Around The Farm

The little horses and big cows continue to eat hay and lazily wait for springtime to arrive:

The white fantail pigeons are all excited and starting to build nests:

One female had a nest on the floor last year and repeatedly laid eggs which never hatched. She either had no mate or had a mate who didn't help her with the nest. This year she's built a new nest and I've seen a male with her a few times. Alas, they both leave the nest so often that there's probably not much hope for any eggs hatching:

The hens would love to go outside when the snow melts, and I might even let them have a few excursions out into the big world when the weather improves:

But they're safe from foxes inside right now and once I have new plants in the ground, the plants will need to be safe from the chickens. The hens will be indoors again once I've planted:

Two little hens are laying eggs every other day now and I can't even keep up with eating them. I'll soon be hard boiling them for the dogs again:

This is another item on my wall, antlers from a Black-tailed deer, a gift from my Oregon relatives when I was a boy:

The chainsaw bear was a gift from my sister, and sits atop an old milk can which came with the farm:

The welded steel bird was another gift from my sister. The painting is on boards and represents an old style:

The painting is an imitation of a painting from the 1800s and this explanation is glued to the back of it. Even the imitation is getting old now, and the explanation is becoming difficult to read. This painting was a gift from a woman I knew when I first moved to the northeast many decades ago:

I was coming home from the feed store and almost to my driveway (that's my north field up on the hill behind the trees), when a big flock of turkeys was trying to cross the road. I stopped to watch and take a photo, but then they stopped also, and began to retreat:

But they are big and bold, so changed their minds and soared above my car in a display of real flying power. These birds were at home in the air and not at all like domestic turkeys:

Town Line Road

This is Part 3 of my driving tour. I'd come to the end of Alburg Road and turned right onto Town Line Road, where I stopped to snap a picture of this sugar house and the small outbuilding behind it. Maple syrup is big business here in the north country:

I've passed this small house and barn before, and it always looks uninhabited. If so, it's a shame because it looks to be a well built home in a beautiful location. I also sometimes wonder if it might be an Amish school house:

This farm house had a lovely wrap-around porch and was nearly hidden behind the trees:

A very old house, abandoned long ago:

And one of the most beautiful barns I've seen:

As I passed by the elaborate barn, I noticed a small building which looked like it once was a farm stand but is now a shed for tools and kids' bicycles:

A herd of beef cows watched me go by:

Beautiful, well kept barns and red cattle:

A traditional red barn with a silo and hay bales:

They apparently used small hay bales as well as the big round bales, judging by the elevator into the hay loft:

I was stopped by these bossy turkeys in the road, but I didn't need to get pushy because I could see the road dead-ended just ahead. Instead, I turned left onto Snell Road - but I'll post those photos tomorrow:

Winter On The Farm

The little hen grew all her feathers back but I had to wait for weather which was a bit more moderate before I could put her back outside. In the meantime, she began laying nice, pink eggs:

Finally the weather turned warm enough to put her back with her flock. Alas, one of her former Easter Egger hens did not recognize her anymore and attacked violently. I finally began putting the mean hen in the room with the pigeons each morning, then back in with the chickens in the evening. It took about eight days, but one morning I opened the door and both attacker and victim were side by side, friends once again. All has been well ever since:

The bale feeder has stayed on the east side of the barn to protect the herd from westerly winds. Occasionally, though, the winds come from another direction - but most of the time, they come from the west:

 Red morning sky in the southeast boded ill for the day's weather - but it sure was pretty:

At the bale feeder in the rosy glow of the morning sun:

 Icy dawn on the east side of the barn:

This has been a snowy, icy, frigid winter but the herd has persevered:

One day I saw a flock of turkeys at the far end of the north field. I had to use the zoom lens to photograph them:

But even that wasn't enough, so I extended the zoom lens even farther. These turkeys seemed bigger than most I see in the area:

We have had long stretches of time where everything was covered with dangerous, solid ice. This was the south field pasture:

Smooth, unnavigable ice adjacent to the cows and their bale feeder:

The driveway, between my house and barn. I could only get there by wearing crampons. Then a big snowstorm covered it all, making it even more hazardous in some places. This has been a most difficult winter so far:

County Route 38 From Raymondville To Plumbrook - Part 1

I was on my way home from the veterinarian's office with all five dogs in the car because they'd just been vaccinated for the year. I took a look at a map and noticed County Route 38, thinking I may not have toured there yet. So I turned onto it to see what I could see. I began with this handsome brick farm house:

I stopped at a flock of wild turkeys beside the road but by the time I got the window down and my camera out, they were running away from me:

A wonderful old barn, up on a rise:

An old wooden equipment shed:

A farm house with many additions, a common sight around here. It's often difficult to tell which was the original building:

Another brick home, this one with an elegant addition:

Lots of firewood, and a woodland just behind them:

A sad looking, abandoned home - which won't be standing much longer:

This tiny home sat rather far off the road and I had to stop and back up to photograph it:

Another old, abandoned home (the mailbox was for the house across the road):

A steel sided barn with two old silos:

A modern steel barn with the same two old silos:

A collection of curious calves checked me out when I stopped to snap a picture. But there was yet more to see on County Route 38, and I'll post Part 2 tomorrow:

Around The Farm In January

I brought out a new hay bale and set it inside the bale feeder. Then I removed the frozen outer layer and tossed it, good side up, on the ground to provide bedding and snacking:

The bale feeder has remained on the east side of the barn for most of the winter because it shelters the herd from harsh westerly winds. Alas, it can't help them if the winds come from other directions:

The cows and horses are like family now, and all get along well:

Each morning after a light snow, I check for footprints. This fox and bird, likely a Bluejay, crossed paths in front of my car during the night or early morning - at different times, as there was no blood:

The fox walked toward the barn and, I believe, went inside. I've chased them out of there on a few mornings. I don't like that but there seems to be little I can do about it:

The farm house has stood for over a century against brutal cold temperatures and harsh winds. It continues to provide warmth and shelter, though I have to crank the heat up when it's both cold and windy:

I move the bale feeder with each new hay bale and the animals love to clean up what is left of the old bale. Or sometimes they just sleep on it:

These two Easter Egger bantams are part of my little flock. One of the darker brown hens lays a surprisingly large egg every other day. All the other hens have quit for the winter:

The white fantail pigeons remain in pairs but they too have quit laying eggs for the winter:

Large flocks of wild turkeys frequent the corn fields on my road, and I often stop to watch them even though it makes them nervous:

I go out to do the morning chores just as the sun is coming up. I do the evening chores before it becomes too dark. There are lights in the barn, but I like to be able to see what I'm doing outside:

If I stop the tractor with a hay bale on the spear, Remy runs over to grab a mouthful. It's been stored outdoors, so the outer layer must not taste very good, but as it says in Proverbs, "Stolen water is sweet" Remy delights in grabbing something he thinks he isn't supposed to have: