GRF Farms

05/07/2024

While watching cooking shows, I heard this chef beat Flay with a rabbit pot pie. I’ve made rabbit pot pie a few times, and we really liked it. Definitely a cold weather dish, and I needed extra time to make the dough. Life has changed a lot, and I have not made it since we relocated to GA.

It is awesome to see a professional chef work with rabbit. His recipe is in the link below.

Chef Keeley, the Executive Chef at Fire Restaurant & Lounge inside the Art Hotel Denver went head-to-head in a Food Network episode for the chance to ‘Beat Bobby Flay’ – and won wit…

20/06/2024

We are always looking for more rabbit recipes!

What's your favorite rabbit recipe?
https://www.hostilehare.com/rabbit-recipe-index

15/05/2024

We both love this one brand of peach mango juice, now I have an idea what to use them for other than frozen rabbit bottles or rabbit water.

A very cool and clever way to recycle all those old water bottles!! Presenting..the water bottle greenhouse!!

01/05/2024

All my life I have been told pine needles are acidic…. Interesting to hear different logic.

Pine Needles don’t make the soil acidic! And they’re a fantastic garden mulch!
This photo shows ponderosa pine needles being used as a mulch around garlic plants. The pine needles were applied right after planting the seed garlic last fall and have been on the soil since.

The gardening myth that pine or fir needles can’t be used as a mulch because they will acidify the soil is commonly repeated. It results in people throwing tons of dropped needles into the city compost bins and then going and paying lots of money for premium mulches like chopped straw.

We don’t blame anyone for believing this, since it sounds intuitive and is often mentioned even by very experienced gardeners.

But studies have proven that Pine Needles do not ever have a powerful effect on soil PH, even when fresh and green.
The fact that soil beneath Pine or Fir Trees is acidic is not because the trees themselves make it acidic, but because these species evolved to grow and thrive in naturally acidic soil.
If there are no small plants growing beneath a pine tree, it is most likely due to the shallow and dominant root system of the tree, along with its shading, which does not allow other plants to easily establish below it.

Fresh GREEN ponderosa pine/Douglasfir needles are acidic, but as they age & microbes decompose them, they quickly turn brown. Once brown they’re PH neutral. At this point, they’re a perfect mulch.
They a dense, long lasting mulch. They don’t compact. Allowing air & water to pass through, while still aiding in shading the soil and keeping seeds from germinating if applied thickly. Once fully decomposed after 1-2yrs they release lots of valuable nutrients.
A thin layer can be used like straw so that larger seeds/bulbs can easily sprout through.
Pine needles also do not blow around or wash away easily. So they make an ideal mulch in spots where other materials might not stay put.

We always recommend utilizing the materials available for free. Why go and pay a premium for bagged mulch if you don’t have to?
You might have a neighbor with a ponderosa pine that throws out bins & bins of needles each year. Ask if you can have them!

Sources:

https://today.oregonstate.edu/news/myth-vs-reality-what%E2%80%99s-truth-behind-some-common-gardening-practices

https://extension.unh.edu/blog/2019/10/do-pine-trees-pine-needles-make-soil-more-acidic

29/04/2024

Lots of spiderwort in our garden. This series of posts are fun to learn about all the species.

11/04/2024

I dug a trench and buried left over parts from harvesting rabbits covered with lime, and then covered with wood and mulch. I hope the extra bits help with phosphate and other minerals. Plan to grow tomatoes in the bed.

The Many Benefits of Hugelkultur: A Sustainable Gardening Revolution 🌿💥💬👇

14/03/2024

Lots of violets blooming in the garden atm, might have to try this recipe!

28/02/2024

Grow your own!

Well folks, either buy the corn flakes for dinner or raise your own food... You ready to get started with quail and rabbits yet? The alternative is pretty sketchy!

28/02/2024

Pretty sure this is growing in the garden atm

Henbit (Lamium amplexicaule) is another early edible showing up right now at the edges of lawns or on the sunny side of buildings. Like many in the Mint family, it has a distinctly square stem that is tinted purple with opposite growing pairs of leaves that appear whirled around the stem (compare it to Dead Nettle shared earlier in the week). Both the leaves and flowers are edible. Unlike some early spring greens which can be bitter, henbit is on the mild side. It is great tossed raw in sandwiches, diced in salads, sautéed and added to pesto. You can also toss while stems into pickle brine for an easy snack! Add to it, the pretty little flowers make lovely additions to any dish!

Happy Foraging Friends!

06/02/2024

20/01/2024

12/01/2024

How do you start new garden beds or expand? I put down cardboard or paper feed bags and then cover them with rabbit barn waste.

I started this Iris bed last winter and transplanted iris in May. Recently I transplanted more iris and significantly widened the bed.

20/12/2023

I am always looking for rabbit recipes. For the last year I have been getting teriyaki sauce from a Hawaiian BBQ restaurant. But they recently changed owners, relocated to the other side of town, and tripled the price… so I am making my own teriyaki sauce.

Our favorite dish is a teriyaki glazed ground rabbit on a bed of lettuce with strawberries, tomatoes, carrots and garlic bread.

In 1926, The Electric Kitchen began when Hawaiian Electric started its Home Services Department, and began demonstrating the benefits and uses of electrical appliances to residents its Historic King Street building. Today, you can now enjoy these great recipes, such as Basic Teriyaki Sauce, online.

