Pigs in the Snow

If you live in Northeast PA, then you were greeted with 5 or 6 or maybe even 10 inches of snow today, the third day of Spring. Though many of us greeted the snow with a grumble, the pastured pigs at Miller's were playful and excited about today's unexpected whiteness! 
Check out our pics below:


The "teenage" pigs were playing a version of "King of the Mountain"
minus the mountain, of course!  More like knock your brother
over into the snow!



 In patient anticipation of REAL spring, I remain
Delana (for Your Farmers @ Miller's)

Just a trim, please!

Trimming the apple trees may not spend time on your Winter To-Do list (right next to snowboarding, book-reading and curling of course), but it's a top priority for the happy orchardist.  Ladies, you know all about getting regular haircuts to remove those sheen-destroying split ends.  Well, a healthy fruit-producing apple tree operates under the same philosophy. 

During the annual pruning, we shear the "suckers" or "powerhouse branches" that crowd an apple tree's frame. "Suckers" are the vertically-growing, spindly branches that spend the tree's life-giving flow of water and nutrients on growing longer, but not on producing fruit.  Trim off the suckers and we free up the tree's resources to focus on growing large, nutrient-dense apples!  Barring a freakish late frost/freeze this Spring, Dad and Grandpa's faithful pruning should result in an abundant harvest in 2011. 

Here're some pictures I got yesterday when I went to check in on Dad (Wally) and Grandpa (Walter Sr.):

The BEFORE picture of a Red Delicious tree, pre-pruning.
Notice how it's crowded with the vertical "powerhouses"/"suckers.

 Dad strategizes before his next wave of pruning.  At Miller's we use
compressed-air pruners.  Don't try this at home, kids,
there's 120 lbs of compressed air powering them!

The AFTER picture.  Only the strong, bud-rich branches remain

Speaking of buds, check out the rich red-tinged bud at the tip of this branch
(in the fuzzy foreground.)  That's a sure sign of Spring!

21st-century farming: Dad talks on his oh-so-modern cell phone while
gloriously perched on his 1950s era Massey-Ferguson tractor!

Meatless Fridays? Get some pierogi!

Last week we peeled pounds and pounds and pounds of potatoes.  We grated cheese--A LOT of cheese.  And then we rolled dough until Mama's shoulders were sore.  But we're happy to report that we have dozens and dozens of frozen homemade, lovingly stuffed pierogi available at the Farm Market for your gastronomic pleasure!

It's the Lenten season and many of us are observing the age-old tradition of foregoing meat on Fridays.  If you're looking to update your usual Friday pizza dinner, stop by the Farm Market on Fairview road for a dozen (or two or three!) pierogi!  At $7.99, they are a farm-fresh, yummy-goodness steal!  And while you're at it why not pick up some homemade Miller's applesauce or a homemade apple pie to go with dinner?

Our winter hours are:
Thurs  10 am to 5 pm
Fri       10 am to 5 pm
Sat      10 am to 4 pm

We hope to see you soon!

Reflectively yours, 
Delana (for Your Farmers @ Miller's)
Farm Market:  1421 Fairview Road  Scott Township, PA 18477
See Website for directions: www.millersorchard.com

Rejuvenation and Inspiration

Sometime between the 1,100 pies we baked during Thanksgiving week and the rush of the Christmas holidays, Your Farmers @ Miller's got a little tuckered out. So beginning Christmas Day we took 10 days off from our beloved customers and spent some much-needed time relaxing with family, eating some yummy Miller's homemade goodies and reading good books. (Now you may be thinking, we are a family business after all, so do we really spend time with each other during the holidays?!?!? Oh yes, indeed! In fact, we get to enjoy each other simply as family for a few days, and not as business partners. Imagine that!)


By the second week of January things were back in full swing. Your faithful blogger set out on a few adventures of her own and was somewhat less than faithful in keeping you in the loop! But I'm back in the blogging saddle and will be posting family, farm and global updates for you frequently for the rest of the year.

To begin with, we've added to the farm family since last I wrote--we've got a handful of piglets who were born during the winter interlude. They're adorable as always! Our teenage and adult hogs were moved out to new pasture today from their winter shelter, and they looked ecstatic!

As for global updates, here's an interesting article from last week's edition of the New York Times about the next generation of farming. Your Farmers @ Miller's proudly count ourselves among those farmers committed to producing nutrient-dense, ecologically-sound, locally-focused food. If you're like the average Northeast PA resident, you've got "your" coffee shop, "your" dry cleaner, "your" accountant, "your" hairstylist, or maybe even "your" day care. Why not get to know us @ Miller's Orchards as Your Farmers for 2011? Hope to see you back here soon!

Delana for Your Farmers @ Miller's