Mowing, Mowing, Mowing....

Three Generations of Mowers--front to back--Grandam Willow, Grandson Orion and Daughter Luna

Yes, I know, that is the sheep's job. They do pretty good at it too. But several times a summer, it becomes necessary for me to 'tidy' everything up. While the sheepies mow and trim almost all species of grass, weeds and trees, there are a few they won't touch.

I've been rotating all three sheep groups through three separate pasture areas. By utilizing the area between my house and the road, and in front of the house, I've been able to extend the pasture a little longer.

This is how I've been working it. Blue and Lanny (merino ram and wether) have three smallish paddocks. At first I can make two of the paddocks last two weeks each and the third a week. However by this time of the year, they will only last a week each or less. I will be feeding them hay within about three weeks. Jeff and Cal (Shetland ram and wether) are located away from the ewes and down towards the side and front of the farm. They have a small elongated paddock where their barn is, plus four separate smaller paddocks that extend across the front of the acreage and onto my parents land. I also can turn them out on the front area at night when needed. Always hoping that no one will feel the need to open the gate and walk up my driveway in the night! For two little sheep this is way too much grass for them to stay ahead of in the spring. So that brings me to the largest, most ravenous group of sheep---the ewes and lambs. They never get full. I keep them on the larger upper pasture for most of the winter and early spring. Meanwhile the lower pasture is growing (hopefully). A few weeks before I turn them out on the lower field, I will start turning them out in the evening on the sections in front of and to the side of my yard. (My yard is fenced in, thankfully). I do the same when its time to put them back on the upper pasture. This way they get everything 'mowed' and also give more time for the main fields to grow, and get used to being on new grass. This year, I even let them out on one of the Shetland rams rotation paddocks, as it was growing so fast. Once they have cleaned up every morsel that they will, I'll turn them out on the 'real pasture'. Sheep are very much like after-Thanksgiving Shoppers on Black Friday. Turning them out on fresh pasture causes fights, stampedes, pushing, shoving and often destruction of the very grass they are suppose to eat. They don't think about tomorrow--they leave that to their aghast shepherd. The first several days on the new pasture (and I'm talking about limited grazing times), they will run about and sample all the goodies. The next day, all the 'candy' gets eaten. Third day they start getting down to business. After that they will eat, in this order---any tree limbs or sprouts within reach, anything you don't want eaten, tasty weeds, grass, and finally they will go back and begrudgingly trim up anything they missed earlier, that they think is edible. After that its time to move them on to new grazing.

There is a drawback to this though, as it makes the ewe flock more restless and noisy. They are constantly watching my every move, thinking I am going to let them out on fresh pasture. The girls adore fresh pasture. Even if they are on good fields, it still takes a week or so before they settle back into calmness and quietude.

As soon as the sheep are taken off a field, this is where my stinky, temperamental, gas guzzling mower comes into play. It's important to get right out there and do any mowing I want done, so the pasture will have time for regrowth before the sheep are rotated back onto it. This is when any tall growth, thistles (that have escaped my chopping tool), and weeds get cut back. The sheep won't eat long tough vegetation. They might trample it, but they won't get much nutritional good out of it! When I mow these little pastures, I will check for and chop thistles and also seed any bare areas.

Normally by this time, it would be futile to seed grass, but with all the wet weather, the seed takes right off and flourishes. Once the pasture is mown, seeds sown, and thistles chopped, I always experience a deep feeling of satisfaction. In these moments, I feel like this is what I was meant to do. For just a moment I feel like I'm almost a real farmer. :-)

Early Morning After the Rain

Blue & Lanny Wilson Meet Me at the Gate

The early Morning Sun Reflects Gold & Green off the Dew

Hidden Surprises. Can you see her? Near the steps of the house, this lovely blue flower sits quietly amongst the rampant green of primrose and mint. Can you see her yet? In the middle at the bottom of the photo, is a tiny brown quail hiding. Her two chicks are safely tucked away out of sight. (okay, she isn't real...but she still delights my heart when I see her there)

It's the Weekend!

Wanna Play? Huh? Huh?
(biggify the pic for the full effect of that face!)

Fairlight Orion

Fairlight Orion

(Locksfield Griffen x Fairlight Luna)

There is good news and bad news about this lovely little fellow.

Good news: He is developing very nicely conformation wise, with nice straight rear legs and good bone. Overall he is a gorgeous little fellow, who carries himself like a little king. Look at that wonderful crimpy fleece. I'm sure its very soft. (ha--see below) His mother, grandmother, and grandsire all have very nice fleeces. I'm very impressed with this little guy. Being my first yuglet, of course he always catches my eye!

