This time last year, Nigel wrote a story about Strawberries and Chickens. This is something I have been wondering about recently. Perhaps Nigel and I talked about this, and that’s why it was rolling around in my brain? After last year’s rain, I am reluctant to move the chickens onto an area we would absolutely have to move them out of quickly. But perhaps the solution is to run the gees through? The more I look at the weeds all around the farm, the more I come to realize we need more geese. — Lorraine
“The strawberry plants are dormant, taking a break for the winter and getting ready for the spring. This is last years crop which we will harvest again this spring then plant a new crop to replace it on another part of the farm. Last year, we put the chickens on some old strawberry beds to scratch away the leaf debris so that we could remove the woven plastic mulch. As we moved them down the field where they had been the week previously, the strawberry crowns regrew. So I am thinking that I will try that for a very short period on this years crop. It will make the berries easier to pick and increase airflow around the plants reducing the risk of disease. My concern is that it rains heavily we cannot move the house and they damage the plants and future crop. Farming is a gamble, I have no need to go to Vegas, I gamble every day on the farm…” — Nigel