With a bit of warm spring weather we have been able to get to some overdue chores.  The joy of the springtime Coop clean out is completed and the compost is on the garden.  We have more hydrant troubles and talk a bit about the YNN TV crew that was here to learn about how we produce eggs.

In this weeks "We eat good" segment, we talk about the joys of cooking an Easter Ham...  kinda.  Rather how to simply prepare a ham and the unloved ham steak.

Out of the kitchen and back on the front porch we discuss an NBC news article about the declining number of farmers and the long term risk to the country.  So - read the article - be concerned and buy lots of food from your local farmer!

http://www.nbcnews.com/business/economy/shortage-farmers-creates-dangerous-situation-u-s-n78251

This weeks updates are finally more than just worrying about the weather.  We got a springtime break and took to the outdoors!  The asparagus patch got a cleanout of last years fronds. The chicken coop got a bit of a cleaning too. There was fence mending and happy pigs as well.

Then in the Veggie Patch we discuss the seeds we have started for this years vegetable garden and why we liked them.  We also talk a bit about some challenges with a soil block recipe change this year - a bit unexpected.

Then we have some Close Encounters with Free Ranging Farmers on the Front Porch as we discuss a recent quote from the Shark Tanks's Mark Cuban...  and how it's about YOUR farm too! http://www.businessinsider.com/mark-cuban-nfl-tv-2014-3

As Spring comes to the farm (with another snow storm too) we took a walk around the propery at the end of March to try and come to grips with what this late Spring means to our garden plans.  We discuss the winters impact on our plans and the things we typically got done that are not on the to-do list.

We also talk vegatable gardens - specifically what we have been doing with regards to seed starting and preparing the greenhouse.  Speaking of the greenhouse, we talk about the issues the cold weather has spawned and some solutions we are considering.

This weeks updates include more cold weather and some updates about the animals around the farm. The pigs and chickens are doing well but all of us are done with this cold weather. We also talk a bit about the business of farming and what we still need to do on that said with regards to customer emails and notifications.

In the Coopcast Community we have a breif tutorial on searching old coopcast episodes so you can find things you might have missed or are interested in.

• Brent had a question about worming pigs and we answer it and point to Coopcast 091
• There was a listener who asked about deer fencing and food plots to keep the deer out of his garden.
• Rebecca had a question about turkey feed and turkey poults
• Gail blew in with a question about finding half a pig to purchase and what goes into that decision

This episode was recorded live during the Vulcan Blizzard event!

THe updates of course revlove around the blizzard and how we prepared for it. We also talk about the coldest day ever recorded in March and the frozen pipe it casued.  Farmer Kelli talks about these events and her CSA decision.

In the CoopCast Community we talk about some iTunes reviews, listener emails and some general questions we received.

As the bitter cold continues to make #farmerandy rage, we discuss the weather... We also talk about a "major award", a new Tractor Supply store and living life on a frozen farm.

Actually we detail a day in the life of the farm in the middle of winter around here.  It's not overly exciting but it's honest.

Then this week we have a Farmers Choice segment talking about what we are eating and why this time of year.  We discuss the balance of food we have put up vs what we buy from the store and what is still left in the root cellar.

Then #farmerandy regails the episode with tales of calorie counting using Lose It on his iPhone and how crazy the notion of barcoded food strikes him.

This weeks updates include a folloup about the eveil seeds <sic> that Johnny is selling and why we will continue to buy from Johnny Seeds.  For your reference, here's the list of seeds they get from Seminis as of Feb. 2014

We discuss how the endless cold this winter has impacted the pigs and chickens and how we deal with cooped up critters on a free range farm.  Kelli gives an update on the Ag assessment while Andy complains...

In the Veggie Patch we pretned that it's gardening season and talk about artichokes, 
managing mice and voles in the greenhouse, and how we heat (or dont) and water the greenhouse.

Farmers choice is the conclusion to the 2014 farm meeting.  The agenda items include our plans for:

Egg layers

Pigs

Broilers

Turkeys

The updates are a little thin this week as we watch temps falling and the snow piling up.  Mostly we talk about keeping warm and the successful insemination of our pigs.

In the community we pick up on the Monsanto conversation last week and some new comments about companies like Johnny Seed and Territorial and the internet myth that they buy their seeds from Monsanto.  We also talk about our process for selecting seeds and why we pick the seeds we do. (http://www.nwedible.com/2012/12/a-brief-history-of-monsanto-and-seed-houses-who-got-screwed.html)

In the "We eat Good" segment this week we talk about making pie crusts from lard and how great they really are! 

With 100 episodes behind us we thought it was appropriate to look back at the thoughts and opinions of our farming podcast (farmcast)? and spend most of the episode focusing on the reason why we do what we do - it's all for the listeners!

We talk a bit about some listener favorite topics and some recent ones like Monsanto's decision to use some conventional crossbreeding techniques.

While this isn't a giant 100th episode extravaganza, it's a fun look at the whys behind why we do what we do and why we live pasture to plate.

The Updates around the Farm this week focus on the big event of artificial insemination and the unexpected surprise we had with the "scheduled" standing heat. We also share our thoughts on FreshBooks as an accounting tool for farming (short version - run away).  We discuss out first free range Cornish birg from last years day ranging experiment and share the experience thus far with the tax related agricultural assessment.

In the Veggie Patch it's seed ordering time.  We continue the discussion from Facebook with those veggies we can't live without.  The best of the best on the Rowboat of Goodness (better than the silly Ark of Taste)

In our Farmers Choice segment this week the Annual farm meeting part 1 - CSA plans and how we are not doing a CSA like in the past...  this year will be different!