Farmerjan's journal - Weather

[farmerjan]

@Mini Horses ... our latest forecast is still saying 1-1.5 inches... If we got 3 inches and it was slow and steady as it looks like any rain would be, it would be unbelieveably wonderful. Slow and steady would be good as even with there being no active growing so the plants would not "suck it up"... it would soak down in. I will be thankful for whatever we do get...

Did not get to haul water.... they had unhooked the trailer from the truck and were using the truck. Since the concrete trough that is fed by the spring had nearly 2/3 full, cows were fine. There is very little in the 2 water tubs in with the nurse cow/calves but she can walk down the hill and the calves are not drinking much if any... they are only like a couple weeks old??? Maybe only 2 weeks plus a couple days... I might try to haul some tomorrow, but will put most all the rest of the troughs in the catch pen lot under the roof line to catch water off the roof. If it rains even an inch, it will put alot in them. I can run water into them with the long piece of pvc pipe I have from hauling water a couple years ago when the spring went dry for a couple weeks. So, I might put one of the 100 gal troughs back in there and fill the other outside for the cows... and fill the 2 small tubs in with the nurse cow's calves and let the rest catch roof water.

I came back and did manage to rake up 2 FULL contractor bags of leaves... kept putting them in and smooshing them down to add some more... The leaves are very dry so will compress quite a bit... I would like to get at least 2 more bags before they all get wet... Wrist/hand is aching and the opposite shoulder is sore too... I have been trying to do some of the exercises on the shoulder that my chiropractor said to do... but it needs another good adjustment. Need to call them tomorrow and if not this week with the shorter holiday schedule; then try to get in first of the following week. Although sometimes they tend to not be overly busy just before a holiday because people are busy or going to family for the holidays. So, I will find out tomorrow.

Went up and fed the cow some grain and turned her back out. Came back to the house and put chickens in for the night.
Made another gallon of sun tea and had to rearrange things to get it in the fridge. I ate some of the potato salad I had made, and put the rest in a smaller dish so I could rearrange things.

Put some stuff on the back of the truck to go to the dumpsters tomorrow and going to get some more stuff out of the house to go also. Saving a couple bags of papers/burnables to use for whenever I go on and light the burn piles. If we get that much rain, they might get burnt sooner rather than later... Cleaned up some old cardboard boxes to go out to the burn pile too...

Tomorrow is only supposed to be in the low 50's and then Tuesday with the rain down in the mid 40's....

I sure hope we do get a good amount... it would help the ground water and eventually work it's way down into the wells here... and really help to recharge the spring. I will check the concrete trough tomorrow and if it is at least 1/2 full... I might not haul any water...

If I can manage to pull the cord I would like to try to get the walk behind weed eater out and do around the shelter and where I want to move the frame....I have several bales of straw in there that the strings are probably rotted through on the bottom side that will have to be moved....gently....I will wit until Thursday or Friday to move them since they are under the part of the cover that is somewhat intact...and weed eat around some of the rose-a-sharon bushes and a dogwood tree that is sorta in the way of the garden area...but I don't want to try to move the tree.... there is other stuff I do want to move though... and I can put in garden above and below it. There are 2 rose-a-sharon trees/shrubs that I really would like to move... and some other smaller bush that I would move too. I want to mow off the daylily bed that is all just the plain orange ones that grow everywhere... maybe see about getting it tilled up and putting the ones in it that I have gotten that have the nice big blooms... make it a nice flower bed... I have all those irises that just don't do as good as I would like near the front porch since they don't get enough sun and water there... it's a protected side of the house.....
Also have a bunch of saplings that have sprouted around the grey birch trees that need to be taken out..... they are the most prolific trees ... there is one in there that the top broke out of, and a couple of crooked ones that need to be cleared out... another project for James one day... he got all the apple tree branches cleaned up, and the big branch out of the walnut tree... and in the garden too. I forgot to tell him not to pile them on top of what mulch hay there was left... maybe as the pile burns I can throw those limbs/branches over on the burn pile and not burn up what mulch hay is left... besides it would smolder for days.... I doubt I will get the bushhog here at the house in the next couple days to do the cutting, as DS said he had needed to take it up and do some of the field he is moving the cows with calves up into, cut along the fenceline so they can do some fence repair. That's fine... wish I had asked about it sooner while it was right here close....my fault to not think of it sooner...

Hoping I can do a sink full of dishes ... some bigger bowls and such.... with the water situation.

Temps have dropped into the mid 40's already...

I'm going in to do those dishes, and then sort through a pile of mail that looks like mostly fliers and "junk mail"...just to make sure there isn't something I need to pay attention to....

 

[Mike CHS]

I have a bagger on my riding mower and pick up most of the leaves that fall over grass and put them on the raised garden beds. Even in winter, the earth worms thrive in the beds.

 

[farmerjan]

Riding mower is priority for next year. I have a pull behind lawn sweeper that I really like... so can use it directly behind the mower or wait for it to dry a bit and then collect... since right now I only have a battery walk behind mower... not worth the time with the little tiny bagger it has (the bagger looks like a toy; kinda "cute") . I am raking the biggest bunches to bag for now... just for adding to the chickens... next year I plan to be in a better situation for them too... Got a "screened" pen for them that needs to be put up...
Liking the idea of having the extra for the chickens for winter use... stretch out the "bedding" in the coops/shelters and give them something to do in the crummy weather... add back in the organic matter too... and then it will go on the garden the next year. I have been waiting/wanting to get this perimeter fence done and now that the fenceline is cleared down the boundary line with the Christmas tree farm.. I am praying that the stretch of fence along there gets done by spring...
I have another payment coming from the annuity from my parents estate and that will buy the mower next year... unless I get the explorer sold sooner...

Oh and the battery in the truck that was my father's, was tea totally dead when I went out to try it today... which I said it was going to be... it is on charge so that I can get it started tomorrow and I will take it down and get a new one put in it, at our local shop here.... could just take the battery out and get a new one... but... easier to get them to do it with my shoulder and wrist bothering me. And it is only 3 miles away... then I will call the insurance company and get it put on my insurance.... drive it with farm use tags for now...

Speaking of which, they have come out with the "rules" for the permanent farm use tags issued by the DMV... actually pretty decent and fair... titles NOT required as long as there is a vin # on the vehicle...or proof as in a trailer that is "home made"... over a certain size... and you have to provide proof that you have farm income... I will be able to use a check from the stockyards in my name, to prove I have income from a farm sale... other ways to do it too... but that will work for me. DS said we will just get the next check for any of my animals put in my name, not the farm name... and voila... I have farm income... think it needs to be over a certain amount... I have not printed out the specs yet.. will go on DMV website and get it in "writing"... and it has to be covered under an insurance policy... that is also not a problem... I will have to put tags on my little forester though... okay, I can do that... it was tagged before I blew the engine and it had been several years of not being on the road until I got the engine replaced... right now I run it about a total of 5 miles around here so I just have a farm use tag on it... but I don't think it will work for a car now... will know more when I read the rules.

Going in to go to bed.

 

[Ridgetop]

with the torn up part marked with some surveyors tape so I can cut it apart or something. I am going to look at the videos that are put out for "repairing" it and see what the best way

I think Premier sells a repair kit for repairing electric netting fences.

it seems like 2 is all she really can handle this time around

How ld is your nirse cow?

I would bet my paycheck that they are on the same "water vein" as this well.... and it is not holding up well with the extended dry conditions. At least with a reservoir, it could fill slowly and not put additional strain on the well pump kicking on and off, so much...

I think you are right about the water being sucked up by the extra families. Adding a tank/reservoir would be cheaper than drilling a new well. If you add a hose bib at the bottom you can get water from it even if the power fails. My friend in Agua Duce went for almost a month with intermittent power outages and had to attach a hose to her tank to water the stock and also bring buckets to the house.

 

[farmerjan]

Monday morning. Sun is out. Only got down to 35 last night. There are high clouds out there and probably some of it is smoke from that fire.

