Today’s Blog Tour stop is at Chickens in the Road. Stop by Suzanne McMinn’s website for a chance to win The Farmstead Egg Guide and Cookbook.
My book has been getting great press! Library Journal and Shelf Awareness have each given it starred reviews. Publishers Weekly says “Golson’s wisdom (is) infinitely helpful.” You can purchase a signed copy from me, or support your local bookstore. It is also available on Amazon.com.
At night, the temperature continues to dip into the teens. During the day it gets a tad warmer. There’s been some melting. At long last, there’s a strip of frozen ground in front of each barn. It’s rock hard, but it’s clear of snow and there’s old grass exposed. I can finally open the door to the Gem’s run.
It took them awhile to find their way to the wider swath of turf, which is where they stayed. Even Misty didn’t venture across the snow. (Although, you can see here that she’s thinking about it.) Not that there is anything to beckon her past the barn. The lawn remains covered by a solid crust.
The Ladies also had an outing. They were delighted.
Despite the fact they the hens were staying close to the coops, they were not safe from predators. I bundled up in ski pants and a down coat and kept an eye on them. Hawks patrol the skies. Four footed predators usually stay away during the sunny midday, but there’s no guarantee.
A few days ago, Lily let us know that something was in the vicinity. She insisted on staying outside, and sat in the middle of the yard on the snow, watching. A raccoon had come onto the porch the previous night. I figured that she was keeping it at bay. A raccoon is smart enough to stay away when an athletic dog is on guard. But, it didn’t. Early that afternoon, the raccoon came onto the back porch. Lily cornered it under the wood pile. With Steve’s help, I directed into a dog crate. I was very relieved that Lily hadn’t tangled with it, but that was more luck than sense on her part.
There could be only two reasons why this raccoon behaved as it did: 1) someone was feeding it and it had become used to people or 2) it was rabid. I called a registered wildlife rehab group who said they would take it. When we handed the crate over to the experienced volunteer, she took one look and determined that the raccoon was ill. It died the next day of rabies. She was worried about our goats. A rabid raccoon will act friendly one moment, and attack another. Had it bitten the goats? Luckily, no, and they are vaccinated. As are Lily and Scooter. Vaccines have gotten a lot of bad press lately, but not from me. This story could have gone another way, and without a rabies vaccine, I could have lost my dogs and my goats.
Once again, I am grateful to my good dog Lily.
Wendy Thomas, journalist and blogger in New Hampshire, is joining us today for the Farmstead Egg Guide and Cookbook blog tour. Wendy keeps backyard chickens, loves to eat eggs, and writes. She’s also a lovely person. I’m delighted that she’s agreed to take a look at my book and tell you her thoughts on it. Stop by her site and say hello!
Meanwhile, I’ve been out and about myself. On Saturday I was invited to spend a few hours at the Wayland Winter Farmer’s Market. It takes place inside the Russell’s Garden Center greenhouses. (Local plant nurseries are as important to support as indie bookstores. This one is amazing!) I was given a table next to the orchids. Heaven.
I didn’t go alone. I brought Veronica. She took one look at the sun streaming in through the glass, and the pots of herbs across the aisle from us, and she started complaining. After a winter of not seeing green, she wanted some! I bought her a pot of parsley. She ate the plant, then proceeded to dust bathe in the dirt. She was ecstatic. As were the children who watched her antics.
I was supposed to stay for four hours, but after three, Veronica once again became agitated. Daikon radish and greens didn’t mollify her. I decide to pack up and go. As soon as she was tucked in the quiet of the car, Veronica made a nest in the hay.
Two minutes later, out popped an egg! It was a proper Cuckoo Marans dark brown egg. Her first one! I guess that the scent of the orchids and the sunshine and the warmth finally kicked Veronica into laying mode.
In any event, I took her home. No doubt she regaled her flock mates with tales of her fantastic day in the magical greenhouse.
The next day, Beatrix accompanied me to another event at the Concord Bookshop. Beatrix did not need to lay an egg. She was calm and content and regally greeted all.
Almost 50 people turned up. I talked for a bit.
Then I fed them some recipes from my book. Pickled Beets and Eggs. Hard-cooked Eggs with Seasoned Salts, and Orange-Almond Pound Cake.
I’ll be doing similar programs at the Toadstool Bookshop in Milford, NH, and Porter Square Books in Cambridge, MA. I don’t know which hen will be coming to those stores. I try to bring a hen that has already laid an egg at home. If you want to meet all of the hens, there’s still space in the Chicken Keeping Workshop at my home. Check the events page for more information about all of my upcoming programs. I hope to see you at one of them!
I am positively gleeful that my good friend, Lauren Scheuer (author of the delightful Once Upon a Flock) is part of my blog tour! When she comes to visit with have a very good time, our dogs play, and we drink a lot of coffee. Which is why I always forget to take photos. But Lauren, always with camera at hand, does take photographs. Go to her blog, Scratch and Peck, to see and to enter a giveaway for The Farmstead Egg Guide and Cookbook.
Today, Melissa at Tilly’s Nest is helping me to celebrate the release of The Farmstead Egg Guide and Cookbook. Melissa and I connected over the internet, and since she lives on Cape Cod, we’ve been able to meet several times in person. She’s a creative and positive person, and I’m so happy that she’s on the blog tour. Tilly’s Nest is having a book giveaway. Stop by to enter!
