[dominiquer60]

A disc will work great on winter killed crops like oats and peas. If you have rye, vetch or clover in a mix you may find that a moldboard plow will kill and incorporate these covers better. The Nordell’s use their plow to skim plow at a 3″-4″ depth, it effectively servers the roots to kill and doesn’t disturb the soil very deep, leaving the organic matter close to the surface.

Erika

[dominiquer60]

A guy who used to milk cows at the end of our road, long before my time, used to say that a cow didn’t really start milking her best until she was about 10 years old. He was know to milk a 20 year old cow or two:)

[dominiquer60]

I agree with Carl on both points, it is hard to outwit something as perfect as nature.

Erika

[dominiquer60]

Coming from a dairy area, often these cows are burnt out because they have bad mastitis, bad feet, won’t breed back, multiple prolapses, teats are too hard, etc. You could take a ok cow and perhaps make it work for a family, but you could be dealing with a lot of milk that you don’t have a use for. Cows that have always been milked by machine can often be very difficult to milk by hand. Personally I would rather beef a cow from a large herd than try to rehab her into the strange world of being an only cow with special needs, just because I have little experience with such problems.

Erika

[dominiquer60]

I worked with a horse once that was blind in one eye, she was used for handicapped lessons until she was 32 and was a saint. We used to put a race horse hood over her eye that had a solid hard plastic cup cover her bad eye and completely open for her good eye. This protected her eye from twigs when trail riding or other little things that she may not be able to anticipate.

A friend in college had a blind mare he drove with a stud, he put her good eye to the outside and the stud horse to her bad side, she/they drove for work and show just fine.

I hope you both can cope with this unfortunate issue, as long as you are both comfortable working together have at it, she is a great mare.

Erika

[dominiquer60]

Here is an article that brings up a few good points about food safety and how this bill will not keep our food safe.

http://www.naturalnews.com/030587_Senate_Bill_510_Food_Safety.html#ixzz16pkYVMPX

[dominiquer60]

They have an annual ice harvest in VanHornersville, NY. I think that the Grange packs it in the ice house and uses it for the summer ice cream socials. I have always wanted to go but never get the chance.

Erika

[dominiquer60]

http://truefoodnow.org/2010/11/30/federal-court-orders-first-ever-destruction-of-a-gmo-crop-orders-removal-of-genetically-engineered-sugar-beet-seed-crop/

[dominiquer60]

Andy,

There were many groups with a voice on this one. Consumers groups like Food Democracy Now and the Organic Consumers group were all for regulating Big Ag but supported provisions for small farmers. My state farm bureau could not take a stand on the actual bill due to “lack of policy”, but was able to speak in favor of the Tester and Managers amendment. MOFGA has been pushing support for the amendments as well. It seems as though the spirit of some of these pro farm organizations admitted defeat early and opted to support exempting small farms instead of fighting the big battle. There were quite a few consumer and big Ag groups that fought for no exemptions, an even playing field is what they wanted. I heard that big Ag was against the total bill, but I find it hard to stomach some of the anti Big Ag propaganda, just as I have a hard time believing Big Ag’s propaganda, both are guilty of exaggerating and being untruthful.

There are groups out there if you can find them. I was hoping the Small Farms Conservancy would do a little advocacy work, we shall see what happens.

I read tonight that the house is poised to pass s.510 ASAP, so call your congressperson if you can. It is a hard bill to say no to, after all who doesn’t want safe food? I feel that the problem is, what will the FDA consider safe food? Chances are it is not what I/we consider to be safe food.

Hope for the best,

Erika

[dominiquer60]

I am disappointed that it passed by so much. I hope that there is a provision for people that refuse to accept petroleum based agriculture as the only form of power.

“Farms will be required to follow Standards for Produce Safety, which FDA will be developing. These regulations will cover growing, harvesting, sorting, packing and storage of food, and will provide minimum standards related to soil amendments, hygiene, packaging, temperature controls, animal encroachment and water. “

This was a quote from a farm bureau bulletin today, our state was for making a small farm exemption which passed. While all scary, the animal encroachment part is particularly worrisome. I am on track to have a resolution passed that supports animal power for farm, forest and transportation at the state level. If I am going to pay dues, they may as well support a few things that I can stand behind, and they can’t fight for you if they don’t have a policy supporting your views. So hopefully this policy could potentially be used when making a stand on the new FDA regulations. Yes it is a long shot but you don’t know for sure until you try.

Raw Milk is just the start, wait until we have a raw vegetable movement with a black market for vegetables that have not been exposed to a chlorine bath 🙁

On a happy note I had a customer at the market this weekend who bought a bunch of carrots because it still had a little dirt on it, she thought they would be healthy for her kid to eat raw. He was crunching on one before I had change for her, “mom, you are right, they do taste better with the dirt still on.” It just warmed my heart 🙂

Erika

[dominiquer60]

Welcome Grandad, you are in good company here, ask away!

Erika

[dominiquer60]

still here in mind and megabites

[dominiquer60]

I bought an MD because that is what I was able find in good condition. A friend told me of a parts JD at an auction, but other than that sighting I have not seen JD around me. They may be around, but seem less common.

Erika

[dominiquer60]

Atta boy Geoff!

I have a good deal of non-scientific reasons, but it is also good to have some facts to quote, especially from well respected sources.

I think that the big one that worked in our favor last year is that raw milk gives young or new farmers looking for a low cost, low input enterprise a chance to have a lucrative dairy without breaking the bank or affecting the wholesale fluid market. More farmers= more Farm Bureau members, and the organization is starved and dying fast, so why turn them away.

I am sharpening my pencil and preparing for what those western NY farmers have to through at me. The guys in the east don’t care and would rather vote yes and support keeping opportunities open for those that don’t have the chance to inhert mega dairies.

[dominiquer60]

Awful catchy I say.

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