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Off to summer camp…
…go eight Thistle Hill yearling heifers. Once again Mary Perrine and Don Ferro have volunteered their adjoining pastures. It’s a lovely setting at the base of Cobbler mountain and the girls and we appreciate the hospitality. The two farms get lawnmowers and entertainment for the grandchildren and the heifers get loving care and civilizing and are well away from the bulls. David
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The spring green-up…
…is well underway at Thistle Hill! And Nala seems appreciative of the work we’ve done to improve the pastures. The over-seeding we did a year ago has really taken hold. Perennial rye and and cereal rye and several clovers have all thickened our sward significantly. Not apparent but a big contributing factor we feel certain was the conditioning of the soil with the work of turnips, radish and cow peas. The cover in the area pictured here was very thin and the soil quite sandy. Our hope is that continued rotational grazing and the addition of more cover crops will put this pasture on a par with our very best.…
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Solving the problem…Pt 2…
…well it’s a band-aid anyway. The numbers are in on using our own trees to make-up for the shortage of board fencing at the local coop. Thanx to a neighbor with a portable sawmill we were able to turn six trees…oak, walnut and cherry into high grade lumber. Garrett Heydt was the man with the saw and he did an excellent job. When finished we had 700 feet of oak boards and six 4”x6” twelve foot beams…just those beams paid for the fencing we won’t be needing not to mention the beautiful walnut and cherry we sawed into planks. The cherry in particular seemed to us to be furniture-grade. But…
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Solving the problem…
…of the fence board shortage. With fence boards almost impossible to find, Curt has solved the problem by cutting down a dead oak tree. We estimate it’s about 80 years old and the main trunk measures 19 feet by almost 3 feet around. A neighbor has recently put out a sign advertising he now has a portable sawmill. And we have a half-dozen oak, walnut and cherry trees down and waiting. Inexperienced as we are, we’re not sure we can say “problem solved” but there’s every reason to hope we’ll be able to continue board fencing with our 300 acres of aging forest. David
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After the storm…
…a mother and son relax on the comparative warmth of an unrolled bale of hay. It provides some insulation against the frozen ground below. David
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Winter feeding…
…takes several forms at Thistle Hill. This is my personal favorite because we’re feeding the soil as well. The cows follow behind the tractor as it unrolls the bale of hay. They’ll eat up to 60%..the rest becomes organic matter enriching the soil…feeding the microbes and, in turn, the plants. Oh and tonight the new calves will sleep on it…staying warm off the cold ground. And yes New England, that’s what we call winter in Virginia! David
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The grass is always greener…
…when you add cover crops! And for the first time that’s what we’ve done. Son-in-law Curt Humphreys and Coop manager Glenn Covington reviewed the results of the project this weekend…and pronounced themselves satisfied. Grandson Church had started the plan with Glen but he’s now off at Cornell Veterinary School. If you enlarge the picture you should be able to pick out turnip, radish, cow peas and the clover. Tougher to see but they are there are Cereal Rye and perennial rye. I never thought we’d get to the point where I’d think we’ve maxed on clover. Glenn is a little worried about possible bloat. We have pastures that were…
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A partial victory…
…with Bayer pulling it’s Round-up herbicide from the home market. The major ingredient in Round-up is glyphosate…linked to cancers including non-Hodgkins lymphoma. Round-up will still be available for agricultural use despite continuing court cases against the product. The story in full David
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Updating upgrading…
…our pastures. Four days after seeding with a mix of cover crops we see the first sign of success!! Young cow peas are the first to germinate…can the turnips and radishes be far behind? David
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Upgrading some pastures…
…and using a no-till drill. In addition to clover, which we often spread, this year we’re mixing in perennial rye, cereal rye, turnips, radishes and cow peas. We’re doing several pastures hoping to extend the natural grazing season. Not only should it mean extra nourishment for mama and calf in the winter slump but some of these plants put down very deep roots. The theory is that will loosen the compacted soil and bring more minerals closer to the surface to feed the plants. It also should help capture rain water, limiting the effects of drought. As they say on television…”only time will tell”! David