Farmerjan's journal - Weather

[Baymule]

You have been pushing hard the last few days. The problem I see with rented pasture is that the fences are never that great, if you do very much to the fences, that is costly and you can't "take" the fence with you when the lease ends. It looks like some owners do not appreciate the hard work y'all do on the upkeep of their property.

I'm glad that you are getting the garden planted. You will enjoy the fresh vegetables, have some to put up and some to share. It sounds like you'll have a great garden! I love green onions, especially in scrambled eggs. Yummy!

Hope you can get DS to put the bush hog on the tractor and get the pasture mowed. He needs to cut his crappy attitude towards you. You work your butt off and are pretty much at his beck and call. When ever and what ever time he wants to work calves, you are there to help. You are his back up and he needs to appreciate that instead of snarling at you and complaining. Maybe he had a bad day, but it isn't your fault. Maybe you should unload on him or at least have a sit down talk.

Just my opinion, but I think you need to push towards getting your own place fenced, so you can have a few calves of what ever you want, at home. It would also help to keep the deer out and you could have a dog again. With all my barking dogs, deer never got in my garden.

 

[Mini Horses]

I have a sometimes ballistic son. He's been sent to anger management, drug programs, some things don't improve. Some do. He is a decent person until some of these things take over....very talented. Wasted often. Frustrated and annoying. Its like jekel and hyde. . Yes, I've unloaded on him before. It's a tightrope we walk. I feel your confused annoyance with no "real way" to fix it. Short of divorcing them.

Doing a lot of own work gets me through. Sometimes equipment handling is hard with weight and strength...at least my equipment is far smaller and I've learned to manhandle some of it! Not always easy. I've hired muscle on occasion.

I'm on garden weekend here, too! Do it, best we can, when we can...hope for best. Saw my friend whose tiller I have and thanked her for it. She's was as happy that I let DS take my tractor and hog to cut for her, so we have a mutual benefit. Works for me. Oddly, I'm looking to up posts & panels for similar use.. Would be nice if we lived close and could share the work. The hard work is always easier and seems more worthwhile, when you have another to at least hear you grumble or boast.

Today I have my last store for the week. 4-5 hrs so easy day. I'll suffer buying diesel before getting home so tractor can work all weekend . Gotta get done because a heavy work load next week -- haven't checked but prob sun all week, just to annoy me!

 

[farmerjan]

Yeah, @Mini Horses it would be great if we were closer to share the big garden... work and bounty... I hope to be able to sell some of the extra stuff... enough to pay for the plants and seeds and all... Luckily my plants were not expensive. You figure 2.50 a 4 pack is like less than $.65 a plant... I sure ought to be able to sell enough to pay for them. I am kinda keeping a running total of what I am spending... including the plowing and tilling... to see how it comes out at the end of the season. I am actually hoping that there are more people looking for fresh produce so that I will be able to sell stuff. I won't have a big variety... but am going to try to put the tomatoes into boxes/baskets or what ever by the variety to see if people like some kinds better than others. And I have planted quite a few of the Roma type tomatoes for sauce and such. We'll see. Still, if things don't do real good, if I have enough for myself and a little extra that will be good enough. Plus to feed the chickens....

I went and looked at fencing at Lowe's and to pick up the new weedeater that I bought on line. My other one is probably not fixable the guy said. I was going to go with a Dewalt since I have several of those tools and batteries, but they are alot heavier to handle. I had the black and decker and had 3 batteries already so went with another one. It has lasted 4-5 years... I didn't pay $90 for the new one, special on line and of course another 5% with the Lowes card which will get paid off next month. I had seen some "field fence" for $269 for 330 ft roll... but it is a little lighter weight and only class 1 galvanized... class 3 lasts much longer and is of course more expensive. The co-op here had fence panels for $1 more than TSC advertised,,, but the fence posts were .30 - .50 more each and I did not want real tall ones. I spent some time looking at types of flooring for the bathroom since I was there and got to talking to a "salesman" who seemed very knowledgeable... some really don't seem to know what they are talking about. Brought home a couple of small sample pieces just to see what I think of the colors in the room. I am going with "fake " planking instead of a tile pattern. I like wood looking stuff.

