Farmerjan's journal - Weather

[farmerjan]

Recording thermometer says it was 62 this morning and got up to 79. Breezy all day and the sun was out... real nice. Clear clean crisp day out there... All our hay is way overmature also... brown and seed heads... but it will make good filler hay. ANYTHING beats snowballs if it is real cold and nasty.... it will work for the cows that are dry and expecting spring calves if we mix it in with some good rolls and some fair rolls. We will have some silage for the cows for the winter....cows with fall calves and any feeders he keeps.... Guess we will just see how the season goes.

 

[Baymule]

That was a good explanation on cow teeth. I know their bottom teeth can wear down, just didn’t think about their molars. Stands to reason their molars would wear out too.

Ringo’s front teeth, bottom only like a cow, are long and crooked. I’ll do whatever I need to do. Heck, if all he can eat is oatmeal and soaked alfalfa pellets, then that’s what he’ll get. I guess I oughta take a look at his molars next time I get him in a chute. He probably won’t like it. LOL

 

[Mini Horses]

DS called and said "they" were going to the local carnival to eat and all with the kids and did I want to go. I politely declined...

For once, the cold had a purpose..a valid excuse.

We're having cool weather for next 3 days with low humidity. Will work nicely for me. Easier to work garden . And nice to not have sweat soaked clothes on an exhausted body. After the outside in mid 90s all day yesterday, I was wiped! To bed at 9. We're looking at mid 70 days and low 60 nights. Springtime!

He probably won’t like it. LOL

. Probably not!

 

[Bruce]

Ringo’s front teeth, bottom only like a cow, are long and crooked. I’ll do whatever I need to do.

Clearly you need to take him to the goat orthodontist!

Laddie could use an alpaca orthodontist, Teddy looks like he already went.

 

[farmerjan]

Beautiful COOL 50 this morning... 62 in the house. Today and tomorrow supposed to be the same then back into the 90's . I will take any and all of these sort of days. Had to put a light blanket on the bed last night. Headed to the cow then to see what the plans are for moving the tractor, rake etc down to the one field he said I should probably rake first... the one that is thinner.
Want to get some garden time in today if possible. Got to pack the samples for shipment tomorrow and get bottles for tomorrow's herd ready ahead of time.
Just enjoying the weather.....this is why I like fall... this morning is reminiscent of the cool crisp fall mornings we had up north when I was a kid.

 

[Ridgetop]

I love mint! I try to grow a tub full each summer and put several crushed springs in my sun tea jars. Delicious!

 

[Mini Horses]

Ringo’s front teeth, bottom only like a cow, are long and crooked. I’ll do whatever I need to do.
Clearly you need to take him to the goat orthodontist!


ya know, there's Invisalign now! DIY Ortho.

 

[farmerjan]

10 p.m..... BEOOOTIFUL DAY... but a LONG one.
Went out to go do the cow and FLAT TIRE on the forester.... probably picked up something in the pasture yesterday. So got the buckets of grain for her and the one I take to put grain in for the calves in the bunk feeder when they come in the creep gate....then went and did the cow. Came back and put clothes in to soak. DS wanted me to go look at the hay as to whether I thought it needed tedding or just raking.... I said I thought just raking. Took the ranger and got a load of old hay/mulch stuff and then he texted and said that if I thought it only needed to be raked then go ahead. So I came back to the house with the mulch and got the headphones/ear protectors and my cap and went to the back field at Doug's.... Got on the tractor and raked.

DS came by and I said it would be ready to bale in a couple hours as it was drying fast.... the few green spots that I turned up with the rake exposed to the sun and wind.... he said that he thought that the hay at his barn might need tedding around the outside along the trees....he was going to the thing for her father... it was 1. Said I was invited and I said that I wasn't in the mood for people and wanted to keep going on the hay since it was a good day.
He hooked the tedder to the big Deutz tractor so I could go tedd the outside 2 -4 rows at his barn. I can't get on this tractor without a block as there is only 1 step and it is too high for the knees to deal with and there is no strength for me push with... there should be 2 steps instead of only one... spaced better... It is all I can do to pull myself up from the step to the platform....
I did take that into consideration at the barn and fixed it so the tedder was not hooked into transport position as we have to get off and unlock it to let the sides down... BUT I forgot to angle the tedder so it would catch the rows of hay to fluff them out behind it... Used some wood 2x6's stacked to get up on it... but when I got to the field realized I could not get off and angle the tedder better so the tedding/fluffing throwing the hay spread out, was not as effective as it did not get all the way down almost to the ground... but it did spread some so that was the best I could do... there was no where I felt like I could get off the tractor and then get back on.