Bad news: He is wilder than a March hare. Or maybe I should rephrase that. He is very scared of everything. Especially me. He clings to his mommy all the time. She clings to him. They very much stay to their selves. I think once he is weaned and in with the other lambs, he will gain some much needed confidence. Also his tail is a bit 'stringy'. It's actually shaping up a little nicer than I expected. The length seems to be acceptable, he just has some long whitish hairs that distort the looks of the tail at the end. I'm a little concerned about horns, although he has some good horn genes in there somewhere. However his grandsire had very slow growing (but now very wide massive horns) as a lamb. They seem to be set rather low on his head, so I worry a bit about the 'turn'. His grandsire also has low set horns, with the 'sweep' or turn to the front, so they may be fine. Time will tell. Lastly--if you haven't noticed by now, my lovely little yuglet boy has the dreaded tale-tell lightening around the eyes, that brands him as a musket, which means he will fade. Aw...well. He is still gorgeous. Allena has plans to perhaps use him on a ewe or two this fall, if horns continue to grow correctly. He will be 'grown out' over the winter at her place and then we shall see how he turns out.

Fairlight Luna

(Minwawe Redford x Locksfield Willow)

Here is Orion's dam as a lamb. I think she gets the award for cutest lamb ever born here. She is what is considered an 'Ag Flecket'.

Counting Sheep

36 Sheep

It seems like I spend an awfully lot of time 'counting sheep'--and not at bedtime either. If you are a shepherd, it is a natural instinct to count your sheep anytime you are near the field. During the spring when the lambs are little, or if the weather is terribly hot, or its terribly cold, or.. then I try and count everyone morning, noon (if I'm home) and night. I count them when I feed them in the morning, before they head out to pasture. I count them when I bring them in for the night. I count them one last time late in the evening, when Boone goes outside. There is a terrible feeling in my gut when the numbers come up short. If a sheep is hung up somewhere, and the rest of the sheepies run home, leaving it behind, that sheep will cry and cry. If I hear that, I know that in all likelihood the trapped sheep will be okay, once I extricate her. It's when the missing sheep is silent. That is when you know something bad has probably happened.Can you count them all??

One time, all the sheep came running in, but there was one missing. A quick look around and it proved to be Gracie's (Dorset) little lamb, Hope. It had been a very rough year anyway, and the fact that Hope was even alive was a miracle. I was heartsick as I struck off through the field. I didn't see her anywhere! That was bad. Something must have gotten her. She was all white, so it would be easy to spot her, if she was in the pasture. I grew more frantic. Maybe she was over that slight dip in the field. I dashed past the big dead tree, and over the slight rise. I could see the rest of the pasture. No Hope. I turned around to scan behind me again, and there she was! All curled up in the hollow of the dead tree, basking in the late evening sun, sound asleep. I was so happy and relieved. I picked her up and scolded her all the way back. Then I scolded Gracie too, who is an normally an excellent mom. Gracie was shocked all the way to her sheepie hooves to see me carrying her lamb! She looked around her at the other sheep, and seemed to say--but I swear she was just here! I know she was right here... Priceless.

Sometimes though the ending is sad. So when all the sheep come running in and everyone is accounted for, I shut the gate with a happy, contented feeling.

While the rest of the world thinks of counting sheep as a way to rest, shepherds are counting sheep as a way of life. It becomes second nature. I took these pictures, because it's extremely rare that the entire flock is ever still or in the same area like this. There are 36 sheep in this photo. The entire ewe flock. Trust me there are 36, even if you can't see them all. There are several little babies hiding behind the bigger sheep. Sixteen of these are lambs, so the normal flock isn't usually this large.

Sometimes counting sheep is like herding cats, and can be frustrating. Especially with the numbers up to 36. As you can tell the pasture they are in is shot, and I'm getting ready to turn them on the upper pasture. I wanted to fill them up a bit first and had loaded an old tarp with loose hay out of the barn. I nearly didn't get out of there alive. Talk about mob scene. For some reason the shutter was sticking on the camera, so in the upper left corner of all these it looks like a terrible storm cloud moving in, but it's only the silly camera.

If you ever think about counting sheep as a way to fall asleep, trust me when I say, counting sheep is not considered a way to relax on this tiny farm.

How to Cool Off in the Summer Heat...

......Brought to you by Boone and Ariel....

(with a few words by their sponsor!--This is Boone's new pool. He only likes to wade though, no sitting or laying down in it. Ariel sleeps with her head right against the fan, whether she is outside or inside at night. Maybe she likes the 'white noise??) And all those sacks on the bench above the dogs? Fleeces. Yep, fleeces that haven't been skirted for the second time yet.....)

Tabitha's Ewe Lamb

This little ewe lamb is out of Locksfield Griffen and Locksfield Tabitha. She is a pretty little girl, very feminine and correct. She has an interesting fleece, it is rather long and free flowing with loose crimp. So far it is very soft and luxurious. When she was born she had brown cheek markings and she still retains them at two months. I'm hoping she might be a modified. She also had a good size white spot under her throat, which has since 'went away'. Her solid black twin sister has been sold, and this little ewe is looking for her new home too. If she doesn't sell, she may be a keeper for me. Right now I have one keeper ewe lamb in mind for sure (sister to Omen), who is also black and also has these faint brown smudges around her face. I'm also having difficulty not keeping Willow's lovely little musket ewe and this girl of Tabitha's! Ah, the decisions! However, I have got to get the flock down to a more manageable size--for all our sakes---mine, the sheepies and the pasture!Even though nameless, this little gal is a charmer. She is a bit shy, but will come up and sniff and check things out. She also has been known to stand up on or paw my back, when I'm otherwise occupied. Her mother is a sweet little moorit ewe, who consistently twins every year. Her sire is a black smirslet/sokket, so she should carry some spotting genetics.

