Under the weather...

I've been a little under the weather the last several days. I think I had malaria... or food poisoning from eating restaurant food. Whatever it was laid me low so I'm trying to get my feed under me. Drat.

Unrelated pic of the official drink of summertime in the Good Land.

We have all been under the unrelenting rain and it's starting to get everyone down. Mostly we had one nice day of the last ten and that was Saturday. The mud continues and we are working to control it as best we can. But at this point we need to just accept that many of our projects are just not going to get done and make other plans.

We've had some other hubbubery also so we are trying to get ourselves righted. Needless to say things are hopping here. Some of it is worth talking about and some of it isn't. So we've been dealing with that if you've been wondering where I've been.

But the weather had consumed us. If you are limited to being annoyed by the weather while walking to your car it won't make sense why folks like me - who have to work outside - are always caterwauling about it. But believe me it has been a rough go.

While my pals on the West Coast have been having a hot and dry summer we are swimming in mud and cooler temperatures. Normally I wouldn't complain about the cool, but I can't get anything done outside and not even the tomatoes are growing - so it's time to pivot our summer strategy and work on other things.

More on that later. This morning is about gravel and mud control.

Happy Monday everyone - are you having more storms today? The house shook from a thunderstorm for over an hour last nite and more to come today. It wasn't even a nice day - or nite - for ducks!

Summer Food

I love summer food. I always want to eat Mediterranean style food at this time of year. So we did....

We had a kind of Greek mezze plate the other night.  

Chicken kababs, hummus, tzatziki sauce, pitas, tomatoes and basil, lemon roasted potatoes, and zucchinis.

We also finally got a few things out of the garden. One of my favorite kids picked out the pepper plant for me....it's a winner. 

The potato harvest has been pretty good - some onions and garlic as well.

I'm hoping that we'll have a few more drier (and warmer) days to give the rest of the garden to catch up.

Happy Friday everyone! Have you dried up yet? Still in the swamp?

What am I doing with my big winnings?

Just in case you are wondering what I'm doing with my big winnings from Project Goats-Be-Gone.....

This is what.

Ah gravel.... my very thing.... I love gravel so much. Diamonds? Nope. Gimme real rocks. This would be seven tons of 8L and 57 Limestone right there.  To me this load seems a little light...but that's OK. I'm just glad I got it.

Seven tons was the most I could get delivered at one time. But I needed two different kinds - the smaller "8L" and then the standard gravel which is 57. So I asked for 2 tons of the small stuff and 5 of the larger. I told them that I did not want it mixed but separated.

The new guy at the desk was dubious. "That will never work." He said.

"Sure it will. And if it doesn't then that's fine too. Just load the small stuff in the front and the larger stuff in the back." I offered.

He shook his head like he didn't believe me. But previously I had talked to the other guy who knows what he is doing and we had worked it all out.... so I knew it would be a success.

The next day the driver came out and I showed him where to put it.

"There's two kinds of gravel in there." He said.

"Yep. That's fine." I said.

"It will get mixed together, you know." He said.  I just smiled.

So he flipped the switch to dump it....the larger gravel formed a nice pile. Then he pulled forward a bit and dumped it again. Voila! Two nearly perfectly separated piles of gravel.

I reserved my "told you so." I was too excited about all that gravel.

What I am going to do with it? I'm working on a project in one side of the Turkey House... and we also need it for mud control.

The mud is horrendous. The rain has been horrible. This summer has been a big washout. We had one day that was like "real" summer and was dry enough to work in the garden. I weeded as fast and I could and was still out there tilling when it started raining again.

Everything is a big mud pile or a puddle. No one is happy but the ducks...and the geese. The ground is so supersaturated that the continuing rain has no where to go. So we are all miserable.

I'll use the gravel to try and get the pathways walkable and also try and use it to fill in the worst of the puddles.

Since nothing is draining we have standing pools of water which are only getting gross and growing mosquitoes.

Our puddles are turning into bogs. Nothing is draining.

As soon as I drained this puddle it started to rain again. We really need to attack this problem. So much for us hoping that the summer would actually "summer" again. Yesterday it was raining and 70*... it's supposed to be 85*. While I don't mind the cool weather this is just getting ridiculous.

The ducks may be happy but they are only making everything worse by flippity flopping with their little webbed feet and "drilling" everywhere.  It's a big disaster. So all my big winnings and extra time will not be spent fixing the mud as best I can.

What do you do when it is like this? As always... the best you can. Keep everyone as dry as possible, make sure you are not letting water stand in buckets or random containers, keep everything drained as best you can....and hang in there.

If you will excuse me, I've gotta get out there and spread all that gravelly love around.... one wheelbarrow full at a time.

Happy Thursday everyone! Are you living in a big swamp? Did you get two perfectly divided piles of gravel? Did you give them the "told you so?"

How to take livestock to the auction...and update on my sale!

Hey who wants to go to the livestock auction? If you have made the choice to thin the herd then get packed up and head out to the Mt. Hope Livestock Auction tomorrow!

I just put the goats in my car. Yes I did. See how I used the wire crate to keep the 

goats from getting in the front seat with me? This worked great.

I feel better than ever about taking most of the goats to the Mt. Hope livestock auction. Not only is my barnyard nice and calm.... I already got my check! They pay super fast and wow was I glad. Since someone is going to ask (and it's not a secret) I got a check for $357!  I think that is terrific. This is the total amount of my big winnings after they take out the commission fee (about $30). So, yep! It was worth it to drive all the way up there.

Would I have gotten a better price if I had sold directly to someone? I don't know. But it was worth it to get rid of them all in one fell swoop - and I did not have to deal with any Craigslist weirdos. So that was worth it to me. Any twinge of regret has been washed away and I'm doing my victory dance for sure.  

So how do you take livestock to the auction? Let's do a quick step by step.

The first thing is that you have to make the decision. Thanks to everyone for their comments on yesterday's post - both here on the blog and also on 'the facebook.' We all have had to decide to do what was best for the farm and it was really wonderful to hear everyone's stories. I think sometimes we are hesitant to talk about hard things...but we really are all in this together and we all have the same struggles. So thanks, everyone, for sharing!

Then you just need to make a plan and pull the trigger. If you are like me sometimes small steps are easier - just so you can check things out. So I was glad that I took a few goats last fall. I knew what to expect and was comfortable doing this alone. But I also had to factor in drive time and gas money to get up there...and time off the farm. So I just had to change around my work schedule.

But if you have large stock... or lots of little stock... you might be tempted to try and arrange professional transport or rent a trailer or something.  Not me. Nope. I figured it was best to just rip the bandaid off and use what I had - so  I just put those goats in the back of my car. Yep! In they went.

Now for sure this could be tricky business. I had a long drive so I had to make sure I didn't have to make a lot of stops. And I needed to make sure the goats wouldn't totally ruin the inside of the car. Or end up in the front seat with me.

To best secure this livestock load we had to first put all the seats down in the car (or if you had a swagger wagon I guess you could take the seats out) and then line the back with a tarp. Someone told me once that goats won't pee in your car. Lies. Goats will very happily poop all over and then pee everywhere. So put a tarp down then packed it full of straw to keep the mess under control.

Next I used the biggest dog crate we had and positioned it behind the front seats to form a sort of gate to keep the goats in the back. I put the little goats in the crate and went and got Dahli and Daisy. They mostly hopped right in. Then I drove fast up to Mt. Hope.

It's beautiful to drive around  - be sure to check things out!

The thing about going up to Amish country is that it is a warrens den full of roads. None of them are straight so be sure to take or print a map AND get your GPS. Head directly for Mrs. Yoder's Kitchen. That's not where you are going first but it's easily findable and you'll end up there anyway. The auction grounds are across the street.

I approach the auction from 241 and there is a big, well marked entrance to the auction on that road. However, if you go to the intersection and turn right/south on 77 you will find an even better, easier entrance.

Take this entrance and follow to the right along the fence. On your left will be the big white barns. After the second barn you'll see where people are backing in and unloading. You'll see some folks up on the loading dock - they will wave you in. Or just see if there is a empty spot and back in. Ask to make sure you can load out there. There are other entrances for bunnies and such. I'm not sure if you can load out cows there or not. So be sure to ask. They will be happy to direct you to the right spot.

Now the excitement really starts to build.

An Amish man - and probably a helper - will unload your small stock. They will do it for you so it's no problem. It's a little unnerving to see your goats disappear around the corner but don't worry, someone is tagging them. These folks do a ton of trade and they have their systems worked out perfectly.

As your stock is being loaded out the guy on the dock will take your name, address, and phone number. He'll rip off a receipt and give you a copy. Then that's it.

That's it?

Yep! Isn't that fun and easy?

 The parking lot at Mrs. Yoders.

If you've timed it right head over to Mrs. Yoder's and commence to eat your body's weight in chicken. The chicken buffet opens at 11am. Sure they'll ask if you want bread but just wave them off and storm the buffet like you mean it. Eat every chicken in that room. I'm fairly certain that they have my picture plastered up somewhere in the back so when the servers see me they automatically start crying over their lost profits because they know I'm not there to play. And then they go and make more chicken.

Or you can walk around the flea market and the sale barns and check out the auction action.   The Mt. Hope auction and sale barn is an amazing sight to behold. It is a parade of humanity like you've never seen before. You can buy anything there. Tools, guns, antiques, bananas.... I'm telling you they have it all.

I stopped at a house that had a shop on the back. The sign said fried pies. I got all of them.

Be sure to give yourself time to drive around and see some of the other sights while you are in the neighborhood. You can go to Lehman's for all kinds of everything, or some of the roadside produce stands where you might see amazing sights, or one of my favorites... Heinis Cheese Chalets.

Believe me, after a day at the auction you'll go home full of chicken and counting all your big winning to come. It's a great day for sure.

So now that you know where to go and what to do let's do some questions:

So.. where's this again?
It's the Mt. Hope Auction 
8076 OH-241, Mt Hope, OH 44660
Be sure to check the schedule for their livestock auctions. I went on Wednesday. They have other sales on other days of the week including a horse auction and also a produce auction.

What time should you get there? 
I got there about 9:30 in the am. I probably drove home about 2 or so.... and there was still a line of trailers waiting to load out. The livestock sale starts at 11am. Check this schedule for when to load out and for more details. See also they have a hay auction on the same day.

Are you sure this isn't weird?
Nope. It's not weird at all. Mt. Hope has a great reputation and folks come from all around to buy and sell. They have excellent systems and I'm always amazed at how well everything works. It's way easier than you would imagine.

What or who can I take to the auction?
Right now remember that you cannot sell poultry at the auction! I even went over to the poultry barn to see. All they had was rabbits. I've seen all kinds of livestock in all ages, makes, and models. You can check out the market reports to get an idea of what is selling and how much.

Do you have to do anything to prepare your livestock?
What? Like give them a bath and put bows in their hair? I dunno. I just made sure everyone was reasonably clean and I trimmed their hooves.  *shrugs*

How long does it take to get your check?
I got this last one super quick - just a few days!

But what about.... um... cultural differences?
For who the Amish people? It's OK... really. Folks are just folks no matter what kind of hat they wear. Some people are nervous because they don't understand the culture but... there is nothing to worry about. These Amish people speak regular English and are very friendly. You will hear a kind of German/Deutsch that some folks will talk to each other in but that is OK.

You'll also see a lot of buggies around and on the road. Give the horses some room and be careful when you are driving.  Around town there is a buggy lane on the right side. The distances are short but you won't get anywhere fast. Just relax and enjoy the drive.

When in doubt smile and ask questions. Be respectful. If you are driving around and see a sign with something for sale that you want to buy or you see a shop you'd like to visit then just drive on up. One thing that I can't get used to is that it always looks like everything is closed because there are no lights on.... but since they don't have electricity I probably should not be overly surprised. It just takes a second to adjust to that. If the shops have lighting it is usually minimal. And bring a check book. Sure you can pay for Mrs. Yoders with a bank card but some of the shops only take cash or a check. I wouldn't go up on a Sunday as not much will be open.

Anything else?
Nope. Other than make sure you fill up the tank and expect some long stretches of driving without any kind of services until you get up there. The most direct route for me is not on a main highway. And one time I got lost and ended up seeing a lot of scenic roads....and zero gas stations. Yikes! Other than that - have fun!

Happy Tuesday everyone.. what do you think? Are you going to head out to the Mt. Hope auction? Tomorrow is Wednesday!

Not every body gets to stay. Goats. Gone.

One of the hard things I'm always saying about farming is that "not every body makes it, and not every body gets to stay." Losses are hard. Even if you do everything right you will still have unexplained, unexpected, and unpreventable losses. You feel each loss heavily because you are always wondering what you could have done to keep it from happening.

Goats. Gone. Packed them up in the car and away they went.

But that is nothing like the weight of the responsibility you feel when you decide that not every body gets to stay. Recently we decided that we need to thin the herd. It was a big step. We are now down to two goats - Debbie, the grand dam of the barnyard, and Nibbles.

I packed up Dahli, Daisy, and the two little ones and took them up to the livestock auction. Now all I can do is pace around and wait for that fat check to arrive and then count my big winnings from the sale.

