by Ethan
on February 17, 2010
… That is the time that the sun will set today. And, while I will readily admit that I could use some longer days right about now, I also won’t complain because as it has already been mentioned … the sun is gaining and we are on the downhill side of things right!?! In fact, by next week the sun will be setting around 6:00 PM. I think daylight until after 6:00 PM will add a little spring to my step (at least as much spring as coveralls and big boots allow). The early nighttime does make for some interesting nights on the farm.
As you can see from the picture above (it was a very clear night … and cold … and windy) I end up doing quite a few chores out in the dark. Of course this is nothing unique to our farm, it is just part of the deal. But, as a beginning farmer and a full-time town job guy I end up doing things when I can … often that when is in the dark.
Before I leave in the morning I do chores that need to be taken care of first thing (feed and water). Then after work I check on the feed situation and get started on all the other stuff that may need to be done. This winter I’ve split plenty of wood with the help of my head lamp and warm clothes … moved hay and other feed with my tractor (and the working headlights) … and, I have even cut up sections of firewood with the chainsaw at night because it needed to be done.
Two conclusions that I’ve come to. Number one … I’m thankful for that headlamp that my mom gave me for Christmas! It makes things much easier than trying to hold/position a flashlight while I work. And, number two … working late at night helps me sleep better because I’m tired when I’m done.
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by Ethan
on February 16, 2010
With all of the snow and ice we have had this winter I thought it would be a good idea if I gave an update on how our Powerflex fence has been holding up and performing this winter. This past summer we installed a six wire hi-tensile fence along the road (two sides of our property) and then a three wire fence along the woods. We used the Powerflex posts and plenty of wire. As I was going through the building process I had a few neighbors drive by and discuss problems that I would most likely face this winter … our fence is one area were the problems have been small.
Right now we are running about 5.5 to 6 kV at the fencer and maybe a bit less at distant parts of the fence. In the summer we were running around or above 10 kV. I will take the blame for the lower readings right now, because I still have some temporary fence out there that is buried in the snow and probably not helping matters at all! But, even with the lower voltage we have not had anybody test the wire or cause any real problems. In fact I know that it still packs a bit of a punch … personal experience.
We are not charging the lower wires right now, but there are spots were we have snow drifts three or four wires high. Again, I’m sure that is drawing it down a bit, but it hasn’t been a problem. Another thing I’ve noticed is that the animals respect the wire … even with the lower charge. Our pigs were contained on one side of their pen by a single polywire about six inches off the ground. That wire was long ago buried, but still they walk along the edge of where it used to be visible. They respect the shock I guess!
All in all this first winter with the Powerflex posts and hi-tensile wire has been great! No real problems to speak of and as long as I remember to plug the extension cord back in after taking the tractor out of the shed (good ol’ temporary electricity) we are good to go. Of course I can’t wait until spring when it’s tall grass shorting out our fence …
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by Ethan
on February 15, 2010
It seems as if we should be on the downhill side of winter. But, after all the snow, cold, ice, rain, snow, cold, and yuck we have had this year (our local school has canceled classes 9 times) I’m just not sure. Just this past day or so we have added a few inches of light fluffy snow. At this point though I don’t think it really matters. All it does is add to the pile …
The winter has been difficult. I thought last winter was difficult and that the second one would be much better … I was wrong. The winter has been difficult … that is all I really feel like saying. But, what am I supposed to do about it? How is anything I do going to change the weather? So, I guess I just grin and bear it … or at least bear it (not so sure about the grin).
Here are some of my thoughts on winter:
- Big snowflakes, even after 50 plus inches of snow for the season, are still beautiful on a Sunday morning. I may not like the fact that they are adding to the snow total, but I can’t deny their beauty.
- Seeing your breath on a cool and crisp snow covered morning is invigorating … even if it feels like the cool crisp mornings will never change over to warm summer mornings.
- A warm fire in the house keeping everything nice and comfortable is a good feeling … almost a feeling of independence.
- I like cutting firewood … in the snow … in the silence … alone.
- I cannot control the winter (or much else for that matter) … and everything is probably much more beautiful because I can’t control it.
- Frost covered trees and fence and all … that is pretty incredible.
- Winter will end and then spring … followed by summer … followed by fall … repeat all. That I can be sure of and then I can do the best in each of those.
It has been a difficult winter. More difficult than I would have imagined or expected, but that does not mean that is the end … as long as I can keep my head up and keep sliding these feet through the snow.
