Surprise...

I guess the weatherman knew what he was talking about this time!

After breakfast...

Mid-afternoon...

...and it's still snowing.

It's a heavy, wet snow, and tree branches are bending under all that weight.  Time to head to the barn to finish milking before we lose power! 

Happy October!

Combining Corn...

Yesterday's rain put the combining on hold, and the combine sat in the neighbors' field waiting for some nicer weather.  (The little boys who live there just love watching the equipment...and they wanted to know if the combine would stay at their house forever? ...sorry guys!  :)  )

Thankfully, the rain only amounted to a scant half inch, so by mid morning today, the combine was back in the corn field...

This is the view looking down from inside the cab of the combine.  Most of the corn that was combined today was standing nicely, like this.  There were several areas of the fields, though, that were down.  The black arms that you see are intended to help pull downed corn up off the ground and into the combine...

This is looking back behind the driver's seat into the grain bin, through the dirty window.  After the corn kernels are separated from the cob, they go into this bin, which holds 225 bushels of shelled corn...

When the bin is full, the driver hears a warning beep that it needs to be emptied.  In this picture, we're heading for that 18-wheeler that was waiting along side the road...



All finished!  The combine with the header attached is too wide to safely travel on the road, so he will take off the header and pull it behind him on a cart...



I learned a lot today riding on the combine! 

 I learned about how the hot stretch we had this summer came at a bad time...right when the corn was pollinating.  As a result, some of the ears were short and not filled out completely. 

 I learned how this kind of stress during pollination can actually cause the stem (?) where the ear is attached to the corn stalk to be very thin.  As a result, some of the ears fall to the ground before harvest, and are wasted.

The corn yields were decent, but not so great, as compared to the soybeans...soybeans are much more forgiving in bad weather.  But we're thankful for what we got...looking at all the weather extremes we had this year, it could have been much, much worse!

You'd never guess, that looking at the blue skies in these pictures,  that we're expected to have cold rain, and between 6-8 inches of snow tomorrow!  I'm never really ready for that...and it's only October! 

But now that the corn is off, maybe it could snow.  Just a little.



Harvesting Soybeans...and A Sigh of Relief...

Well...if that wasn't a stressful 18 hours...

Yesterday afternoon I discovered that my blog had been "removed"...and put where?  I still don't have clear answers as to what happened, but Google/Blogger redeemed themselves.  They apparently read my emails and corrected the problem, and once again we're in business!


So...because I was just a bit distracted last evening, and because it was quickly getting dark outside, I missed any action shots of the soybean fields being combined.  I had to settle for the day after pictures instead.

 It's been tough knowing just when to harvest this fall...the wet weather has prevented the beans (and corn) from drying down like it should be by this time.  However...if you wait too long, you run the risk of the dry, brittle bean/corn stalks going down in the rain or the wind...and you risk losing some of your yield.

We had beans in three different locations this year...here at home, the "other farm" and our neighbor's farm.  The combine came to our place last.  The driver said that they were yielding very good...average in this area is around 70 bushels per acre, and when he started here at home, we were slightly above that number.  One field was very dry, but the other two were in areas that lay a little wet, and those beans weren't quite as dry.  We'll be docked a little for the drying, but all in all, we are very pleased!

It was dark when they finished the beans.  They loaded up the grain truck and sent it on it's way to the place where the beans will be dried, toasted and "grain banked".  The combine then dropped his bean header in the field and headed back to the "other farm" where they put on the corn header and began harvesting the corn...

 I think the newly harvested bean field looks like a carpet.  But don't try walking on it in your bare feet...

This field of beans was planted a month later than the first ones.  It's still got a ways to go until it's ready to be harvested...

And I just couldn't resist this shot.  I was looking toward the house and saw this black "thing" in the middle of the field.  I thought maybe it was Murphy, but I whistled and "it" didn't move.  At all.  It's not like her to be still.  Ever. 

But lo and behold, look what I found when I got closer...

It's nice to be the object of such a sweet  spoiled dog's attention!


Jim rode in the combine last night...they went long after dark, and finished the corn at the "other farm" and began at the neighbors'.  He said there was a good bit of down corn in several of the fields (from Hurricane Irene) but all in all it's not too bad.

It's raining today, so everything's been put on hold until it clears off.  As soon as it's fit, they'll finish up.  Then it will be time for baling corn fodder and cleaning out pens before winter.

Didn't we just do that?

Entertainment...

We had some unique entertainment in the barn this morning...

So much for some peace while trying to read the Sunday paper!

Purrrrre Contentment...

Here are those ultimate kittlets once more...



If only you could hear the sound effects! 

Now that's purrrrrre contentment!

*Linking to Farm Girl Friday

Fall Grazing...

Instead of trying to bale and wrap a sixth cutting of hay off our alfalfa fields here at home, Jim decided to graze the cows on them instead.

So, this morning, as the cows watched, (they knew something was up!) we fenced off the contour strip...