If you are interested in a young starter ewe flock, I've got four little ewes who will make a wonderful foundation for you (If I don't change my mind...ha)! All spot carriers and including colors of black, moorit, musket and possibly shaela.

Spoiled Rotten and Proud of It

This is Kelly. Kelly is the only Sheltering Pines Jerome lamb born here this year. Although very nice in every way---lovely conformation, fleece--Kelly had a problem. Kelly was way to friendly. So along with his fellow flock sons he was wethered. Kelly hasn't forgiven me yet. He isn't wild but he looks at me with reproach, instead of running into my arms like he used to. I have to tell you this breaks my heart. When Kelly was just a few days old he learned his name and would come running. We conspired together to get his flighty mom into the barn for the night. I would simply carry Kelly to the barn and she would be forced to follow. Kelly loved this, because if I carried him, he didn't have to get his little hooves muddy. Kelly's mom is a goose. She is somewhat tame, but being a mother has evidently initiated all her flight responses. She dotes on her boy and he pretty much calls the shots. If he is hungry and his mom has strayed, you can hear him screaming for her. He has a very distinctive high pitched scream. Sometimes I think he can carry a tune. He works at it.

Once he is weaned I expect that Kelly will like me again. He isn't wild, and he is curious, so I think when Mom isn't there to tell him to run for his bloody life, he will be the friendly little fellow he started out. I know he will make someone a wonderful fiber pet. After all it's me he is unhappy with. I wonder if I could hire someone to come in and do all the future 'bad stuff'?

Griping About the Weather....

A Storm Rolls Over the Eastern Sky

I try not to dwell on the weather weirdness on the blog, but it really has been a strange year. This area (and most of the Midwest) has been hammered with heavy storms from back to the first of the year. I really don't know what our annual rainfall amounts are up to now, but I do know that there are places on the farm that still haven't dried out. (My back yard being one of them). Almost every night the last week violent storms with heavy rains have moved through during the night. So far we have been blessed to not have any serious direct wind damage or tornadoes here around the farm. My Chinese Elms in the front of the place have taken a severe beating and have lost at least three heavy large limbs. I also had a limb twisted out of my redbud here in the yard. The big wild Cherry tree still remains down on the fence. Others have not been so fortunate and have lost lives, homes or buildings. It still strikes fear into my heart, when the storms come up. That is if I can get awake enough.....

I have appreciated most of the rain (okay some of it ;-), but it really has been too much of a good thing at times. Along with the cooler temperatures in the early Spring, it seems it has had the opposite affect than one would desire on the hay fields. There was growth, but when I went out to look through the fields, I found most of the field very thin, with many bare places where grass hadn't come up. I suspect that the first hay cutting will be of minimal quality, and that will be if the farmers can even get into the fields. I'm hoping that there are second and third cuttings, and that they will be a lush and full crop. I know hay prices will be astronomical anyway, what with the gas prices, if there is a shortage, it could get very rough.

On to other more pleasant topics. I've been spending most of my free time this past week, working on the place. There was allot of mowing needing to be done, and I'm still planting garden. I know... a little late, huh? All the tomato, and pepper plants are in, as well as some watermelon and cantaloupe. Still working up the pumpkin patch. I've also planted several areas to flowers. I seeded some spinach and lettuce, but evidently the seed was so old it wasn't any good. So I'm planning to reseed that bed. I also planted some cabbage. I have never planted cabbage, but at the local Amish store, they were giving the plants away. I've also planted some flower annuals--marigolds, dianthus and begonias. Things are starting to shape up. There for awhile every Spring, it seems I only have a tenuous hold on the 'wild things', and can barely keep even with the growth. Finally things will slow down and I can start to make inroads. The gardens take shape, the yard begins to look less wild. It's still hard to pass off the rampant fescue growth at the gate as 'ornamental grasses' though.

I'm getting ready to work over the mess of a backyard. I'll do a separate post on that. It's a terrible mess, did I say that? So far I've had the mowing crew come in and try and make some headway on it. (This mowing crew is four-legged and works for food). Since all the heavy rains this year, my backyard pathway has become a miry swamp area. I travel this pathway heavily as it leads to the barns and sheep pastures. My goal is to build up the area and then put down sand, gravel and some stepping stones. I'm still working on the 'building up the area'. Yesterday, I did buy the gravel and stones. I have the sand from the weight bags I use in my truck--the bags disintegrated this year. I've been using old kitty litter for fill, and will put in a layer of wool scraps to help increase the fill. I'm excited about it, and hope it turns out nice. I also bought Boone a much larger pool this year. Poor guy barely fit in the other one. It's so terribly humid that all the animals are moving slowly (including me). Boone especially seems to take it hard, with his large build and smashed in nose.

Hopefully I'll get time to post and can show 'real progress' on the back yard path in this next week.

Have a great one!