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by Ethan
on February 11, 2010
(It is true that this picture has nothing to do with pigs. But, as I was out doing chores this morning this was the beautiful image that I saw … and all the hogs were still asleep in their huts. I didn’t feel like I needed to wake them up from their slumber just for a photo op.)
As new producer members of the
Iowa Food Coop this is only our second month with product listed. Last month we sold bundles of our Berkshire/Hereford pork, but this month we were able to list individual packages of our pure Hereford pork. So far it has been selling fairly well (probably better than I expected), and those sales made me think of the importance of eating the rare breeds in order to support the rare breeds.
It almost sounds counter productive to eat a pig from a breed that has dwindled to less than 2,000 individuals nationwide (according to the
American Livestock Breeds Conservancy website), but if people aren’t interested in eating them … well, then there is no need to raise them. If you are interested in supporting and helping heritage breeds survive you have to eat them and support them through your purchases!
I chose the
Hereford breed because it seemed like it was well suited to the small-scale farming that we are doing and so far that has proven to be true. As I have mentioned before the breed was developed here in Iowa and Nebraska from Duroc, Chester White, and Poland China lines. Being developed in the 1920’s I believe they are uniquely breed for an outdoor farrowing and finishing system.
Another thing that I have found to be true is that they are a fairly easy tempered and docile breed. I realize that my pig experience isn’t vast, but of all the swine that have graced the farm these pigs have been the easiest keepers and by far the easiest to load! In my book that is a big plus.
If you are in the area and interested in supporting a small, but important, breed we are going to be taking two more to the locker later this month. We will then have cuts and packages available through both the Iowa Food Coop and directly from the farm.
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by Ethan
on February 10, 2010
I love the farm name. I love the history of it, I love the sound of it, and I even love the looks of it. Unfortunately it is not a unique name in the food industry, so it is time that I seriously consider a name change. This is something that I have been putting off because I liked our original name so very much. But, as our farm business grows and we look to expanding this summer and beyond through various sales outlets it is important that we have a name that we are going to stick with and that we can get out in front of our customers and potential customers.
The picture above is a map showing a portion of George Washington’s Mount Vernon estate. He had the land broken up into six (at least) farms and had a name for each of them. Mansion House Farm is out because of the obvious things (maybe Barn-esque House Farm). Union Farm is out because I just don’t find it very appealing, Dogue (sounds like vogue) Run Farm is out because it is difficult to pronounce, River Farm doesn’t work here, and Little Hunting Creek Farm just seems a bit long.
That leaves Muddy Hole Farm (I would like to know the story behind that name). With our pigs I would say that it fits perfectly! And, can you imagine all the neat little advertising images that we could come up with? But, maybe the name just doesn’t scream “neat little family farm”. Although … it could grow on me …
So, do you have any thoughts on a historically driven farm name? Daniel Webster’s farm was called Elms Farm. Patrick Henry’s first farm was Pine Slash Farm. Any other ideas?
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by Ethan
on January 21, 2010
For the past couple of weeks I have been trying to farm and fight off a cold/strep throat thing. I have found that those two things just don’t work out very well! Regardless of how I feel though there are still plenty of things that need to get done and they all involve a bit of physical labor. So, I have just taken a bit more time to feed the livestock, water everyone, split wood, and take care of all the other little chores that pop up throughout the week.
Going slow has been a blessing the past couple of days though because of all the ice on the ground. I haven’t broken out my ice creepers yet, but I’ve been thinking that it might be a good idea to fit some on the pigs because they seem to be having the most difficult time getting around on the ice. But, they sure are fun to watch as the slowly slip around!
It is supposed to warm up just a little bit over the next few days, so hopefully we will lose the ice. Plus, I went to the doctor this morning. I’m hoping that the melting snow/ice and me getting well coincide so that things can get popping on the farm again!
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by Ethan
on January 20, 2010
Sometimes the weather just doesn’t exactly cooperate with us. And, it seems that this winter is one of those times. I don’t think I should be complaining because summer wasn’t too awful on us, especially with the cool temperatures and all the fence building and shed building we had to do. So, I just think I won’t complain … as much as is possible!
All in all the farm survived this little storm fairly well. We still have electricity, the water hydrant wasn’t frozen solid, all the animals are still able to get their feed (although the pigs may be wanting some ice creepers), and I was even able to get into the vehicles with just a little bit of work. On the down side though I was supposed to take a pig to the locker today (we were trying out a new locker), but with all the ice on the truck and on the roads I wasn’t able to make it. I guess this pig will get to live with us a little longer!
