Farmerjan's journal - Weather

[Mini Horses]

Glad DS took care of farm work instead of EX (?we hope ex) since it really had to be done! Sounds like the extra silage & hay will be a real blessing with all the calves. Relieves any concerns for "holding until" instead of selling short for lack of feed.

Calving starts again soon -- time flies!

 

[farmerjan]

Got up to wet. Had some rain overnight, radar shows more off and on but we will be more on the fringe/edge of some heavier stuff to the south. Any is welcome.
Headed to let chickens out and then to go get milk that I forgot to get yesterday. Then home to pack samples and get some things in the house caught up on.
68 overnight and only into the 70's today... NICE change.

 

[Ridgetop]

STOP BRAGGING ABOUT YOUR WEATHER - HAVE PITY ON BAYMULE AND THE REST OF US TEXANS!

 

[farmerjan]

@Ridgetop ... I would gladly have sent my .3 inch rain overnight down to Texas to add to what @Baymule got... we need rain but we are not desperate and could have waited another little bit for some and given it to Texas.

Yes, we got .3... cloudy and will be that way most all day I guess. Looks like we might get a little more in another hour or so... radar shows green into mid afternoon... yet the sky is brighter and looks like the sun is trying to come through...

Let chickens out, picked some yellow squash while out there to freeze later. Also picked one little melon... I planted a package I had that was a "midget" variety... they are about the size of a large grapefruit... looking forward to cutting into that. There are more coming along...
Something....groundhog I assume... still eating some of the tomatoes... and tearing down some of the smaller sunflowers still... S.O.B.
Most of the potato vines are pretty much dead or dying off... Will take the walk behind weed eater in there to chop all that up and make digging easier, eventually. Some moisture will make it easier to dig also.

Went and got the milk and dropped off some reports on his cows.... it is in glass jars in the fridge now.

Have to text DS to remind him to come and pick me up at the mechanics on his way home from work... right down the road from there...to drop off the explorer for the AC not working... and have them look at - listen to - the 'hum/roar' that might be a wheel bearing...

Didn't eat breakfast so just ate a couple of sliced chicken sandwiches for "brunch"? On to the next thing.

 

[farmerjan]

It is Tuesday, 68 and cloudy and damp. More showers/rain this afternoon eve in the forecast.

Rained again during the day yesterday....... Got another .5 or so... soaked right in the ground.

Went to Lowe's yesterday afternoon, and got a sprayer that we use at the barn for the fly spray... it shoots a stream like 10-15 feet... for some reason the one we have got clogged or something as it quit working right. It was a pain to do them on Sunday with another spray bottle I had as the handle squeezes "hard"... then had to take the samples to the UPS store near there as the UPS driver picked up at the vineyard EARLY on Monday and I missed him... then came back by the mechanics and DS picked me up.

Had a calf out at doug's barn... wanted it's mother I guess. It is on the cow that we put in the small lot with the real gimp.... calf is okay but nothing special and is one that will get sold with whatever first group we decide to sell... It was laying on the lawn near the house of the widow that lives there ( the brother's wife that owns the half of the farm we still rent but don't own)... got it in the gate right there with the cow and for now that is fine. Deal with getting it out another day. All the rest were just happily eating grass in the other lot we put them, and none of the cows were hollering for their calf... I think most were already weaned... we looked at alot of udders when we were sorting them and they were already dried up... so it was good... always one though. Luckily it is not a calf that is "really nice" that I want to keep, so it can just get pulled off and sold.

DS is going to set up the panels at another pasture, get the bull in there so he can move those cows to another section... because the neighbor has cattle on the other side and there is no bull in there and his cows are all coming in heat... and he is not going to breed them now... so our bull would be wanting to go over the fence to the cows in heat.. Our cows should all be bred so he can come out...then he will take the panels to another pasture, so we can get in the 10 or so cows and calves there, and bring them to the barn to wean also. Then there will be one more place to get in cows with calves to wean... hope to get to that maybe this weekend... I know he is thinking that we need to get a few sold off... the "lower end" of the calves... and then he is probably going to start feeding these... open up the silage I think... watch the prices and see how they are doing and then make a decision on when to sell...

Prices in Canada are good... the exchange rate is around $.75 US to 1.00 Canadian... one guy sold a load of steers to be delivered in Oct... on a telemarket sale... got 3.52 for 700 lbs... that figures out to about 2.65.. if I am figuring it right... so right about what we are getting in the states... they are in BC on the west coast and they are in drought conditions out there and have had a lot of wildfires... pastures are not what they normally are although he said his have done pretty good this year, but they do not have the feed that they normally make...

I just don't know what the next few months are going to be like... If we can realize better gains with feeding for awhile and prices stay where they are now, we will wind up having a good year... that offsets the losses and the bad years... but if we feed and the prices drop off for the bigger calves, then we will be hurt... but we have all this feed that will not keep forever either... if we sell at a good price at lighter weights, and prices drop, we can buy the odd bulls and work them and put them on feed, to make up groups to sell for spring sales...

We will not be taking anymore to the friend in northern VT most likely... it is just not financially worth it to make a trip with my parents not in NH anymore to make a combination trip/visit.... fuel is too high and the margin on the calves is not worth it. It worked real good with DS going to my parents and visiting for a few days .... paid for the fuel to go see them.... and DS doesn't want to make those long trips anymore he said... he made the comment on Sunday morning that he does not like to drive the way he used to.... and it is a push to get them all the way up there and having to drive at night to not deal with the heat in the daytime, as well as the heavier traffic... so I am pretty sure he made his last trip with the cattle.

So, I am going to let the chickens out and go get the bale truck and move some of the sorghum sudan rolls to the end of the fields where DS can get them and put in rows at the edge. There are 200 +/- to move so will take some time... Not going to get them all done today that is for sure... but it would be good to get as many done as I can so it can grow back with this rain... More rain forecast for this afternoon/eve.... don't think we will get any from the hurricane as it looks to go out to sea after it comes up the coast along the carolinas and then head out east.

Gotta eat something and get going here...

 

[Ridgetop]

I don't blame DS for not wanting to make that trip. With good prices in your own neighborhood, why spend money on gas, food, lodging if you don't drive 24 hours straight through. And who wants to do a 24 hour straight through drive? After all, DS will eventually approach Prime age LOL, and with all the injuries he has had it is probably hard on him to do that drive. Not to mention the time involved. If the return is not large enough, why bother?

Hopefully cattle prices will remain high, and you can feed out some of the steer calves. With the bad weather in east and south Texas, not to mention some of the other parts of the US, there will not be many ranchers holding on to their cattle to feed out. Cody wants to buy some more cows, but prices are so high he can't afford it even though he has the hay to feed them.

 

[farmerjan]

Tues eve. Another cloudy, but not too hot day. 67 to 76... humid and a few light showers a couple places, barely had sprinkles here. Went and got the bale truck at DS house... Jim has not been feeling well, kidneys are not functioning good and they are talking dialysis and he is in a depression and so it is a mess... I left the forester if he had to go anywhere...
Went to the field across from my house... moved at least 45+ of the 62 bales... DS said not to bother with the ones close as he can get them with the tractor... but all the ones further from the edge of the field where he is going to put them... so they are all sitting there waiting for him to take the tractor and the spear and get them set where he wants them.
Then headed for doug's farm... got 5 rolls of hay off the grass strip DS never got moved... then got all the sorghum rolls off the strip next to it... 40 some I think he said... put them along the "island of trees" on one side that borders the Orchard grass hay field.... and he is going to have to put them in place where he needs them... but they are off 90% of the "growing back" sorghum. It is already putting up green leaves from the little rain last week and will come on quick from the rains yesterday.
Came out and was going to get fuel and DS called... wanted to know what I was doing... and I said.... UMMM moving sorghum bales... He said oh , great.... like I said I was going to get to it today.... anyway... he wanted to know if I wanted to go help him get the bull in to move him... I said okay... So I said I would put fuel in the truck and then he would be there shortly after... I was going to go home until he tells me where to put the rolls/bales from across the little creek and the all the ones in the big field... I really want to get them off the fields since I am on a "roll" so that the stuff will grow back faster with this rain... and continued warm temps... going to warm back up by the end of the week with the sun coming back out...
He got there after work... and we got in the truck/trailer... with all the panels in the back... and went to the pasture to get the bull in... went real well... bull came out the gate with one cow to the trailer ... trailer gate was open and against the fence on the other side... and he got the cow to turn around and then he shut the pasture gate and with the trailer opened gate had a 8x10 area and bull went in the trailer for the grain...

