Farmers’ Market: Lambing season
“Hmmana, hmmana, hmmana.” A ewe mutters to her newborn lambs. It is a low pitched, rhythmic sound that is unmistakable, a cross between a throttled down Harley Davidson and an asthmatic geriatric opera singer, but quiet, very quiet, intimate pillow talk meant only for two. “I am yours and you are mine. Do not forget. Follow me.”
She noses her lamb, still wet and rather wobbly, onto its spindly legs. The lamb nuzzles, snuffles, searches; when it finds its target, it suckles and grunts. Its tail whips and shimmies like a drop spindle. These are sounds and phrasing that a shepherd knows instantly upon entering the quiet of a pre-dawn barn. The noise heralds good news of successful increase; these phrases are heard at no other time.
In the first few days after the arrival of the lambs, the ewe can barely keep her eyes off the new arrivals, watching them suckle, watching them sleep. She eyes every other lamb, ewe, and human with suspicion if it gets too close. She stamps and snorts at an inquisitive collie nose despite the fact that the familiar dog has never offered the slightest indication that it is a threat. The ewe takes no chances in the first few days. The shepherd welcomes the attentiveness of the ewes; those who “mother up well” return a high live lamb percentage.
Lambing season is both the best of times and the worst of times, when hard hearts melt but exhaustion overwhelms. It is a task not suited to all.
When you come to the Presque Isle Farmers’ Market in the Aroostook Centre Mall parking lot on Saturday morning, consider buying some lamb from Hidden Meadow Farm. When you do, speak to the young ladies about their sheep. One is a shepherdess whose face glows when she describes her charges; the other quickly responds to questions with the suggestion, “You really need to talk to my sister about that!”
The Presque Isle Farmers’ Market contact person is Gail Maynard, who operates Orchard Hill Farm in Woodland with her husband, Stan. Their phone number is 498-8541 and their email is orchhill@gmail.com.