You'll remember I took some freeloaders up to the auction last fall. It turned out really well and I didn't feel bad at all. But reducing our goat number so drastically was a huge decision. I was really wondering if it was the right one. Having a big pay off will help but there is no guarantee.

The problem we ran into was that out of all the does, Daisy was the only one that had babies this spring. We didn't breed Nibbles on purpose and Dahli and Debbie did not deliver. Do we need goat babies? Nope. But we need the milk and Dahli and Debbie were are biggest producers - a gallon a day each. But around here coffee is for closers....er... I mean... hay is for milkers and neither of them were contributing to the farm. They were just standing out there burning hay.

Daisy, for her part, did have babies this spring however she is...was... our worst milker. Not that she didn't behave on the stand - she just didn't produce a lot of milk. For all the effort and maintenance she literally did not pay off. I gave up even trying to milk her and let her babies have it all.

The other problem was that some of those goats were on my very last nerve. I have hated Dahli every single day of her life - but she milked like her mother so she stayed. I tolerated her ridiculous behavior. But my intolerance for her was growing. All winter she destroyed the turkey house and acted the fool.

Not being pregnant changed her behavior. She made a power play for Debbie's spot as the herd queen and became aggressive. She became more annoying than ever. My very last nerve frayed to the bitter end one morning when I went out to open their door - and she kicked it open into my face. I'm not sure if she did it on purpose but I can't walk around here all day with a big goose egg on my forehead.

So all of these factors came together and we decided we had enough.  I have never been a "goat lover" but was merely a "goat liker"...which descended into being a "goat tolerater".... which became "I'm not paying for them to stand out there uselessly and be destructive."

This decision was a long time coming. Mostly we had to look around and decide what was best for our farm. The problem with having livestock is that you have to manage it like a business - otherwise you will end up with a very expensive petting zoo. Everyone has to produce and "pay their way" or your farm will just become a big money pit. Checks and balances. Inputs and outputs.

One of the things that we were cautioned about when we got our goats was that we needed to have a plan for the kids. Our plan was always to sell them. The problem is that every baby goat is adorable...but then they grow up and they may not be so adorable. Plus there is the expense. It would be foolish for us to run this farm into financial ruin just because barnyard animals are cute. This only works if you have a balance. You literally cannot keep every body.

So you can either make some hard decisions about who has to go or you need to stop the inflow of new comers. Attrition is a strategy...but it has a very long tail. We just lost our oldest chicken, Henrietta. She was at least 10 years old. Goats can live at least that long and longer - there was no way we could wait for attrition to balance the expense of keeping them versus what they were, or in this case, were not contributing.

There at two types of folks who are reading this. Those who are nodding and saying, "Yep. Seems reasonable." And those who are bursting into tears saying, "But those poor little goatsy-woatsys! How could you be so cruel?!?"

Effective livestock management is not cruel. It is The Way of Things. Farming can be emotional but you can't make emotional decisions and expect to have a well run, successful farm. Not every body makes it and not every body gets to stay. And we are not going to jeopardize our financial security for too many goats (or chickens or ducks or what have you.).

But didn't we make a life long commitment to those goats? No. Part of farming is that livestock gets moved around to where they are truly needed and where they will most benefit. That is just part of the deal. Debbie came to us from a professional herd where she did not fit in. She was the problem child there but she was just what we needed. Think of livestock as chess pieces - they are all moved around for the greatest benefit for all.

Unlike our companion animals we see the barnyard crew as livestock. We are not as emotionally attached to our livestock as our dogs and cats. What is the difference? Value, benefit, contribution. We use these as our measuring stick for who gets to stay and who has to go.

Nicholas's value is immeasurable. You can't tell from this picture but he is an apex predator.

We also see a hierarchy among our animals.... food and not food. Apex predators and prey. I tell you the truth - I always root for the lion or the wolf and not the antelope or gazelle. I naturally lean toward predator animals so it is no surprise that we have a house full of wolves and tiny lions. You might not see Nicholas's value but I do.

We also had to factor in what was best for the goats. This summer has been nothing but rain and frankly our barnyard is a muddy soupy mess. So many feet were making it worse. Having fewer feet will make it easier to manage. Our hope is that they ended up auctioned off to a farm where they need more goats - unlike us who needed fewer goats.

Why didn't we just butcher them? Mostly because they are more valuable at the livestock auction then as food. Someone is going to get a terrific milker in Dahli. Daisy is the reason that folks love goats. The doeling had extraordinary coloring...and that little buckling? Um... pretty sure he is going to end up on someone's table but they will value that meal more than we will.

