Re: Had to share - Question

[Guest guest]

Tonight for super we had

> homegrown lamb (totally chemical free, no grain ever, grass-fed and

> finished with pumpkins just last week),

I had noticed in your email that you pastured fed and pumpkin

finished your lamb. I had never heard of pumpkin finishing

livestock, but didn't think too much of it until last night while I

was finishing Farmer Boy, the Ingalls Wilder book. Almanzo's

family who lived in upstate NY, waited until snow was on the ground

to butcher livestock, so that they could use the winter weather to

keep the meat frozen. They pumpkin finished their livestock, I'm

guessing because the pastures were under a foot of snow. I was

curious if there was another reason that people pumpkin finish

pastured livestock, such as better taste or better fat marbling? Can

any other animals be finished on pumpkin besides cows and sheep?

What about other types of squash. I want a small family farm sooo

bad, and it's going to take about four years to get one, so in the

mean time I like to learn about farming whenever I can.

Thank you!

Betsy

[Guest guest]

I read somewhere that lambs finished on pumpkin would round out the

taste. A farmer friend of mine said that they had, in the past, turned

their sheep out into a pumpkin patch and that they totally devoured

the field. The sheep learned how to crack open the pumpkins by

stomping on them. My spring lambs couldn't do that, didn't have the

weight to do it, but I did it for them using a sledgehammer.

I had two lambs, two different breeds with two distinct preferences

for food. That was a very interesting side note. One would eat

anything, the other was much more picky. Next year I'll get two

Leisters (I might have the spelling wrong).

I also gave them squashes, tomatoes, corn stalks, bush bean plants and

kelp.

My chickens really enjoyed the pumpkins, too, but chickens will eat

anything and I mean anything.....

Keep on working toward your goal of having a small farm. To me, it's a

form of " food activism " ...

Best,

Sharon

--- In , " Betsy " <bettysmith997@h...>

wrote:

> Tonight for super we had

> > homegrown lamb (totally chemical free, no grain ever, grass-fed

and

> > finished with pumpkins just last week),

>

>

> I had noticed in your email that you pastured fed and pumpkin

> finished your lamb. I had never heard of pumpkin finishing

> livestock, but didn't think too much of it until last night while I

> was finishing Farmer Boy, the Ingalls Wilder book. Almanzo's

> family who lived in upstate NY, waited until snow was on the ground

> to butcher livestock, so that they could use the winter weather to

> keep the meat frozen. They pumpkin finished their livestock, I'm

> guessing because the pastures were under a foot of snow. I was

> curious if there was another reason that people pumpkin finish

> pastured livestock, such as better taste or better fat marbling?

Can

> any other animals be finished on pumpkin besides cows and sheep?

> What about other types of squash. I want a small family farm sooo

> bad, and it's going to take about four years to get one, so in the

> mean time I like to learn about farming whenever I can.

> Thank you!

> Betsy

[Guest guest]

LOL!! I'm getting some great mental pictures of sheep stomping

pumpkins. Sounds like fun. Thanks for the info!!

> > Tonight for super we had

> > > homegrown lamb (totally chemical free, no grain ever, grass-fed

> and

> > > finished with pumpkins just last week),

> >

> >

> > I had noticed in your email that you pastured fed and pumpkin

> > finished your lamb. I had never heard of pumpkin finishing

> > livestock, but didn't think too much of it until last night while

I

> > was finishing Farmer Boy, the Ingalls Wilder book.

Almanzo's

> > family who lived in upstate NY, waited until snow was on the

ground

> > to butcher livestock, so that they could use the winter weather

to

> > keep the meat frozen. They pumpkin finished their livestock, I'm

> > guessing because the pastures were under a foot of snow. I was

> > curious if there was another reason that people pumpkin finish

> > pastured livestock, such as better taste or better fat marbling?

> Can

> > any other animals be finished on pumpkin besides cows and sheep?

> > What about other types of squash. I want a small family farm

sooo

> > bad, and it's going to take about four years to get one, so in

the

> > mean time I like to learn about farming whenever I can.

> > Thank you!

> > Betsy