RBR News | January 21, 2017

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Around the Ranch
Winter at the Rock Bottom Ranch is a bit slower than summer: our growing is limited to our hoop houses and living wall, and the overall harvesting slows a bit in January. But no matter the season, there is always something exciting happening at the Ranch!

In the past few weeks, two litters of baby rabbits have been born. It has been fun to watch these tiny animals grow and become more curious. The gestation period for rabbits is 28-31 days. As the doe (female rabbit) approaches her delivery, she builds a nest for her future babies in a nest box. A nest box is a wooden box approximately 16 inches by 10 inches. We give the does straw to create a base for their nest. Then the doe adds her fur to make a fluffy and warm home for the new rabbits.

Have you ever seen a day old rabbit? Well, they’re not quite the cutest newborn animals. They don’t have any hair and their eyes are shut. But by ten days old, they’ve grown some fur and their eyes have begun to open and consequently, they become pretty adorable. Our does and bucks have various fur colors, so it’s exciting to see what color the rabbits will be when they grow their fur. 

The rabbits are arguably one of the favorite attractions for visitors to the Ranch. Children love holding and petting the rabbits, and feeding them dandelions in the summer. Their soft fur and calm temperament make them particularly popular among our young visitors. In a few weeks as the rabbits get older,visitors will be able to see our youngest animals!

Available Products:

• Restock of pork inventory including bacon, chops, ribs, roasts, sausage and ground pork.
• Limited availability of arugula, kale, and salad mix.  
• Full lamb inventory including racks, chops, shoulders, legs, stew meat, and more.
• Limited supply of Rock Bottom Ranch / Cap-K Ranch Beef including short ribs, ground beef, and more.

Products can be purchased at Ranch during open hours. Please call at least one business day in advance to confirm availability or to place an order for pick-up. 

Our friends at the new Free Range Kitchen and Wine Bar in downtown Basalt have several of our items on their menu including kale, arugula, and select pork cuts.   

Rock Bottom Ranch is open Monday – Friday 9AM – 5PM with Farm Tours Wednesdays and Fridays at 11AM. For questions about Rock Bottom Ranch please email Jason at jsmith@aspennature.org.

~ Alyssa Barsanti, Rock Bottom Ranch Agriculture Supervisor