Over-The-Fence Chat Thread 6-17 thru 6-23

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Hi Ya All,

Our heat wave has broken here finially. We got allot of cooling rain and the humidity has gone way back down. We sure needed the rain, it was getting pretty dry. The garden is looking good again. No tomatoes yet, but there are small green ones starting out. We kinda set them out a bit later than we could have, spring has been comming early to Kentucky the last couple years it seems. The squash and all the melons are way up to a foot high allready, had good seed germination this year. I planted about 200 cantalope seeds I saved last year and they are all up, gonna be a forest out there again! The strawberrys took a little break, and are now flowering again. My Zinnias are just starting to flower!

We are putting up field fence in the back pasture to separate the new Guernsey cow. We have to divide the 8 acres into two pastures. We needed to do it anyways. So far, no chiggers, and no ticks here anywhere. We don't have any fleas here either, same as last year. But boy, the flies are bad this year. Our grass still needs more work, a bit thin in places, but still there is allot out there. It needs more lime too.

Milking has been something new to us, but Ginger is a good cow and she is very tame. She's used to being milked on the right side from the dairy. So, Steve lets the calves nurse on the left, and he milks the right. She seems to be settling in allright, but she sure does love those babies! She talks to them all the time. One is hers and one is not, but she loves both of them like her own. I've been reading all the threads in the archive about milk cows and how you all do yours with the calves.

We are waiting on 2 does to kid, these will be Sparkys first kids, so it's exciting. I'm still getting tons of goats milk. We are looking for 3 more calves, they are still pretty high here. The one little holstein bull was 110. These goats and the pony and donkey just don't come close to eating all this grass, we need to use it.

Happy Fathers day to all you dads! Hope you get something neat.

-- Cindy in KY (solid_rock_ranch@yahoo.com), June 17, 2001

Answers

Hey there Cindy! And everyone else! Lets see.... I really should be out working in the garden and rocking more rocks from the lawn so we can mow it (really rocky here in AR), and working on the new milk room, clipping goats, etc.... but I am tired so i said the heck with it for a little bit.

We finally got the garden spot cleared out, its really very nice, about 1/4 acre with a picket fence around it and a gate. We cleaned it out as there were TONS of weeds growing and then got some mulch down in some spots. I lent my neighbor, he and his wife are really sweet, my wrek canner i ordered from Khiarma (sp) website. A lot of goat folks use it to pasturize milk so thats why i got it. Its really neat, its this huge stainless steel canner that has the electric heater built in so all you do is plug it in and set the timer and go. I think you can can 3 stacks of pint cans, haven't had time to even figure it out. It also has a spout at the bottom to drain or make iced tea, coffee, whatever. I haven't used it yet and he was doing peachers so i told him to break it in for me. Well... he tried but the peachers he got were the wrong kind, the man at the fruit stand didn't give him the right bushel, he got them mixed up. So I'll have to wait a little longer to break it in.

Speaking of canning, i hope to do lots this year. i know that by planting our garden late we won't get the amounts we need. Hubby went to the greenhouse in town and got some tomatoe plants that she was discounting, got a variety including Goliath's. Thats a new one for me.

And the truck had a weird break down this week too. We were headed to town Monday and just after we got out of the driveway we heard this awful sound like a rod had broke. So we got back to the house, turns out it was a clamp that holds.... and sorry guys, heres where my naviety shows, the rocker arm broke. We were quite shocked and now competely at a loss as we live so far from town and don't have a second vehicle yet. But our neighbors, bless their hearts lent us their old truck to use in case of ER. It turns out the mechanic at the nisson dealer said it was a manfactures defect and he has never seen one or heard of one break. So.... we are awaiting the part soon. Along with my milking machine.

the weather finally cooled a little Friday night but then yesterday the temps climbed again. It sure is hot, but not a shot and humid as VA/NC. Well... got to go, chatted yer eyes off. take care and Happy Father's Day to all you dads out there.:):)

Bernice

-- Bernice (geminigoats@yahoo.com), June 17, 2001.


Hello everyone! We rented our rental house this week!!!!I am so happy , everyone said it would be terribly hard to rent a one bedroom house BUT we had over 50 phone calls--ran an ad in the local paper for 3 days and the first person who came to see it wrote a check!! Made me feel great.The house is totally paid for, so the money is just extra income! I designed it and did all the leg work so our constrution cost was less than 1/2 what it would have been.

Our garden is picture perfect(right now) but we can almost hear the weeds growing! Lots of nice rain and we had just fertilized everything! My orchard is looking good. Not much produce, YET but I wasn't really expecting much this year. Does anyone have seedless grapes--either Catawba or Reliance? If so I would love to hear about them --good or bad! I planted a Catawba and am going to get a Reliance this week.

Bernice are you going to teach out in AR? You haven't said much about that part of you move!

Well, must go and get somethings done!

-- Debbie T in N.C. (rdtyner@mindspring.com), June 17, 2001.


Hi Debbie.... long time no chat. geeze... how time flies by. I am jealous of yer garden... even though you can hear the weeds grow, LOL:):)How are things in NC? I was sitting on my back porch last night looking at the lake view and the lights from the boats and i got a twinge of homesickness for VA/NC. Really, despite the miserable hot humid summers. Not all that much different here.

I am going back to work soon, my.... i need to just to get some rest. We were here 3 days and got a milk contract so we have been busy rennovating the shop into a milk room/tank room and then making pens, fixing pastures, etc. I need to go back to work to get some rest. i did find a job teaching, this time its early childhood special ed and i will be the supervising teacher which in essence means I get to do all the paperwork... YIKKS! But the executive director of the agency has goats too, she raises Lamanchas and Llamas. when she found out i raised goats she was thrilled. I think i will like my new job, its always hard at first.

Still waiting for the day i can have my morning coffee with the girls;):)

Bernice

-- Bernice (geminigoats@yahoo.com), June 17, 2001.


The weather here in So Cal has finally warmed up. It had been unusually cool so the garden was a bit slow, but now it's taking off. We've been picking berries (black and boysen) for little over a week now. My daughter loves to eat them frozen. We aren't much on jams and jellys so I'm saving them for cobbler. DH makes the best cobbler. We've also been picking beans, zuchinni and a few yellow squash. The tomateos are golf ball size and I'm looking forward to those. We planted yelloe ones this year, so we'll see how they turn out.

Our fruit trees have a good set and hopefully we can beat the birds to them. Last year we didn't get many peaches because of the birds.

I should be shearing my sheep, but its been so nice in the afternoon I just want to be in the yard.

My daughter is getting ready for our county fair, in Aug, so part of our day is spent getting here entries ready, as we are going on vacation the first two weeks of July.

This is our first official weekend with no school, so we hardly know what to do with ourselves not having school on Monday, but if I thought hard I could find a few things to do. Need to clean cupboards, thin out the junk, go through the garage. But tomorrow is another day.

Enjoy your summer activities and especially enjoy the fruits of your labors.

-- jennifer (schwabauer@aol.com), June 17, 2001.


It's good to hear from you Bernie! You're getting things done, must still be so exciting being in a new place. I am sooo busy too, I have to check in here real fast any more it seems. I'm making butter, it's beautiful golden yellow, and today will get buttermilk and yogurt from the store to start my own yogurt and cottage cheese. I need more big stainless steel pots!

Anyone near Elizabethtown, Ky want some rich creamy Guernsey milk to make stuff with?? I have lots of goats milk too! She is milking 7 gallons a day, and we are taking half right now, till the calves get bigger and can have more. My half has 3 quarts of cream. I would love someone to teach me a bunch more things about all this. I dug out the Countryside with all the milk stuff in it, and am working on that.

Bernie, can I make fudge like you do with all this milk? I don't have time to search the archives right now, maybe email me a recipe?

I need 3 more bottle calves to use up all this milk. That would be the best investment, more income. My 2 are doing great, and Ginger is a doll. No baby goats yet. See ya all.

-- Cindy in KY (solid_rock_ranch@yahoo.com), June 18, 2001.



May I join? I just "moved" to the neighborhood recently, and I love it here!

The Jersey cow, Pearl, missed her daughter, as we sold her. She was just too valuable an animal to hold onto. We introduced a holstein bull calf into her pasture to fill the hole, but she rejected him outright. Her kicking and butting gave the poor little thing a bad case of dejection. I settled down to giving him a bottle. After a week of that, one morning I brought him a bottle, and he had lost his appetite for it. I wondered, "Is he sick or something?" Oh well, I went to milk... and one quarter was empty! wow... She is very attached to the little thing now, and mothers it as if it were her own. But there's one problem; the little thing is eating far too much, and 'runs' a constant problem of diarrhea. He seems healthy otherwise, with plenty of energy; bouncing all over the pasture.