DS then walked down to check the water trough as they have been having trouble with it.... owner there keeps a close check on things... he is the one that lost his wife to cancer and sold the house and some of the property... split it with this part with the horse stable and living quarters... and had this for sale, but has not found anywhere else he wants to go so for now is staying here... anyway...DS changed a couple gates to let the cows into the next section but they have to keep this small lot open so that the cows are sure to get water at this trough... and then we left. I asked where he was going to put this bull... and he said probably the bull lot... and I said why not take him to "augusta county" since there is one bull in there and it has been 2 months... and just put this one in as a "back up"... for breeding. Some of those cows are real late calving... so they will be all over the map as far as when they are coming in heat and getting bred back... this will just make sure we are covered... There is plenty of grass there so better to have the bull there eating and maybe doing a little more "work" if needed...

So there are 2 calves there that have runny eyes/pinkeye... so DS is going back over there to spray them tomorrow...

Went from there down the road a little bit and took the fence panels off at another pasture where he is going to catch up the cows and calves that have to come to the barn to wean off the calves... he already had some there so didn't need them all there... so took out what he thought he would need and left 4 or so in the trailer to come back to the barn... He also did a little work on the water trough there with the automatic float that these owners have insisted on the rotational grazing of this switchgrass that I dislike so much... He is planning on getting the cow calf pairs out then moving the rest over to this field for a bit...
Got that all situated and then we came back to the barn... it is now after 6:30... and he is done... said he will let me know tomorrow about what I should do with the bales from the other fields...he is going to go back and spray for flys at both those pastures, do a few other things he keeps forgetting to do.... and I am going to text him a list tomorrow to remind him of all this stuff....
He was leaving for her house... he referred to her as his GF Sat night... so I guess it is on again... he has not stayed at his own house since she went into the hosp. a couple weeks ago and has since come home... he said she is sick to her stomach and having trouble keeping food down and that she just isn't "right"... and they still have to go in and take the stint out...

Found out that the wife/mother half of the owners of the nurse cow pasture, has had a relapse with the cancer and DS said she is not doing good at all.... it was her father's farm... and is left to the 2 kids (adults in their 40's now) ... so have no idea what that could mean in the future... the son (pansy a$$, both he and his wife are doctors) has the wife that didn't want the cow sh!t on her car tires...
and the daughter that is down to earth and sensible.... lives in Pa with her husband and 2 kids... so time will tell on that... Nothing will happen overnight... but the son says cows are "evil" ??? .... he's the one that was going to have a "vineyard" in there... NO experience with anything "farm oriented", hated it as a kid... just likes the "prestige"... the father/husband is a real estate agent and there is money and other properties... no chance of buying it reasonable even if they decided to sell it....

So that is where it stands right now... I hope to get the rest of the bales moved off the fields for him to put where he wants them...
Got to get the 500+ cow herd scheduled... and my other farmer called and it is his Sunday to milk... Not sure if it is morning or evening... got to check the calendar and let him know... so already scheduling for Sept started...

I'm going to maybe sit and watch a movie and fold some clothes... have to update the "cattle/pasture sheets" with what we did yesterday and today...

I took salt and mineral up to the nurse cow pasture where the cow is that I grafted the calf on... it still nurses from the back but it is growing... so at least it is smart enough to make sure it gets to eat... Need to get those calves all in and tagged and shots and castrate the bull calves all born there this spring...... they won't get sold soon but need to be worked...

 

[farmerjan]

Wed eve....a mostly cloudy day, 69 to 82, a bit of humidity.

Didn't do anything with the bales today... DS didn't let me know where to put any so I just let the truck sit here in the driveway. He did take the tractor down to the barn this morning and get the bale spear hooked on the front end loader arms and brought it back up here and then went to work. After work he did come here and get all the rolls lined up the way he wanted them and then went back to the barn as he had to push up some gravel/sand/dirt that the sub contractors are getting from "ditching" along the sides of some of the roads... they needed a place to put it and he said he could use it so saves them hauling it a long distance and he can use it for several road fill in projects and other stuff... for free.... and another guy brought a load of poultry litter today too...
I went down and got him at the farm and brought him back to his truck here across from the house... after getting a bag of feed off the truck at Deb's arena where he has the hay on wagons inside.. and he fed the calves we weaned off the other day.... teaching them to come to call, into the barn for feed. The couple of cows still in there will come right away so the calves are following.. pied piper idea....
So he didn't get to spray for flies or treat the 2 with pinkeye... and he wanted to "go home" a little early tonight... so I guess her place is "home again"....

I froze some yellow and zucchini squash together to mash in the winter.... made another bowl of custard to use some more eggs... hard boiled some more eggs too. Did up all the dishes.

Since I never did watch a movie or fold clothes, that is the plan for this evening. Just locked the chickens in...

And I may have a clue to what got the kitten and the rooster... there was a BIG hawk in the tree.... or it might have been another immature eagle... couldn't get a good look at it's head... Definitely NOT one of our red tailed hawks... had a huge wing span when it took off out of the tree... and it was not a buzzard.... it was plenty big enough to carry off a 2/3 grown rooster or a little kitten that was out playing in the grass... It was here early this morning... and I notice that the chickens are not out in the open in the yard until real late in the afternoon/eve.... if I am out there they are out, but if I come in, they disappear under the bushes and all around the edges where they are protected.

Got a text that my new lenses for the glasses are here so tomorrow morning, I am going to get them. Drop reports off at a farm a little bit north of there...
Farm is scheduled for Sunday evening... and hope to get the 500 cow dairy set for Monday eve... the girl that is interested in testing is off on Monday since they are closed... so will be a good time if I can get it coordinated ... will talk to her in the morning... might see if she can go sunday eve also... different set up in the barn... need for her to see different types since I have no idea what she might find at different places.

Looks like a dry stretch again for another 5-10 days... DS is talking about cutting some hay to make sq bales... whatever... I will rake or do what has to be done.. but they have got to fix the tire on the rake first...

Jim wound up in the emergency room, sugar through the roof... and don't know what is what. DS told him to let him know what they say... guess he drove himself... in either my car or his car... he hasn't gotten all the damage fixed from where the deer hit his, but DS said it is driveable... guess I will find out if he took his car or the forester tomorrow... I will have to get it back though since there is stuff in there for me for work and all...this is going to become an issue... and I am staying out of it... DS wanted some way to get by with a general handyman person... and someone to do the things he doesn't take the time to do... it has been working out okay until it seemed he had the truck all the time and I had to coordinate things so I could use it to move round bales... and he was driving it all the time instead of using his car to go to town to the dr and all that... this is DS's deal... but it is going to start costing him I am afraid... Jim does not take care of himself and it is going to kill him...

Going to find something to eat, not real hungry... and watch a movie and get these clothes folded... time to do a load of smelly jeans again....

 

[farmerjan]

A COOL FALL LIKE MORNING.... 57 overnight. Clear air, few higher clouds going to be passing though; was quite breezy overnight but is slowing to a normal light breeze this morning. BEAUTIFUL out. Slept like a log too...ZZZZZ
Temps are supposed to get back into the low 90's by Monday, Labor day....

I feel so bad for the people in the hurricane affected areas, having to deal with the devastation when it is so nice here today.

Got several errands to go do and then will get in the bale truck and move round bales off the big field.

Didn't watch any movies last night either. Might get to is before the end of the year !!!!

 

[farmerjan]

Thurs eve. Day was nice out... breezy from remnants of hurricane/tropical storm Idalia... few clouds early and then just sun. Got warm in the sun, 83 on recording thermometer in the shade so warmer in the sun... Next few days are supposed to get back into the low 90's....

Some good, some bad... Got with Lindsay....and Monday works for her... since DS hasn't bothered to even bring it up, I am not going to. If he cannot even remember to give me an answer out of common courtesy I am not asking. It was only 12 hours from Wed eve to Thurs morning when he was going to "let me know".... He said he would let me know by morning the latest if "there was anything going on" Labor Day...
Called the farm and it works for them... so she is going to help me at the 500 cow herd... and she sounds like she wants to... might go with me on Sunday afternoon to another herd... different barn set up.... but she wasn't sure on this short notice if her significant other had anything planned... I get it... she will let me know. She will get paid for the 500 cow herd to help me and I expect she will catch on fast... and she will ride with me since she is a little bit south of me here...It is a pretty easy herd as far as not needing to write down the milk weights... just set up their samplers and then take samples...
So, I need to get all the meters and stuff out of the back of the outback.... so I can put all the boxes in there... and clean it out a little so there is a decent place to sit .... I use the front seat for the trays of bottles for other herds or all sorts of other stuff... Past time to clean the car out anyway... weather is going to be nice so a good time to make the effort.

