Nistock Farms

06/13/2026

Cotswold wool out of the dye pot today- Deep purple. I can't wait to see this rinsed and dried. I think it will be a really lovely purple! 💜

06/09/2026

The first hay of the season. Half the field, and it is a light crop but they are calling for thunderstorms tonight and sporadic rain the next few days. At least it will be a decent start.

05/29/2026

Wool for the win!! https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=1397014479123802&set=a.1251609763664275

In a surprising twist for regenerative medicine, the secret to healing broken bones might be found in your sweater. 🐑🦴
Scientists at King’s College London have successfully developed a bone-healing material made entirely from sheep wool. The breakthrough centers on keratin, the structural protein in wool, hair, and nails, which was used to create a scaffold that tricks the body into rebuilding bone tissue.
In recent animal and laboratory trials, this wool-derived material didn't just support bone growth; it produced tissue that more closely resembled healthy, natural bone than any current synthetic or collagen-based alternative. Because wool is naturally renewable and often discarded as waste by the farming industry, this provides a cheap, sustainable, and high-performance source for future medical implants and surgeries.
The most mind-blowing part? The body gradually absorbs the wool scaffold as the real bone takes its place, leaving no foreign hardware behind. This discovery marks a massive leap for orthopedic surgery, offering a future where complex fractures can be "knit" back together using the same biological building blocks as a sheep's coat.
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News Source:
Science Daily – "Scientists turn sheep wool into a bone-healing material in a major medical breakthrough" (May 22, 2026)
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05/27/2026

Working in the strawberry and asparagus beds the last few days. First up was putting a nice metal edging around the area to keep the grass at Bay. Once I dig out the grass from inside I'll be able to keep it suppressed with litter from the sheep barn until the strawberries fill it all in. Next was digging out the grass along the asparagus bed and putting down pavers so I have a walkway. Old concrete silo staves for the win!! There is still work to do here, but it is coming along nicely. Oh, and I found treasure! This marble appeared while digging for the edging. Andy is in his 7th decade so it was either his or maybe even from his father's vintage. I suppose I should research marbles and figure out how old it is. A rabbit hole for another day. Regardless, it has now returned to the light of day.

05/23/2026

Wednesday was dental day. Two old ewes were having trouble chewing and so they were scheduled to have their teeth floated. The tooth on the left was found to have already been split vertically and it loosened up and the pieces came out during floating. The other three teeth were from the second ewe. We knew she was feeling lousy and had treated with antibiotics, but it had not overcome the fact that the teeth were infected. All three loosened up during floating and the vet could pull them with her fingers. The Sheep are 14 and 11 years old respectively and I'm sure they will feel better without these problem teeth. We spent years managing gestation and lambing issues and now we are navigating geriatric problems. 'llfeelbetter

05/14/2026

2026 Fleece Reservations! - https://mailchi.mp/b990f856d5da/2026-fleece-reservations-21048016 Save the date! Our fleece reservations go live on Sunday!

05/10/2026

Today's Shepherd's Wool Market was wonderful but somehow a box of magazines went missing from our booth in the morning. If anyone accidentally picked up - or finds while unpacking - a flat cardboard box of "Punchneedle and Primitive Stitcher" magazines please let me know!

05/10/2026

Thanks so much to the organizers and volunteers who made today's Shepherd's Wool Market such a nice day! It's a lot of work but you made it look easy. Kudos to you!

05/08/2026

Tomorrow! Nistock Farms will be there with fiber and fiber tools and accessories and supplies for lots of fiber crafts. Do you need a last minute Mother's Day gift? I bet we will have it. 😊 It's a great show!

05/06/2026

A giant THANK YOU from Nistock Farms for a spectacular weekend at the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival.

THANK YOU to the festival organizers and volunteers who plan this massive event and keep everything running so smoothly. I have never asked a question that they didn't have a ready answer or solution for.

THANK YOU to all the people who stopped by our booth to shop or ask questions or just say hi. This is hands-down the friendliest festival and it has the warmest, nicest fiber vibes.

THANK YOU to my BF Julie for riding shotgun on these festival adventures and to the other fiber friends who stopped to ask if we needed anything they could fetch for us, or spell us for a bathroom break.

And THANK YOU to Divine Providence for keeping us safe during all our travels. We are very blessed in all regards.

We're already planning new things to bring next year! See you in about 360 days!