The Best Part...

Hey There !

Dave from McElhoes Family Farm/Belmont here.

The Summer Squash are starting! The Summer Squash are starting! To some people that may sound like a warning from Paul Revere, but it is the best news for me. I absolutely love summer squash from crook necks and patty pans to straight necks and zucchini. I cannot even think of a way to prepare them that I do not LOVE! I plant and grow them way in abundance of what any normal human might, and inevitably an awful lot go to the chickens or to the sheep and goats. They too share my enthusiasm so it is not really waste. I am just sharing Summer's bounty with them.

My Mom, who always made us eat things that were "good for you" says of zucchini "the healthiest part is the exercise you get picking them and throwing them over the fence". Other friends and family often do not share my enthusiasm either, and though they can use colorful language, I will instead refer you to one of my mentors, The sage of Upper Sandusky, The Contrary Farmer, Gene Logsdon.

I suppose it is presumptuous of me to use the term mentor as I never actually met him, but I began reading his articles in such subversive magazines as The Mother Earth News (the old ones by John Shuttleworth) and The New Farm way back in the 1970's and 80's. Although he passed away back in 2016, he remains alive to me as I read and re-read his books and articles as much for his character as for the (always good) farming and gardening advice he offered.

I'll leave you with a link here with his advice on zucchini HERE, but I encourage you to find a few quiet moments to contemplate some of the other advice on his old blog website. Priceless.

Now on to the show.

The first batch of our Old Fashioned Country Chickens is nearing harvest. I move them to new grass and bugs twice a day now, and they remain healthy and happy, the way we try to raise everything.

We are trying to set our harvest dates, and will send out an email to give you first dibs before we update our website store.

Please allow me to ask you a favor and ask you a question. To wit: What size do you prefer your chickens to be? Do you prefer chickens to be in the 3-4 lb. Fryer size, the 4-5 lb. Broiler size, or 5 lbs. and up Roaster size? Of course, any of our chickens can be prepared any way, I am just trying to decide how soon to process this (already late) first batch. Please hit reply and let me know your preference. You are not obligated, and I try to have a variety of sizes available, but this will help me decide how to arrange the processing dates.

Now I gotta go slice up and fry those zukes!

Thanks in advance for helping, and as always,

Thanks for Listening,

Dave

"Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth." ~ Marcus Aurelius (who also deserves to be read and re-read)