Went from there to TSC.... got 5 steel posts and then found a damaged(bent on one end) cattle panel and got it for 20% off... so it was 24 + change instead of 30.99. I was happy and brought it home and put it on a hard surface and mostly straightened it out anyway. Doesn't have to be perfectly straight to hold up tomatoes. I got it and the other short piece I had here that I cut off the "twisted like a pretzel" one I had. Got them both up and the tomatoes planted. Do you know I still have 12 plants left over? . Gonna go by and see if Sam has all his yet...I really don't want to put them in... I have A LOT of tomatoes in now. I always buy too many... plus the ones I started that I salvaged from the hail were starting to come along....
Didn't get anything else in... wanted to but I was pretty tired out from the trip to the stores and then putting up the panels and all...

By the time I got home, got the panel straightened and up and the short one up and all the rest of the tomatoes planted that fit... it was time to bring the laundry in; then went to do the nurse cow. She was in a better mood tonight too.
Then came home and weedeated until dark ... which wasn't very long.
The weather forecast is for some rain to come in tonight... and last until early tomorrow and then maybe another wave of rain after that... I have to load the meters and hoses for the big 250 cow farm tomorrow, that canceled on me last week. Hope I can do it inbetween rain showers.

Oh yeah, I also hit a good thing at the co-op... I went and got some feed to get me through with the nurse cow...used up the feed I picked up Sat at the feed store I like.... and on the way out I saw some horse feed for $10 bag... seems it was "out of date"... like the cows will care???? We basically only use it to get them into the catch pens... so I bought all 5 bags... and if I mix a scoop in with the nurse cow feed it won't hurt... I mean it is 11 or 12 % protein... no soy and all that stuff... probably "better nutrition" than the cow feed that I get, because I basically only get the "cheapest" maintenance stuff for when we call the cows in at pastures... it is a treat, not their ration for perfect production or anything. They are supposed to be getting that from the grass this time of year. That is cheaper than bulk price. Turns out it is 20.99 a bag normally. It pays to look for the bargains.

Did find the sheep and goat fencing I want for the property... 4x4 inch holes and all... $ 399 a roll at TSC... What did you pay for yours at TSC last year or 2 years ago @Mini Horses ???? I will probably cry when I hear... I am thinking that I ought to go on and get it now... I can put it on the TSC card with no interest for 12 or 18 months... no 5% discount but..... They had 4 rolls... get a discount on 10 rolls but I don't think I need that many... Glad I don't want the 2x4 wire... that was even more for a 220 ft roll....

Guess that's all for now.... Allergies weren't bad until this afternoon when the sun came out for a bit.; and then hit me with a vengenance. Eyes have finally stopped watering.

 

[Mini Horses]

Bought 3/21 at $269. Red Brand sheep/goat, 330'. . Sadly it's way up in price. I'd like a couple more rolls. Will recheck current prices but, think it's $399 here now. Was last month online....didn't ask in store.

DD works at Lowes and they carry Red Brand in field fence, so I'll ask her to see if they'll get the 4x4 on special order...don't expect any real price difference. She gets 10% discount and at these prices that could "pay" for several posts!

Killer prices. . Don't need to tell you about post $. It's all pretty painful!

I have a place I've considered hotwiring but goats are not very good with just that. So I've not taken time and material -- that I already have!! -- to do. I'm considering that a real strong box may work and it's cheaper than rolls of fence. Horses, they are real good with hot wire. Have several solar boxes, 2 need new batteries, but they do not have the jolt of plug ins. Plug ins...need a plug. Have an old plug in that still works and packs a decent punch. May try a small area...within a perimeter. If it works, can run at other open field, which would only be daytime graze, back to barn at night. . Considering time and effort issues for tryouts.

Animals create so many considerations to handle.

a couple chickens went into garden yesterday. Of course, straight to mulched tomatoes! They scratched into it. Found the brown paper, not worms, tried 4 places then left. . Lucky me. I have to put wire on that pole gate! Chore 1000!

 

[Baymule]

OK Brand 4" sheep and goat wire is $339 here at TSC, was @249. At the local hardware store in Groveton, I've got Mr. Benny working me up a price on 10-15 rolls. Not going to use the horse wire this go-round. Shorter rolls, cost more and harder to stretch. Better buy wire now, next week it will cost more. Pretty soon it will take a wheel barrow of money to buy a T-post.

 

[farmerjan]

RAIN and MORE RAIN..... WOW Better not cry too much, might flood the whole place. We needed some rain and got that nice 1 1/2 inches a couple days ago. BUT, we got a deluge last night and we were not even in the path of the worst of it. It stayed more just to the west of us and headed more north through the night. Started raining here around 11 and was still raining but not real hard... steady..... until after midnight. Then the overnight radar showed it stayed more east and just skirted the area until around 5 a.m. and it has hit us pretty hard since. Pouring down, then lets up and then more. There have been flood watches just north and west of us, and a tornado watch now to the east since we are getting more of the hard rain. Supposedly some winds and gusts, but we are so far not getting much of that.
I am very thankful I got in the garden what I have so far and that I got all the tomatoes in that I did yesterday. Going to look and see if there is another piece of fence panel around to take care of the last dozen if I can't find a home for them in the next day or 2.
Everything else in so far at least is "well watered in"....
It does look like it will taper off and head east by 10 or 11 so I should be able to load the truck with the meters etc, in the dry. It looks like it will keep heading more north than east but I think that @Mini Horses will get a good bit of it after 12-1 p.m.. Then we are supposed to get more late afternoon/eve and then exit out of here by mid day Saturday.

There are a few rumbles of thunder but not too bad. I think we will be pretty much out of that path.

So, I am going to go in and make sure I have enough bottles in the racks and go to feed the nurse cow. Then come back and get the truck loaded. Going to take a couple of contractor garbage bags and stop and get a couple bags of my preferred feed for the cow and then can mix it with the other; on my way to test.

Pouring again...like REALLY POURING DOWN.

Got a mouse last night. Yesterday I went to move some stuff and one popped out of a box, that I had a pkg of caramel corn in, and some non perishables, that I had picked up at Sharp Shopper last week. One of those promo $.99 things... thinking I might like it one day when craving something sweet. And yes, there was a hole in the bag.... DAM#@D little s.o.b. Well I put out a couple of sticky traps and there is one on them this morning. Have no idea if it is that one... put a couple pieces of the caramel corn in the middle of the one trap and put the other one between 2 boxes and that is the one I caught it on. Going to dispose of it and then see if there are any more. I caught one in the kitchen trap about a month ago and have not seen any real activity.... I leave the traps set in the kitchen and put fresh peanut butter on them every once in a while... Hadn't seen where anything had been around them.
The joys of an old house...

 

[farmerjan]

I'm going to see if the local TSC can get the OK Brand wire at a better price....That is alot better than the current @399...
@Baymule , don't forget that TSC will give an additional discount if you buy 10 or more rolls....

 

[Bruce]

@Baymule , don't forget that TSC will give an additional discount if you buy 10 or more rolls....

If she goes to the same one where she got the posts she might manage another 15% off

 

[Mini Horses]

That rain you're getting moves NE and we will most likely get tail end of it, just as the southern ones moves in mid to late afternoon, spending the night! Yes, heavy rains. I'm working betweens bands of light rains now to get 18 squash plants moved. Would love to get eggplant and peppers set, snap beans in but looks to be dim hopes.
Last area of retill won't happen now, maybe Sunday.

grass is loving it!

 

[farmerjan]

Not much more than a few sprinkles this afternoon.... until about 5 and then it POURED down like someone was dumping out a bucket, at the farm. The roads and everything looked soaked here at the house when I got home at nearly dark...
And of all things ... I have NO WATER in the faucets at the house. Checked the breaker box and flipped them to make sure the well pump hadn't kicked off... NOPE..... so no shower tonight. I just ate a ham sandwich... and drank some MT Dew that was in a bottle in the fridge.... not going to bother DS .... not a life or death thing tonight. I will deal with it in the morning. OF COURSE, it is a holiday weekend... luckily no animals depending on water..... if I can't figure it out, I will go take a shower at his house since he is never hardly using it... and wait for Tuesday to make some calls... Not paying outrageous weekend or holiday rates.... maybe DS will know what to try...

Makes life interesting....