Friday, May 10, 2013

Playing Catch Up


We are losing our minds with this weather. I don't think we will ever get our mowing done. We mow awhile and pick up limbs awhile. What a spring snow storm. Bought some hot dogs and we should have a heck of a roast one day.



This limb went through the top of one of the brooders. It will have to be cut out and the roof replaced before our baby chicks hatch that are in the incubator. 



I slowly get a bed or two weeded a day. This day it was the grapes. As I weed, the weeds go into a wheel barrow and then into the chickens. I then put down newspaper that I have stockpiled all winter. On top of the newspaper go the mower trimmings to rot and enrich the soil.  The worms love the paper and cardboard and it helps to suppress the weeds.




While I weed O Wise One mows. We both remain under the watchful eyes of 2 pairs of little black ears sticking straight up guarding the driveway to the farm. Ever watchful and guarding. We are rarely out of their sight. Unless a bunny runs out of the tall grass then all bets are off. The big puppies have to be shut up right now. They chase the mower of all things! Never in my life seen such.......anyone got any ideas of how to break that?




Love those little black flags sticking straight up!!



They move with the mower. Half way between the mower and the beds so they can see both.



Certain critters on this farm are loving all the grass and weeds from all this rain.

Anyone miss us we'll be on the mowers, or the shovel, wheel barrow, or tiller. Chicken coop needs cleaning out. Rabbit poop needs shoveling. Big garden needs tilling. Will we ever catch up? I hate it when we have these kind of springs. Seems like we work ourselves to death always playing catchup. We are both nursing sore muscles and sleep with heating pads, Bengay and Advil are our best friends right now. 

Rain again yesterday afternoon. About July we will probably be wishing for this rain but right now it is a pain in the posterior! Warning... my grass may never be all mowed at the same time this year. Sure am glad that I live in the middle of nowhere and NOBODY cares : )  As long as I can keep it short around the house, gardens, sheds and such to keep the ticks/chiggers/snakes.....at bay I am happy. No neighbors or homeowners associations to fuss. Some years when it rains daily like this that is just the way it is. My nearest neighbor has a really small yard and mowed 3 times last week. Not me I just think I'll get the tractor out and fill the compost bins and I absolutely refuse to mow more than once a week! It is against my philosophy of life and my gas budget. Maybe I'll get some sheep : )
 

Blessings from The Holler

The Canned Quilter

16 comments:

  1. I just got through shoveling rabbit stuffing.

    Have you tried giving the mower chasers a ride on them? My Yorkie used to follow along before I got the mulcher. He'd get blasted all the time by the side shoot of clippings. I grabbed him up one day and gave him a ride. He stays out of the way now-a-days.

    I haven't the spread as y'all but, it can keep me busy. My latest blog post is whimpering and whining about the integrity and word of my fellow man. It's a personal thing for me. I won't stand for lies. sorry got off on a bit of a tangent.

    Keep up the good work, hope you catch up before the season's over. I'd love to come help out but, I think the commute would be rather long. ;)

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    1. I checked out that blog post and like you I remember when a man's word and a hand shake was as good as any contract!

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  2. My husband and I each grew up on farms. We got married a year ago (this June), and have moved into the suburbs until we can afford some acreage. The most challenging part of suburbia: Keeping our grass mowed at home when we are working long days at the farm. I can't tell you how many times I've browsed house/farm listings wistfully looking forward to the day when it doesn't matter if I mow or not! So, you're OK in my book if you can get a section mowed at least once a week! :)

    Even though you are playing catch up, farming is the most honest and rewarding work I know. And those sore muscles just mean you accomplished a lot during the day. (It sure beats being sore from sitting on your tookus all day behind a computer screen!) Keep up the hard work and thank you for sharing it here on your blog. I love reading it.

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  3. That's what it's all about, isn't it? Just keepin' at it!

    I think one of the very best benefits for me of moving from the sub-division to the acreage a few years ago was shedding the Homeowners Association! I called the chairman "The Neighborhood Nazi"

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  4. Today's trouble will be tomorrow's gold.

    I think we are going tropical here. I have also noticed the ticks are extra hungry...sure beats drought.

