Linda
Wordless Wednesday—HOT
9
Category Archives: Life on a Colorado Farm
August 16, 2011
I heard this really loud bird up in the cottonwood tree….loud! Finally I had to go see who/what was making such a racket. There, next to a little Hummingbird nest, sat this tiny hawk. (At least I think it was a tiny hawk) I watched for a long time trying to figure out what was going on—was the hawk after the hummer? Were there any babies in the nest? I never found out the answer to either one of my questions, but for sure, I never saw a hummer fly even close by.
I think the nest is empty, after several days I have not seen any type of activity around or close by it from any of the hummers in the yard.
As for the tiny hawk…he flew away.
A very fast thunder and lightening storm blew in causing a forest fire some where behind Grand Mesa somewhere.
Other than that life is really busy. Its canning season…that speaks for itself. The pinto beans are getting close to harvest…the lower leaves are starting to turn yellow and the pods are starting to stripe. Terry is thinking that maybe, just maybe….there will be one more irrigation for the pintos, or not. Terry will check all the soil and see if they need more water. Terry really doesn’t want to water if they don’t need it….trying to combine in mud is NOT good.
Linda
Wordless Wednesday
Harvests are Starting in Our Area
It doesn’t seem possible but we are on the last irrigation of the season for the pinto beans. The pods are full and the beans are starting to harden up, once the pods stripe Terry will put the bean puller on the tractor and pull the plants. This will allow them to dry. Then he will combine.
About the middle of September (is our prediction) we will begin the harvest of the pinto beans.
This year I have raised 10 different varieties of dry bush beans (like pinto beans). Because they are in the yard they are ripening and getting ready for harvest sooner.
I just harvested my Red Mexican bean.
I have several others in the drying stage,
of course my harvest is all done by hand 🙂
The sweet corn harvest is in full swing also. We wake up every morning (5:00) to the sound of the sweet corn pickers on thier way to work. The first load of corn heads into the cooler around 6:30. They stop picking about dark. If you see Olathe Sweet or Mountain Sweet—-sweet corn in your market you will know it came from a farm somewhere close to ours!
Enjoy your summer, it’s starting to some to a close when the harvests begin!
Linda
Hay Customers
Amanda and Matt from http://barnraisin.blogspot.com/ Barn Raisin blogspot came to buy hay. Once more meeting blog friends is like meeting old friends.
Linda
Mid-Summer When all the Earth Rejoices
Everything and every animal is looking rich and fat
The corn is filling out
Even though the heat has returned, I really don’t mind. I love spring, summer and fall. All parts of each season.
The rains have left for a spell, but just before they left a rainbow landed in the pinto bean field.
All is right with my world.
Have a wonderful Sunday, everyone!
Linda
Hummingbird Nests
Two little families of Hummingbirds have built nests in one of our really old sheds.
I keep waiting for the little birds to hatch, but then they do and I miss them. Darn it.
Anyway, I’ll keep watching. The next set of eggs I hope to see hatch and if I do so will you!
Linda
Getting Ready for Winter
We’ve been cutting and hauling wood. Permits are not expensive and you get 4 cords of wood.
Gradually we (meaning all of our kids and us) are getting our winter supply.
We mostly cut on the Uncompahgre Plateau, which is behind our farm.
It’s for sure I can’t haul out logs this size…. its a good thing our son can. They (meaning Terry/ Evan / Kelly) have to cut the logs down so the rest of us can haul and load them. 🙂
This is a view coming off the top of Grand Mesa. I grew up in that valley down there…which is the Cedaredge/ Eckert area. Lots more people there than when I was a kid. At the time of my youth it was mostly cattle ranches and fruit farms. We had 36 kids graduate out of my Senior class.
Everything changes as time moves on.
We saw another rainbow as we headed in from the plateau
You all might be getting tired of these gifts from heaven, but I sure am enjoying them.
Linda
Rain Chute Rainbow
This morning was cool and damp as we aheaded out to set the water around 6:00. It’s twilight at 5:30 so we have moved setting water to 6:00. As time goes on we will move to 6:30.
There were lots of clouds in the sky and some of the canyons and buttes and mesas around us were getting rain.
On the last set the sun popped over the Paonia Mountains and hit a rain chute over the Uncompahgre Plateau
It was stunning to say the least!
On the way back in the sun also caught a spider web causing it to glow and sparkle.
Linda
I’m BAAAAAAAAAAACK!!!!!
We were lucky, the weather held until we got the hay in. Terry stacked it in a whole other spot so it won’t get mixed up in the really good hay.
Since we only had the irrigation to do and Terry needed a part for one of the tractors we took off for Rocky Ford, Colorado. (The home of the wonderful cantalope—–and great tractor and combine salvage yards).
Blue Mesa Dam was beautiful
This is where we get our irrigation water, so seeing if full is wonderful!
It was fuller than we’ve seen in a long, long time.
The shopping center was full of all sorts of goodies
So much to chose from
In the end the perfect part was there. And for a really nice price.
Home again.
Along the way I was given a gift also
Pretty Cool.
We got back to a couple of really big, fast moving rain storms. Everything is rich and green, including the weeds.
So I guess you know what I’ll be doing today. 🙂
Thanks for stopping by and leaving comments. I plan on getting around to everyone’s blog soon and hope to get all my comments answered today!
Linda
