View source for Jacob Springs Farm:Seasonality

[[Jacob Springs Farm]] embraces the '''seasonality''' of traditional farm life. Here's a brief outline of the changing work and production rhythms of the farm year on the Colorado front range.

===January===
The calm before the storm, we're getting things cleaned up and organized, trying to keep everything warm and alive, to keep liquid water from freezing in all the troughs and planning for the year to come

*pickup any waste pumpkins from the Munson farm storage. 

===February=== 

Calving season, and therefore Milking season, is starting up at the beginning of this month. 
*Colostrum comes in first with about 3 gallons of extra colostrum per cow
*Lot of extra milk in this season and for the first 4 weeks (at least) milking will be twice a day - morning and evening. 
*cheesemaking and butter is the best way to deal with the surplus of milk. 
*Whey for the pigs.

*time to prune fruit trees

===March=== 

*Time to prune fruit trees

*still lots of cheese making
*planting early things like Spinach, kale and starting seeds indoors. 

===April===

*Bulls go in with the dairy cows on May 1 for a 283 day gestation that gives a due date of Feb 7, however Jersey cows Average 279 days giving a date of Feb 3.  

===May=== 
* 90% of years Last frost is before the 10th (?)


===June=== 
*Haying season starts third week of June

===July=== 
*Harvest Garlic 2nd week of July
*Start turkeys 2nd or third week of July for large size at Thanksgiving

===August=== 

*Apple harvest
*Cider pressing season

===September=== 

*Cider pressing season
*Harvest barley and wheat?


===October=== 



===November=== 
*Harvest and store waste pumpkins for the pigs and cattle

===December===