Around The Farm In December

Much of my focus is on hay these days, and it's fair to say that ALL of the herd's attention is on hay. How fresh it is (or is not), how much ice coats the bales, how much is left, when we will run out, is every animal getting what they need - plus storing it, moving it, unwrapping it - it's an all consuming subject these days (pun intended):

The sheep farmers up the road have been hauling the hay stems which their sheep ignored out to their field and dumping it, so this time they brought me a load to see if my animals would eat it:

The cows and Blue were afraid of the big, noisy truck and unknown people, but Remy got right in the way of everything:

The hay stuck in the bed and we had to move it with a pitch fork, but it turned out to be a considerable quantity. The next morning I went out to fork it into the bale feeder, only to discover it had mostly been consumed during the night. I guess my animals liked it:

I go out to do the chores when it is light out, but the sun is not yet risen over the horizon. The skies are beautiful and the sun is up by the time I'm finished:

The little hens seem happy and healthy:

They don't have much room, but they do have roosts and nest boxes - plus two screened windows which I open on mild days:

One of the elderly pigeons died yesterday, one of only three which have died since I began my flock years ago. I'd say they are long lived, healthy birds:

They eat the same layer pellets as the chickens. Now, if I could just keep the English Sparrows from getting in and eating it too:

I worry that the English Sparrows will spread diseases and parasites to my fantail pigeons, but so far they are looking healthy - and I am working hard to block the sparrows' entrances and to chase them out when I find the inside:

One day was devoted to spreading liquid manure on the corn field across the road from me. A giant tanker brought a big load and transferred it to two smaller tank trailers, pulled by tractors. It took many loads and all day to finish. You can see the darker colored swath which the first tanker load spread. Curiously, it didn't stink - probably because it was so cold:

Each new snow reveals fox tracks, so I know they come visit every night and circle my car, climb the stairs up to my porch, enter the barn and check out the hay bales. I think they are after the Cottontail Rabbits, whose tracks I also see each morning:

County Route 34, West Potsdam

I was driving to Canton, NY via back roads and found myself on St. Lawrence County Route 34. It was so scenic and had so little traffic that I decided to take pictures along the way:

The farmland was flat, with wide vistas across the woods and hay fields:

Old barns with silos dotted the landscape:

I think this was an old manure spreader:

Blue colored maple sap lines which fed into a collection house. I have read that many small operations use gravity fed lines, but bigger operations often use a vacuum pump to keep the sap flowing. I imagine that was what the shed was for:

A traditional farm house and several outbuildings:

The silo and barns which went with the above farm house:

This wasn't an old barn, but with the windmill, old gas pump, Texaco sign and brilliant red color, it sure caught my eye:

A lovely old farm house with a horse barn:

An old cemetery. With no snow on the ground, I would have enjoyed strolling around in it and reading the gravestones. Alas, I didn't want to lengthen my trip to Canton any more than I already was doing:

All the lawn furniture and grill appeared to be assembled to be protected for the winter. Perhaps they were going to move it into the old barn, just visible behind the house on the right:

I arrived at the intersection of County Routes 34 and 35 and decided to turn there, so I took one last photo of this Christmas colored house before starting a new series of pictures (tomorrow's post):

Remy And Blue, Imps Of Autumn

I moved the cattle across the road into the north field but kept Blue and Remy in their usual south field where they could access the barn. It was a beautiful autumn and they seemed happy:

They were indeed happy and healthy, enough so to get into plenty of mischief:

They are both kind hearted, friendly horses, but still young and playful:

Sometimes I walk out into the field just to spend time with them. They seem to enjoy it and come running when they see me:

Remy always had the more outgoing personality but Blue is very sweet and loving once he overcomes his shyness:

And they are seldom separated. On this day the loveliness of autumn was marred by that tank trunk you see in the background. The workers were spreading liquid manure in a recently harvested corn field, which required pumping the gunk from the tanker to the spreader. Someone goofed and the connection failed on one of the trips this day, resulting in liquid manure spilling across the road and filling the ditch. It stunk for a week:

One day Blue lost this halter and I couldn't find it anywhere. I ordered a new one but it hasn't arrived yet. These photos, though, were taken before he lost his halter:

I think it would be a fine idea to train them to pull a cart or do some kind of work but for now, their role is to look cute and be lovable:

Whenever he sees me in the field, Remy comes trotting over, getting closer and closer..............

Kiss me!

They have a fine life and they seem healthy except, perhaps, for being too fat:

Who are you calling fat?

Farm Update For May

I'll begin with a roadside scene which I found attractive. This was just up the road from my house, a typical springtime brook and fallen tree, everything blessedly free of snow:

The Bearded Iris outside my door have been struggling to emerge. I say "struggling," because the chickens routinely eat the tender tips off the leaves:

The Siberian Iris seems not to be as tasty as its relative:

The Lamium, which I transplanted from beneath the Lilac, is emerging from its winter nap and looking good:

The chickens, outdoors again after the fox scare, spend their days looking for tasty treats in the lawn. Also, notice the cattle in the background, collected around their hay bale feeder:

I scooped up several tractor bucket loads of composted manure and drove it over to the Iris bed next to the house, using it as mulch. I also buried a hen there which had drowned in the stock tank. Now she's fertilizing the Iris:

Everything looked healthy and happy when I was done. Of course the chickens could not leave it that way and immediately began scratching through the mulch, making a mess:

A neighbor reported having seen the fox again on the dirt road beside my property. Even worse, she'd also seen two den holes in the bank below my cow pasture. I drove down to see for myself. But I have continued to let the chickens out every day and will continue to do so unless the fox begins hunting them again. Hopefully, it will move away or get killed:

Another neighbor struck a deal with me where he'd spread half my composted cow manure on my field and half on his own. I loaded his manure spreader with my tractor and he hauled the spreader to my north field with his own tractor:

It was a marvelous thing to watch and I was much impressed. Whoever invented the manure spreader was a genius:

The Daffodils in the side yard were the first flowers of springtime:

And each morning, I let the chickens out for the day. I never tire of watching them strut and waddle their way down the plank, cautious yet anxious to be outdoors for the day:

Porter Lynch Road In Stockholm, New York - Part 2

I was driving Porter Lynch Road in rural Stockholm and snapping pictures of the scenery. I particularly liked this old, red barn:

This colorful old barn had been assembled in stages:

There was an old manure spreader and a hay rake in the snow:

A very large and well built old barn:

This farm house, with its barn and silo out behind, looked comfortable and inviting, like a place to come home to at Christmastime:

A modern country home:

A front porch to sit on when the weather is nice:

A collection of outbuildings, all painted the traditional green:

There were woodlands along the road:

This appeared to me to be a very old homestead. It was small and had, I thought, been converted to a barn or shed in later years. But even those days were long gone and it now stood, unused, along the road:

I took one last photo before I turned onto the county road. Then I put my camera away and continued on home. I had several bags of feed in the back of my car which had to be unloaded and cattle which would want to be fed: