Category Archives: General Information

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

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Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from Lucky Penny Acres!

The new year will surely bring many new challenges and stories that we will be glad to share with you over the coming year.

It is finally turning cold and the first heavier snows are beginning to fall.  The temperature is now just below 0 degrees and even colder with the wind chill.

Our dogs have the right idea – curl up under some warm blankets for the winter!

Shaffron with Dinosaur Blanket

Shaffron enjoying a nap with her dinosaur blanket.

Penny in Cozy Cave

Penny napping in one of her dog beds – a cozy cave.

Penny curled up on her chair.

Penny curled up on her chair.

 

Thanks for reading and check back regularly for updates and new stories!

Farm Chores – Chipping Ice

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A recurring early winter farm chore is chipping ice out of the outdoor water buckets.

While the winter has been very mild so far (it was in the mid-60s on Thanksgiving and the forecast is for around 60 on Christmas) and we have so far avoided any significant snow fall, the temperatures have still occasionally dipped below freezing overnight.  While the goats and chickens can handle temperatures below freezing without much of a problem, they still need access to water.

This means having to chip the ice out of their water buckets to give them access to liquid water.

Here is a solid piece of inch-thick ice removed from one of the water buckets – I managed to remove almost the entire ice block from the top of the bucket in one piece.

Inch thick ice from the water buckets.

Inch thick ice from the water buckets.

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Cutting Down Trees

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As winter approaches, we have had a number of storm fronts move through the area with a lot of wind.  A portion of our property is adjacent to neighboring farm fields so there are no wind breaks to slow down any strong winds.  We often have a variety of small branches come down after a typical storm.

Recently, we had a larger tree snap near the ground during a storm.  The broken tree was left leaning against another tree and looked likely to fall to the ground during a subsequent storm. Unfortunately the tree was hanging over our pasture fencing so if it fell all the way to the ground, it would have smashed the fence. We couldn’t just leave it alone to fall down on its own.

Broken Tree Partially Standing.

Broken Tree Partially Standing.

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Snow Showers

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The first snow of the season arrived in mid-October. Since then, the temperatures have mostly been unseasonably warm – with some 60 and even 70 degree days in late October and early November.

It is finally begun to turn into winter and regular snow flurries will become a common occurrence.  I took a couple of short videos of the falling snow as it is quite relaxing to just look out at the snow (especially when there is limited accumulation and no need to shovel or venture out on the roads!).

Hope you enjoy!

Click through to see more relaxing videos of the falling snow.

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Too Many Leaves!

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We have a lot of trees on our property, including a lot of trees around the yard near the house. We like trees and they provide good shade in the summer and habitats for local wildlife.

However, this fall our yard was almost completely covered in leaves. For a good portion of the yard, by the time the trees had lost most of their leaves, the leaf cover was at least 2 inches deep.

Raking the Leaves

Raking the excess leaves after mowing.

Click continue for photos of the massive leaf compost pile.

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The Mindy Project

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Our most independent hen, Mindy, often spends a part of her day hanging out with the goats. While most of the other hens are either unable or unwilling to get over the fences separating the pastures, Mindy goes right on over the gates to search out the best places to scratch for food.

Below is a picture of Mindy out in the middle of one of the larger pastures as the goats graze in the background.

Mindy out in the field with the Goats

Mindy out in the field with the goats.

Click through to see more of Mindy with the goats.

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Farm Chores – Cleaning the Chicken Coop

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One of the recurring farm chores is to clean out the chicken coop periodically. The cleaning process can take anywhere from a few minutes to several hours depending on how long between cleanings and how thoroughly you want to clean the coop.

Chickens coops don’t need to smell bad and a bad smell (usually a strong ammonia smell) is usually an indication that cleaning is actually long overdue.

The chicken coop right before fall cleaning.

The chicken coop right before fall cleaning.

Click through to see the before and after pictures from the coop.

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First Snowfall

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We recently experienced our first snow fall of the season. We received around 2 inches of snow in mid-October. The average first snow fall does not normally occur until early November and the first measurable snow does not normally occur until mid- to late- November so it was a bit earlier than normal. The almanacs are predicting a heavier than average snowfall for the season – we are off to a good start. For reference, average snowfall is over 100 inches per year.

First Snow Fall with Fall Foliage in the background

First Snow Fall with Fall Foliage in the background

Click through for more pictures of the first snowfall.

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Fall Foliage Photos

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The past week or two was near the peak for fall foliage this year. The woods on our property have a large percentage of maple trees, so the initial color change is primarily to yellow, but there are also other trees with deeper oranges and reds.

For those who couldn’t make it out into the country-side during peak season for leaf viewing, here are some photos of our property decked out in full fall colors.

Fall Colors 1

Click through to see many more photos of the changing leaves.

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Reflections on the First 3 Months

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The first three months on the farm have really flown by.

Summer has now turned to autumn and the green leaves have mostly turned to yellows, oranges and reds. We saw our first measurable snow fall of the season this past weekend (approximately 2 weeks earlier than average – more on this for a later post).

Here is a short video of the goats running across the pasture to greet us. The goats have a lot more individual personality than I would have guessed before moving to the farm.

Now is a good time to look back and reflect on the start of the adventure.

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