Tour de Ferme

Only a few minutes from where I live is Brey Cycle Farm, LLC.  Recently I had an opportunity to pay a visit and receive a tour of the dairy operation.

Cycle Farm takes its name from the cycle of sustainability which is central to what they do.  All of their beef and dairy animals are born and raised on the farm here in Door County.  

Cycle Farm was established in 1904 by George Brey Sr., great-grandfather of Tony and Jacob  who purchased the farm from their parents Bill and Clarice Brey in 2016.  Today about 1,500 cows are milked and calves and heifers are raised.  Cycle Farm also raises Angus/Holstein crossbred beef animals along with custom heifers for other farms.  As stewards of the land high quality forage crops are grown on 2,000 acres of owned and rented land for livestock feed.  In addition to family members there are an additional twenty full-time employees and several part-time employees.

Cycle Farm is a  member of Peninsula Pride Farms, a farmer-led conservation group, and are participants in the Door-Kewaunee Demonstration Farms Network. 

Calves are fed mother's colostrum at birth to provide immunity and nutrition.  Housed in individual hutches for individual attention and health they are fed pasteurized milk twice a day along with fresh water.  After a week a grain mix is introduced to supplement the milk.  Calves are weaned after 60 days and moved to a group pen.  Feed is a total mixed ration (TMR) of forage, grains, minerals, vitamins, minerals and protein for balanced nutrition.

Maternity ward

Couple of hours old

Cows like moderate temperatures so they are housed in in freestall barns keeping them shaded and cool in the summer and warm in the winter.  This set-up allows the animals to eat, drink, move-about and lie down as they please while protecting them from inclement weather.  Cows are fed a custom TMR and have access to fresh water all the time and their pens are cleaned each time they are in the milking parlor.

TMR Cuisinart

 

Girls returning from milking parlor

Speaking of which, cows are creatures of habit consequently they are milked three times at the  same time each day.  The parlor can handle 26 cows at a time and machines keep track of pounds, temperature and quality with each animal producing an average of 10 gallons of milk daily.  Milk is shipped to Agropur in Luxemburg, WI for the production of mozzarella and provolone.

 

Bulk milk storage

Acreage is routinely tested for pH, organic matter, phosphorus and potassium.  Manure from the animals is stored in a pit until conditions are appropriate for application by spreading, injection or drag hose.  Testing is GPS managed, collecting 1 sample per 2.5 acres to determine nutrient levels impacted by soil types and previous crops grown.  An agronomist determines application rates depending-upon soil needs.

In 2021 - 140 acres were converted to paddocks for grazing heifers and beef cattle.  Management-intensive grazing is a flexible approach to rotational grazing influenced by paddock size, stocking density and length of grazing.  Adjustments are made throughout the grazing season balancing forage supply with animal demand.

In 2024 a screw-press separator was acquired to recycle manure solids for bedding instead of purchasing sand.  The device removes undigested fiber in the manure from the liquid and through a simple drying process produces green bedding to keep the animals comfortable in their stalls.

You won't find Brey beef sold in a local grocery; you can call or order online for pick-up at their farm store located at 2190 County Road O, Sturgeon Bay.  They offer Bargain Bundle and Freezer Filler packages for a volume discount or you can purchase a package of burgers, wieners, or a steak or roast.  Breyfamilybeef@gmail.com or (920) 639-4742.   You can learn more on Facebook and visit Brey Family Beef. 

French Vosgienne breed - solitary animal

 

 

What To See In the June Sky

Argh!  

They're at it again.  Social media memes are circulating suggesting a planetary alignment early this month.

True or False?

Night sky expert Deborah Byrd of EarthSky has the straight scoop - including a reliably real planet forecast for the month of June...

Center of Attention

If you are geographically-inclined you might know that there are four points on the world that are halfway between the geographic poles, the equator, the Prime Meridian and the 180th meridian.  They are known as 45x90 points.  

Two of the points are situated in the middle of the ocean with the other two found on land.  The first point on land is situated in a remote, mountainous region of China adjacent to Mongolia and is quite difficult to visit.  

The second point on land is found here in Wisconsin.  Yup; we're the center of the world and thus the center of attention.  Located just west of Wausau in the middle of a farm field in Poniatowski is the geographic intersection of the 45 north parallel and the 90 west parallel. 

If you're passing thru the Wausau area and the weather is favorable you might want to pay a call so you can tic it off your bucket list.  Poniatowski is an exceedingly small unincorporated town named after a Polish general. 

In recent years everything was updated by volunteers and business contributors.  The area was resurveyed, a path constructed, benches placed along with signage and an official geographical marker embedded in concrete. 

So if your looking for an excuse for a road trip now you got one.  There is no restroom facility.