I finished my chicken tractor, 8'x8' square, one end 4' high, and the other 2' high. I wrapped the whole thing with chicken wire, and then covered the high end with a green tarp. Made 2 ventilation holes in the peaks. I attached a rope made of baler twine to the bottom of the frame, and am able to move it by myself to new grass daily.

Finally butchered the pesky hen who refused to lay her eggs anywhere but where she should. She had a 'thing' for the garden, digging up the seeds we planted. Daughter (8) got a science lesson on the innards of chickens. She claimed the feet, and had a great time pulling the tendons to make the feet flatten out and then scratch. Son (15) had a great time with the clutch of old eggs we found in the grass, throwing them at the tree out back, showing off his pitching skills.

Well, I better go in to bed, as tomorrow is a big day. Bye.

-- daffodyllady (daffodyllady@yahoo.com), June 18, 2001.


Only 10 days left and we close on our place in the country!!! Even though we will not make the permament move til next year, just knowing that it is ours will be a wonderful feeling. I can also get the tiller out of the living room! It will probably look naked.

My chives, mint and other herbs (planted in pots) are waiting to go in the ground next week. Shook some seeds from the chives and stored them so I can plant in a few different spots.

I have been picking zucchinis from the two I planted in pots and my potted tomatoes are exploding.

My husband will prepare the garden area in two weeks so we can plant a cover crop and fertlize and it will be ready for next years planting.

Can't wait to hang clothes on the line and hear the peace and quiet of the country.

Wishing you all enough.

-- Cordy (ckaylegian@aol.com), June 19, 2001.


Hi Everyone!

I'm not only new to the message board here but pretty much new to the whole concept as well. One thing I've seen here is a great tolerance for newbies with questions and that describes me pretty accurately. This particular thread seemed especially friendly so I thought I'd take a shot.

Anyhow, here's my story; I just acquired eleven acres which was part of a farm/stable operation that has pretty much gone to seed in the last decade or so. The part I acquired is nothing but overgrown grass (or so it appears to me) with a couple tree lines on it. I also got a 5600 square foot pole building with a dirt floor, the existing driveway and over 500' of frontage on a paved road.

The ironic part is I've always been a city dweller and have enjoyed it. I constantly hear people say they'd like a few acres out of the city but with good access to highways, etc. I never did. I can honestly say I never wanted to live anywhere that didn't have the full complement of municipal services, etc.

To answer the obvious question, I was forced into a situation where I pretty much had to acquire this property because the guy who had it as part of a larger parcel owed me money and this was my best shot at seeing at least some of it.

Nonetheless, I now own it and would like to do something with it. In spite of my 'city nature,' I am considering building a home there if for no other reason than the land is free and clear and I'm not doing anything but spending money on it now. Regardless of whether I build there, I still would like to do something more productive with it than pay taxes on it, pay insurance on it and pay to have it mowed. Unfortunately, I haven't got a clue as to what to do.

I'm open to suggestions here so if anyone has any ideas here or any suggestions as to where I might go to get some ideas, PLEASE email me. Thanks so much for any help you can offer.

Gary

-- Gary (gk6854@aol.com), June 20, 2001.


Gary, it sounds like a wonderful piece of property. You didn't say what state you are in, that would help. That is a very large pole building also. How far do you live from the property?

There are many people who would love to lease or buy something like you have. Or you can lease it out for cattle, or someone who would like to keep their horses there. Is there water for livestock? Electricity in the barn would make it worth more for leasing for horse owners.

Daffadill Lady,

I have let the 2 calves run with Ginger now all the time and they have finially started venturing out in the pasture! I was worried because Ginger would stay right there in the barn by her babies and not go out and eat. She has a big pasture full of grass. This morning the 2 calves were out there and she came into get her grain and be milked just fine. They are eating good based on what Steve milks out twice a day. There is too much for us to possible use. I don't have a piggy yet. My 6 dogs have the shiniest coats know to mankind! The calves yesterday were going real high still at the auction. Hopefully Saturday we can get a couple.

I went back and read all the archives on calves and gave my 2 some Sure Gell and electrolytes for their little bitty runs. I put it in a wine bottle and poured it down their throats like Patty said! (long neck bottle) I was giving Ginger a little alfalfa, but I had to quit that, must be too rich for the babies. That's how I got her to love me is hand feeding her alfalfa! No baby goats yet.

