Farmerjan's journal - Weather

[farmerjan]

Thursday. Not much going on here lately.
DS went and got the heifers off the cows. He was pretty "non-committal" when I asked him and I suspect that the GF went with him and he wasn't going to say anything. He said there are 3 calves there now... don't know if he knows who had them or anything....at least he did get the bull out of there too so they will not be getting bred back until it is time to breed them back. I am not going to even get into it with him. I am tired of walking on egg shells with him/them.
He wants to ship the odd ball nut cases at the barn, several heifers and a few others, and go through these just brought home heifers and sell a couple he doesn't like. I think it is a good idea. I still think that there is going to be a shortage of replacements and all, but with the way the whole country is going, and the insanity of all this BS with debt forgiveness on the student loans and the increased negative balance this is going to impose on the "working man" to give to the ones that have incurred this debt, I have been getting a worse and worse feeling about our whole economy and country.
We had 2 real nice days, sun and not too humid. Today is more clouds than sun. I have one load of laundry out, lightweight shirts and stuff that ought to dry pretty easily. I will get them in a little later on.
Have to go to the "new farm" I took over last month, this afternoon. That is fine. I am planning to leave early and do a few errands on the way.
Yesterday I had PT... and it helped again. But then I got home and found a letter that Medicare has denied a claim... don't fully understand it but I think that this PT is going to be contested... so it may not last much longer.
My new glasses have not come in yet... not happy about that. They said to call if I had not gotten a call from them by 2 weeks max... well, nothing yet.
I have pretty much given up on the rest of the garden with the deer problems. I will get a good crop of potatoes, and have had a good amount of yellow squash. Green beans were eaten off and the sunflowers. They have eaten every single tomato and every blossom and some of the plants. The butternut squash is doing good. The cucumber plants all died and so did the melons... No rhyme or reason. Dill has done good and the marigolds are pretty. It could be worse. But I will be much better prepared next year. There will be a garden... and fencing that will be in place as soon as it is tilled.
If the economy keeps on, I think that I will be able to get the fencing around the property because there will people who will be needing work. It is getting worse and I don't think that people understand what is coming down the pike.
I am buying more stuff in bulk, by the case, while there is still money to do so. Trying to get way ahead as I think things are going to get alot worse.

Need to make a trip to the dumpster on the way out later. Got several 50 lb feed bags of stuff that I have been sorting out some stuff. Not been very motivated but trying to talk myself into doing stuff...
Integrated the 3 calves into the other group because one got out and then came in with them. So I put the other 2 in there and they will hopefully start going through the creep gate. They are still in that side, have water and some hay and the grass in that pen that the calves have not been eating because they have so much out in the field... and they can go out... but I figure that if they find their way out the creep gate from the inside, they will be more likely to come back in it.
Time to get some more done here.

 

[Baymule]

You really need your place fenced. I hope you can do it soon. The sheep and goat wire I bought in February of this year for $240 a roll is now up to $420 per roll. Insane. The 10 rolls I bought at $340 a roll won’t even go around my property.

With your place all fenced in, you could get a dog to bark at the deer. Then you could actually eat the proceeds from the garden instead of feeding deer. LOL

 

[Ridgetop]

I have pretty much given up on the rest of the garden with the deer problems.

I would loan you my Squirrelinator, but I think you would do better with a rifle. Maybe GF would come and sit up over your garden. LOL

 

[farmerjan]

Sat eve. I got the "new farm" tested and got home about 10:30 Thurs eve. It was kinda funny, the sky got real dark and then it was sunny looking out one side of the barn and black skies on the other side... then it started raining and it came down pretty steady for a half an hour or more. I will bet they got a half inch at least... all the while looking at the sun shining just to the west... One of what we used to call "sun showers" when I was a kid.
Not a drop here at the house although I went through a couple of spots where you could see the roads were wet on the way home.
DS had decided to not mow any hay since it was in the 30% range of showers...
Friday did a few things here; got the samples packed and sent out. I was tired and am back to these nagging headaches.... Plus the knee/hamstring was a bit tight after the PT and then being on it so much on Thursday...
Cell phone service has been awful here the last week. I keep getting a "no signal" or "no service" at my house when it used to be at least 3 bars. Go to text and send a message and it won't go because of no service...

This morning I got 4 texts... that should have come through on Friday... one was at 1:02 this morning from DS about going to the barn this morning @ 8:30 to sort through heifers. He said he sent it at about 8-8:30 Friday eve. I called him and said that I had just got the text and that I would be there in a little while.
So he got in the "nut cases" with the couple of heifers and the 2 steers we just banded..... and then got in the group of heifers that he pulled off the cows... we sorted and wound up taking 9 heifers and the 2 bull calves off those 3-in-1 's that we bought several months ago... we banded both the bull calves about 2 weeks ago because one was a little short, nice steer but not breeding bull potential... the other was nice and could have been a possible bull replacement, but had a "head up" and "looking to run you down " attitude... NOPE .... so he got banded also and there was one heifer like that also... she went too..... SO.... all the "smaller" real idiots are gone. We were going to take the heifers to the guy who buys direct and then the 2 steers to the stockyard... plus the 2 bigger ones out back.... but he told DS he would be interested in the 2 steers (5 wts) and offered 1.90 / lb if they were decent.... so we took them all to him and didn't have to go all the way to the stockyard.
DS still hasn't gotten back 2 of my heifers from a guy who wanted them... no money had exchanged hands and now he says they aren't going to work for him... he wanted 1/2 jersey - 1/2 beef ... which is exactly what they are... but he says they aren't growing the way he wants... they are not going to be all beefy .... so I am getting them back. They will go to the stockyard with the 2 big steers that he was going to kill but they are just too high headed and are not wanting to put weight on... they were too big to go to this guy....

Caleb, who used to help us alot; was there helping this buyer, has worked for him for several years part-time... and it is about a mile from where he now lives; and then we stopped at his house just down the road, as his wife just had her 2nd baby this past week... and visited for a little bit. Then stopped and got subs at the local little pizza/italian place.. and came home. DS decided he was going to go on and mow since now it is less than 15% for the next 3 days...
Right now; It is thundering and the radar shows rain just 2-5 miles north and west of here... but it doesn't look like it will quite get this far down.... Almost funny but will be thankful if it does not come this far down now. Literally the radar shows it to be about 4 miles directly up the road...
DS called me just a little bit ago... he forgot to take the trailer up to get the 2 steers he agreed to buy from the guy just up the road. They were going to try to get them in, but they were naturally a little skittish about it since it was all "new" to them... so he left the truck and trailer there so they can try feeding them in the trailer and get them in and he needed a ride back to the barn. There was no point in trying to "force" the issue... they came right up to it but did not want to go in and there is NO CATCH PEN of any sort... so no way to hold them close and "make them" go in. No senxe in them getting all upset with it, so just left it there all opened up and hopefully the owner can get them in in the morning... DS had planned for the 2 other ones that he has and doesn't like, to be gone... but they will be here for a bit until he gets my 2 heifers from the guy who has them... then I guess make one trip to the sale with just those 4 animals ???.....The buyer we took the other heifers to today will not buy these as they are 1/2 dairy and he has no "buyers" to ship them to like the beef heifers. And the 2 steers out there that are goofy are too big.... so they will go to the sale as soon as things work out.
DS is going to take the heifers that are left, up to the nurse cow pasture. There is a ton of grass, the 3 that he took up there the other day, came in again this evening so they get the whole routine with coming in for grain already. I think there are about 10-12 at doug's barn, and there is no bull at the nurse cow field so no chance they will get bred too young. It will utilize the grass and the smaller ones probably will be able to fit in the creep gate so will be able to get some extra grain. I am going to have to feed a little grain in the outside feed troughs to the cows there, so any calves that don't come in, will be able to get a little to eat. Want to get them a little tamer and able to handle them. Not where I really want the heifers, but the best place for them I guess. Might try to get the older heifer that just calved, and 2 others that were put back up there, into the catch pen, and moved to another group that are starting to calve. Then when the time comes, they will just be with a group that a bull will be put in with. I am hoping that my nurse cow, and longhorn and one other one that is high strung, are bred already from the bull that he pulled out a little bit ago. I think that they were fresh long enough for them to come in heat and the bull to breed before he was moved out.

Might be getting some layers; a guy I know at the convenience store said he had a friend that was selling off his year old layers for $5 each... going to get some more pullets in another month... he has something like 10 left or something... we'll see. I said I would be interested in half a dozen.... They can molt if they haven't already, and then lay again... I will have to make sure the fox or hawk or whatever can't get them... but it will give me some for eggs again.
Poultry swap is coming up in a couple weeks too... I will be looking for some others... New Hampshires and maybe some others... Maybe enough to sell a few eggs this year too. We'll see....

