What’s going on over here?
You may be driving by the farm and see a lot of things in the yard at any given time and be like what is going on? Well, there is always a lot going on, as you know. But there are a few big things happening. I would like to share with you what your boarding fees are helping to accomplish!
The first project that you may have noticed is the little patch across from the house that has been tilled up for a few months and was full of giant rocks has finally been picked! My mom came up special a 6 hour drive for her, just to pick rocks and plan the layout of the…. Flower patch.
That is right, the field across from the house is going to be a wildflower patch. I am hoping to get the flowers planted by Monday. This will ensure that the flowers are blooming by late September and October. The perfect time to enjoy fall colors. This project didn’t actually use any herd share money, but I am excited to offer it to members for free!
The next project you may have seen is all the hay equipment and wagons. We did make some nice silage bales for the herd share herd on Sunday last week, but with all the rain we have had and now cooler temps coming in it will probably be a few weeks before we make more. Your payments help purchase the fuel and parts for equipment.
I also have some projects going on inside the barn that you can’t see unless you come inside. One of them being the milk house. I bought a bulk tank! The hot weather has made it difficult to chill the milk as rapidly as it was before. It also has been a challenge to have enough milk to bottle on certain days of the week. The bulk tank is 30 gallons so I will not have a problem for a long time!
I also got a commercial dishwasher to help clean the jars. This part is the most time consuming as I have to wash, rinse, and dry jars before I can put milk in them. Now that I have the dishwasher that will be a little easier, but I am having a hard time deciding how to setup where the bulk tank is going to go so it is not in the way of the dishwasher and vice versa.
The last project that has been started recently is the testing room and office. I hired my brother to come and remove the old feed bin that was in part of the feed room so I can use it to test the milk and have somewhat of an office space in the barn. This project is not of high importance, and will likely be an over the winter thing, but it is at least started.
Did I mention that in July we will be pouring concrete for the headlocks in the barn? I can’t wait for the cows to be able to freely roam the barn! Because of your support I have saved enough to get the concrete.
You have made all this possible! Your support helps us do all these projects to care for the cows the best way possible.Thank you for all your support and I hope to see you out at the farm.
