Getting our Hobby Garden Ready!

Over the weekend we spent some time getting our Vegetable and Herb garden ready for the quickly approaching growing season. The garden is roughly 45ft x 20ft, with a total area of 800 sq ft usable planting area (minusing the edging and pathways). This will be our 3rd year keeping a fairly decent sized garden, considering it is more a hobby for us than anything else and we are really excited about it.

Hopefully in the next 4 weeks we will be able to start transplanting some hardy seedlings, we will certainly keep you all posted on our little side project!

A friend of ours pointed out that there are some wonderful videos on YouTube that help explain in plain english the most important aspects of gardening, here is a great example:

 

Basic Gardening: How and Why you should all Compost - You can find a ton more videos here - http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=gardening&search=tag

 

The Hummingbirds are Arriving!

Map via http://www.hummingbirds.net/map.html

Time to get those hummingbird feeders out! This is by far our favorite time of year around the farm, as you might have noticed by all the HD Hummingbird videos we shoot throughout the year. This year should be even better, as we are setting up special feeders that will allow us to mount our cameras inches away from the feeder, expect some extreme close up shots this summer!


Remembering the Sun from goldentouchfarm on Vimeo.

Video: Making Tea with Loose Herbs!

 

I stumbled across this video recently and I think it is wonderful! Over the last years our kids have turned us onto making tea with loose herbs and we will never go back to buying bagged tea again. It is cheaper, better tasting, and there are a ton of wonderful resources out there, especially on this site, to find great local fresh herbs.

 

Here is a video produced by Mountain Rose Herbs that will walk you through the basics of making your own Loose Herb Tea!

 

 

Press: Golden Touch Naturals written up on American Pride, American Products!

Thanks to our Google Alerts (which notifies us whenever we are mentioned on the internet) I just got word that we were written up today on the American Pride, American Products Blog. They review American Stores and American Manufactured Products and found our farm and store through Twitter.

You can read the entire write up here.

Documentary: Fridays on the Farm

Feeling disconnected from their food, a filmmaker and his family decide to join a community supported organic farm. As he photographs the growing process, the filmmaker moves from passive observer to active participant in the planting and harvesting of vegetables. Featuring lush time-lapse and macro photography sequences compiled from nearly 20,000 still images, this personal essay is a father’s meditation on his blossoming family and community.

Watch the Video Here - http://vimeo.com/2100402

PRIVATE ON VIMEO - USE PASSWORD “fridaysscreener”

HR 875 - The Death of Farmers Markets, CSAs and Local Food

From the Nourished Kitchen:

 HR 875, also known as the Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009, was introduced by Rosa Delauro - a democratic party member of the United States House of Representatives from Connecticut - in February of 2009.  The title of HR 875, The Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009, sounds innocuous enough - even comforting, but its implications yield a much, much different story.

HR 875 as it is written today, could very well mean the end of the vibrant and growing local foods movement.  Yes - if it passes - it could herald the death of farmers markets, most CSAs, farmstands and even small family-run farms altogether.

Ostensibly, HR 875 or the Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009 would bring greater accountability to our imperiled food system.  Indeed, with salmonella-infected peanuts and spinach laced with e-coli, who isn’t crying out for improvements in food safety?

However, HR 875 fails miserably in promoting food safety.  Rather, than promoting true accountability and proper farming techniques that minimize the risk of introducing pathogens into the food supply, it simply will create greater barriers for our already struggling small farms and farmers markets.

HR 875 mandates that anyone who produces food of any kind - meat, milk, fruit, vegetables et cetera -  and transports that food for sale be subject to warrantless government inspections of their farms and food production records.  These random inspections can be conducted at the whim of federal agents without regard to farmers rights or property rights.  Further, the law would allow federal agents to confiscate records, product as they see fit as part of the inspection process.

Agents could also implement draconian restrictions regarding how farm animals can be fed, how fields can be managed and the end result of these restrictions could mean the end of organic, biodynamic and sustinable agriculture practices as these practices are deemed “unsafe.”  Farmers refusing to comply would be subject to penalties.

 

Read the Rest here - http://nourishedkitchen.com/fight-hr-875-food-safety-modernization-act-of-2009/

 

Contact your Representative Today regarding this bill - http://www.house.gov/writerep/ 

Burrr! Just when you thought it was safe!

We were spoiled with a beautiful weekend and silly us, we expected it to stay like that! For a second there, I forgot we live in New England. As the saying goes, "If you don't like the Weather, just wait a minute." Unfortunately that holds true the other way around, if you are enjoying the Weather, know that it can vanish in just a minute.