Fire is up to 8,000 acres....but is contained on 2 sides pretty much; and they did some back burns to make it more contained on those 2 sides. When the winds had changed, they back burned from closer to the fire.... well back from the "containment line" so that if/when the winds changed again, it would come up against the already burned area and stop more damage. It is still in the Nat'l Forest land... and the wind is out of the east more today so blowing it more towards the west, we are north west somewhat, and then as the weather comes in from the west and we get the rain it will take alot of the smoke out of the air and hopefully help to suppress the fire.
Guess this will clean out all the ground debris and help regenerate the land.

Headed up to do the nurse cow. Then get out and work on the leaves in a bit. Load some more stuff to go to the dumpsters, take samples to the vineyard to go out UPS. Lots of things on the list to work on.

Yes @Ridgetop they make repair kits... they send one with each stretch of fence you buy. But this is torn pretty bad and I am thinking it might just be better to make it into 2 "shorter lengths of fence" at this point. I will deal with it later.

Out the door....

 

[Ridgetop]

That fire sounds scary. I hope they get it under control fast. If it rained really hard it might help. Big loss of natural habitat and of course, the resulting traveling of wildlife where you don't want them to go.

 

[farmerjan]

It was a chilly day. Sun mostly was behind clouds, there was some smoke but not as bad as it has been.

Got the samples packed and sent off... got the couple bags of leaves tied up and in the carport. Took the stuff on the truck to the dumpster, found another 2 bags to go and some recyclables, to take with me too. Took my father's truck down to get the battery checked... It was on charge from yesterday and started right up... Ronnie checked it and said it is not the battery... something is creating a drain on the battery. We unplugged the light under the hood and that helped but he said there is still something drawing on it. So, that is going to require some time to check out things like the alternator and other things in the truck. SOOOOO, good that I did not need to spend money on a new battery, but going to have to find out where the problem is. I went by the barn because a couple of tires were low, to use the air compressor, and Jim undid a couple of wires to the inside brake "box" for trailers... going to put in a quick connect on those wires so they can be easily plugged together if a trailer gets used that has brakes on it.
All these trips took time to go here and go there... Plus I did the cow earlier and then just did her a little bit ago before dark. Put a bale of hay in the feed bunk in the barn for tomorrow... I will put her in and leave her in tomorrow... I will be going to test in the afternoon and it will be dark when I get home so she will stay in with the calves. She seems to tolerate the holstein without a big deal now... not sure she likes it but is accepting. And he is smart and very determined to get his meals... goes on her when her calf does.
Opened up the 1/2 greenhouse for a bit but closed it up after it got cooler... It is staying right around 55 which is great. Got the heater set right. Going to water the plants all real good again.. the humidity stays over 50% in there which is good too.

Ate some shrimp out of the freezer for supper...

Working on sorting through the pile of mail and some other papers that have accumulated... Getting another bag of paper filled for the future brush pile burn.

The fire seems to be in better control now... they have set several back burns... and are looking forward to the forecast rain. It won't put the fire out, but will help to "tamp it down" and make control even easier.

The forecasts are closer to what @Mini Horses said she had seen; saying we are going to see 1 1/2 to 3 inches now. Just hope it is not pouring down rain. Steady soaking is really what we need.
DS got the field across the road worked up, used the cultipacker to get it settled down more as it is almost "fluffy" due to being so dry. He got it planted this evening. So sure don't want it to rain too hard so it doesn't cause it to wash down the field... need it to settle the ground down and seat the seed well. The one good thing is that with it being worked up, it is more "porous" and open so should soak in alot of the water....

AND the forecast says there could be some "mixed precipitation"... some snow possibly mixed in.
. NOT wanting that yet... but then Wed is supposed to be back up in the mid 50's and sunny, so don't think it will be too big a deal.

James came by and I paid him, and showed him a few more things I would like him to do... and that maybe we can get the shelter frame moved around and set so that this weekend we can get the cover on it.. got the foam pipe insulations to put on the pipes to help mitigate the rubbing of the cover on the frame and not wear through so fast... that is in the works for Friday since I am not working... I cannot get the walk behind weed eater started with the pain in my shoulder... so going to get him to run it on Friday I hope.

Completely forgot to call the chiropractor so that is at the top of the list for tomorrow...

