On May Day Eve

Don't really need to say much about the weather...

When you see something like that in the forecast and you have oats to plant, you get busy. Kevin's Grandpa Ruben always wanted to have his oats planted so it could get snowed on, something about the snow bringing nitrogen down with it. Kevin remembers Rollie and Ruben working the fields with lights on the tractors to get the field ready. When Kevin saw this snow coming he decided he wanted his oats snowed on also, so down to the long field; that is where he planned on planting the oats this year.  Back he came a hour later; that field was just too wet, so change of plans.  Off to a couple other fields, smaller and with less low areas and with the help of Rollie, Kurt and Kori the hull-less oats and 1/3 of the regular oats is planted - bring on that snow! Now we get to do a science experiment to see if makes any difference, since it looks like rest of the oats will not be planted for a couple weeks, if we really get all this moisture.

Kevin took this picture by accident of Kori riding the back of the planter  - too bad about the angle but it shows her beautiful smile so I am using it!



























Here is an updated turkey photo - more feathers and they are out of the brooder now and have the entire chick room to roam around in.  They do still like it very warm in there and when I turn off the heat lamp (100 degrees just doesn't seem necessary) they respond by huddling into a pile and looking chilled (kind of like me when it's less than 75 in the house). All of my pictures so far feature them from the backside as they try to get as far as possible from me.  That's gratitude for you!

The eggs in the incubator have a week to go, so next post I should have some more chick pix.  I candled them this morning and there may be as many as 14 of them developing, which is better than I initially thought.  In order to ensure a better hatch rate for the next round, we split the flock yesterday evening.  It was handy that Kori had joined us for part of the day
since she is such an expert chicken catcher.  I could not decide which hens to leave with Julio to concentrate his efforts on - the oldest?  Youngest?  The most red?  Most congenial?  In the end, I didn't give any direction and we just moved the first 14 that Kori laid hands on - this could mean the we are selecting for "hardest to catch' for breeding stock.... Anyway, we will see how that comes out. 

And the new piggys - the little brown one seems to be about half the size of the black ones, but is oh so cute!  They are becoming less shy now that they know us, and more importantly (to them) our food.

Out in the goat pen - just the 2 kids still.  The idea that Echo just might not be pregnant at all is growing... Checking the calendar for when the lads moved out of the does quarters, she would really have to be due by mid-May at the latest.  Stay tuned.    Speaking of goats, did you know that they enjoy banana peels?  Love them!

So, enough for now I guess.  Stop by again next week - until then, be well friends!