Time to call it quits for the night.

 

[Mini Horses]

Are apples available up your way?....I'd like to think some would be at the swap. A half bushel would be great.

 

[Ridgetop]

Reading about all the cattle sorting and moving you are doing reminded me that we have to sort and move all the sheep around here. Now I am already tired just thinking about it! LOL

 

[farmerjan]

@Mini Horses there are some apples available here, seen some signs of picking. Any particular variety? I can keep my eyes open for some.

Yeah, @Ridgetop , your sheep sorting and our cow sorting are about the same procedures...

Was out doing some weed eating with the hand held around the house close up. Going to get the box opened and see if I can get the other one put together this afternoon. It got hot and humid... it is partly cloudy now but mid 80's and feels stifling.
Came in before and ate a little bit but mostly needed a cold drink. Did a sink full of dishes and will put them away and do more later.
Got to go up and get some loose hay DS said is in the front part of one of the wagons and take it up to the calves at the nurse cow pasture. Guess there were some broken bales and such. He and GF took a load of sq bales across the mountain to the horse customers he and I have been delivering to for years. The only time he seems to need me is when she is not available to do stuff. Like with the calf sorting and such. She was busy with her daughter and then he had to get going after he took the trailer up to the place to leave it to see if they can get the steers in it.... because he had to get home to go "do something" with her daughter...but my lawn mower still is not checked out after I flipped it.....

Life goes on... going out to see about going to get the hay off the wagon... oh, and I must not have shut the door all the way on the forester because the battery is dead...will have to jump start it.... I went to get in it to go up to the nurse cow pasture last evening, and NOTHING... hadn't been in it since last Wed cuz I tested Thurs and Fri I put the feed in the buckets in the outback and just went up there... OOPPS....

 

[Mini Horses]

Something red... a little apple butter, some canned sliced for later use....etc. most will work

 

[Alaskan]

Something red... a little apple butter, some canned sliced for later use....etc. most will work

Sooo... cherries, raspberries, tomatoes.....

 

[farmerjan]

Muggy today. Mostly sun but some clouds a couple times it looked like rain. Well, it did rain about 10 drops 3 different times DS said at doug's farm where he was working on getting the concrete blocks set along the outside of the area where the pad is going to go....

BUT, it really rained at the one pasture a couple miles away... roads wet, puddles... we went to get the rake; took me to the pasture place where we made the last hay; then he and GF took the truck and trailer to get the last 6 rolls from a field and bring back the tractor with the spear...it was up on top of the round bales to fit it on the trailer... caught a BIG tree limb that hangs out over the rr road that goes down to the fields in back... and it spun the tractor partway around and one front tire came off the trailer bed, and the tractor was at an angle on the trailer... took about 1 1/2 hours to get the big limb cut in a couple places... to be able to get the truck and trailer out to the field so that he could take the backhoe (from NH) and lift it some and GF father came to help him and they pulled tractor back over on trailer so he could get the ramps down and got it off....
Could have been really bad... but looks like it did not even do any damage to front end loader arms or the spear.

In the meantime during the earlier part of the day, I did some more weed eating around the house and end of the driveway.... took some bags and other junk to the dumpster and then went and got the loose hay off the wagon.... loaded on my truck. Was planning to unload it at the barn this evening, but we got all tied up with the tree/tractor/trailer stuff that it is still on the truck. Tomorrow.

I started to take the walk behind weed eater out of the box and neighbor came by to "chat"..... one you can't really get rid of and can't be impolite to...... so it is still in the box. Luckily DS called to see if we could go get the tractor and rake so I had to cut the "visit" short....

One of the farmers I test called and said he went and bought a chicken coop and there were 3 chickens that went with it and he does not want them as he has a whole bunch of his own and if I wanted them that he will give them to me. So, tomorrow morning I will go get them... stop and see if my new glasses are there yet, since I will be going right by, and then come home and get on the tractor and rake the hay he cut. Possible chance of pop up showers as usual... who knows where they will just materialize out of the clear blue sky.... Better chance of rain on Tuesday then looking like we will get several days of drier air coming in....

Haven't heard from the other guy who had the friend that wanted to get rid of the yearling hens....

Going to get a shower and see if I can get a better night's sleep... got 2 farms to see about getting tested also... so phone calls to make..... then it will be the first of the month and start all over....