TLR Newsletter

Until the recent atmospheric river drenched the Central Coast, the outlook for the 2021 grazing season was looking bleak.  The soil was bone dry, the remaining vegetation in the fields was crisp, hollow, and yellow, and the animals subsisted on alfalfa hay.  Although the majority of Octobers have at least one light rain, October 2020 was a dry month, without a single drop, and as one dry month led to another, the urgency of the situation grew steadily. Even before the fall, signs were on the horizon that this winter would be subpar.  Forecasters predicted a moderate La Niña event, and we knew that this would be the winter that we implemented the water harvesting strategies we have been researching over the years.  The two primary tools we are implementing are called subsoil ripping , and swales .  This month we'll discuss subsoiling, and next month we'll cover swales. Subsoil ripping is performed by dragging a deep shank with a small blade behind a tractor....

As most customers will remember, Turning Leaf Ranch was nearly burned in the River Fire of August 2020.  Although the ranch was spared by the fire (thanks to the many(!) firefighters on the scene), our next concern turned to the giant burn scar that lies just feet from the property line.  TLR is at the base of the beautiful Santa Lucia mountain range that runs parallel to the Pacific coast.  These rugged mountains are remarkably steep, covered in brush and scrub trees, and they hadn't seen fire since the 1940s.  This sounded like a recipe for mudslides this winter, as the fire burned and killed scores of trees, and interrupted the soil's ability to absorb water. Late in January, as the recent storm approached, we watched with trepidation as areas around burn scars were all evacuated due to the risk.  Sure enough, our fire region was eventually evacuated, and we huddled in town at a hotel room until we got the all clear from the county to go back.  We knew t...

Despite being a small operation, it is remarkable the number and variety of tasks that we complete over the course of a year.  Spring time is a particularly busy time, with the beginning of the pasture rotation (and all the tasks that come with it), lambing and kidding season, planting trees, sunflower, radish, and beets for grazing, etc.  Here is a small sampling of our spring time agenda: Repair fencing Seed pastures Install temporary electric fencing for paddock-shift grazing Prepare planting media, and plant tree seeds Prepare animal handling facilities Prepare safe/dry space for new farm arrivals (kid goats) Graft high-yielding fruit trees Propagate new fruit tree rootstocks Handle the peak lambing and kidding season Use chickens to prepare the soil for sunflower Prepare irrigation drip lines Collect spent hay and manure for composting Clean up the books and prepare for tax season Repair animal rain shelters Prepare willow cuttings Naturally, this is only a starting point...

Who was Turning Leaf Ranch's  newest member in 2020? Mr. Rye Flanagan Turning Leaf Ranch's newest farmer! Born in August, he is the son of Jacob and Rhea Flanagan.  Turning Leaf Ranch is a partnership between Brian Palmer, and Jacob Flanagan.  Brian handles the day-to-day management of the farm, the marketing, and the delivery, and Jacob handles the website, and the payment handling, and offers his ideas for the operation.  Jacob has been with the ranch from the beginning, and we are excited to have his son join the enterprise from day 1!  We can't wait to see the adventures that await him! Congrats to Jacob and Rhea!

Farm Goals 2021 It comes as no surprise that a farm never truly reaches it's "finished state".  Rather, farms are always evolving, growing, and developing, in a constant state of "rebirth".  Because our farm is so new, we have many ambitious goals that will truly transform the farm from its current state.  Realistically, some of these are decades-long goals, but 2021 will see many important first steps in this transformative process.  Below are some of the main goals we'll be working on in 2021. Plant out multiple rows of trees (hundreds, if not thousands) As we all know, California gets little rain in the rainy season, and  zero  rain in the dry season.  We enjoy our beautiful green foothills in winter and spring, but they quickly turn to brown as we approach June.  As the grass turns, it also loses some of it nutritional value, as proteins and lipids break down and decay, leaving lignified straw in its place.  Farmers are in the business of...

Building a livestock enterprise is slow-going, even under the best of circumstances.  Farm infrastructure is extensive, and time consuming to install.  Animal growth only happens so fast, and developing a herd is a years-long process.  So when we began developing this enterprise in 2016, we knew that we wouldn't feel the full business experience until years later.  2020 was that year. 2020 Goals Herd Goals Replace herd sire We lost our herd sire due to natural causes in 2019, and 2020 would be the year that we selected one of his descendants as a replacement.  Now that the 2020 kid crop has come of age, we have now selected our next herd sire: He does not yet have a name, so any suggestions you have are welcome! Diversify female stock to meet different customers' needs As we have interacted with more and more customers, we are recognizing the need to diversify our herd, to offer cuts that meet specific requests that customers have.  To date, we have diversi...

And welcome to Winter on the ranch! Witness the incredible, dynamic views... Plant mulberry cuttings... Work by lantern and headlamp... Grow out our winter coats... Plant long-lived perennials... Harvest worm castings for spring plantings...