JAKS Ranch

05/30/2026

This weekend was Taters, Onions and Broccoli!!

Lots of work and irreplaceable memories!!

Thank you, Darren for allowing us to participate in the “Melcer Madness” LOL! We had a great time and are so VERY appreciative of the harvest, hot dogs and a little hang-out time!!

James Kaptchinskie, Julia Kaptchinskie, Jason Kaptchinskie, Andrea Kaptchinskie, Darren Melcer

05/28/2026

WOW!!! This past weekend, we canned 119 quarts of Dragon’s Tongue/Green Beans!!

Regular, pickled and even spicy.
No chemicals, additives or bio-experiments.
Just 100% homegrown goodness!

The equivalent of ~262 14.5oz cans of premium green beans bringing a total cost savings of ~$350/$500 (depending on quality, brand and grocer).

We are truly blessed with family members that have green thumbs.

…and the harvest season has just begun.

05/17/2026

Today was a good day! Family and hard work!
(BTW…if you have never baled hay…it’s frigg’n BRUTAL!!)
Thank you, James Kaptchinskie and Julia Kaptchinskie for the help.

Nothing can replace the love of family and the Grit of Hard work! Pure Greatness!!

We have just begun…this hay season will be AWESOME!!

05/16/2026

Got Hay?

04/25/2026

4 Years ago, our good friends Rhonda Harris and Ronald W. Campbell blessed us with “Haley” our first TBLAA Longhorn.

Today, Haley has blessed us with “Uno” and “Comet”. In turn, Uno has blessed us with “LuLu” (aka Little Uno).

Subsequently, we acquired “Dollar” from Jason Kaptchinskie’s family ranch, and Dollar has blessed us with “Penny”.

With a productive contribution from “Alan”, of Coal Mountain Cattle Co., today we have grown our very diversified herd to 3 Cows and 3 Heifers!

We’re looking forward to raising not only beautiful Longhorns, but also enough beef to feed ourselves and quality beef we can sell to others.

No Government.
No Feedlots.
Just Beef.
Natural.

04/23/2026

Today was Tractor Navigation Training for “Silver-the-adopted-Chicken”. Yes, this chicken has decided each morning she should sit and wait for Jason to “scoot her off’”. SPOILED BIRDS! ugh.

04/11/2026

Here is some interesting trivia for you…

We always know when the weather is going to take a turn. How do we know this?

Let me explain. The “Farmer’s Almanac” came about when observations were made (and documented) by country folk. You know…folks not dependent on media…but in tune with nature. You know them. We called them grandma and grandpa…back in the day.

Well, after 3 years of owning turkeys we have learned -when the turkeys roost on top of the house- you can be certain a squall’s-a-com’n.

Momma Turk is sitt’n broody on her eggs and Turkey-Tom is proudly guarding JAKS Ranch from the rooftop of the house. …and if you have met Tom in person, you would know, for this “Baby Huey” to muster the strength to flap his wings, while simultaneously calculating the updraft required to gain enough air to hoist his proud butt up onto the rooftop…then you know the squall is near.

So, our “almanac” assessment is: We will have a weekend of rain.

Let’s hope this rings true, as we do need our pond level to rise and our hay fields to become nourished.

Enjoy your evening, Tom.

04/05/2026

Happy Easter from the king and queen, here at JAKS Ranch

04/03/2026

Th is is the not-so-peaceful side of homesteading, ranching, farming, self-sustaining, or just the simple rural life.

We, here at JAKS Ranch, appreciate ALL of God’s creatures. His creations are never to be taken for granted.

All His creatures, whether joyful or not, have a necessary role for which they have mastered.

03/30/2026