Farming in the shade

The Farmer sold the corn recently--our first crop of certified organic corn. It will be feed for cows at an organic dairy farm. Storage bins are very dangerous situations. You don't EVER want to get in a full grain bin as it's emptying. As the grain empties out the bottom of the bin, you will likely get sucked down, buried by grain, crushed and suffocated. But once you can feel the bin floor, it's safe to go in. The last little bit of corn needs guidance toward the hopper in the center of the floor. The orange/pink stain in the snow is bees-wings, a type of corn chaff. The corn is loaded into the truck using a small auger. Full yet? Almost... Just two truck loads of corn--that's all we harvested. But it's a start!

We've had some really long stretches of grey this January. Cloud cover is the norm here next to the big lake. It gets old after a while to look at this, day in and day out. So sometimes we change up the scenery a bit, adding falling snow to the grey. We've had a lot of days where we think we're inside a just-shaken snow globe. But every once in a while the sun pokes through the clouds and blinds us. It's wonderful! But without the cloud cover, our temps drop. This past weekend our thermometer read -15 degrees F. Almost makes you wish for some cloud cover again. We're glad the temps have moderated again, just in time for the start of lambing.

And the first lambs have been born. This is baby #1, being tended to by a good mama. Shortly after this photo was taken, mama had to take a break to deliver lamb #2. Both healthy, strong ewe lambs. So now the busy time has come.

Sometimes in the dead of winter you need a reminder as to why you're doing all this work when you'd rather stay indoors where it's warm. So here's a couple of photos from last year to remind us of our goals--healthy ewes and lambs out on pasture. No sign of any babies yet, though it should be any time.

Before Christmas, I ran out of warp on one of my Union looms. It was bad timing, as it was just before Kerstmarkt, and I like to be able to weave more, if things sell well. The blue jean rugs did sell well, but I only had time to put the warp on--winding each section individually (see the pegs on the beam in the lower part of the photo?). Part of the trouble was that I was changing the number of threads per section, while trying to retain the log cabin threading I've used on this loom for years. Blue black blue black blue black black blue black blue black blue blue black blue black... Did you see where it switched? Or were your eyes glazing over? I know the feeling. This past week, I blocked off an afternoon, fired up the furnace out in the shop, and got to figuring. If you smelled smoke, it was my brain, overheating. (Now those of you weavers who do complex threading patterns on 8 or more shafts can just kindly refrain from posting disparaging remarks. I'm feeling puny enough...

Counting down to lambing time... First lambs could come within a week!

"There’s a guy in Illinois who’s a farmer. He farms 5000 acres of corn and soybeans over several areas. He is responsible for all of the business decisions for the operation, including which varieties to plant, when to sell what he harvests and for how much. His tractors and combines are huge machines. They are equipped with laptop computers and the latest GPS technology. As part of his income, he sells seed and cattle equipment to other farmers. He sits on the Board of Directors for a statewide farm organization, often traveling to meetings and conventions and providing input on the operation of county farm bureaus in his district. During busy times, he hires outside employees to help get the job done around the farm." "There’s another farmer, also from Illinois. A fifth-generation farmer, he takes environmental stewardship seriously..." Read the rest of the post here .

Sunday night it was foggy--a deep, dense fog. Monday morning we awoke to a frosted world. I couldn't help but head outside with my camera. Even the dormant perennials (that I should have cut down in the fall) were beautiful. And the trees that need trimming. Even the yellowed plastic shield on the mercury vapor light was softened by the loveliness around it. About this time, I realized I wasn't taking completely realistic photos. I was only taking photos of the unusual beauty. So I snapped a shot of the 7' icicles hanging from the chicken coop. But even those were cool, in their own way. The beauty is there, if you look for it.

Winter is very grey here in our part of Michigan. We escaped recently to a nearby botanical garden to enjoy their held-over Christmas displays, with decorated trees, a miniature cityscape, trains and lovely plants everywhere. Here's a favorite of mine--cyclamen, I think. I wonder if it would grow outside here in Michigan. Anyone know?

"My husband and I have been married 36 years and we have been Dairy Farmers for those 36 years. My husband took over the farm from his parents in 1972 , 2 years before we got married. But with the low milk prices we have been hit hard with bills that have backed up." Read more about why this farm family is throwing in the towel here.