So why did we keep Debbie and Nibbles? They are our oldest goats, the best grazers, and the least annoying. They will be used primarily as grazers and we will evaluate our position as being goatless later this year.

But what about the milk? Well. That is a tricky one. We have not gotten our pigz yet so we do not have the need for as much milk as we normally do for the barnyard. We also have to factor in the need for our personal use. Without saying too much about the personal details of our lives...

*OFG takes out a carefully worded statement from the lawyers (the ducks).....*  "We have determined that Management, from time to time, needs to strategically evaluate various costs and benefits for....."

Oh for heavens sakes. Let's just say, why keep the goat when you get the milk for free? I say no more on this.....*OFG looks offstage where the attorneys are flapping their wings wildly and gesturing her to stay on script......* altho my attorneys would like to add that we are loosely affiliated with industry partners that put us in a unique position that satisfies most of our home dairy product needs.

So taken all together these are the reasons why we have decided to end our relationship with most of the goats.

How do I feel about this? I might have had a twinge of guilt while I was loading up the goats in the car. And I was in a bit of a shock when I saw the sad little betrayed faces as they were being sent down the shoot at the auction. But then later that night I went out for chores and Debbie and Nibbles were already quietly bedded down in the goathouse. The next morning they stood quietly and calmly by the door when I opened it. After even a few days Debbie has never looked better.

So, yep, I think we made the right decision.

Happy Monday everyone! Do you need to thin the herd? Are you managing our livestock or have you gotten in over your head? If you need to make some decisions in the best interest of your farm, just keep saying to yourself, "Not every body gets to stay." It is the way of things, friends.

Your 4th of July PSA.....

We had a particularly hard day yesterday so I've got nothing to add to my yearly 4th of July Public Service announcement. You can read it here. And no, no one likes your stupid fireworks. 

 Unlike the stupid fireworks and bottle rockets, I never get tired of gathering eggs in my shirt.

It it insane to me that there we need warning labels on a hammer to advise you not to hit yourself in the head with it... but folks are perfectly willing to let a 3 year old hold a 1200* sparkler. You can't ride a bike without a helmet but explosives in your yard? Sure, what not.

It's not just curmudgeony old folks like me who don't like fireworks.... I know at least one combat veteran who is about to have a very very hard day and night. So look around and think about the folks around you before you grab the lighter and run right out there. Or better yet, just enjoy one of the professional displays in a nearby community.

Or even better yet, stay home and repent for annoying your neighbors with your stupid fireworks. It will be a hard hard day if this is the year the stupid neighbors burn down our chicken house with their stupid fireworks.

That's all I have to say about it.

*OFG grumbles some more about stupid fireworks and goes outside to check all the gates and fences*

I totally dig potatoes....and plant some more!

I took up some more potatoes the other day. Really I had to rescue them from the mud. We ended up having 19 days in a row of rain rain rain. It's been horrid. Thankfully we are starting to dry out. But look at these spuds!

Delicious! Plus check not my onion - yay!

As I was digging the potatoes with my potatoes-only-pitchfork I was thinking how effective planting potatoes is... what a great project! You improve the soil, get potatoes, have the fun of a 'treasure hunt', and then just when you need it - you get to use the straw just when you need it! I'll use the just-dug area to plant some beans - the soil is all ready. And I used the used straw to mulch down some other things. It's just a great way to manage the garden.

I had an adventure yesterday (more on that later) and I found myself at a nursery that was clearing out the last of everything....including their seed potatoes.  I saw a sign that shocked me.

"FREE potatoes?" I asked incredulously.

"Sure! Just take some." Replied the sales gal.

I still couldn't believe it - but I grabbed a couple of sacks of Cobbler and Red Pontiac seed potatoes and thanked her profusely. Then I drove away fast just in case she changed her mind. No one followed me so I figured I was OK.

These new seed potatoes will be planted today and then will be ready in September. I have plenty of time to get them in the ground.

I'm always so surprised at this end of the country. They act like the only planting time is until June then everyone just gives up. I'm not sure why - it seems so weird to me. Succession planting is a terrific strategy and is easy and fun.

We should have a couple of dry, rain-free days so I'm thrilled to get outside and do some work in the garden. The weeds are horrific and have taken over everything. But I'll fight the good fight and get these spuds in the ground.

Happy Thursday everyone - are you planting? Did you rain stop? Did you wish you had some rain?