Gem is our youngest farmer at
Jericho Settlers Farm. She was born at the end of the winter in New Hampshire,
and came to our farm just a few weeks ago. This Border Collie comes from a long
line of working dogs. Throughout her first year on the farm, Gem will get to
know the lay of the land, all of the animals, and the other farmers. Christa
will be training her with the help of a long time farm friend, Sally, who has
been training Border Collies to run our very own sheep for years! Gem will
learn to herd sheep, chickens and cattle, but hopefully not farmers.
Right now, Gem is enjoying life as a beloved puppy. She likes to chew on old pots, and sometimes Hazel. She also loves to carry the dustpan around the greenhouse, which is a great help when it’s time to clean up! She loves to play tug of war, so we’re thinking of teaching her to pull weeds out of the ground. Rewarding her for pulling up plants could be a dangerous path, however...
Hazel Fasching is now a 3 1/2 year veteran at Jericho Settlers Farm. She loves to work in the greenhouse, making mudpies and helping us seed. She is the comedian of our crew, and keeps everyone’s spirits high whenever she’s around. She likes to transplant greens down at our Richmond field on sunny warm days, especially when she can kick off her shoes to squish her toes in the mud! Hazel says her favorite vegetable is Blue Spinach, and while we don’t have that, you can enjoy our Baby Spinach in this week’s share instead (which she also loves very much).