Happy Memorial Day. A special thanks goes out to all out troops both serving and retired. We appreciate your sacrifices in protecting our freedoms and liberties. This episode and the Pledge of Allegiance is dedicated to you.

This week’s updates around the farm and gardens:

• The loss of Snow the piglet and what we did,
• Snowflake the chick hatches,
• Ollie moves to another farm,
• Turkeys are growing in the brooder,
• Broiler chicks arrived,
• Planting the gardens now that's it's frost free time and 95 degrees and dry!

In the CoopCast Community:

• Over 100 iTunes reviews - thanks "pickle kicker",
• Toni asked about maintaining asparagus beds and controlling slugs with salt,
• What are some general insect control methods we use,
• Mendy asks "How do you introduce or change the pecking order of a chicken flock when you add / remove birds".

This week’s updates on:

• "Limpy" the piglet is getting better, 
• Ollie or AI discussions continue,
•  Turkeys have arrived!, 
• Gardens going in under row covers, 
• Roadside stand seems to be a success!

In the Farmers Choice:

• “What are your thoughts on alternative energy / sustainable farm solutions?”: 
• Why we selected geothermal over solar or wind, 
• Rain water collection systems, 
• Making sustainable decisions for your farm - slowly.

In the CoopCast Community:

• Shelby from TX asked about pigs and what they do to a pasture, 
• Amber asked about controlling worms in a flock of chickens,
• We discuss some of the fun reviews and other feedback, 
• Melanie wanted to know if when we go out to eat, are we difficult?, 
• And Mike was inspired by Nugget and used his own broody hen to hatch out his own clutch of 7 chicks!

This week’s updates on:

• The 10 piglet cohort is doing great, 
• Hermione gets sick, or, not, 
• You only get one mistake and that's one too many on the farm, 
• The farmstand is up and running.

In the Farmers Choice:

• "How do you eat cute animals?"
• Can you eat pork that grows from a cute piglet?
• Do you want to look your meat in the eye?

In this weeks Farm U:

• Piglet castration - what's involved and why do you do it, 
• Boar taint - what is it and how do you deal with it, 
• Unexpected events in the best planning.

This week's brief updates on:

• New sign for the farm, 
• Chickens and chicks, 
• Planting for the CSA has begun (love those soil blocks). 

Instead of doing the CoopCast Community this week we are asking our listeners to post something about us on THEIR sites and social haunts. Post a review on your web site or blog of the coopcast, link back to our Facebook page, share anything to help us grow the CoopCast Community!

In the Farmers Choice:

• We retell the story of how the week unfolded including the signs and steps of farrowing. 
• Share some of the magical moments that make being part of raising food so powerful. 
• The most unexpected event of the entire farrowing process!