-- Cindy in KY (solid_rock_ranch@yahoo.com), June 20, 2001.


Hi guys , it's been awhile ! Well lets see waiting on goats to kid , a cow to calf .I am looking for some more pigs .Got a new horse who needs MORE training { i need more time !}We are siding the house , it's actually a fun job .Next comes the backhoe and bobcat this weekend to landscape the front yard .Actually take away huge dirt piles left from the foundation .Then goes up the fence , not only to keep baby in but nosey people out .The we are adding the rest of the porch .Then it's inside work ! Gosh I am tired just writing it down .Feels so good to get something done .

-- Patty {NY State} (fodfarms@slic.com), June 20, 2001.


Hi again!

Sorry about that info out. I'm in Fort Wayne, IN in the NE part of the state. I live within 25 minutes of the property and work about 15 minutes away. I'm putting electric to the pole barn right now. There was water from the existing well but, unfortunately, that's not on my property. The house that had that well has been condemned so there's no electric to it to run the pump, etc. I think if I'm going to do anything there I'm looking at putting in my own well & septic. That's probably not a bad thing, anyhow. I think I may actually own the existing septic (lucky me). I don't know that that's necessarily a good thing. I hope this answers your questions.

On the topic of well & septic (and the existing septic), does anyone have any thoughts or ideas in that regard? Thanks again.

-- Gary (gk6854@aol.com), June 20, 2001.


Gary, if they will let you, all you should need is a generator to get the water out of the well for now. If I were you I'd put in a back- up power for the well beside electricity anyway. We had the power company set us up a temporary pole for working on the place and we ran a large wire from the well pump to the pole and plugged it in only when we needed water. I filled lots of buckets each time we turned it on. We worked off that temporary pole for 4 months doing all the new electric.

Usually, if you have an existing septic, and you don't go over the number of bedrooms (size of septic according to new house or add-on), they can't say anything about you putting in a new one. But I don't know the rules on new construction up there.

-- Cindy in KY (solid_rock_ranch@yahoo.com), June 20, 2001.


Gary, I have good friends that made a really nice house out of a pole barn. In fact she wrote an article about it about 9 years ago in the CS magazine.

-- diane (gardiacaprines@yahoo.com), June 20, 2001.

This thread here is what I miss most about the Countryside forum. It used to be just a chatty nice place, good information, given in the spirit of friendship and now.....well even for this instigator it's pretty darn depressing :(

With all the rains from Houston we should have bumper crops of hay this year, which is really good news for the pocket book! The thought of hauling it is not refreshing though! Hot already! I have been truly blessed with good health with my asthma this year, and not an eyelash out of place in the dairy barn. Without a garden this year, which I miss, but it has given me lots of spare time to sew, my other love. Daughter to be married in September, so 7 dresses to sew. What a wonder that both her Father and her Dad, my husband has raised her since she was 2, will walk her down the isle! He is even footing the rehersal dinner bill! So my God is good, and he always seems to provide!

Hope this forum makes it through yet another difficulty. There are folks on here I haven't seen on any of the other forums, that I will miss. After not resubscribing after many many years of getting the magazine, I am going to resubscribe. I didn't think I would miss it the first of the year, now I do. Vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh TX (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), June 21, 2001.


Vicki, what good news about the hay! Oh, last year I felt soooo bad for all of you without decent hay and that drought. It still amazes me how just a couple states away can be so different, with hay prices and land prices. I was complaining that to bale my hay was going to cost me 1.25 a bale, and then I read about other people's hay costing 8.00 a bale, and I realized how wrong I was to complain. I had no idea hay could cost that much.

Thank you for the info on the yogurt. Mine came out ok I quess, I took a bite and I didn't get sick, and it's soooo sweet. My buttermilk turned out thick as sour cream, creamy thick. I tasted it and it is good too, and I don't usually like buttermilk.

You, and the rest of the friends I have on this forum are priceless to me. I have passed on information from you to all the goat people around here on the right way to take care of their goats! I am still waiting for more kids.

I got to finially use my "new to me" riding mower yesterday! 100 bucks, what a blessing. It's a funny little Snapper, handlebars like a bike, but that puppy can mow. I have to hold on the handles tight because it twists this way and that, and the seat goes up and down and left and right, it's hillarious, feels like a ride at Disneyland. But I am not complaining, push mowing was really time consuming and wore me out. Blessings to everyone.

