The Stark County Fair was last week. We took the kids to go see the 4-H animals sell and to see my cousins's daughters sell their lambs. We were lucky enough to be able to buy one of them at the fair!! They did very well and I cannot wait to have some lamb chops soon! We will also be inviting them down for a meal of leg of lamb as well!
The big project I have going on is building a new building between the driveway and the barn. It will house the tanks that I store the buttermilk in as well as give me shop space to park equipment to work on during the winter when I have time. Until now everything has had to be repaired outside in the driveway or the yard which is not very desirable when the weather is not good. It also leads to a lot of lost small parts due to falling in the gravel or the grass.
The first step was to level the site and move my White Spruce that I planted several years ago.
It was actually bigger than the tractor. I took it up on the hill next to where the new house will go in a few years and planted it where it will provide some blocking of undesirable views from the new house. We decided to leave the feed bin in place and install a feed pad directly behind it to feed the buttermilk and feed supplement to the pigs that we feed out. This area used to be the boar lot. However, in the harsh winter month this will become the feeder lot since they will not go out much when the temps are very cold anyway. The boar will get to sleep with the cattle and the sows will have their lot and all the pens. This will allow for weaning of piglets while feeding out older pigs as well.
I am having JC masonry do the walls of the building for me. The walls will be all concrete block. This will be stronger in the long run and much more durable than wood. I can also paint it and be able to wash it and not have to worry about moisture rotting out the walls down the road.
There will be 3-5 windows, 2 man doors, and one 12'wide x 11' tall garage door. This will allow me to fit all the different size equipment in the shed without having to worry about hitting the roof. I am trying to remember to take pictures from the same two spots every day so I can show the change from start to finish. However, just like usual, I get so excited to get started that I never remember to take a picture before I start any work at all. Now I have to go back and find an older picture of the area from last year for the starting picture! My wife was on it a little quicker than me and took some pictures just after I started digging.
One last item that had a much needed upgrade was my bale feeder. I have a bunk feeder that I have had for about 8 years now and I also have a Klene Hay Saver Pipe feeder, Model C-7. I have used it for two years and I absolutely love it. However, I have outgrown the C-7 as it is 7'x7' and can only hold one bale at a time. So, I upgraded to a C-12. This is a 7'x12' feeder that I can fit 3 bales into snugly extending the interval of filling the feeder. I have gone from feeding one bale every 4-6 days to 7-8 cattle to feeding 2-3 bales/day to 50+ cattle. I actually need two of these feeders but with the building project the budget is super tight right now. So, unless we can sell both old feeders and sell some cattle at some favorable prices this fall, it looks like I will have to use this feeder and my old bunk feeder for another winter!
With pulling the bulls off the pasture in the winter and separating them from the herd I was able to set the breeding date for approx 95% of the females. I released the bulls on June 30th which will put most of my calving from mid March till the middle of April provided everyone is bred. This means I can have a herd check in the first week of October to see who is bred. Now, because of the herd size I can start to sell any of the cattle who do not produce the best calves and be more selective in who I have on the farm. This will also create some much needed income to offset my large building project.
Hope everyone is enjoying the end of summer and beginning of autumn. The leaves are getting close to changing and I am seeing the birds start to group up for the flight down south. Sometimes I wish I could go with them for a winter! Before you know it it will be cold and snowing. I don't even want to think about it!
Goodnight everyone!
Kenny
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