So I took it back to doug's and got the tractor and the rake, went back to his barn field and started raking. Then DS came and brought me a c'burger and a hot dog... the c'burger tasted like sawdust... really awful... the hot dog was good.
Took a couple of hours to rake that field, his GF brought me a bottle of water when she left her parents when I was about 2/3 done... and she was going to help DS.... and then talked to DS and we decided that I was going to take the tractor and rake down the hill to "dennis's field"... where the thinner hay was and there are 4 different fields there...

This was getting to be about 4 or so and I said that I might just take it down and be done for the day. But when I got down there, it was still pretty nice, sun still out and not hot so I started raking. That field is completely dry....I got about 3/4 done and picked up some hi-tensile fence wire somewhere in the field... I was not near the 6 outside rows.... and it got all tangled up in 2 of the "wheels" on the wheel rake and even tangled around the axle... I spent over an hour trying to get it undone and called DS to see where he was, and he said to call Dennis and see if he was home and could bring out a pair of fence pliers or wire cutters..... he came out and cut the stuff so that I didn't have to keep trying to feed it around to get it untangled. He said he was sure he had gotten it all picked up... but you could see where I had not been near the perimeter where the old fence used to be. Nothing got torn up or anything... but I would have been done with the field if not for that. So he took me up by his house where DS had parked his truck when he came up the hill with the tractor, this morning, after finishing mowing the upper field this morning... and I drove DS truck up to the farm, where my car was.

Needless to say, it was by now, nearly dark... so I got my car and came home... and did not get into the garden. Tomorrow morning maybe for a little bit????

All together I raked nearly 30 acres, between the 3 places.... The weather was PERFECT for drying hay... like we used to do in CT... cut one day, rake the next, bale the 3rd day.... NO HUMIDITY.... it dried so fast and good.
He has another 25-30 acres already cut between the 3 fields left down @ dennis's, and another place he cut today. If we could have 7-10 days of weather like this we could pretty much do all the rest of our first cutting... and we have 25-30 acres that belongs to the guy we work the calves... we make his hay.... and then we will have about 40 more acres to make.....we make somewhere in the neighborhood of 100+ acres 1st cutting, and then about 60-75 for 2nd cutting... for us. Fred's only gets cut once then he turns his cows in on the hayfields for later grazing... but that is all his, we get paid to make his hay. Don't know what i hit to get bold letters. Not going to mess with it. Oh, just figured it out... I hit the ctrl key instead of the shift key when I went to type the "b" in but....

Tomorrow is supposed to be about the same but maybe some more clouds. Then Tuesday it is supposed to get hot and be in the 90's and then 40-50% chance showers on Wed and Thursday....

I need a shower and some sleep. The knees ache big time from being on the tractor for so long. I did take a break when I got down to the last field I was in... got off that tractor and walked around for a few minutes... then of course, spent an hour on my feet trying to get that wire all untangled from around the 2 "wheels" that rake the hay and the axle...
But I am tired...
Came home and ate a hamburger as I had already thawed the meat... what a difference to eat one that is not overcooked and tasteless.... drank a glass of milk and ready to call it a day!!!!!

 

[Mini Horses]

We're having similar weather here...they re-tedded yesterday across the street. I suspect they'll row this morning. May bale late, or tomorrow for sure. Thick over there!

You've got great hay making now....shame Wed rains. If DS can bale hard, you should get it up before rains. Winds down here today! They were about 15mph all weekend....good for hay if you had that and lower humidity.

Can DS install a fold up step on that tractor? If not, you may want to get a mounting block that can be pulled up onto tractor with you -- something along the lines of horse mounting. Glad the tensile wire only damaged your time and attitude.

 

[farmerjan]

58 this morning and cloudy....WTH... they said partly cloudy... No sun in sight and by now it is usually pretty sunny coming over the hill. Radar showing some possible passing showers????? REALLY ???? NOT starting out to make my day.
Hoping this passes and misses us.
Ate a bowl of cereal and going up to the cow... Going to need to tedd out the last few fields he cut so that they get a chance to dry better since there is no nice dry crisp weather and no breeze this morning, either. It is looking like the clouds/showers will pass and be gone by 11 or a little earlier.
DS is planning to get it all baled by Tuesday night... At this point hot temps would be better than not if we are not going to get the sun and breeze today.
Going to text him and tell him to go on and tedd the last field he cut that is up closer to the barn, while it is still hooked to the Deutz... then bring just the tedder down the hill; we will hook it up to the tractor I have there, and I will go up and tedd 2 of the 3 fields... he said one is not quite as heavy and it is out in full sun... no trees around the perimeter for "green spots". Then come back and rehook up the rake. I have to test this afternoon... but the tedded fields will probably not be ready to rake until tomorrow.
Let's hope these clouds just stay clouds and pass through like the radar is showing. I am going to go down and finish raking the field where I stopped last night with the wire problem, just as soon as it looks like it is "safe" to do so.