Farming Friends

• Potatoes are a root vegetable.
• They are a staple food in Britain and America.

The Nutritional Content Of Potatoes

Potatoes contain the following in varying degrees depending on their variety, how they have been grown, stored and cooked.

• Carbohydrate (starch)
• A range of minerals including potassium, phosphorus, zinc, calcium, iron, copper and magnesium.
• Vitamin C
• Some B Vitamins
• Folic Acid
• Fibre
• Protein
• Water

Other Benefits Of Potatoes

• Potatoes are low in fat.
• They are low in calories.
• Potatoes have no cholesterol.

When keeping chickens, certain equipment is necessary.

• Housing.
• A feeder.
• A drinker.
• A nestbox.
• Storage for feed.

The normal routine of feeding the cattle was disrupted the other morning when my husband went to feed the cattle and was faced with a leaking water trough. The cattle must have knocked the drinking trough and broken the plastic. Water had been gushing out for some time and the fold yard was nearly a wash with muck and water, yes, that’ll be ‘mucky water!!’. The cattle were all standing at the front of the fold yard trying not to get their hooves wet! They were not very happy and neither were the farmers because the yard wasn’t due for a muck out until the following week and the broken drinking trough had brought the job forward.

Firstly the water needed to be turned off to stop the yard becoming completely flooded. (Not convenient for the farmer’s wife going about her housewifely duties!) Then the cattle needed to be moved to one half of the yard whilst the other half was mucked out. This all sounds straight forward but extra fences were needed to pen the cattle in on one side of the yard and the fences in question where at the other farm. So off the farmers went in the landrover, returning later with the trailer loaded with fences.

Once the fences were in place, the cattle were moved and the mucking out began. It doesn’t sound like a long job, but with only two farmers it can take nearly all day.

The muck was scooped out with the teleporter and put into a trailer and then when they had a full load the muck was tipped onto the land, allowing the lovely aroma of cattle muck to waft through the countryside.

When one half of the yard had been cleared a bale was rolled out to give the cows bedding for them to stand and sit on. The cattle were then moved to the other side of the yard and the process was repeated. I can tell you it was an awful lot of muck that needed to be removed and the two farmers were very tired (and smelly) when they had finished.

A new water trough was ordered, collected and installed all in the same day and everything returned to normal in the fold yard……….that is until a cow was spotted getting ready to calve and the the emergency muck out was swapped for an emergency assisted calving as the calf was very big and the cow was struggling to calve on her own.

No these are not the lyrics to an 80’s reggae tune, but a frequent cry from the poultry keeper.

• Rats and mice are a common problem when poultry are kept.
• They are attracted by the poultry food.
• Rodents are opportunistic eaters.
• Rats are attracted by the water as well as the food.
• Rats and mice will burrow their way under the housing.
• Rodents like to hide under piles of straw or deep litter.
• It is sometimes difficult to tell if they are present as they often come out at night to feed.

Signs Of Rodents

1) Small holes in the soil around the edge of the housing and inside the hut.

2) Small blackish pellet shaped droppings usually found near the poultry feeder.

3) Feed disappearing too quickly for the amount of poultry kept.

Rodent Control

• Good housekeeping of the poultry hut and surrounding area.
• Make sure that spilt food is cleared away so that it doesn’t attract the rodents.
• Store poultry feed in rodent proof containers.
• Keep water spills and pools of water cleaned up.
• Change straw and litter frequently so that the rodents cannot live underneath.
• Small huts can have small mesh wire netting nailed to the underside of the hut to prevent the rodents entering the housing from underneath.
• Eliminate hiding places around the poultry housing.
• Keeping a cat can help control the numbers of rats and mice.
• Setting traps for rats and mice can be helpful if the rodent population is small.
• Set up a bait station in a hiding place with rat poison in it.

The calving season is upon us again, but this year we thought we’d get the calving on film or so we thought!

We knew that one of our cows was about to calve as she’d been bagged up for a couple of days and on this particular cold and miserable February morning we knew it wouldn’t be long. Her tail had risen and she was pacing up and down.

The men decided to get her into the calving pen so that if assistance was needed, we could help without getting trampled on by the other curious cows.

My film making hubby was quick (on this occasion!) to get the camera set up ready for calving action. We certainly didn’t want to miss an unassisted birth again. So with camera at the ready, we waited…… and waited……. and waited……. but no calf appeared.

The cow paced up and down and round the pen, whilst we paced up and down turning the record button on and off.

Suddenly sacs appeared and then the feet . We finally had some action and some decent footage.

Again it all went quiet as we waited…..and waited…. and waited for the calf to be born. The feet kept bobbing in and out like a jack in a box but the calf wasn’t moving any further forward. Cows do not like to be watched, disturbed or as we now know, filmed when they are calving and our presence and that of the camera was obviously putting her off. Filming was temporarily abandoned as we all hid round the corner waiting for more action.

We began to worry about the unborn calf as prolonged calving can sometimes injure or kill a calf. The men decided to intervene and assist with the birth, but first they had to catch the cow and tether her so that they could safely assist. The cow however had different ideas and was not willing to be tethered up. (Tethering the cow is not always necessary, it depends on the nature of the cow, although with this cow it was very necessary as she doesn’t like humans at the best of times, let alone when she is in the middle of calving a calf that doesn’t want to be born.)

I don’t think these farmers would make it lassoing cattle in the Australian outback or on an American ranch, since they couldn’t manage to tether this cow in her pen!

As worry for the calf mounted, tempers became frayed and the head farmer ordered us to stop messing about with the camera and leave the pregnant cow to see if she would calve on her own. Back in the house we could hear alot of mooing and with the boss gone for his lunch the coast was clear to go and get the camera re-set up for the calving shots.

