Sunday, July 19, 2015

Hay is Here!

what a relief and a thrill to have great horse hay again - we were nearly out - knowing you have mouths to feed - goats and horses - and the weather has been so precarious...it is a relief, for sure.
we need about 3,000 bales for the winter months.

Saturday, July 11, 2015

The Benefits of Our Farm Cycle

As you see here - Gene is ready to hay - the land we own is beautiful - we are stewards of this land.  The horses provide the manure - recycled in 180 days - the hay we harvest goes to the horses for winter feed - the string from the bales of hay are used to tie the tomatoes to stakes - which he makes from downed trees - the goats clear some of the brush in their travels...
I hope to plant a vineyard in their fields some day.

The dogs act as deterrents for wildlife - to reduce loss from plantings  - but in the event they are brave enough to break the hound dog barrier - we plant enough for them too!
we do not farm every swath of our land - provoking farmers to ask to rent it or Amish to tell us we are letting it go to waste.  Does native plant life and wild life that thrive present a waste land? I'm not of their same mindset.  We give back to the land more than we take 1000 fold.  And that is just how we do it.  By the way, have you ever seen how much fallow land produces when it is still viable - tons of edibles, wildflowers, and interesting life forms of many shapes and sizes.

Lots of land is left fallow to revert back to forest - to act as cover and home for deer, woodchuck, coyotes, rabbits, and other mammals, birds, & insects native to NYS.
these bridal paths are mowed for riding, running hounds, and for better hay making - the grass clippings are collected in a TRAC VAC, laid around plants to add nitrogen.

Hay that's imperfect for horses serves as mulch for gardens.

We try to recycle, repurpose, and rejuvenate "God's" Creation"...