Went to drop off reports... and texted another farm to see if they wanted to test before the baby comes... and surprise, the baby was early and was born last Saturday (due Sept 13th)... everything is fine so that is great... told them to not worry about testing and let me know....

Went to get glasses... got the new lenses put into my frames... and I cannot see things clearly out of them... Literally, cannot read things through the progressive lenses that I can read with the other scratched lenses... and see perfectly with my older glasses... I took off the old glasses I have been wearing for the last few days... and let my eyes "rest" for about 20 minutes... and then tried the new ones again... totally NOT RIGHT.... the lady that was there when I got them last year, and has been there for a long time, is off until Tues after labor day... the guy there was very nice... checked the glasses against where my iris is and all to make sure they were centered right... and everything seems to line up... he took the prescription and re checked to make sure it was right and it seems to be... even checked the copy of the prescription I carry, against it... all same... Checked my old glasses I was wearing and said that they are nearly identical... there was a slight little change in one eye... but the fact that I can see perfectly fine with them compared to the redone ones is not right or good. He honestly said that he really didn't know what to say... and could I wait for the first of the week and talk to the other lady... manager... and I said sure... He apologized but he said that the only thing he could do is send them back but that might not solve the problem... wanted to refer it to the longtime manager... and I said that was fine... So, I will go back on Tuesday.... I have the "new lenses" in the frames, the set of lenses they replaced... and I am wearing my old ones...
REALLY.......

Aggravated. Then couldn't find a plain apple corer as mine broke and all I can find are the ones with the corer wedger combination and I naturally don't want that....
Then I just got aggravated and came home.

Got in the truck and spent nearly 4 hours moving the sorghum off the big field and the ones off the little 6 acres across the creek... I am done moving them ... DS came and got most all of them into the rows where he wanted them and then had to go do a few other things.... wanted to hook up the discbine to the tractor and get ready to mow some hay... and could I come take him back to his truck.,.... so he could go to the pasture he didn't go to yesterday to do the fly spray and dart the 2 calves showing runny eyes for pinkeye... I said that I would as I would be done in a little bit. He left the one tractor there with the spear on the front end and went to get the other tractor he likes to mow with and said he would get the last 8-10 rolls moved into place tomorrow...
So I get to the last few rolls and he calls and said I don't have to bring him back to the farm truck... he took the tractor up and went to Deb's... which is NOT where the discbine is... it is across from my house.. and decided he had "had enough", and gotten the dually truck he got from my father several years ago, which was at deb's in the covered arena.... and was hungry and was going home.... I said, so you went to augusta county to the pasture?, and he said no, will have to do it tomorrow... which means 2 days he has put it off because he has to go "home to her house".... SO, whatever... I finished the last couple of rolls and came on home. I am done now until he does any mowing... and I am not available to rake Sunday aft or Mon aft.... because I am testing... and he still has totally forgot about me asking him about testing at the 500 cow herd....
The rake is still sitting with the flat tire where I had it, and I am not going to say a word.... tired of being the one that always seems to keep up with things when he gets so side tracked with that "other situation".
So much for thinking he finally got his head on straight.

Came home, will go trade the truck for my car at his house tomorrow... Jim is out of hosp... they did some stuff to get his sugar down and he was going to some sort of counselor this afternoon... saw him at the farm when I went in to start moving the bales and he had his own car... My sympathies are getting shorter and shorter when you won't do things you are supposed to, to try to improve your health...

Last night and tonight you can see the "Blue Moon" .. 2nd full moon in the month... and it is a super moon since it is the closest to the earth as it can be.... couldn't see it last night here for the clouds... I'm going out to look and see if I can see it before I go to bed.

Made myself a frozen pina colada.... adult style... so I can get some sleep tonight and not be aggravated all night.

Time to go to bed.. Got clothes to hang tomorrow that I let soak all day... more to do. Might just strip the bed in the morning and take the mattress pads and sheets and all that to the laundromat and get them done so they can hang out in this really nice weather... they would smell real nice coming in off the line....