I stayed in the kitchen preparing lunch whilst my film making hubby dashed back across the yard to film the birth.

“Did you get it?” I enquired as my husband returned, although the look on his face said it all. “No!!!!!!!” He had just got the camera in place when the cow let out a great moo and as he pressed the record button the calf was laid in the fresh bedded up straw.

Yet again, nature waits for no man, not even a camera man!

Click on this link to read Nature Waits For No Man, Not Even A Camera Man! - Part 1.

A few nights ago we received a phone call from one of our neighbouring farming friends who told my husband that a vehicle was parked up near our sugar beet field and a couple of blokes where eyeing up the beet machine.

Why anyone would be interested in the old sugar beet machine is beyond me, especially since the beet factory has just closed in York and the crop will no longer be grown in this area by many farmers. But in double quick time, my husband grabbed the torch and sped out of the yard towards the field, to announce to the trespassers, “Get orf my land!”.

He was gone for ages and I did begin to worry that I might not see him again. The blokes could have been trying to steal the machine and could have attacked my husband in the process, leaving him for dead.

After what seemed like an eternity, the car headlights flashed by the living room window. To my relief he had returned safely and was excitedly waving a photograph at me. He had obviously not been attacked by thieves and trespassers!

“You won’t believe it,” he said. ” I got there and these two blokes were taking photos of our beet machine. I nearly ruined their photo’s with my flashlight! Anyway they’re photographers, not thieves, and they take photographs of interesting machinery or buildings at night. They showed me some of their photos and let me look at the images they’d just taken of our machine. The results are amazing. You won’t believe how good our beet machine looks.”

In return for allowing the blokes to photograph the machine, my husband asked if we could have copies of the images. So look no further, cast your eyes on our top quality beet machine!

The results are truely amazing, wouldn’t you agree?!

• They are nutritious.
• Easily digested.
• Egg dishes are quick to prepare.
• Eggs have many different uses.
• They can be prepared in many different ways.

Cooking And Eating Eggs

Eggs can be cooked in a variety of ways.

1. Boiled
2. Fried
3. Poached
4. Scrambled
5. Steamed
6. Omelette

Boiled Eggs - Eggs can be soft or hard boiled.

Soft Boiled Eggs can be cooked in a number of ways.

You can plunge the eggs (still in their shells) into a pan of fast boiling water and cook according to taste and size of eggs: 3 minutes = very soft, 3.5 minutes = soft, 4 minutes = medium hard or 4.5 minutes = firm. When cooked, put into egg cups and cut the top off the eggs.

A second way to cook soft boiled eggs is to cover the eggs (still in their shells) with cold water and bring slowly to the boil. The moment the water boils remove from the heat. Put into egg cups and cut the top off the eggs.

Hard Boiled Eggs - Put the eggs (still in their shells) into boiling water and boil for 10 minutes. Try not to over cook for more than 10 minutes as the eggs may be discoloured. Put the eggs immediately into cold water to cool as this prevents a dark colouration around the yolk. When cool, crack the egg shell and peel it from the eggs.

Fried Eggs - Heat some fat (sunflower oil is high in unsaturated fat) in a small frying pan. Crack the eggs into separate cups and then slide the eggs into the pan and draw off the heat for a minute. Then replace over a low heat and fry until the eggs are set. Shake the pan slightly to prevent sticking. A plate over the pan can sometimes help the top to set. Remove from the pan and drain any excess fat before serving.

Poached Eggs - Break the eggs carefully into cups, unless using a special poaching pan. Put a teaspoon of vinegar and a pinch of salt into a pan half full of water. Slide in the eggs, keeping the white together with a spoon. Simmer gently spooning water over the eggs, until they are set and the whites are opaque. Remove from the pan and drain well before serving.

Scrambled Eggs - Use half an ounce of margarine or butter and 1 tablespoon of milk per egg. Crack the eggs into a bowl and add the milk. Beat the eggs and milk together and season with a little salt and pepper. Melt the margarine/butter in a saucepan and add the beaten egg mixture. Stir with a fork until the mixture is nearly set. Remove from the heat and serve.

Steamed Eggs - Grease an oven-proof dish and break the eggs into it. Stir the yolk and white together, add a pinch of salt and then put the dish into a saucepan with enough boiling water to come half way up. Steam the eggs until they are set and then serve.

Omelette - Crack the eggs into a bowl and add a little milk and seasoning. Beat the mixture together. Heat some oil in a frying pan and then add the egg mixure so that it spreads out and covers the whole of the bottom of the pan. Cook until the egg mixture has set. The omelette can be turned or flipped over so that both sides are evenly cooked but this is not always necessary.

Using Eggs In Cooking And Baking

Eggs have many benefits when they are used with other ingredients in cooking and baking.

1. Whisking
2. Setting
3. Binding
4. Coating
5. Emulsion
6. Glazing
7. Enriching other foods

Whisking - Eggs hold alot of air and are used to make meringues, souffles, mousses and swiss rolls. The ingredients are whisked together and the air held in the mixture by the eggs makes the meringues and cake very light.

Setting - Eggs enable a liquid mixture to set for example in a quiche, a baked egg custard and lemon curd.

Binding - When you add an egg yolk to a fish cake or beefburger mix, it helps the ingredients to stick together.

Coating - Beaten egg can be used to coat fish, chicken portions and other food before they are coated in breadcrumbs and fried.

Emulsion - When an egg or egg yolk is used to make mayonnaise, it helps the oil and vinegar to stay blended together.

Glazing - Pastry topped pies and scones are brushed with beaten egg and milk to give a shiny golden brown appearance when cooked.

Enriching other foods - Adding beaten egg to mashed potato, fried rice or milk pudding can help to improve the flavour and food value of the dish.