Spring's Sudden Arrival

Just one day after a snowstorm, we were warm and snowless. Spring was in the air, so I walked around the yard, searching for anything green. The first signs of growth I saw were the Bearded Iris coming up:

And to my surprise, I had a Crocus in bloom:

And one Crocus almost in bloom:

The Daffodils were emerging:

And the Magnolia had one green bud which looked promising. This happened last year, though, but the bud fell off when I touched it. This time I kept my hands off of it:

Jack, Daphne and Clover watched my every move from their back yard run:

Seamus and Fergus watched from the other side of the yard:

The Lilac beside the barn had buds which were very swollen, as sure a sign of spring as the blooming Crocus:

In the field, the cattle were lounging comfortably and didn't want to move. When I brought them a new hay bale, only Jasmine had the energy to walk over to it:

Blue was sleeping with the cows, but Remy walked over to see me:

And the most important miracle of all was the appearance of some green grass. Grass is an important crop here, the basic feed of much livestock - not to mention its function as lawn:

One of the apple trees by the road lost a major limb and a second big limb appears dead. Both of them have been stripped of bark, probably by porcupines. This will be a big job for me to take care of soon:

April On The Farm

Days of frenzied hay eating have given way to days of leisurely cud chewing now that the cattle's bodies require less energy to keep warm:

They continue to eat hay, but less of it. This photo was taken in the red glow of sunrise:

Remy and Blue have become so happy in the field that they spend little time inside the barn, sometimes not even coming in for grain. The cows frequently refuse to come in for grain. They just can't be bothered:


Blue has been shedding copiously. At this rate, he'll have his sleek, shiny, summer coat soon:

I've never had Crocus before, but one popped up in the lawn this year:

I dug up the ancient white Peonies, separated the roots and added a few new, red Peonies. I planted them all in compost and put a border fence around them:


The neighbors have been exercising their horses frequently past my house:

And they almost always stop to chat when they reach my house:

 I made an ice cream cake for Easter dinner at church:

And, when I got home, the dogs and Bugsy got to clean out the pan. Seamus and Bramble only watched, not willing to push their way into that pack of ravenous ice cream eaters:

The Snow Geese passed through the area a month ago but Canada Geese are everywhere these days:

The seem to have a preference for corn fields with flooded spots. I guess the reasons are obvious - food and water: