Wednesday 23 October 2013
Today's the day!
The very large muck spreader has been hired and the loose housing is, as I write, being cleaned out of manure from last winter ;it has been left in there to mature over the summer and actually smells delicious- well alright, not delicious as in 'yum-yum' but a lovely healthy smell. Now the farmer is carting it to the bottom fields and spreading it in spite of the stormy weather (wet one minute, sunny the next). He has to get on because wet weather is forecast for the foreseeable future and the cows may need to come in at any time. It is always a hard choice because if the weather is also warm then there is a tendency for them to develop pneumonia. The good news is that the man he has hired it from says there is no rush for the machine to go back, and he need only pay for it for the hours he uses it. Often these pieces are paid for by the day which makes it a very expensive operation.
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11 comments:
We have a brisk breeze and sunshine at the moment but it is very different from 8am this morning and could be very different again before long. The clouds are tearing across the sky and we have heavy rain forecast. Hope the farmer gets his jobs done and that the cows stay fit and healthy.
The cows will be so pleased !
Remember the fresh flowers too.
cheers, parsnip
Fields are the only places where
'muck spreading' are not dirty words! LOL
We have cows at the bottom of our garden today! The first time since we moved here 6 years ago. They are quite inquisitive and keep peering at me as I fetch my washing in. lol. yes I do blog with MarmaladeRose - she is so talented and inspirational. x Jo
You are so dependent on the weather. It must be impossible to plan for anything! I hope it holds out long enough for the farmer to get his fields sorted.
Here they mix the manure with water and make a mixture that can be shot out of the biggest sprinklers I've ever seen. They are rolled about on big wheeled carts and look like cannons. The smell is not clean and fresh smelling - it is almost enough to choke you if you are nearby. We try to avoid the farm fields when they are spreading the manure - usually June and October. But it sure grows the best potatoes we've ever eaten - and some really tall corn, not to mention amazing amounts of hay. So much better than using chemical fertilizers.
Pat, you have a good healthy attitude to the smell of manure!!!
A job well done by the sound of things. I didn't know cows risked pneumonia by being brought in too early (and it is SO mild here at the moment - not that I am complaining!) Next Door brings in his cattle on 1st December, and they are meant to go out on 1st March, but often go out early as he is feeling the pinch over fodder.
Everyone is madly silage (Maize) making here. With all the angst, maybe they know something I don't!
Well, I guess our weather would be perfick for Mr Farmer.... clear blue skies, warm sunshine, no wind at all, a gorgeous day in fact. Hope it all goes well for you.
Thanks for calling - good job it isn't smellblog - or you would be well and truly 'on the farm'.
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