One of the nice things about an ice storm (if it doesn’t cause too many problems) is the beautiful images that it leaves behind. The picture on the left here is of our perimeter fence. I’m not completely sure that it would be very shocking to the touch right now. The trees are also very beautiful, but I can never get a picture that does justice to the beauty of the ice covering the branches. I think the natural beauty of the land is one of the biggest benefits of life in the country … it truly is a blessing to behold.
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by Ethan
on January 11, 2010
Head on over to my wife’s blog for a chance to win one of these 2 plaques to personalize with your family name, farm name, house numbers, or even a favorite phrase.
Be sure to check out my new post below too.
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by Ethan
on January 11, 2010
Sometime back (before the winter set in) I wrote about finishing the lean-to portion of our new shed and how it was going to be used for winter feeding and deep bedding. Like everything else this winter things have not gone exactly as planned in the new deep bedding lean-to, but I am learning at least. There were also a couple of questions about why I was using this shed for winter feeding and why I was putting the cattle in a “winter lot”.
I was hoping to have a picture of the feeding/loafing area for you today, but per usual this winter things popped up … today those things were starters going out … in both of our vehicles!!! I can’t tell you how that is possible, but I just know that it is true. So, for now I’ll just throw out some of my thoughts and add a picture later.
First of all one of the main reasons for building the hay shed/deep bedding area/loafing shed is ease. With the hay in one side of shed and the cattle in the other side winter feeding is very simple. I just throw some bales into the feed bunk, pull off the twine, and I’m done. But, the deep bedding pack will also provide some warmth and a dry place for the cattle to go in Iowa’s cold winters (it has be below zero a lot this year and it has even rained a lot).
As for the “winter lot”, that is something that just works for the weather in our part of the country. From the time they get off of pasture until they get back on the pasture it can be muddy and yucky and if I left them out on the pastures I think they could do some damage in the mud and freezing temperatures. So, this winter lot is something of a sacrificial area so that our pastures can stay strong and not have a lot of hooves tearing it up when it is muddy.
That is the idea behind it all, but things aren’t going exactly as planned this year. I am learning a lot and when spring and summer gets here there will be plenty that I will have to change. Our feeding bunk is a work in progress and I believe I need more feeding area for our cattle so they don’t get too pushy. Also, finding bedding material this year has been beyond difficult and I haven’t been able to create as much “deep bedding” as I would like.
Live and learn I guess … live and learn …
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by Ethan
on January 9, 2010
Winter is supposed to be the season where farmers slow down a little, catch up on things in the house, and prepare for the coming year. Well … last winter and this winter seem just as crazy as any other time of year, and it is always more difficult to do chores in the cold and snow (both of which we have had in excess this year). Let me just say it has been a tough winter and blogging unfortunately was the first thing to get cut when things got tough and busy … let’s just leave it at that.
It seems like the snow and cold just keep coming here and as I type this we are preparing for double-digits below zero. Farm life has become a cycle of digging out of a storm or cold temperatures and preparing for the next. But, thanks to friends and neighbors (along with a working saw) we have been able to keep the house warm and feed coming to the animals. Not everything has worked out very easily though and I have often wondered what in the world I was doing.
Through all of it I am trying to learn and keep my head up. I’m keeping track of the things that work (very few it seems like) and the things that don’t work (there are quite a few of these). If I’m worth anything as a farmer I will be able to take these difficult lessons and build on them for the next winter and years to come. Some of the problems have stemmed from not being able to complete a project that I wanted to do before winter (because of money or time), and some of the problems have just come out of no where and taught me a lesson or ten!
I will try to spend some time over the next week catching up on what is going on and answering some of the questions that have come up in my “blogging absence”. I hope and pray you are surviving and thriving this winter wherever you are … make sure to throw on an extra warm comfy blanket on these cold nights!!!
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… That is the time that the sun will set today. And, while I will readily admit that I could use some longer days right about now, I also won’t complain because as it has already been mentioned … the sun is gaining and we are on the downhill side of things right!?! In fact, by next week the sun will be setting around 6:00 PM. I think daylight until after 6:00 PM will add a little spring to my step (at least as much spring as coveralls and big boots allow). The early nighttime does make for some interesting nights on the farm.
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