Early winter

After all the rainy days in October, November was a blessing with moderate temperatures, little rain and a few chances to see the sun. It let us get the soybeans harvested, and many of the endless list of to-do's that go with a livestock farm done so that we are about as ready for winter as we ever have been.

The prairie skies have been beautiful this month with fiery reds and vivid pinks blending into indigo and then azure blue as the sun moves. Television and DVD's can't compare with this display. Sitting on the porch or even by an east window with the morning's coffee is the best way to begin a winter's day! Winter, with its list of things that can't be done, must be nature's way of telling us to slow down and notice. It is harder to work a long day this time of year. In July it is relatively easy for even an oldtimer like me to work a ten or twelve hour day on six hours of sleep. But as winter solstice approaches, I find myself needing a full eight hours sleep again.

By the way, this message and other observations and thoughts both farm related and not appear on the blog on our website. Go to "News" from the home page or just straight to PasturesAPlenty.blogspot to have a look. Comments encouraged. Take care of yourself and whomever else you can this Christmas!

Jim

Now the weather has dried up a little in November and we are able to get some of our work done before freeze up, we hope. We took the small field of soybeans last week and found about ten percent dark and discolored which the buyers won't like very well but we are happy to get as far as we did. The corn still stands on the stalk and is showing blue green mold on many of the ears. We will try to get it harvested before Christmas and hope the mold doesn't interfere with the feeding value.

All of which goes to show, I guess, that farming is not industry. Farmers have far less control than the owners of factories and are often needing to change plans part way through. Our farm is diverse, and we have options. If we cannot harvest the corn with combine harvestors, we will figure out a way to send out the hogs! They know how.