Pickin' Up Rocks...

What kind of family activities do you do over Easter break?

Last Friday afternoon we picked up rocks in the fields where Jim is planning to seed alfalfa.  Years ago, we did this every spring.  The fields where the alfalfa will be seeded need to be as smooth and rock-free as possible.  However in the past number of years, Jim has no-tilled and so we were out of a job.  It was so long ago in fact, that the kids don't even remember doing this!

I got the driving job, and the kids rode in the back of the truck up the field lane and into the fields...

(Please don't judge me by my dirty mirrors!  :)  )

They walked along behind the truck and picked up rocks and golf balls...yes, the neighbors drive golf balls out into the fields!...and tossed them into the back of the truck...

Looks like we must've missed one...

While we were driving around, this tractor kept following us...

When we were finished, we headed down the field lane, and they tossed the rocks off into the rock pile.  Ask any farmer you know...I'll bet he has a rock pile somewhere!

Ours here at the "other farm" is out behind the barn...

It looks like tomorrow will be the day Jim seeds the alfalfa, if the weather cooperates.  How can it be that time of year again already?

...and the Farmers Were Happy...

What a gorgeous day today...

...and what a lot got done!

The mercury hit 70 degrees this afternoon...the sky was blue...the farmers were happy...the birds were singing...the breeze was warm...the farmers were happy...the kids were outside on the dirt bikes on the last day of Easter break...

the towels flapped in the breeze and dried on the wash line for the first time this year...

...the watering trough in the meadow was bleached, scrubbed and prepared for the cows  (the other guy decided to hide when he saw the camera!)...

...a couple of "middle school" calves got their ear tags and were moved to the corner hutch...

...Jim seeded his alfalfa...

...the pansies smiled at me...

...and did I mention the farmers were happy today?!

SPRING is here!

Seeding Alfalfa...

April 1, 2013...

This is one way to remember exactly when the new spring seeded alfalfa went into the ground.

It was a C O L D and windy day on Monday.  The Amish had a holiday, (they take Easter Monday off as well as Good Friday) so the no-till drill was available for Jim to seed his alfalfa.

Of course, the almost ten acres that he wanted to seed were on the very top fields at the other farm, with nothing to stop the wind...

Mid afternoon, I ran for some more seed.  Refilling the drill...

The alfalfa seeds are tiny...

The kids had off school, so Jenna bundled up in her cold weather gear...complete with a scarf...and rode on the back of the drill, to keep the seed evenly distributed, and to tell Jim when it was empty.  That way, he didn't have to keep stopping and jumping off the tractor...

Looking behind the tractor at the rows made by the drill...

Some farmers still seed alfalfa the conventional way...working up the soil and using a packer seeder...but more and more are no-tilling.  We no-till almost everything else, but this is the first time that Jim has seeded his alfalfa this way, so it will be interesting to see how it grows, and if it makes a good stand.

If all goes well, the first cutting should be sometime in June!