19/09/2023

RABBIT NUTRITION 🐰

According to the USDA, every 3 ounces of rabbit meat has the following nutritional value:
•Calories: 147
•Total Fat: 3 g 4%
•Saturated Fat: 0.9 g 4%
•Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.6 g
•Monosaturated Fat: 0.8 g
•Cholesterol: 105 mg 35%
•Sodium: 38 g 1%
•Potassium: 292 mg 8%
•Total Carbohydrate: 0 g 0%
•Dietary Fiber: 0 g 0%
•Sugar: 0 g 0%
•Protein: 28 g 56%
•Vitamin A 0%
•Calcium 1%
•Vitamin D 0%
•Cobalamin 91%
•Vitamin C 0%
•Iron 22%
•Vitamin B6 15%
•Magnesium 6%

These percentage values are all based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
Because of rabbit meat’s classification as game meat, you may not know much about its health benefits. To fully understand the benefits of rabbit, it is helpful to compare its nutritional value to other meats, like chicken or beef. Rabbit has the highest percentage of digestible proteins compared to other meats while also having the lowest amount of fat. Despite the low amount of fat, rabbit is still rich in healthy fats like polyunsaturated fats and monounsaturated fats. Domesticated rabbit meat also has fewer calories than chicken and has less cholesterol than any other commonly consumed meats, like beef, pork, and chicken.
- ctto google

13/09/2023

I like to use cardboard in the garden…. But this data suggests that is a bad practice.

PSA on PFAs
A recent paper reports on PFAs (aka "forever chemicals") in various products used for poultry bedding (among other things). Cardboard was one of the worst.
The article is behind a paywall but I have access to it and was able to find the table shown here.
So if you need yet another argument to NOT use cardboard as a mulch (like in "lasagna gardening), maybe "keep forever chemicals out of your garden" will do it.
And if you are wondering what to use instead, use arborist wood chips. 100% natural, no processing or added chemicals.

07/08/2023

I boiled peanuts in rabbit stock.... yeah they are delicious!

27/06/2023

How to debone a rabbit: I lay on side on cutting board, 1. cut off rear leg first by following along inner thigh and abdomen, then around to loin parallel to backbone. I cut up from tail along back of thigh parallel to backbone and rotate the leg with my other hand to help me find the hip ball joint. By then I can cut off rear leg. 2. I remove front leg by gripping forearm to pop up the shoulder blade, and then I cut between the ribs and shoulder parallel to shoulder blade, all they way through to neck to remove the front leg. 3. Flip repeat removal of both legs as before. 4. Remove belly from current side up, slice along backbone from neck to hip to start loin cut, use filet blade to cut along bone and remove loin and rib meat. 5. Flip and repeat belly and loin cuts. 6. Remove inner abdominal fat, meat, kidney, and liver. 7. Cut meat off legs by cutting along bone. The forearms often go to the stock pot.

23/06/2023

Going to make my first batch of rabbit ear dog treats this evening, apparently it is so easy, you just dry them on your oven’s lowest setting for a few hours!

I get asked this question a lot so I thought i would put together a short video to explain the process.

14/06/2023

Looks interesting!

Self-paced online course covering beef and pork cutting along with meat science essentials.

14/06/2023

Teriyaki rabbit salad with balsamic berries and tomatoes

I get teriyaki sauce from Hawaiian BBQ restaurant and add it while sautéing ground rabbit with Cajun seasonings, a Latin garlic powder blend, and pepper.

I season the lettuce and berries/tomatoes separately with salt, pepper, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar. I also add tajin seasoning to the berries/tomatoes. I use raspberries, strawberries, blackberries, mulberries, and/or blue berries; basically which ever berries are available.

It is one of our favorite meals atm.

09/06/2023

I like this resource for kune kunes:

The Kunekune is a versatile, unique breed. Originally, the people of New Zealand recognised the ability of these pigs to produce tremendous pork from very low

24/05/2023

If you need organic garden fertilizer (aka rabbit p**p) in the CSRA, now is the time to hit me up!

I do p**p chores on Wed and Saturday and usually have at least 8 quantity of 5-gallon buckets. Composition is Rabbit p**p, used stall pellets, and straw.

Willing to trade or $2.50 per bucket. Bring your own bucket or appropriate container

24/05/2023

Rabbit meat! Our freezer is getting full, which means we have vacuum sealed frozen whole fryers available.
Hephzibah GA. PST.

07/05/2023

We are overwhelmed with vines on our homestead! Great Grandmother planted wisteria….! It is beautiful when it blooms. But it is everywhere and difficult to control let alone eradicate. I decided to put those vines to use and build wattle style beds with vines. This is the start of the first experiment.

01/05/2023

I need to learn more about Bees and beekeeping.

Want to learn about honey bees, do’s and don’ts, setting up a hive, tools required and FAQs?

Join us on May 27th - 10:00 am - 12:00 pm
Registration required
Click link to learn more

https://www.hawksviewhoney.com/shop-1

22/04/2023

Acquired a sling blade recently, used it for the first time this morning. Wow, I worked out frustrations!

19/04/2023

Expanding an existing garden bed this AM. Gotta have somewhere to put the rabbit p**p! I lay down paper feed bags at the edges to create a barrier around the bed and to smother the grass.