An Afternoon In Farm Country

The dogs and I had arrived at the farm and given it a quick inspection tour. The house and yard were well tended and everything looked wonderful. I'd met the farmer who had hayed my south field and then took four of the dogs for a walk to see the north field. This field, the farmer told me, had contained enough junk hidden beneath the grass to knock out his equipment several times. Most of the hay was now cut and spread out to dry, though you can see in this photo where he'd had to stop cutting. It was a sweet smelling, fun place for two Papillon puppies to run and play:

A large tractor sat idle while other machinery was repaired. My house and barn were close by and the view was nice:

Daphne and Clover are constant companions and never tire of running and wrestling:

But oddly, the dogs didn't seem much interested in the field so we returned to the apartment:

I took the two puppies with me and went for a driving tour of the countryside to the northeast of my farm where I had not previously explored. I drove and drove and drove, but there wasn't much to see except seemingly endless miles of short trees and marshes which abutted the road. I finally gave up and turned around to return home. But then alongside the road I saw what appeared to be miniature water lilies, thousands and thousands of them:

These tiny water lilies had flowers less than an inch across and leaves which were less than 3 inches. They were so thick that the frogs sat on top of them, plopping loudly into the water when I came too near. When I later arrived home I scoured my field guide and the internet in order to identify them, but could not find them. Finally, I found them identified as an invasive alien called European Frog-Bit. I read that they have not yet invaded most of the United States, but are spreading rapidly and attempts are being made to eradicate it. It's a shame, as it'd make a cute little water garden plant:

Anyway, after I'd turned around to drive back to my farm apartment, I was shocked to round a bend in the road and see this large factory in the middle of what seemed to me to be almost wilderness. I still don't know how I drove past it going the other direction without seeing it. It turned out to be a Breyer's Yogurt Plant:

Back at the farm apartment, the dogs and I began to settle in for the evening. Winky and Clover looked content and comfortable:

Seamus and Fergus had already relaxed. Seamus does jump up on the bed the moment I walk out the door. Not only is it comfortable for him, but it affords him a perch from which he can see out the window and bark like a crazy dog:
Fergus is a natural bed-sleeper and considers it his right to occupy the bed. I'd been up since 3:00AM and was quickly becoming sleepy, so the dogs and I were settling in for the night. But I'll post more tomorrow: