Four Maples Farm provides organically raised pastured poultry in Medina, Ohio. We operate in conjunction with Schmidt Family Farms who provide local honey, certified organic eggs, and certified organic vegetables. Chickens are raised on certified organic pasture, and fed certified organic feed (No GMOs). Our 2011 organic certification through the Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association (OEFFA) has been submitted, and we are awaiting inspection.

All of our chickens are raised on a constantly rotated pasture to promote the health of the animals and the soil. We use the "day-range" method which means that the chickens are safe in a coop during the night and free to roam their ample paddock space during the day. Constant access to fresh grass gives the birds a taste that's beyond compare. The chickens are processed on-farm, humanely, and without the unnecessary use of chemicals.

Sunday, March 13, 2011

Building the Brooder

This is a picture of the "Ohio Brooder" that I built.  It is so named for the Ohio Experiment Station that came up with the design in the early 1940's.  designs such as this have been largely forgotten about since the vertical integration of the poultry industry and the demise of the small farm.  It is a simple yet practical design.  Notice that there is a gap of about 4 inches between the floor and the bottom of the brooder, this allows the chicks to run in and out as they need to to stay warm.  Think of it like a big mother hen.  When the chicks are hungry or just want to explore they can leave the brooder to get food or wander, and when the get cold they simply run underneath just as they would run under the wings off their mother.  We don't need anything fancy like a thermostat because mother nature has built one right into the chicks, and she's been doing this for a while.
Posted by at
Labels: , , , , ,

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)