 

[farmerjan]

Up to wet roads and misty kind of rain. Very light so far and that is perfect. This will allow the ground to start the "soaking in" after being so dry and hard. 36 was the low so quite chilly out. Do not want it to get any colder or we will get some of that "mixed" stuff.

Wish I did not have to go test today... It is a perfect stay in and work on things kind of day. And I am in the mood to work inside. Guess I will do some first thing... still got a bunch of papers to go through...
Goal is to get the LR cleaned up and presentable the next couple of days. You have to understand that I hate cleaning in general in the house... always have. The barn might be put to rights but the house usually is not.

Bacon and eggs is on the menu this morning. I didn't make them the other day... got sidetracked and so that is the plan and then I will go out and let the chickens out. Everything is in the car already for work later. I will make on stop at Lowes to get a few more of those pipe insulation tubes to make sure I have enough to use on the shelter. I have a new package of zip ties to attach them as the sticky stuff to hold them together doesn't last out in the air temps and they do not completely go around the pipes on the frame like a water pipe, since the pipes are bigger diameter.

I will go put the cow in just before I want to leave to go to work. Glad I got the troughs all moved back into the catch pen under the eaves of the little barn to collect the rain water, yesterday too. One of those things you putter at when waiting for the cow to finish eating. There was some water still in one of the water tubs (20 gal or so) yesterday and since I didn't leave her in, she has water for this afternoon/eve plus whatever collects from the roof. All the leaves are off the trees so not any "contamination" to make the water off the roof unfit for drinking. The 2 small tubs in the "calf side" with the creep gate were both about 1/2 full also so they were not affected by the lower level of the concrete trough yesterday either. Hauling water is not that bad a job, but it is time consuming so hoping an all day soaking rain will really help the spring catch up and the added water in the troughs at the barn will give me some options. I can always let the cows into the "calf side" to drink if they get full too... and I still have to catch the one cow/calf pair that has to get moved to a pasture with a bull to get bred back and DS will have to work that calf when he gets them to move. That is the only calf that did not come in with the others.
That one calf still looks bloated but was sucking the cow the yesterday.....

Breakfast time.

 

[Bruce]

unless I get the explorer sold sooner...

it is on charge so that I can get it started tomorrow and I will take it down and get a new one put in it, at our local shop here.... could just take the battery out and get a new one... but... easier to get them to do it with my shoulder and wrist bothering me.

Advance Auto will install batteries and windshield wipers free of charge.

 

[farmerjan]

@Ridgetop ... forgot to answer your question about the cow... although I thought I mentioned it... maybe in another thread?... Anyway, she is pushing 7 or 8 I think, I would have to go back and look through some papers, but she went 18 months between calves this last time and I think about 14-15 months the last time... She should have calved this spring but did not breed back as soon as I thought... so she is fall calving now and I do not like the nurse cows to calve in the fall since they do better on good green grass for making more milk for the calves; plus it is easier on the calves to have warm sunny days to get a good start. So, her age is getting a little more of an issue, and the fall calving where she will need more "feed" for making milk in the winter... to keep her condition... so 2 calves is fine. She raised 3 last time...and lost some condition as she was out on pasture and not getting grained after the first 3 months or so... and the time before she raised 3 then when they were weaned, 2 days later, she took the calf from DS's heifer that prolapsed and died... and had him for awhile since she was slow to breed back that time... She will not get bred back until late April or May and I plan to breed her AI and then leave her there at the pasture for when we put a bull in to breed the heifers in June... I want to try to breed her to a jersey or a guernsey for a possible replacement .... and if it is a bull it will be beef for the freezer in the future. She has well earned her status and 2 calves will still pay for "her keep".
The next beef for me is going to be the longhorn's calf which is 1/2 angus.... he is growing good. He will not be huge so that is a plus, but he has a good stout body on him so ought to make good beef. He will get done either late next fall or in the spring of 2025...he was born in March this year so a June date of 2025 would still be fine for getting things like the backbones and all that back. With him being a white speckled color he would bring next to nothing at the stockyard anyway. And I will be needing beef again by late 2024 or 2025... for sure.