We gathered our fencing supplies...fiberglass fence posts...a hammer...and very important gloves (those fiberglass posts leave tiny, painful splinters in your hands)...

Pounding in a corner post...

Putting up the wire...

This 1958 Allis Chalmers D-17 has been around the farm since Jim's grandfather farmed.  Check out the handy "wire wheel"!  The tractor used to have a belt-drive, needed to run some types of farm equipment.  When the belt-drive was no longer needed, Jim's dad turned it into a handy "wire wheel".   Unwrap the wire when you're putting up a fence...wrap it back up again when you're finished...

We like to use this flexible but strong "Poly-wire" when putting up temporary fencing.  It's made of fiber and very thin metal, woven together...

Finally...Jim let the cows out of the meadow, and they meandered up the waterway to the alfalfa field...

That little speck in the alfalfa field is Jim...guarding the division wire that we put up.  The cows don't get the entire field at once...we'll move that wire every day to give them a new section.  That green field in the foreground is the barley that Jim planted about ten days ago.  It's really greening up nicely...

Munching away happily...

The cows were so happy to be grazing this morning!   We'll soon bring them inside again, where they can just lay down and make some milk! 

I don't think that's asking too much!

It's Legalized Gambling...

Really.

I've heard that description of farming some time back, and I think it's a good comparison!

Everything we do, whether it be planting or harvesting, from spring 'til fall, depends on the weather.  We make plans according to the weather report, and sometimes they work out...sometimes they don't!  Baling hay has been one of the biggest dilemas this summer.

We prefer to feed our cows good quality dry hay over any other type.  I remember when that's ALL we did...no haylage in the silo...no round bales of balage...all small square bales.  If it got rained on, it was fed to the heifers instead of the milking cows.  Along with that, went headaches about finding helpers to unload many wagons of hay from each of five cuttings, and helpers for me (to milk) while Jim was baling.  But what a satisfying feeling evey time a wagon load of hay was unloaded and stacked in the hay mow.

Over the past few years, we've put some of our first cutting in the silo (haylage) and more recently have begun wrapping some round bales (balage).  This eliminates that need for a long window of dry weather needed to get good quality dry hay.

In early May, Jim begins scouting the alfalfa fields, checking to see if they are at the right stage for mowing.   Then, out comes the weather radio... it's kind of like the farmer's Bible...but the weather man is NOT God, and this summer especially, the forecast would change suddenly. 

Sometimes Jim would have hay laying, hoping to bale it dry, and end up calling the round baler to come and bale and wrap some round bales.  We are grateful for this option...and the cows like balage...but it is rather expensive, compared to baling dry hay with our own baler.

This last time...finishing up fifth cutting...we hit the jackpot! 

Three and one-half loads of nice, dry hay last weekend.  The kids had off school on Monday for Columbus Day, so Eric and one of his friends helped unload.  Jim threw the hay off the wagon...

Eric and his friend stacked it in the mow...they alternate the direction the bales are stacked.  Each row is different...they're getting pretty good at it...

Throwing hay bales is good exercise...Jim throws it off the wagon, Eric's friend throws it to him, and Eric stacks it...

And there sits the trusty old Farmall M...taking a break in the corn barn...

We aren't sure if we'll get a sixth cutting off any of the fields or not...last year, for the first time ever, we did.  We'll see.

This may be as close to gambling as we ever get...and that's fine with us.  But it sure was nice to hit the jackpot this last time!


*Linking to Farm Girl Friday and Fall Farm Friend Friday

Watching the Barley Grow...

When you think of planting seeds and watching them grow, do you normally think of this time of year?  This kind of weather?

Barley is one of those crops that is planted in the fall as a cover crop, and harvested in the spring.  A few weeks ago, Jim had some barley seed delivered...

Last Friday, October 7th, he drilled the seed into the field behind the barn where the corn was chopped for silage. 

Filling the grain drill...

I just love looking at a freshly seeded field.  The ground looks so smooth, and the rows are so straight...

The weather this past week was perfect for sprouting the seed...the soil was still moist from all the rain we've had, and with temps in the mid 70's, it has grown quickly....just five days later, those little green spikes are about an inch high!  Jim saw them yesterday, and so this morning my camera and I went to see for ourselves.  And yes, Murphy was along...that's her foot in the corner of the picture...

The purpose of this barley crop will be three-fold...

First...it's a cover crop over the winter to help prevent erosion

Second...we will harvest the grain next June for a cash crop...then we will plant either late corn or soybeans in that same field for a second crop

Third...we will then bale the remaining straw for bedding

So...even though we're headed into the season where most things are dying and turning brown, we have some green to look forward to!

Happily Married...18 Years!

Eighteen years ago tomorrow...

It was a beautiful day, just like today!  Blue, cloudless sky, cool and crisp...picture perfect...our wedding day...

These lovely ladies were my bridesmaids...and my two adorable nieces...now 23 and 20 years old...were my flowergirls. 