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    1. I can do tropical and indeed those little ticks are indeed thick and hungry this year. Beats the heck out of a drought though. I have to wonder if it will turn off hotter than hell here real soon though?

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  5. Dogs running after mowers and vehicles are something Ill never understsnd. On a ride in the country once a dog actually played chicken with us he came straight at us. Since your dogs dont fear the mower theyll have to be trained not to approach them and choke chains and their favorite treats with the command leave it should do the trick. I am a patient person when training because repitition is key when training the dogs Ive had. My current one is highly disciplined though and has me spoiled. Good luck with the yard work, you know mothers day is a comin and you can always have your children come and help so you can lay off the heating pads for awhile ;)

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    1. Unfortunately my three older children (boys) Live in other states and do not visit as often as I would like them to. The older daughter who lives close just had a baby a couple weeks ago and really should not be doing that pulling lifting right now. That leaves the one remaining daughter at home that gets stuck with all the helping anyway.

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  6. We are getting our fill of rain too-and since we are older now-everything seems to be broken-that's 40 years old now-thanks 30 years and so on-so at them moment nothing to mow with-I think about the snakes too and those pesky ticks
    You brought a smile and a memory back from my childhood. my grandparents had a working farm and us grandkids would help pick up limbs and then in the fall rake leaves-she always held a huge wiener roast-so much fun

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    1. Hotdog roast are great ways to get rid of limbs! We have our share of mower woes from time to time too and I think it is all just part of it. I'm telling you sheep are the answer and don't be surprised to get up one morning and find that I have bought a small herd!

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  7. I know exactly how you feel. ((hugs)) to both of yous. Yesterday I took a long walk up the hills out back and finally found the "mythical" wild apple trees my Dear Heart has told me about. He and his dearly departed Deb found and trimmed them back about 20 yrs ago, and then too many other things needed to get done, etc. I use wild apples for jams and sauce, so I guess I won't have to nag him to stop by the roadsides to pick up the wild apples that are all over town come fall. We have dirt roads and it is largely farm and woods and hills. Today I am aching bad, so here I sit talking to you, thinking if I should clean house or go work on beds. I think house cleaning is winning out. I usually do that on rainy days but it has been dry and I expect my 4 adult kids and their loved ones and babies will be "surprising" me with visits Sunday, so clean I must, and will rest the back for today. Hate to be a killjoy but I did warn DH that if the family expects me to feed them all Sunday I refuse to do the dishes. (we have no dishwasher, but we rarely need one except for holidays or Mother's Day.) The good thing is that we only plant for short season gardening anyway, I never get things planted until end of May. Like you, I weed then layer with paper or cardboard, then put old moldy hay or whatever over that. I can't let the pet goats out right now since they head right for the flowers, otherwise they would be doing some of the mowing. Some years the lawn gets so bad that Dear Heart uses the brush hog to mow. It works. It may not look like a golf course, but that's not our style anyways! Off to feed animals. I'll be thinking of yawl tonight as we all rub in muscle creams and snuggle into our heating pads.

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    1. Aren't we all just a sad bunch. I say every year that I am going to do stretches etc during the winter to prevent those sore spring muscles and every winter I sit on my tush and pay the price : ) I think we keep Ben Gay in business....

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  8. My lab used to just bark like crazy wanting to get out of the kennel when I mowed. Finally one day i decided to let her out. She circled my old 8N tractor barking a few times then she started staying on lead at the right or left of the tractor like i had a leash on her. I mow about 3 acres and she stays a few feet in front of the tractor. If she gets too close i just yell at her to move. She gets good excersize and I no longer have to hear her bark. I have about 3 acres that I decided not to mow this year. Tried to find someone to hay it but no takers so far. My sister has Katahdin hair sheep so thinking about getting some of her lambs. I just need to set up some good electric fences. Ticks are heavy but hoping my chickens keep them down to tolerable levels.

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  9. We never get ours all mowed at once, either.
    Thanks for the tip on weeds! Maybe I need a newspaper subscription.
    Sorry to hear of the storm damage. Glad it wasn't worse.
    Have a good weekend. ♥

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