‘Tis the season….

…to start feeding hay.  And at Thistle Hill, rather than put the hay in rings or feeders, we unroll it onto the ground.  It’s the way cows are used to eating, of course, but just as important is the extra organic matter that finds its’ way back into the soil.  And by taking a new area each time, we spread not only the nutrients but the cows do their part by spreading their manure.  Saves on fertilzer costs.

This is the view from the rear window of the tractor cab as the bale in the foreground is un-rolled.  The lighter colored cows are Senepol; the darker are Devon.  Some farmers see the hay that doesn’t get eaten as wasted but we see it feeding the soil and all those little bugs down there.

We also think it’s far healthier for the cows not to stand in one spot all winter.  It becomes a mud and manure pit.  The little calves like sleeping on the hay when it’s spread out, too.  The cows just eat around them.

Incidentally, we do not raise hay but buy it (from Jerry Hall of Poor House Angus near Delaplane).  It’s one more way we’re kind to our own soil.  Our apologies to veteran cattlemen who are reading this kind of basic information, but we like to tell our meat customers and neighbors how and why we do things the way we do on our farm.