This Week on the Farm 12/4
Well it has been awhile since we had a chance to update, but with a new baby it just seems hard to find the time. Since we last updated our blog Tyler has finished pulling all of the irrigation from the fields. That includes all of the drip tapes and header lines and all of the overhead irrigation components. The overhead irrigation is put away in the barn, but some of the drip tapes still need to be wound up onto reels for winter storage. They are currently piled in the garage waiting to be wound up. The motor on Don’s contraption to wind the tapes blew, so we need to figure out a new way to wind up all of the hoses efficiently.
With the weather in November being as mild as it was Tyler was able to get all of the manure spread and managed not to get the tractor stuck. That was the first time in four years that he didn’t get stuck and need to get pulled out. We are anxiously awaiting the FSMA ruling to see how that will impact our fertilization policy. We are hoping that they will change the current wording to be more in line with the National Organic Policy (NOP) guidelines which are what we currently follow.
In other news, Tyler and his brother worked on the packing shed this past weekend and got most of the south wall framed. We need to make a trip to the store to get a longer header board for the large door and then they will be able to get both doors built and hung and then the wall will be totally framed out. Another project that needs attention before we can continue with construction is to replace/scab onto the stringers that are in front of the main door of the barn. About half a dozen of the stringers in that barn are cracked or rotting out and since that is where all of the weight of the tractor going in and out of the barn is concentrated, we need to make sure that they are strong enough to support all of the weight. We purchased the appropriate lumber and brackets to scab onto the old boards. However, the old boards are standard lengths (ie a 2 in board is actually 2 inches, not an 1 3/4 like today’s standard lumber), so the brackets that we purchased to hold the boards together are not wide enough. So that is another thing that we need to pick up before we can move forward.
It is my favorite time of year… the seed catalogs have started to arrive. Tyler and I spent part of Monday afternoon working on our seed order for 2014. If you have any suggestions on varieties that you would like us to grow, please let us know. We already have our potato order in for the year since they sell out quickly, but other than that there is still time for input.
That is it for this week. I am hoping that as Devin gets a little older I will have more time to update the website and let you all know what we are up to on the farm!