After looking at the U.S. forecast it looks like a lot of you are getting Rain Today, whenever it is gloomy around here I always watch some of our Farm Videos from Summer to cheer me up - here is a small collection of our Hummingbird Videos we shot last year - can't wait until they come back!

 

Enjoy!

 

 

 

You can also see our Videos in High Definition here - http://www.vimeo.com/goldentouch/videos

Golden Touch Farm - Now on Twitter!

Golden Touch Alpaca Farm is now on twitter - Please follow us at http://www.twitter.com/goldentouchfarm

We are going to try and keep it as informational as possible, while providing everyday updates about us and the animals, as well as current sales and events going on at the Farm Store!

P.S. - We are running our first Twitter Sale now - Find out the coupon code at twitter!

Field Trip - Meet Molly, a 3 week old Giraffe!

The Weather has been great in New England this week and I figured it would be a great time to sneak away for a field trip with my new Grand Daughter. She slept the entire time but my daughter and I had a wonderful time. Our Farm Vet and Good Friend Peter Brewer owns Southwick Zoo of Menden, MA and a few weeks ago he called to fill me in on their new bundle of joy, Molly - a 3 week old giraffe.

Peter is absolutely ecstatic over her - and I can't blame him. Yesterday I saw her for the first time and she most certainly carries herself well. She has recently been featured on Good Morning America and the Boston Globe because of an infection that endangered her life.

Here is a blip from that article:

"After fighting off an infection, 3-week-old Molly the giraffe is back home at Southwick's Zoo.

Molly's veterinarian, Peter Brewer, said she probably had an umbilical infection she could not fight off. Molly's mother could not produce milk, he said, and zookeepers instead fed her cow's colostrum, a nutrient-rich milk produced right before and after birth. Brewer said it's usually effective.

"But when she went off the cow's colostrum, she had low white blood cells and got the infection," he said. "We brought her to Tufts University Veterinary School in North Grafton to get her better before it became severe."

Brewer said since Molly came home about a week ago, after a one-week stay at Tufts, her health has improved.

"I took blood from her the other day and her white cells are back up," he said. "She is eating well and we hope she is out of the woods."

After several weeks There is a playfulness and charisma behind those big beautiful eyes - she is in wonderful shape!"

Marketing Research - Using Google Insights

Recently we have discovered Google Insights which is a great way to gauge internet search trends for certain keywords, which are then mapped out for you. This is a great tool to find out what terms and ideas are growing in popularity. For us in particular, Made in USA is important as we are committed to keeping all of products made in this country by Certified Green Manufacturers. As the country gets back to the basics, more and more people are realizing the importance of supporting their local and regional economies.

When you have some free time head to Google Insights and do some of your own investigation work, it just might help you plan that next big regional marketing push!

New Casual Dress Alpaca Socks added to Farm Store!

We are happy to announce the addition of a brand new sock to our Fiber Nook and Online Farm Store.

Our Casual Dress Alpaca Socks combine the durability everyone loves about our Survival Socks with a lightweight knit so you can enjoy your alpaca socks in every season! The Upper Calf and top of the foot is a lightweight alpaca knit to keep your feet the perfect temperature while the bottom of the foot has an Alpaca Terry Loop knit for extra padding and comfort. We re-enforced the Heal and Toe and added support in the middle of the foot and above the ankle to ensure a proper fit every time. We are really excited about these new socks and we are sure you will be too! Available in Charcoal Grey and Fawn - Hypoallergenic, Undyed, Made in USA with N. American Alpaca Fiber!
Contents: 80% Alpaca, 15% Nylon, 5% Lycra

When you have a free moment be sure to check them out at Golden Touch Naturals.

Thanks!

When we aren't running the farm or business we like to...

Sit back and enjoy the Weather. Since a very young age I can remember being an avid Weather lover, always mesmerized by the sheer force of Mother Nature. Luckily living in New England we are able to experience a wide spectrum of what Mother Nature has to offer, as the old saying goes - "Don't like the Weather? Just wait a minute."

We have been embracing the use of online video to market and advertise our farm for a little over a year now and we have learned a tremendous amount in that short time period. When we first set out to publish online video of our Farm, Vimeo.com was just becoming popular and it was a perfect fit. Not only do we host our Alpaca Videos there, but we also take part in their very active community, and we actually now moderate their HD Weather Channel.

