High School Fall Work Day on Weise Farms
It was another fun and productive day as more than 30 Giddings High School students from Mrs. Samantha Hernandez's Lifetime Nutrition class made their way on the big yellow bus driven by Curtis Krause, to Weise Farms.
We started off with a tour of the farm, introducing them to our wagyu steers. The steers enjoyed being hand fed grass, and getting their heads scratched. We talked about how these animals are born right here on the farm and raised up without the use of growth hormones or antibiotics, and slow-fed to finish them until they are around 30 months of age. They live happy lives until graduation day, when they go off to freezer camp. While connecting with the animals and thinking about harvest day brought a few sad faces, they really understood how important it is to see where your food comes from and how it is raised.
We talked about why we grow & raise our own food, combatting pests naturally, food preservation, the freedom to farm, and when it is not possible to grow it or raise it yourself, we talked about the importance of buying from a farmer they trust.
They learned about rendering tallow and the many healthy uses for cooking, baking, and soaps. They sampled some of our wagyu tallow & honey granola, a new product in search of the perfect name. some came up with ideas for a new name. We haven't settled on that yet. So please share your ideas if you have any.
After the tour, we went straight to work. The students helped us carry young chicken pullets from the grow out pen to the free-range pen. And then they transferred our young guinea fowl from the juvenile pen to the grow out pen. They also got to hold some of our baby chicks that will be ready to butcher around Christmastime.
After that, we planted the Fall garden with broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage transplants from Giddings Nursery & Garden Center, along with seeds of carrots, beets, cilantro, mustard greens, and spinach.
They pulled weeds in several raised beds and planters, and then planted sage, basil and thyme. They dug up our saffron crocus bulbs and amended the soil, replanting some of the bulbs and saving the rest that had multiplied for a new bed that will be soon to come. They amended the soil and planted sugar snap pea seeds in the hugelkulture beds that were made by the last class that visited the farm.
They also planted two peach trees in the orchard.
Somewhere in the midst of all that work, we enjoyed lunch. This time we served wagyu beef taco salad with sweet tea and cookies for dessert.
After all the work was done, we fed the ducks and fish, while a few students enjoyed fishing for bass in the tank by the house. we also took groups of students on mule rides to see more of the farm. While some waited for rides, they enjoyed the playground or just sat and visited.
It was an all around great day and we always look forward to the next season, and the next class of students from Mrs. Hernandez's class.
