HI HO—Tuesday, March 15 (the Ides of March), 2016

Posted on March 15, 2016 by Dayphoto

Today is the Ides of March…the Ides of March the date on which Julius Caesar was assassinated in 44 BC. Caesar was stabbed to death at a meeting led by Brutus and Cassius. A seer had warned that hime harm would come to Caesar no later than the Ides of March (See Wikipedia).

For me it also seems to be a date when the weather starts to shift. Yesterday we had lots of wind! Huge stiff wind gusts. But today…it’s cold and beautiful.

A update on the farming—

The old alfalfa field is ready to mark out and plant. It will be corn this coming year

Terry finished leveling that field around four yesterday afternoon. Leveling is the last step of soil preparation…

first is disking

then either plowing or ripping depending on the soil and what was grown in that field last year.

Then leveling.

After leveling will be marking, irrigation and then planting.

One field down!

The conversation every evening goes like this: “I sure am tired. I don’t know WHY I wanted to farm again.”

“Well, goodness! Anyone would be tired after eight hours on a tractor.”

“I guess.” he replies…”but I don’t think of hours, I think of acres.”

“Okay…anyone would be tired after acres and acres and acres on a tractor.”

“True.”

Then morning comes——

(Ripping up the old pinto bean field early, early this morning.)

“Well the sun is poking his head up, ♪♫♫♪ guess I’ll head on out. Nothing like a fresh day to get some work done. ♪♫❤♪♫❤ The dirt is calling me!”

Then with a smile and wave he’s out the door, fueling up the tractor and leaving the farm yard in a little puff of dirt.

From our western Colorado farm •❥*◝◟¸* to you!

Linda ❤(smiles)

Cow Check—-Thursday, March 10, 2016

Posted on March 10, 2016 by Dayphoto

The cows are ever so calm. Terry started working the alfalfa field (he is ripping here) and they didn’t even move. (Shows how much we and Davis’ are with them. :0 )

The Mom’s loved hanging in the field eating the turned up roots.

The little ones didn’t even run from the big loud noisy machine. (Probably because the Mom’s didn’t run or holler at the kids to RUN! :0 ) (Here Terry is rolling)

So Terry had to either get out and make them move or work around them.

Calm, calm calm.

That evening Terry, Boomer and I rode through the cows on our evening check…There was a BRAND NEW little one just eating lunch.

Now THIS mom decided she didn’t want to have her little one subjected to two noisy four-wheelers…she took off at a run. The little one had to struggle to keep up, but it did.

At the Upper End we ran into one of the ‘babysitter’ cows…she had 8 little ones she was watching.

It won’t be long now before Mr. Davis comes and gets his cows and moves them onto his ranch, just below our farm…about a mile away.

Until he comes…I’m going to enjoy every minute of the time we have left with them.

Your friend on a western Colorado farm,

Linda

More Spring Work

Posted on April 1, 2011 by Dayphoto

Ground that was in pinto beans last year does not need to be plowed (in our neck of the high mountain desert). Therefore, the ripper goes through and opens the field up.

Misty did part and Terry finished it

Everywhere Misty goes…goes Hank (the cowdog)

Back and forth. He is always one tired pup when the day ends.

The apricots are starting to bloom. I wonder if we will have any this year. Seems like we get apricots every 5-7 years. They bloom so early the freezes get them.

I still enjoyed seeing thier lovely bee-feeding blooms poping out.

Linda

Step Two of Our Western Colorado Farming

Posted on March 18, 2009 by Dayphoto

If you are opening up corn ground or tearing up an old hay field, all the farmers in our area plow.

I know that plowing is a dying process back east, but we have heavy clay soil and must plow.

So after disking we Terry plows

shinny-plow-shears

BUT if a farmer is going from a former bean field he can rip the field open because of how the beans grow causing a much loamier field.

ripper-002

Terry plowed all the old corn fields, and today he is ripping the old bean field.

I’m really glad he has retired, before all of this would have taken place after 7 at night and before 6 in the morning. Now, while I am at work, he is at work “playing” in his fields.