MARCH 2023: We have not had livestock since 2018, and will be writing about what’s been happening since then in future blog posts. Please know that this information below is out of date but is preserved here as an archive.
Welcome to our farm website! We are continuously updating it with new information as our farm grows, and hope that you will check in frequently to see what’s happening. Our first chickens arrived in January 2010, and we offer farm fresh eggs available for pickup from our farm. We also offer ownership shares in our goat herd – herd share owners receive a half-gallon of fresh goat’s milk each week. Khaki Campbell Ducklings (excellent egg-layers as adults – they should start laying in late summer) arrived in March 2011, along with some Indian Runners, and as of late May, some Cuyuga ducklings were added to our menagerie. We are raising some meat chickens this summer for our own family, and depending on our experience with that, we may offer fresh pastured chicken in the future. We also hope to build an on-site creamery in the future so that we can produce cheese, butter, and other dairy products.
We strive to use natural, ecological farming methods, and continue to educate ourselves about permaculture and bio-dynamic practices so that we can implement those – it’s a continuous learning process. We want to produce real food that is nutrient dense and that promotes the health of not only those who eat it, but those who produce it, which includes our livestock and the micro-organisms in our land.
The Meaning Behind Our Farm Name
We’ve been mulling over what to call ourselves ever since we departed the “life that was” in the city in 2008, and after considering it for well over a year, we’ve decided on Serenity Acres. Besides the obvious reference to the calm, peace, and tranquility that are a part of our life in the country, we are also dedicated fans of Joss Whedon‘s television series Firefly, and the subsequent film, Serenity. Although farming was not the livelihood of any of the main characters, we’d like to think that we are working to embody the sort of place that they’d create if they had been. Our goals of self-sufficiency, entrepreneurship, and a burning desire not to be “meddled with” parallel those held by the crew of the Firefly-class ship Serenity, and we are building a life here that cherishes the same sort of personal liberty that they sought. We’d like to believe that ours would be a safe haven for Captain Reynolds and company, and that they’d enjoy their stay.
As for the URL? Well, serenityacres.com was our first choice, but once we discovered that it is being sold as a “premium” domain – to the tune of some $1300 – we realized it was too rich for our blood. If you are familiar with the yearly fund raising event put on by Firefly fans (Can’t Stop The Serenity, which my husband and I have been involved with organizing here in Michigan in the past) you’ll understand our reasoning in what we chose instead. And if you aren’t a Browncoat, well, perhaps you were a Seinfeld fan, and recall Frank Costanza attempting to lower his blood pressure with the phrase “SERENITY NOW!”, albeit rather unsuccessfully. In either case, it was amusing to us, and the price was definitely right, so, here we are.
Our goat herd is registered with the American Dairy Goat Association, and our herd name is “Browncoats” – which, if you are familiar with Firefly and Serenity, you will recognize as the name of the Independent Faction who fought against the Alliance in that mythos. They fought for the principles of sovereignty and the right to self-govern in the face of the imperialistic Alliance. Our goats are also very independent-minded, and it’s one of the reasons we adore them so much, as they are kindred spirits with us. So it’s quite a fitting herd name.
As of September 2011, our herd is composed of eleven goats – seven adults and four juveniles. We are milking six of the adults, and will be breeding the juvenile doelings once they are ready. Our herd has a mix of breeds: LaMancha, Alpine, Saanen, and Nigerian Dwarf. Each goat has its own personality that is unique, and most of the time, quite endearing. We milk twice a day, every day. George still works full-time in the city, so this is no small task! Our life is busy, and exhausting, but it is also very rewarding, and we prefer this to the hubbub of city life.
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I tell you, Zoë, we get a mechanic, get her up and running again, hire a good pilot, maybe a cook – live like real people. A small crew – they must feel the need to be free. Take jobs as they come. They never have to be under the heel of nobody ever again. No matter how long the arm of the Alliance might get…we’ll just get ourselves a little further. -Malcolm Reynolds |
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