Today’s commercial farms rely on breeds that are not always well suited to an open environment such as ours. At Cedar Meadow Farm, we believe it is our responsibility to ensure the future of those breeds that were once a familiar and commonplace sight across the New England Landscape. We attempt to use as many heritage breeds as possible and our breeding programs consist solely of heritage animals. Because of their genetic profile, heritage breed animals tend to grow at a much slower rate then their commercial cousins. Though this requires a greater investment in both time and money, we think you will agree it is well worth it!
In addition to better taste and healthier food, you can take pride in knowing that you are preserving a part of America’s past. By supporting our farm, you are helping to keep heritage breeds flourishing and centuries-old traditions alive and well!
Take a moment to browse through the text below to learn more about the different types of heritage breeds at Cedar Meadow Farm.
We are advocates of the movement to help save our history. Please take a moment to visit these heritage breeding sites so you too can understand how important these animals are.
Our layer flock consists of a wide variety of species, ranging from Dominiques to Rhode Island Reds. Truthfully, many of our birds are pretty to look at but not very effective egg layers. Though we like to maintain a variety of species of birds, we have decided to focus on Barred Rocks, Rhode Island Reds, and White Leghorns for the bulk of our eggs. However, we are also cultivating a flock of Aracunas and Welsummers to offer a unique color assortment of eggs. Aracunas lay eggs ranging in color from blue to purple and Welsummers lay an incredibly dark brown egg - almost chocolate in color.
Why have we chosen these breeds?
The choice of Dominiques was easy, they are a calm, dual purpose breed with a Rose Comb and lay brown eggs. The rose comb is especially advantageous because they are not prone to frostbite on their comb and wattles. Best of all, they are very attractive with their barred markings. To learn more about this breed, visit the oklahoma state website at http://www.ansi.okstate.edu/poultry/chickens/dominiques/index.htm. You can also visit the Dominique Club of America at http://dominiquechickens.org/
Rhode Island Reds were chosen mostly for sentimental purposes. They are excellent layers and quite attractive to look at. In general, they have a great disposition and we feel our location in New England makes us obligated to keep these gals around. To learn more about this breed, visit the oklahoma state website at http://www.ansi.okstate.edu/poultry/chickens/index.htm
We stumbled upon Barred Rocks almost by accident. Though we had had several hens that were called “Barred Rocks” by the hatchery we had gotten them from, they did not live up to the breed standard put forward by the American Poultry Association. Through our affiliation with Animal Welfare Approved, we were able to get our hands on some eggs from the most beautiful Barred Rocks we had ever seen. You’ll notice in the picture to the right that these birds have very thin striping in their feathering, very different from the Dominiques.
Because the Dominiques, the Barred Rocks, and New Hampshire Reds are dual purpose, they will make an excellent addition to the stew pot when their egg-laying days are over.
White Leghorns are somewhat flighty, are prone to frostbite on their magnificent wattles and combs, and don't offer much in the way of meat when they are no longer suitable for egg laying. Not exactly user-friendly but what they lack in personality and maintence, they make up for in prodigious egg-laying. They lay white eggs nearly year round. Best of all, they are just plain fun too look at! Seeing them dart around the pasture reminds us of little dinosaurs skitting about.
As for the Aracunas and Welsummers, well, we really got them for just plain fun. The Aracunas are currently on the watch list for the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy whereas the Welsummers are not listed by the ALBC.
Our farm has the only flock of layer hens that has earned the Animal Welfare Approved designation. We are proud to be affiliated with the Animal Welfare Institute. In addition to enforcing high standards for all farms participating in the program, they also support their member farms. In December of 2008, we were recipients of a grant from AWI to purchase a professional incubator. During the 2009 season, we hope to experiment with some crossbreeding between our birds and hatch out many more of our eggs. You may not know this, but certain crosses between barred rocks and white leghorns can lead to chicks we can sex by their feather color. This way, we will know as soon as the eggs hatch if we have hens or roosters. More importantly, these hybrid crosses may prove to be much better layers than their parents. Keep in touch as we find out if this experiment works!
Did you know that commercial strains of turkeys are unable to reproduce without artificial insemination? Sure, they may be big breasted, uniform in size, grow quickly, and have excellent feed conversion - but as far as we are concerned, they are almost unnatural. Not just any turkey can be considered a heritage breed.
"Heritage turkeys are defined by the historic, range-based production system in which they are raised. Turkeys must meet all of the following criteria to qualify as a Heritage turkey:
1. Naturally mating: the Heritage Turkey must be reproduced and genetically maintained through natural mating, with expected fertility rates of 70-80%.
2. Long productive lifespan: the Heritage Turkey must have a long productive lifespan. Breeding hens are commonly productive for 5-7 years and breeding toms for 3-5 years.
3. Slow growth rate: the Heritage Turkey must have a slow to moderate rate of growth. Today’s heritage turkeys reach a marketable weight in 26 – 28 weeks, giving the birds time to develop a strong skeletal structure and healthy organs prior to building muscle mass. This growth rate is identical to that of the commercial varieties of the first half of the 20th century."
Cedar Meadow Farm is proud to feature the Tamworth Pig - a truly historic breed originating from England. This wonderful, utilitarian pig is sadly on the Threatened List, meaning there are fewer than 1000 annual registrations in the United States and estimated fewer than 5000 global population. Oklahoma State University has a wonderful overview of the history of the Tamworth Pig at http://www.ansi.okstate.edu/breeds/swine/tamworth/ .
Our pigs have provided us with hours of entertainment. Their natural curiosity and intelligence is a delight to observe. They are wonderful little creatures and serve many purposes beyond the dinner table or barbeque pit. Last year, the pigs helped us cultivate (and fertilize) two new gardens.
The specific origins of the Tamworth are somewhat sketchy, but without a doubt, they are a product of the British Isles. There are some who believed they originated in Ireland and were brought over to Tamworth England (in Staffordshire) where they were bred quite extensively. Though best known as a "Bacon Hog", the Tamworth is an excellent source of lean pork.
In the fall of 2008, we suffered a devastating loss to our Tamworths. Due to a feed contamination, we lost three of our feeder piglets and our best sow, Chelsea. Though we are extremely disappointed at the untimely death of these wonderful animals, it has forced us to take a very close look at our long term plans. We are delighted to announce that we are including Gloucester Old Spots to our herd of pigs. Old Spots, or GOS, are a fantastic breed that are very well suited to the pastured life. They are on the critically endangered list, as recognized by the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy. To learn more about this great breed, visit http://www.ansi.okstate.edu/breeds/swine/gloucestershireoldspots/index.htm . In addition to this boar – who is actually just a little guy of only 3 weeks right now, we are going to purchase some
Tamworth/GOS feeder pigs to have available for our customers in the Summer of 2009.
We are pleased to have Scottish Blackface Sheep at the farm. Though they are not listed on the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy Preservation List, they are a historic breed and provide excellent meat and wool.
The breed's origin is lost in the midst of time, but undoubtedly emerged from the genetic umbrella of ' horned ' sheep from which also sprung the Swaledale, Rough Fell and other localised types such as the Lewis and Mayo Blackface.
Monastery records of the 12th century tell of the Dun or Blackface breed of sheep. The monks used the wool for their clothes, and also exported large amounts to Europe. In the 16th century, King James IV of Scotland established an improved Blackface flock in Ettrick Forest. During the 17th and 18th centuries, it was known as the Linton Sheep, West Linton in Peeblesshire being the main sale for the type. In the early 19th century, the breed was taken from Dumfriesshire and Lanarkshire and introduced into the north of Scotland, but due to the high price of cheviot wool the Blackfaces were cleared off the hills in favour of the cheviot. This continued until 1860, when the wool prices reached the same level and the farmers realised that the blackface, with its ability to survive and reproduce in adverse weather conditions, was the best suited breed to utilize hill and mountain grazing.
Cedar Meadow Farm has a fledgling rabbitry featuring Giant Chinchilla Rabbits.
The Giant Chinchilla originated in the US. It was developed in 1921 by Edward H. Stahl of Holmes Park, Missouri. Stahl was one of the first to own a Chinchilla rabbit, a breed that had been created in France in 1913. He knew the fur industry would be taken by storm when it was introduced to America, but he knew that the breed's diminutive size would hamper its success. While other breeders began to breed up the weights to what would become known as the American Chinchilla, Stahl set his sights on breeding a "giant" breed. In his basement he began experimental breeding using a pure Chinchilla buck of large size and perfect color to New Zealand White does and does of several other large breeds. The offspring from the cross with White Flemish and American Blue does had reasonably good coloration with progress toward a larger size, and were used for continued selection. On Christmas morning, 1921, a Giant Chinchilla doe was born that Stahl considered ideal. He named her the "Million Dollar Princess".
True to their name, Giant Chinchillas are quite large, with mature bucks weighing in at 12 to 15 pounds and does at 13 to 16 pounds. It is the only breed in America that is judged for its commercial value, with meat producing qualities given top consideration on the judging table.
There are fewer than 200 annual North American registrations of the breed, and the global population is less than 2,000.
In the past, we have relied exclusively on cornish rock crosses. These are almost the exact same animal most commercial producers use. Although this is contrary to our strong feelings about heritage breeding, they do provide a uniform product with an excellent feed to growth ratio. They grow quickly with a very large breast and quite a bit of white meat. These little critters could grow ready for market in 6 to 8 weeks, we don't allow them to grow that quickly - our conscience just won't let us do that (Never mind all of the leg problems that ensue). Besides, the slower they grow, the more flavor they will have.
We still carry Cornish Rock Crosses, but we are moving some of our production over to a new variety of broiler – a European style, slow-growing broiler. They will take nearly 3 months to get to market size. Though not a heritage breed, they are closely related to the heritage breeds and more importantly, we are taking one very large step away from the factory farms. We have gotten rave reviews from our customers who have tried this product. You will find that they have much smaller breasts, more dark meat, and a flavor that is reminiscent of pheasant. They are a joy to raise (and eat), but we are still working on a reliable supplier of day old chicks so we can have plenty to offer to you.
This year, we will also offer a heritage breed variety of broiler chicken: the Plymouth Barred Rock. It has taken us a long time to source quality breeding stock that will provide us with birds that exhibit the genotype and phenotype that our ancestors worked so hard to perfect. We are excited to add this offering to our product line up.