Jim's groomsmen and ushers...(some of them had a little more hair eighteen years ago!  : )

This is one of my favorite pictures.  After the ceremony, at the back of the Church, my 91 year old Grandpa was giving us advice!  His health was failing, but we are so glad he, and several other grandparents, were able to be at our wedding...

Jim was known to be a bit...ahem.."fashionably challenged".  Unbeknownst to him, his groomsmen raided his closet, and during the reception, put on a fashion show, especially scripted to fit him. 

l-r:  Phil sports the "Show Ease Stall Co, skiing look",  Jeff models the "MGB cruising look" (Jim's first car was a MGB), Dave sports the "European farmer" look (Jim bought that hat on a trip to Austria long ago), and Craig models the "Motorcycle cruiser" look...we laughed until our sides ached... 

And last but not least...my brother in law has a "special talent" for writing songs about just about anything.  I asked him to write a song for Jim at our wedding, and he took the liberty to write it about how we met.  (We met when I cashed his paycheck at the drive up window at the local bank).  My sisters then sang it at the reception, to the tune of "The Lady and the Crocodile"...



It happened this way, on a sunny, summer day

As he pulled in the bank drive-thru

He said "My what a lass, sitting there behind the glass...

Could I do business with you?"

Such a handsome man with a studly roofer's tan

What was a girl to do?

So she told him with a grin, "send your money right on in

And I will take good care of you!"

But he just couldn't stay, 'cause the Lord called him away

To the other side of the world

And the lovely lass was stuck there behind the glass

A poor and lonely girl...

So she spent the time counting nickels, counting dimes,

Her nerves were all awhirl

When her drive-thru man came home

She said, "You'd better stay at home

'cause I really want to be your girl!"

It was Christmas in the land when the ring went on her hand

He said, "May I marry you?

Won't you come with me, said the boy on bended knee

Milk the cows and feed them too?"

"Oh yes!" she said, "in October we can wed.

Without you, what would I do?

Though I love to handle green

I'd rather be a dairy queen...

So come on, we've got some chores to do!"

And there you have it...that was just the beginning! 

*wedding photos taken by Charles Studio...used by permission

Signs of Fall...

I love the change of seasons ...when we've just about had enough of whatever season we're in...it changes!

Signs of fall are all around us.  The leaves aren't changing much yet, but that will come soon enough.  This week has been beautiful!  Temps near 70* and low humidity...ahhhh...Just a little chill in the air...enough to pull on a flannel shirt first thing in the morning.

Fields that were once full of lush, green corn  have been chopped for silage.  (Our Amish neighbors have just now finished chopping their corn that went down during Hurricane Irene and Tropical storm Lee.)  Most of the hay has been baled, but not quite.  Next we'll be thinking about combining and picking corn.  After that there's corn fodder to bale...so the work isn't nearly done!

The corn fields that remain standing, mostly look like this...

How do we know when it's the right time to combine? 

Corn with a moisture level of 15% is considered dry.  Any more moisture than that, and we pay a fee to have it dried.  So...this morning my job was to collect a few ears of corn and shell them out.  Then I took them to the feed mill to have them tested.  The result?  Too wet.  We'll probably test it again in about a week.

In the mean time, Jim has been busy disking behind the barn where the corn was chopped for silage.  He hopes to seed barley there as a cover crop, and harvest it late next spring.








Another sign of fall is the appearance of the bean fields.

The field  away from the camera was planted on June 6th.  It's drying down quickly!  The field closest to the camera, also beans, was planted on July 8th.  Look at the difference...

Those late beans have the appearance of being planted much more than a month after the first field, but we checked the dates, and they are correct.  The weather played a huge part in how on behind they are.  Right after the second field was planted, on July 8th, we had several weeks of no rain. 

Thankfully, we had rain just in time, and now they look great!  (When I'm mowing along side the field, I like to take handfuls of green soybeans and munch on them as I go.  They're quite tasty!)

So here we are...harvesting what was planted...again.  The cycle never ends...I think it goes by more quickly every year!

House Cleaning...

Today was a great day for house cleaning...but not mine!

Today it was the chickens' turn... 

I emptied out the shed, and started shovelling.  Last spring, I put the straw and manure on my garden for fertilizer, but decided against it this fall.  Chicken manure is high in nitrogen, and too much nitrogen in the soil tends to produce large plants, but little "fruit", so I think I'll have Jim spread some cow manure on the garden this winter instead.  It will have plenty of time to work it's way into the soil before I plant next spring.

I put the feeder outside while I was shovelling, and the ladies had a feast...

And just in case you ever wondered if a chicken has a tongue...

The whole time I was working, I had a guard covering the gate, watching for escapees...

It's a good feeling to have this job complete.  I always think that once their shed is house cleaned, the chickens should lay more eggs, but it doesn't seem to work that way!  The days are getting noticably shorter, and I've been finding fewer eggs this past week.  But there's nothing wrong with hoping, is there?