Around The Farm

We had a relatively mild January, but winter finally arrived in February:

The barn, orchard and hay bales were all covered with snow and ice:

I began seeing fox tracks every morning after a new snow. They walk around the house and barn, check out the hay bales, go under the porch and into the barn. This does not bode well for letting the chickens out in the spring:


The fantail pigeons are beginning to lay eggs, though there has been no progress toward hatching them:

They have also paired off, though a few singles remain:

I began letting the hens out with the pigeons every day:

And the new hens prefer to lay their eggs in with the pigeons, especially atop the open bale of pine shavings:

The pine shavings bale is the first place I look every time I enter the coop:

The old hens have not yet begun laying, but the little Easter Eggers are going great guns:

I got a notice that some of my cattle photos had been used (with my permission) in the current issue of the Red Poll Journal:

They appeared in an article on winter feeding - and yes, I did get credit:

I have both Hairy and Downy Woodpeckers at the suet cake, but this little bird was a Downy. They have gotten used to me and let me get closer than they formerly allowed: