Genetic Diversity

 

Breeding animal 'bitsers' is always interesting and turns up lots of different shades and shapes.

 

 

This newborn buck is a very dark colour. His mother, Princess, has a Toggenburg mother and a Boer father. His father has a Saanen mother and an Australian Brown father. So far it is hard to tell who he takes after.

 

I have twelve Sussex chicks that I have incubating this Spring. Their three possible mothers are pure Light Sussex while of their three possible fathers one of them looks like a Light Sussex but has some genetic diversity which is shown by his orange legs rather than the pure bred grey legs.

Two of the dozen are brown not white, perhaps Buff Sussex. One other has a brown tinge. I am unsure whether these differences are made through interbreeding eg Sussex plus Isa Brown or through a genetic variation eg Buff Sussex.

 

This baby guinea pig has two brown parents (as shown in photo) but has come out mottled with a range of colours. In the last litter there was one black and white baby. Despite the danger of inbreeding with guinea pigs they do seem to throwback plenty of variation. 

Strawberries that the birds won't eat!

 

 

This year we have almost a whole bed of alpine strawberries.

 

 

These have lusher, greener leaves and a fruit that ripens white. They are smaller than most strawberries but just as delicious. The main benefit is that they do not attract birds, insects and even dogs that all love to guzzle on the red ones.

 



 

Definitely worth a try if you have a problem with garden pests. I have had a few of these plant for a while but this year they have really taken over so they obviously must propagate well.

Comet the Calf is Turning One.

A year ago I was lucky enough to check on Hailey, our Jersey cow, just as she gave birth to her first calf. She had been bred with a young Dexter bull so the calf was small enough for her diminutive frame. I sat with her for a while and watched all those milestone moments of standing up and latching on. It was a special moment and one of the highlights of having animals here on Opportunity Farm. We named her Comet - Hailey's Comet!

 

After three weeks I started to milk Hailey and since then we have been sharing her milk with Comet. Every morning she is let in after milking and she spends the day with her mother. In the evening when Hailey is called in for her feed, Comet is locked out. Most of the time she heads for the gate when she hears the call "Hup" but there have been a few occasions when she has needed a bit of chasing out.

 

 

She still loves her mother's milk and runs in for any leftovers after I have finished. Hailey is not only providing us with more than enough fresh milk for a family of seven but is helping to grow her calf. We don't have enough grass in winter for two cows with calves afoot so when Hailey is rested before her next calf we will send Comet off for her one bad day and fill the freezer with plenty of homegrown beef.

How to Make a Delicious Citrus Cordial

 

Spring may not be the season for most fruit to be harvested but there's often plenty of citrus needing to be picked. Having grabbed a bag of assorted lemons and oranges from our warmer bush block it was time to make some cordial. 

 

The ingredients:

24 citrus fruits

 6kg of sugar

4 tablespoons of citric acid.

16 cups of boiling water not shown!

Method:

The zest is roughly grated off the citrus and put in with the water and the citric acid.

The water is brought to the boil then all the sugar is stirred in until dissolved.

 

 

The juice is added and stirred in.

 

The mixture is left to cool; best overnight.

 

Recycled wine bottles are washed and then sterilised in the oven for about 20 minutes.

 

While the bottles are still warm, the mixture is strained through a sieve into a jug and then poured into the bottles. Sealed up, these bottles will last for a long time in the pantry. Once opened they need to be refrigerated to avoid some moulding on top.

 

Serve with water to taste and plenty of ice on a hot day.