Hello beautiful peeps,
Are you getting lots of thunderstorms where you are? We sure are. Just about every day. I don’t think I’ve seen everything so muddy in August ever. I had to get the onions out of the ground before they rotted. Lots of tomatoes also.
At the Wytheville Farmer’s Market on Saturday we will have ground goat and ground lamb once again. There is a little bit of Lamb Kabob/Stew also. Additionally, we will have Blackberry Jam $8.00, quail 1-lb package $20.00, various peppers (cayenne, jalapeno, sweet banana, Hot cherry, serrano) for $0.25 and $0.50 each, new potatoes 1-lb bag $3.00, 2 cups fresh basil (with pesto recipe) $4.00 and pickled peppers $5.00. I have two kinds, one hot and one not.
If you are a Herd Share member, let me know if you want to add anything to your regular product pickup. To get to that section, you can jump down the page here.
Quail
The incubator is going again for the last time this season. There are 80 eggs nestled in the trays. Their older siblings are doing well in the penthouse. They are now tall enough to drink from the automatic watering system. The best news is that I got a full compliment of eggs this evening – 15. Finally, I have reached that goal.
Cows
Claire, Buttercup, Cloud, Butter and Violet are out in the front pastures doing their thing. Eating grass and hanging out in the pond. Literally, in the pond. They like to stand in it in the heat of the day. When I walked out to get them and bring them in for milking, I had to traipse through the deep mud to get them out of the pond. My boot sunk in about a foot and got stuck. I wrenched that one loose, took another step and that boot got stuck. The mud is really deep in one place — the specific place I need to cross to get to them.
Creamery
Scott informed me today that the creamery and barn is completely dried in. That means he got the tar paper on the rest of the roof. That is a very large accomplishment. He deserves a break I think. There is still a whole lot more to do. Ceilings, walls, floors, electrical, plumbing and so on. Every day we get closer to completion.
Garden and Orchard
Tomatoes coming in fast. Lots are ripening every day. The trellis we constructed for them is leaning way over with the weight of the tomatoes. I picked a 5-gallon bucket full and a few days later picked another 5-gallon bucket full.
I’m getting ready to dry a lot of green and red bell peppers. I had to clear space to set up the dehydrator. I’ll be making more pickled peppers as well but I want to get started on the dehydrating so they don’t pile up on me. I always have too much to do this time of year. I like the option to quickly chop them up and pop them in the dehydrator. When they are dried sufficiently, I scoop them into a mason jar and I’m done.
That’s it for farm news. Now on to the farmer’s market update.
Farmer’s Market
We will be at the Wytheville Farmer’s Market on Saturday 8 am to noon.
See above for the new additions we will have ready for you!!
We have ground lamb and kabob/stew lamb as well as rib chops and loin chops. We have ground goat back in stock. I’m looking to have some ground beef next week or the week after at the latest.
Herd Shares
Herd Share Peeps, I’ll see you in my usual location. Let me know if you want something added on to your regular choice. Fresh milk and yogurt is still available. And as always, cheese and butter. Looking forward to seeing you on Saturday and/or Tuesday.
New herd share opportunities are available. Contact me via email (melanie@peacefulheartfarm.com) or phone (276-694-4369).
Please go HERE to learn all about Herd Shares and get on our waiting list.
News This Week
- Products Available
- Let’s Get Together
- This week’s FarmCast, “Why Does Cheese Melt” is now available.
- FREE Cheese tasting downloads
Products Available to Herd Share Owners
| Choose 1 per week | 1/2 Share | Whole Share |
| Raw Milk | 1/2 gallon | 1 gallon |
| Yogurt | 1 quart | 2 quarts |
| Butter | 1/4 pound | 1/2 pound |
| Ararat Legend | 1/4 pound | 1/2 pound |
| Peaceful Heart Gold | 1/4 pound | 1/2 pound |
| Pinnacle | 1/4 pound | 1/2 pound |
| Clau d’ville Cheddar | 1/4 pound | 1/2 pound |
Products Available to the General Public
| Beef | Price / Pound | |
| 1/4 Beef (approx 100 lbs) | SOLD OUT | |
| 1/2 Beef (approx 200 lbs) | SOLD OUT | |
| Whole Beef (approx 400 lbs) | SOLD OUT | |
| Ground (approx 1 lb) | SOLD OUT | |
| Lamb | Price / Pound | |
| Lamb Loin Chops | $18 | |
| Lamb Rib Chops | $18 | |
| Lamb Kabobs | $12 | |
| Ground Lamb (approx 1 lb) | $10 | |
| Whole Lamb (approx 40 lbs) | SOLD OUT | |
| 1/2 Lamb (approx 20 lbs) | SOLD OUT | |
| Chev (Goat) | Price / Pound | |
| Ground Chev (approx 1 lb) | $12 |
As always, we love meeting you in person. You can find us at the Wytheville Farmers Market on Saturday from 8:00 am to Noon. Special procedures are in place for your health and safety. Masks are recommended but not required as far as I know.
As always, you may visit us at our dairy farm in Claudville, Virginia Tuesdays from 10 am to 12 noon and Saturday afternoons from 3 pm to 5 pm. Find out how we raise our animals and why you will love the taste of tradition that is inherent in all of our products. Herd share holders will be able to see up close how their cows are cared for and the cheese operation and where it is stored.
In this week’s podcast, “Why Does Cheese Melt,” I give you the skinny on the chemical changes that are happening when cheese melts. I’ll also give you some tips on getting the best result when melting your cheese. I’ll warn you ahead of time that you will be hungry for your favorite cheese dish by the end of the podcast.
I want to follow up on my previous FarmCast, The Taste of Cheese where I talked about developing your expertise with using descriptive words. The FREE downloads of Classifying Cheese by Type and Category and Expand Your Cheese Vocabulary are still available at our website. Please stop by and get your FREE resources.
You can LISTEN TO THE PODCAST HERE. Or, if you have an Alexa device, just say: “Alexa, play podcast Peaceful Heart FarmCast.”
And don’t miss an episode! Subscribe to the Peaceful Heart Farm podcast on Apple Podcasts, Android, TuneIn, Stitcher or Spotify