If you, like us, love Weather in all it's forms, I encourage you take a few moments and check out our Weather Chanel, we have over 100 videos ranging from Time Lapses to violent Lightning Storms. The majority of the videos are in High Definition, and we are always looking to add more so don't hesitate to send in your submissions.

You can get a quick glimpse into the channel by looking at the widget embedded below, or you can head directly to The HD Weather Channel on Vimeo to see each video in it's full glory.

Head to HD Weather Channel Here.

Introducing our 2 New Jr. Herdsires!

We are very excited to announce the addition of two brand new Jr. Herdsires to our alpaca herd, Black Tiger, and Asteroid's Kryptonite. We can't wait to get their genetics into our herd, stay tuned for more updates.

Click here to check out the entire slideshow

Our First Grand Daughter is Here!

After the year we had in 2008, as a family, as an Alpaca Farmer, as a business owner, and as a Mom, a Wife, now a Grandmother, and a person, I didn't think 2009 could get any more wild but then you take something like the miracle of birth and your heart skips a beat.

My oldest daughter gave birth to a beautiful baby girl on Wednesday 1/21/09 at 5:49 A.M., weighing 6lbs 5oz and measuring 20 inches. Kelly and Matt named her Erin Florence and every time I set my eyes on her I am just completely awestruck. No matter how much you think you are ready for something like this, it always catches you off guard.

We are all so excited, and can't wait for them to settle in with their new bundle of joy, there is nothing quite like having a little one running around the farm, and we couldn't be more excited for it.

Our Holiday Ohio Trip - 2 New Herdsires!

(Note: Images of the new boys will be added a.s.a.p.)

Right after the holidays we made a trip to Ohio. Before Thanksgiving I had purchased a young male alpaca with the hopes of adding him to our herd sire row. I am always on the look out for up and coming males that can add to my breeding program and when I saw Asteroid's Kryptonite listing from Starling Farm, he immediately caught my eye. After looking at his fiber samples, and pedigree I made the decision to purchase him.

We planned our trip right after Christmas as our window of opportunity to travel was very limited. Chris has a very aggressive travel schedule and we are also expecting our first grand daughter the beginning of February. With our fingers crossed we decided to leave on Dec. 27, 08. I have to say we couldn't of picked a better weekend weather wise, it was clear and mild. It was almost hard to believe that the week prior, New York and Ohio had a snow storm each that dropped 12 inches. Fate was on our side!

On the way we also made a stop at Spirit Wind Alpaca Farm and had a wonderful visit with Karen and Jerry. If time had not been pressing us I could of stayed for hours talking alpacas and fiber. We finished the rest of our journey that day arriving in Ohio at 7:00 pm and the temperature was 67 degrees (unheard of for the time of year).

The plan was to pick up Kryptonite at 8:00 the following morning. We were also transporting another alpaca "Just Sam" for Cyndee Thompson in New Hampshire. Just prior to arriving at the farm my nerves started racing and I began questioning my decision. I asked myself, Were my expectations too high? and Was I going to be disappointed? Having never seen the animal first hand, there is always that gut feeling that you missed something in the photos and fiber samples. It would have been very disappointing to travel all that distance to be let down, but I have to say all those questions quickly disappeared the minute I laid eyes on him. It was love at first sight and he was more than I expected him to be. It was so great to meet his owner in person, Jackie Kraft. We had talked so many times through email or on the phone and now I had the opportunity to meet her in person and put a face with the name and voice.

We loaded up the "boys" and had a brief visit before packing up ourselves and heading back towards home. We had one more stop to make and that was at Humalot Alpaca Farm. Brenda and Jim were only an hour away from Jackie Craft and I didn't want to miss the chance to meet them and some of their alpacas. I had called her the day before and told her we would be in the area and if possible to stop in. Being a holiday weekend you just never know what peoples plans are. They warmly welcomed us with a tour of their farm and alpacas, finished off with a great cup of coffee. We enjoyed our visit so much and their alpacas we bought one more. Humalot Black Tiger. Tiger is just over a year old, is true black, with a fine, yet dense beautifully crimped fiber which is very hard to find in black so I'm happy to add him to our herd sire lineup. In this one trip across half the country and back we managed to add some great genetics to our existing herd and are excited about future breedings.

The trip was so much fun but a little too rushed for my liking. We left here on my birthday, Sat. morning at 4:30am, stopped at three alpaca farms, spanning over 1400 miles and still managed to arrive at our farm by 10pm Sunday. Birthday's don't get much better than that!!! I wonder how I can top it next year.