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CowTales

Tales about the cows at Birdsong Farm...

The Story of Blossom

13/8/2016

3 Comments

 
The Story of Blossom (August 13, 2016) My love of Jerseys and cheese making all began with a cow named Blossom. This is our story...
Today there are 15 Jerseys registered with the 'Birdsong' herd prefix, but it all started with a cow named Blossom...
Blossom was born on the Queen Charlotte Islands (now known as Haida Gwaii) on August 28, 2002. That was four weeks after our family came to Enderby, but at the time I didn't even know about her.

In a letter dated September 8, 2002, my friend Elizabeth wrote "Our black cow had a cute heifer calf on August 28th. It is a chocolate colour." When I read that letter I had no idea that one day the 'cute heifer calf' would be mine.
The Story of Blossom (August 13, 2016) My love of Jerseys and cheese making all began with a cow named Blossom. This is our story...
A newborn Blossom with her mum, Diamond.
Blossom arrived at Birdsong Farm on June 11, 2003. She was nine months old and looked like a giant next to our goats. I vividly remember clinging to the barn gate and crying because I was so scared of her. Today I can laugh about that because a nine-month-old heifer looks teeny-tiny next to an adult Jersey, but at the time it wasn't funny! 
The Story of Blossom (August 13, 2016) My love of Jerseys and cheese making all began with a cow named Blossom. This is our story...
Blossom as a young heifer. I'm totally in love with her by this point.
Blossom was actually my dad's heifer, but I was her caretaker and quickly fell head-over-hooves in love with her. 

Her first calf was born on September 1, 2004, and I named him Colby--maybe an inkling of my future love of cheese making? I milked Blossom by hand twice a day, and for the first time our family had all the fresh milk (and cream) that our hearts desired with plenty to spare. That is when my dad handed me a cheese making recipe book and made me an amazing offer: if I learned how to make cheese for our family, Blossom would be mine to keep. 
The Story of Blossom (August 13, 2016) My love of Jerseys and cheese making all began with a cow named Blossom. This is our story...
A modern milkmaid with her first cow, Blossom.
Today, Blossom is a family cow in Clinton, British Columbia and her daughters, Daisy, Aster, and Penny, are family cows in Nakusp, British Columbia, Sunnybrook, Alberta, and 100 Mile House, British Columbia. Her granddaughters, Shirley Rose and Buttercup, and her great-granddaughter, Jasmine, still reside on Birdsong Farm. There is no doubt that she has left her mark on my Jersey herd.
3 Comments
Beverley Gale
16/8/2016 07:06:39 pm

Nice story. You must be happy she and her heifers are in good homes.

Reply
Naomi Fournier link
26/8/2016 02:14:00 pm

Thanks Beverly. Yes, I'm very happy that I found good homes for Blossom and her heifers. It's always hard to say goodbye, but knowing that they are going to a good home makes it easier.

Reply
Allan Laird link
3/8/2022 06:50:38 am

Cool story that is very similar to my own about 50 years ago. My folks had a Jersey dairy when I was growing up. I ended up in partnership with my dad with 125 head. I never thought I would go back to having a small herd of Jerseys in the pasture.

Reply



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Birdsong Farm
Naomi De Ruiter
PO Box 486
Falkland, BC.  Canada
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250-938-1606

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  • Welcome
    • Meet the Milkmaid
    • Resources
    • Contact
  • Learn to Make Cheese
    • Cheesemaking Classes
    • Cheesemaking Store
    • Prerecorded Classes
    • Gift Cards
  • Jersey Cows
    • About our cows
    • The Blossom Family
    • The Princess Family
    • The Fancier Family
    • Milk Cow Mentoring
    • Jersey Sales
  • Cowtales Blog