maybelle and I talked the whole scheme out yesterday morning and we decided that it was time to add another milker to our farm.  We’re going out to look at some promising cows tomorrow, and we’re really excited about the new gal’s potential.  Actually, we just really, really like cows.  They’re more work than chickens, but just as pleasurable.

Planting a big garden. I don’t even want to tell  you how many tomato seeds are sprouting in jiffy pots on a big plywood table in my living room. I didn’t actually count them.  I’m scared to.  All I know is that if you want me in August, I’ll be in the kitchen canning tomatoes.  Also, last year, with all the stress of putting in our first garden, I didn’t bother with flowers.  That was a mistake.  Flowers are good for morale.  I started lots of those, too.

And that, my friends, is how the spring is shaping up here on the Cooper Family Farm.  We’re sure looking forward to it!