Learn more about it here. 

 

Winner, Winner...

...Chicken Dinner!

 

From last weekend there was this.  

 

 

After Group I purchased a Family Pak of nine handsome chicken thighs for $6.14. Set aside four and froze the rest. 

 

Anoint your thighs with fresh-cracked sea salt and place them skin-side down in a covered frying pan. Cold. Turn the gas on high for a few minutes and reduce the heat to medium, medium low; depending. 

 

Meanwhile, par boil al dente the last of your new potatoes (an import from our friendly neighbors to the north). Rinse in cold water, drain, and toss in EVO. Reserve the EVO in the bowl. Preheat oven to 400F. 

 

Cut some garden asparagus into bite size lengths and toss in the reserved EVO. Add cracked pepper and sea salt. (Like Lazarus my garden spargel rose to life). 

 

At 15 minutes check the chicken, rotate 90 degrees (do not flip) and cover. If you peek, the skin will be rendering all of the delicious chicken fat and beginning to brown. 

 

At the thirty minute mark flip your chicken skin side up. It will be obnoxiously golden crispy. Remove the lid and continue to cook on the stove top on low. 

 

Put your taters cut side up on a rack in the oven and bake for ten minutes. Add the spargel after ten minutes. Broil if necessary. (I used convection bake and finished with a few minutes of broil).

We installed a new GE Profile gas range this year and it is exquisite. The stove top has five burners and a flattop. There are two ovens - standard with a broiler and the second a combo convection, air fryer, broiler. 

 

An aftermarket air fryer pan with a grate is a terrific. It’s as large as the oven. Line it with parchment paper for easy clean-up and you’re good to go. 

 

If I’m indoors I cook with gas. Disagree, Yau’ll have to pry my kitchen range from my cold dead fingers. 

 

Outdoors, real men cook with fire…..

 

Old Time Radio Hour

Duffy's Tavern is an American radio sitcom that ran from 1941 to 1951 on several networks.

The show was set in a fictional dive bar in New York City, owned by the never-heard but often-mentioned Duffy.  The main character was Archie, the watering hole's manager, played by Ed Gardner, creator and producer of the show. 

Each episode revolved around Archie's misadventures, harebrained schemes and humorous interactions with patrons, celebrities and his dim-witted employee Eddie - played by Eddie Green.  The show featured a steady parade of celebrity appearances including names like Lucille Ball, Vincent Price, and Marlene Dietrich. 

Memorable catchphrases from the show include:  Duffy ain't here - Archie's standard way of answering the phone and Hello, Duffy's Tavern, where the elite meet to eat - the show's signature opening.

Despite its simple setting this was one of the most beloved comedy programs from the Golden Age Of Radio.   It was the inspiration for the 1945 movie and a short-lived television adaptation.

Bearded Lady

Just like PT Barnum featured a Bearded Lady in his circus sideshow I have one too.

And I'm no sucker for a scam because this gal is the real deal.

For awhile I've been following the coming and goings of this oddity of the turkey kingdom and it would appear that she's taken-up residence here at The Platz to raise a brood maybe?

A bearded turkey hen is a female turkey (hen) that has a beard, a tuft of bristle-like feathers growing from the breast.  

While all toms (male turkeys) have beards, about 10% of hens also develop them, though usually shorter and thinner than those of toms. Bearded hens still breed, lay eggs, and raise broods like any other hen.

 

Ticking Time Bomb

The President's Big Beautiful Bill could possibly be beautiful and is certainly is big; but not simultaneously.  Setting a record for an all time high in deficit spending is the big part and that is hardly beautiful.  It is an economic time bomb that could eventually bring down our rather decent credit rating and our children's economic prospects along with it.

That is hardly a beautiful prospect.

This is spending on the scale of a wartime economy.  Last time I looked, we're not at war; a real one anyway.

There is momentum in the Senate to stop the process, at least "until the president gets serious about spending reduction and reducing the deficit," said Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI). Johnson's concerns come as a number of GOP lawmakers, including Sens. Rand Paul (R-KY) and Josh Hawley (R-MO), have indicated they will not back the bill in its current form.  

The administration and the house are whistling past the graveyard; the Senate has an opportunity to take a whack at the House Pinata and perhaps bring some sanity to this debauchery of spending.  

I hate to sound like a broken record and say I told you so; but the solution to our budget deficit is the 800 pound gorilla sitting with us in the room.  Namely, Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.  They need to be reformed.

Of course, that is a heavy lift and hard work.  The administration seems loathe to roll-up their sleeves and work hard.  And if Trump's party loses some or all of its power in the mid-terms the opportunity to take it on later will have passed.

Meanwhile we have reality television cage-match politics.  We are living in interesting times.