Berries, Berries, and more Berries!!!!!!!!!!!!

 Summer! The busiest time of the year here on Rocky Ridge Beef Farm! There is always hay that needs to be cut, teddered, raked, or baled, gardens to work in, berries to pick, as well as anything else that needs to be done on any given day. We now have blueberries and raspberries for sale! They are ripening faster every day it seems like, and it's not easy to keep up with them! We always have pints available for sale, and if you would like more than a few at a time, please call ahead of time so that we will have them ready. Here are a few pictures of our delicious berries just waiting to be eaten!!!

And here are a few pictures of us baling hay that we feed to our cows.

Watch out!!!! Escapee on the loose!!!!!

On Sunday, May 22, 2011, as we were preparing for the sheep to be shorn, we noticed someone who thought that the grass (or hay and silage) looked tastier on the other side of the fence! Preston had escaped!!!  As this was his first adventure out of the pasture by himself, he did not go very far (we think he might have been scouting out the area for future adventures with his friends--Pixma, and Al ). However, he became distracted by the rumblings of his four stomachs and stopped to snack on the hay and silage. That is where we found him and we quickly directed him back to where he was supposed to be, and although he seemed glad to be back with his mother, we caught him consulting his friends about the pros and cons of his escape. Here are a few pictures of how it looked.

The sheep was shorn a short while later. Here are some before, during, and after pictures of her makeover.

Spring Rolls On.......

Spring is a very busy time of year for us farmers and this spring is no different!!! We have had several new calves born in the last month, as well as some other new arrivals. We have also been busy getting the gardens ready for planting and the fields ready for mowing. We also just filled up our freezers with fresh (frozen) beef, so please stop by to check it out, or you can see us at the Brimfield Farmers Market every Saturday from 9-2 in the Hitchcock Academy parking lot ( it's right off of Rt. 20 ). We may be at some other farmers markets this summer, so check back here or on our website rockyridgebeeffarm.com   to find out. Here are some pictures of some new arrivals and what we have been up to.

                                   Pruning Blueberry Bushes

                                             Daffodils!!!

                                            More Daffodils!!!

                                               Helena

                                                     Helena

                                                    Veronica

                                  Genevieve? or Hailey? We're still not sure =)

                                Pwggette, Pwggington, and Preston

                                                       Tulips!!!

                                   Moving composted manure to a garden

More New Arrivals!!!!!

 As we continue to enjoy the warmer weather of spring, we welcome some more new arrivals to our farm!!!!On March 30, Patrick's cow 'Pepsi' gave birth to her first calf!! A cute, bouncy, adventurous, happy little heifer named 'Pixma'. She enjoys playing with her friends 'Preston' and 'Pwggington' and leading them on all sorts of adventures around the pasture ( including through the electric fence!).

Also, two British White Park heifers also came to join our herd. Their names are 'Elizabeth' and 'Victoria'.

Remember to check back soon for more pictures of new arrivals!! Another of our cows, 'April', just gave birth to a calf yesterday. A big bull who we have yet to name. We will post some pictures of him soon.

Signs of Spring

Here on Rocky Ridge Beef Farm, we have sighted some exciting signs of spring!! The snow is just about gone and we have found some daffodils poking up through the ground!

We are very excited to announce that Patricks cow 'Pwggette' has given birth to her first calf, named 'Preston', on Saturday, March 26,2011. Both Mother and Son are doing very well. 'Preston' is a very handsome, bouncy calf, who enjoys eating, sleeping in the sun, and bouncing around in his pen.

Visitors are welcome to come and see him anytime that the farmstand is open. Please check back here often as we are expecting several more calves this spring, and we will do our best to keep this blog updated with the latest pictures of our newest arrivals.

Happy Spring!!!!

Our Own Newly Processed Beef, Pork, and Veal Has Arrived!!!!

Just in time for spring!!

Today we picked up some newly processed beef and roseveal. Mom and Peter drove all the way to Goffstown, NH, and since they didn't get lost once, they made it in just 2 hours! After another 2 hour drive back home they surprised the rest of us by arriving  home much earlier than we all had anticipated. After all the boxes were brought in ,(thanks to Dad) we were all able to pitch in and help with the inventory and organization process.

In other news........

Patrick's cow Peppy gave birth to her third calf, a cute, friendly, bull named Pwggington, on Christmas Morning. He is doing very well and enjoys visiting with the other cows, napping, as well as eating and growing-now weighing in at around 200 lbs.

                                                                       'Pwggington'

The snow is finally melting!!!!!!  And we are preparing ourselves for what we call 'mudseason' , otherwise known as spring. We have already spotted some tulips poking up through the ground, and are looking forward to seeing more and more as the weather warms up and more of the snow melts. Since we are on the north side of a hill, we usually have snow on the ground longer than our neighbors.

We received 10 chicks recently and they are growing fast!!!

Please stop by and visit our farmstore when you are in the area. It is open Mon-Sat. 9am-6pm.

Winter Wonderland!

Today we became part of New England's winter wonderland, receiving well over a foot of snow.   The cows don't mind the snow at all, but they do try to stay out of the wind.  Farmer Jim did the chores after he plowed the driveway and barnyard - so we didn't have to walk through a foot of snow to feed & water the animals.    Of course, the boys kept their shovels moving, shoveling paths as needed.   And now they are working up another appetite doing evening chores in this day long storm! 

Would you like to try a new recipe?  Try ground veal in your sloppy joes!   Yesterday for supper I served ground veal sloppy joes, and were they good!   The milk fed rose veal was so tasty, tender and moist in Hunt's traditional  tomoto sauce on hamburger rolls.    I served homemade french fries (yes, from our own potatoes) as a side.   We ended the meal with a delicious chocolate chip pie made by a visiting baker (our middle daughter) the previous day.

ALSO, just arrived from the processor, is our pork!  Add loin chops, ribs, and roasts to meat available at our store.   We milk and corn feed our pigs for about six months to end up with wonderfully tasting meat.

Til next time...

Rocky Ridge Beef Farm

 

Welcome!

Welcome to the Rocky Ridge Beef Farm blog! 

Thanks for visiting our new blog.   We're a family-owned farm raising beef, rose veal and pork with no antibiotics or hormones for growth.    When you visit our farmstore, you'll see happy calves and pigs grown with milk from our own dairy cows.    Our farmstore freezer is nearly full of delicious beef and rose veal, and within a week we'll have our own farm-raised pork!     All of our meat is processed at a USDA facility, either in New Hampshire or Massachusetts.    The store is open Monday through Saturday,  9 a.m. to 6 p.m.     E-mail us if you have any questions.

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