UPDATE: She's alive!!

Luckily I am an urban farmer with high self-esteem, because this story is a wee bit embarrassing:

Beulah was in the coop the whole time. Fah reals.

Here's the lesson: when your chicken is the exact same color as straw, she can camouflage herself better than a chameleon.

Jennie and I got out the high-powered flashlight and surveyed the inside of the coop 2-3 times. No Beulah. No beady eye even catching the powerful beam of light. Nothing. No yellow future egg-layer. Hence, the RIP post.

This morning, after weak chai tea and a fried egg, I headed down to the coop, opened the door and out pops Beulah! An avian miracle baby! She must have been burrowed down deep in the soft straw wondering why I was disturbing her dusk-induced nap with a big-ass ray of light.

So, there you have it people. You need to rummage around in the coop for bodies before declaring them victims of the neighborhood chicken hawk.

R.I.P. Beulah Abbingsole

I am very sad to report that it appears Beulah was taken by our neighborhood Cooper hawk this evening.

We had learned from our neighborhood Yahoo group that there are a pair of Cooper hawks living a few blocks from here and that they had taken chickens before. I have purchased netting to put up between the fence top and the edge of the lower deck to provide covering for the chicks, but wasn't feeling urgent about it. Then, night before last I actually heard the screech of a hawk as dusk was settling in. I was planning on putting up the netting this weekend, but I was too late.

We got home tonight from work, and helping out friends, close to 7pm and it was already dark. When I went into the chicken run, Dionne was already in the coop and Gladys (formerly known as Eunice) ran up to me seeming startled. Beulah was nowhere to be found. Not a feather among the hay. I can only assume one of the hawks picked her off. She was the weakling, still recovering a bit from her run-in with Lottie. She was an easy target.

So, tomorrow my Mom flies to town for the Halloween weekend and I intend to take her to Mike's Feed Store in the late afternoon to replace our lost chick. And maybe get one more. Oh, and put up the netting.

Nowhere to go but up!

Don't they seem bigger?



I swear in the 3 days since we have had the chicks, they have almost doubled in size. This may be an exaggeration, but I don't think so. Lottie has discovered them, and is obsessed; standing by the garage door wanting to get in and I don't know what (eat, torture, maim, smooch, play). I am feeling the burden of having multiple non-human children. I worry about them. I am concerned about their diet, their lack of exercise. How will I ensure they get a good education about the out-of-doors; the city predators that await them.

Tonight just after I took this picture, I was re-filling their feed trough, when Beulah decided to fly the cardboard coop while Lottie was standing watch. Let's just say there was some mayhem and excitement, but no fatalities. And luckily, I have genetically low blood pressure and can react to stress in a calm manner. But holy-moly, I don't need that to happen again.

We had smoked chicken in our pasta last night and I thought of these three ladies briefly. Will I be willing to eat them when the time comes? I think so. But we'll have to cross that road with the chickens when we come to it.

Chickens are home to roost (and lay us some eggs)!

Here is a quick video of Beulah, Dionne and Eunice coming home from the feed store in Petaluma.
A new era at Oaktown Farm has begun!!

On the verge of cha-cha-change

Whlep, the coop is complete (finally got the roof done). The chicks are getting picked up this weekend in Petaluma after John & Anna's wedding AND the spiral staircase is being installed tomorrow!! We have happy kale almost ready to eat and the last of the tomatoes shown here. I had to take all the tomato cages out this weekend so the spiral staircase dudes can get the thing in the back yard. Hopefully the other Mrs. A will shoot some video of the installation tomorrow, as she will be home supervising.

We bought 6-packs of red kale, lettuce and cauliflower at the farmer's market Sunday. Need to get those in this week. I also tossed some black-eyed susan seeds in the Buddha bed, as they are a fall crop around these parts. Seasonal change is upon us in California!!

Lastly, I neglected to take a picture, but I braised some lamb shanks on Sunday night that were out of this world. They were from the 1/2 lamb we went in on with Sylvie. Divine. Recipe below.

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons coriander seeds
• 2 tablespoons fennel seeds
• 1 tablespoon black peppercorns
• 4 large lamb shanks (about 5 pounds)
• 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 1 large white onion, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
• 10 garlic cloves, peeled
• 3 celery stalks, cut crosswise into 1 1/2-inch pieces
• 2 carrots, peeled, cut crosswise into 1 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 small leek
• 3 cups ruby Port
• 4 cups low-salt chicken broth
• 4 cups beef broth
• 6 whole cloves
• 2 whole star anise*
• 2 bay leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper

Mix coriander, fennel, and peppercorns in heavy small skillet. Toast on medium-high heat until aromatic and slightly darker, about 2 minutes. Transfer to spice grinder; process until finely ground. Rub each shank with 1 rounded teaspoon spice blend. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in heavy large wide pot over medium-high heat. Add shanks to pot. Cook until brown on all sides, about 20 minutes. Transfer to large bowl. Add remaining 2 tablespoons oil to same pot. Add onion and next 4 ingredients; sauté over medium heat until vegetables begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add remaining spice blend and stir 1 minute. Add Port and simmer until liquid is reduced to 2/3 cup, about 15 minutes. Add both broths; boil until liquid is reduced to 3 1/2 cups, about 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Return shanks to pot. Add cloves, star anise, bay leaves, and crushed red pepper. Cover pot with foil, then lid. Place pot in oven and braise lamb until tender, about 2 hours. (Can be made 2 days ahead. Uncover and cool slightly. Place in refrigerator until cool, then cover and keep refrigerated. Rewarm in 350°F oven for 20 minutes before serving.)

Place 1 lamb shank on each of 4 plates. Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper. Spoon sauce and vegetables over lamb and serve.