-- Cindy in KY (solid_rock_ranch@yahoo.com), June 21, 2001.



In between heat waves and thunderstorms, we've finally gotten the rest of the garden in. Stringbeans didn't come up very good, so am thinking of putting in some pole beans up against the fence.

We've have some fantastic thunderstorms here. DH & I enjoy sitting on the porch watching them.

I'm somewhat concerned about all the bruh-ha-ha going on about censorship of the forum. Now that I've found CS forum, I'd be hard pressed to lose it. Guess I'm going to proceed as if it's gonna be okay. I tend to be a solitary person (in real life) so really value my CS friends. I got so much positive response from my depression thread a while back. Thank you so much to all those who wrote to encourage me. I really AM NOT a whiner; it's just that sometime things just get to me. I'm trying hard to do better. Thanks again.

Wishing you enough.

-- Dianne in Mass (dianne.bone@usa.net), June 21, 2001.


A really nice cool day today. I worked like a work horse yesterday in the heat. i guess i got hyper or something. i cleaned house, mopped floors (but doggone hubby seemed to have radar and tracked), unpacked about 8 boxes of stuff. Did laundry, cleaned the barn, raked more of the back yard and cooked a full meal. i was so tired before bed last night and sore.

The milking machine is working and what a joy that is. i wish my tomatoe plants would spring up, they are so-so looking, need to give them a doese of goatie pooh I guess. I sawsome balckberries out so i guess i'm going down the driveway to pick some.

Vicki...... you are so blessed with the hay, we will be hurting here soon if it doesn't rain more. They expect hay prices to skyrocket. our neighbor usually gets over 50 big bales off his field, this yr it was 15. Which reminds me, i need to get that sawmill equpiment out of there so we can use the barn/shed for storing hay. I'm so glad to hear your asthma is better. i have been waking up in the morning congested and full of phlem. Hack... hack.... but guess its maybe the change in climate or something.

Got to go, hope to get enough berries to make a pie of jam. I want to try out my new Wrek canner, paid enough for it. I bought it to use to pasturize milk in. Its the neatest thing.

Got to go... take care. I love this fence chat, so neat.

Bernie

-- Bernice (geminigoats@yahoo.com), June 21, 2001.


Hi folks:

The forum will continue. Dave was more than a bit p-o-ed yesterday, but after a couple of home brews and a night's sleep he was more receptive this AM, especially after reading the postings of support and those which come in directly. However, the commitment to keep it on focus remains. (And please don't stop this weekly thread!)

Enough of that.

Until last fall I had my hay custom cut by a neighbor (in his early 80s). He and his wife (who did the windrowing) were dependable. However, he died last year so I had to turn to another neighbor for this support. It is now going into late July and he has cut a grand total of 18 large round bales off of about 100 acres. He diddy- daddled until the hay went well past its prime and is no longer worth cutting as it is predominately stems. He had more excuses than I have patience so I basically fired him.

This means I will not have hay to carry my cattle herd through the winter so will have to sell most, if not all, this coming fall. It's a herd I have put together over seven years culling heavily on temperment. I can walk up to well over half the cows (about 50 total) and touch them on their nose. Some butt me from behind until they get a good scratching. I hate to lose them, especially the ones with names) but that is how it goes.

I'm not getting out of the cattle business, since I love the critters. Likely I will just switch to buying in the very early spring and carry them through predominately on about 12 acres of pasture here at the house which is not suitable to rowcrops. Two options are young bulls, turned into steers, or old cows with a calf. These would go back in the fall with the cow sold for slaughter and the calf paying her boarding bill, their own, and maybe a bit extra. Would need some hay for early spring feeding and perhaps a late-summer drought, but I have acres here and there on the farm which can be put up.

I already have someone interested in renting out the pasture/hay fields for row crops.

Our lives transition, and this is just one of them. And actually, I suspect I can net more (OK - at least lose less) on say 12 cow/calf pairs on 12 acres for six or so month than about 50 cow/calf pairs (plus heifers and bulls) on about 140 acres year-round.

-- Ken S. in WC TN (scharabo@aol.com), June 21, 2001.


Thank you for keeping the forum,I enjoy reading what others are doing or asking questions. My gardem is doing good and with our warm weather the warm weather crops are starting to grow. We have had enough rain here and our valley is really beautiful and green. We are very thankful. Joanne in Wa state

-- Joanne (ronandjo@sisna.com), June 21, 2001.

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