Hair Sheep, Hens & Harvest: Mid-Autumn 2026

Pictured:

Welcome to the mid-autumn edition! Acorns are dropping so we’ve reached a new season according to phenology: mid-autumn! The sheep have finished breeding, some big changes to Shane’s chicken coop, see some of our last harvests, and it’s time for planting/harvesting some of the last items before winter!
Enjoy,
Amy

Table of Contents:
~ The Barn: Sheep News
~ The Coop: Chicken Updates
~ The Garden: Blooms & Harvests
~ The Plan: Nature’s Garden Guide
~ The Blog: Upcoming Editions

The Barn: Sheep News

Sheep breeding season ended September 20th (a week late because life happens!).

Registered Katahdin ram, Archie, went on to his new home to produce some more beautiful babies! Registered St Croix ram, Sparks, joined the ram lambs in the barn for a few days before heading out for the last few pasture rotations before shut-down happens.

The Katahdin and St Croix ewes came back together and headed out to their pastures as well. Ewe lambs were very happy to get back out into the orchard with the chickens as all the recent rain has made the grass grow!

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📋 Reserve Your Stock for Next Season!

Breeding stock goes quickly. Tap the links below to view pricing or secure your spot:

👉[Click Here for Our Hair Sheep Price List] (Prices subject to change)
👉[Click Here to Join Our Waiting List]

Available Categories Include:

Registered Stock: St. Croix & Katahdin

Commercial Breeding Stock: St. Croix & Crossbred High-Percentage Katahdin

Market Stock: St. Croix & Katahdin Feeder Lambs

⚠️ Important Spring 2027 Meat Lamb Policy Updates

If you are planning to purchase meat lambs this coming spring, please take note of our updated timeline and pick-up changes:

Spring 2027 Timeline: Weaning is scheduled for early April 2027, and meat lamb pick-ups will begin approximately one week later. Please plan ahead for a spring pickup!

First-Come, First-Served: To avoid pasture logistics issues from late-summer pickups, we are moving to a strict first-come, first-served basis for meat lambs. We will contact everyone in order of the waitlist, but you must arrange for prompt pickup. Delayed pickups mean we cannot guarantee specific breed choices, as our Katahdin meat lambs typically sell much faster than our St. Croix lambs.

No Meat Lamb Deposits: We will no longer accept deposits to hold meat lambs. Moving forward, deposit holds are strictly reserved for premium registered breeding stock.

The Coop: Chicken Updates

The mean mama hen still has 6 chicks so her attitude is keeping most of them alive! The other mama hen lost one so she’s down to 2 though now they’ve become super independent and no longer hang out with her much.

Pictured: Shane’s favorite roo chick he’s named Jack.

Shane has been busy remodeling his chicken coop this month. He completely changed the nest boxes and roosting bars setup. Now there is a LOT more room for roosting and nesting. We can even gather several eggs from the outside of the coop. The roofing on the nesting area is all aluminum scrap from Shane’s work -reuse, recycle!

The Garden: Blooms & Harvests

I just ordered a pound of Crimson Clover seed to put into all the buckets of dirt from Shane’s bucket garden this summer. This was way more than needed so some may have been tossed into the yard!

The end of September the hardneck and softneck garlic varieties arrived as well. I shared my purchase with a neighbor as I didn’t think Shane wanted ALL his buckets taken over by garlic! Not that I would mind!

We had some major rain roll through Labor Day weekend and harvested tomatoes with ANY blush to them so they wouldn’t split. Grabbed a Bell Pepper with some blush as well. Didn’t need to water for a few days so that was nice! We’ve continued to get off and on days of rain so the remaining tomatoes have taken some hits and split!

We made the mistake of using fermented scratch grains in the bird tree and of course it all sprouted in every nook and cranny it could find! I started pulling it but it just got overwhelming. I left a few sunflowers and one actually bloomed in the Geranium basket! So pretty, but we need to do something different next time!

I heard a rumor that you can plant Sweet Peas in the fall for better plants/flowers in the spring! How many of you have tried this? Does it work? They aren’t in the phenology garden guide yet as it would be too early to try it, but I HAVE QUESTIONS haha.

The Plan: Nature’s Garden Guide

I switched to using phenology to plan my garden, so I created a practical planting guide to help you do the same! Instead of following a rigid calendar, phenology means watching local indicator plants to know exactly when the soil is ready for your crops and when it’s time to harvest.

What to look for:
– Heavy acorn and nut drop from Oaks, Hazelnuts, Walnuts, etc.

Harvest immediately as they become ready:
– Swiss Chard
– Beets
– Fennel
– Winter Squash like Pumpkins (start checking the woodiness of your squash stems)
– Figs (late crop)
– Pawpaws
– Asian Pears
– European Pears
– Apples & Crabapples
– Hazelnuts
– Walnuts

Note: Swiss Chard and Beets are winter garden stalwarts that you can harvest lightly throughout the cold months.

Plant these now for next summer’s harvest and spring color:
– Garlic
– Shallots
– Alliums
– Crocus
– Daffodil
– Muscari

If you grow any of your crops in containers or bucket gardens, expect your phenological timeline to move faster than what is happening in the ground. Because containers are exposed to the ambient summer air on all sides, their soil temperatures are significantly elevated compared to the earth. Whether it is root development, leafy green production, or warm-season fruiting, expect bucket-grown crops to hit their harvest triggers up to two weeks earlier than their in-ground counterparts!

Make sure you pay attention to what nature is doing, it may sometimes seem early/late to start some tasks, but trust that nature knows exactly what it’s doing! Just because I am here in Molalla, OR, doesn’t mean you can’t use the same phenology in your own yard! The concepts work anywhere, though the exact timing will shift—for example, higher elevations or colder regions may take longer for some plants to bloom or set fruit. If you don’t have some of the indicator plants mentioned, check with your local Master Gardeners or college Extension Service!

Ready to garden by nature’s clock?

Check out the Phenology Planting Guide

The Blog: Upcoming Editions

We’ll see you all again in Late Autumn (when the oak and maple leaves have all changed color) for our next Hair Sheep, Hens & Harvest blog post, where we will discuss pasture lockdowns and pre-winter garden tasks!

The next series of Hedge & Hollow blog posts will continue to drop every Monday, as nature is always changing and woods walks have something to share!

Here are the links to the September blogs in case you’ve missed them:

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~ Thank You! ~