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A Matter of Brown or White

Is there a difference between brown eggs and white eggs?

Yes. One is brown, the other is white and you’ll pay more for the brown at the checkout.

Beyond the shell color, what slips out when you crack either into a hot frying pan is a different story. Trace the eggs back to the breed, how the chickens are fed, where they are raised, and who has a hand in doing so, and you’ll have all the proof you need that at least when it comes to nutritious, great tasting eggs, the chicken does indeed come first.

To understand eggs, from the outside in, let’s turn to a two “crack” experts. Joan Richmond from Meadow Rise Farm, Bellville, OH farms a handful of acres, mostly dedicated to produce, and tends a flock of productive layers. Kathy Breychak, the Blue Egg Farmer from Columbia Station, OH operates a CSA. You can tell by the name of her farm that eggs are her signature product, treasured by her CSA members and a few restaurants throughout Northeast Ohio.

They’ve answered the questions most people have on their mind when it comes to brown eggs versus white eggs.

The Buzz on Beekeeping

Just before winter arrived and the neighbors headed indoor to hibernate, we had one last chat over the garden fence where I shared with them my plans for a spring project.

We’re close with the neighbors. We can see into each other’s windows from our own and smell what’s cooking for dinner when the wind blows just right. They’ve been witness to and recipients of lots of my “projects” and food experiments over the years, the most recent of which was my sauerkraut-making project which went sour, resulting in 40 pound of salted cabbage compost. Not much that I do surprises them.

“I think I’m going to raise a few chickens or keep a beehive next year,” I said. “Which do you prefer?” I thought I would give them a few months to mull it over. Between clucking and buzzing, they chose buzzing.

Good answer! I had already mailed in my non-refundable registration fee for the Beginning Beekeeping Classes coming up in a few weeks. Still, I need to arm myself with enough information to play defense for my project when the neighborhood started to thaw out and people would begin to ask questions.

I called Denzil St. Clair from Queen Right Colonies in Spencer, OH. Denzil and his wife, Shelia operate an apiary and a beekeeping supply house and conduct a series of classes as part of the Lorain County Beekeeping Association. He had the answers.

A Wonderful Life

Michael Patterson lives a life reserved for the young yet coveted by the old. He’s shed anything that requires a monthly payment or a full tank of gas and has replaced it with a choice to live simply—very simply. At twenty-one, he can tell you about green living, plant life cycles, and a recipe for great compost. His greatest treasures at the moment are a book on edible plants in North America and a llama wool sweater handknit by Native Americans.

Those of us who find pleasure in farming, learning about farming, or perhaps fantasize about it as a departure from our routine will like Michael’s story. It reminds us of why youth is reserved for the young. He’s doesn’t worry about where his next meal will come from as much as how it was grown.

His segue from a traditional suburban upbringing to living a nomad’s life in sustainable environments is a short story, one that I find both endearing and fascinating. His parents? Not so much at first.

So Michael and I met one Sunday afternoon over herbal tea and I asked him how he arrived at this place.

I Wish I Was Dixie

Look at this photo of Dixie Scheiderer. I doubt she would mind me saying, but this lady is no spring chicken. Her words, not mine.

I met Dixie a few years ago on the Beallsville farm she worked with her “sweet, sweet man,” Jake. Fifth generation dairy farmers, the couple operated a small dairy of 40 Jerseys which supplied the milk for their cheese making business, Buckeye Grove Farm Cheese, featuring wonderful old world style raw milk cheeses. My visit there was one of the last of a long list of trips throughout Ohio and a most memorable way to wind down before digging in to write the book Farms and Foods of Ohio: From Garden Gate To Dinner Plate.

Last November, a colleague told me that the Scheiderers had retired and moved to Kentucky. Jake and Dixie had turned the businesses over to their son, Al and his wife, Renae. The young couple proved to be excellent students and the transition was seamless—barely a hiccup in the changing of the guard.

Still, I never suspected the word “retirement” to be in Dixie’s vocabulary. While I worried that something unpleasant precipitated the move, I wasn’t quite convinced.