A look back at 2017

​It’s that time of year again. We must look at last year, learn, and plan for this year. We had a very successful year last year. We sold all our broilers at the Billings Farmers Market, raised and sold our first pigs, managed our first herd of cattle, and of course we sold a few eggs. On a little more technical side we build a lot of farm infrastructure last year as well, fencing for the cattle took much of my time, but the big project was building a pig pen (including the 2 acre pasture), and the installation of water lines and automatic waterers for both the new pig pen and the horses.

This year has kicked off with a vengeance, not really though it just feels that way because the winter kept us cooped up a little longer than usual. 

The farm under snow. We got a fair bit of snow this year. I think that this was early February.

Lessons learned

1. As a vendor, farmer’s markets are amazing. You meet so many new people both other producers and new customers. It is a lot of work though every weekend for 12 weeks. It’s worth it!
2. Don’t re-hang old barbed wire, just run a new strand. We have multiple broken strand this spring that need immediate repair.
3. Don’t rely on a half build fence to do anything when moving your cattle from one place to the next. It is a funny story I will explain another day.
4. Help your neighbors any time you can, they continue to be a real blessing to us. I hope one day we can pay them back.