Since the temperatures have been slowly coming out of the single digits above and below zero I have been carrying a camera around with me a lot more and I have enjoyed taking many pictures. The above picture is one I took of our bull Sundance the other morning as he was on his way back to the shed from the water tank. It’s a morning ritual for the herd (and myself) to water at the tank. I hook up the hose and fill it up while the cows come over and drink. Then I have to unhook and drain the hose … I’ll be glad when I don’t have to drain the hose any more!
Anyways, I think he is looking pretty nice in the morning sun. Now … for the quick hits. This winter the Practical Farmers of Iowa are continuing their “Farminar/Webinar” series with all sorts of great topics that you can get in on. I’ve been able to catch some of them live, but they also record them and put them up on the website. Here are some links.
#1 :: Next Generation Farminars – This is a series of eight farminars dealing with everything from whole farm planning to financing a farm operation. It was specifically put together for beginning farmers or transition farmers. Check out the link above for the whole series.
#2 :: Winter Farminar Series – The winter series has a variety of topics dealing with soil, vegetables, poultry, and so much more. I’ve really enjoyed the one on pastured poultry and I’m looking forward to the farminar on grass-fed beef production. Not all of these farminars have taken place yet, so you can check out the link and get in on it live to take full advantage of the presenters knowledge.
#3 :: Niche Pork Webinar – Finally, I’ve mentioned this one before but I enjoyed these so much I thought I would mention it again! Lots of good information from a variety of niche pork farmers … in fact I think I’ll watch one again soon.
Also, if you are looking for all sorts of other resources check out the Resources Page on the Practical Farmers of Iowa website.
The more red cattle I see, the more I get the urge to buy some red-hided cattle (or at least a Red Angus bull).
How long will it be before you have some Sundance-sired calves?
Have you had the chance to compare Sundance to the linear measurements of the ideal bull described by Gerald Fry?
Rich – I’m not sure how he would compare, but I’m positive he would be smaller that Fry’s ideal numbers. But, I wouldn’t want him bigger because … my cows are smaller than his ideal cows 😉 Check out the picture on Fridays post (coming soon) for a picture of one of the smallest cows on the farm.