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@Carl Russell 39741 wrote:

I recognize that finances pose serious considerations, but I feel that it really comes down to people placing value on community

Carl

Like many of the issues facing society today, some of the onus is on the public. You can lead a horse to water (and we’re trying to) but you can’t make him drink (their acceptance and desire for community).

In Idaho, even and F350 is called a pickup

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trucks are larger than one tons. Believe me, they’ll let you know that right off.

[near horse]

@Kevin Cunningham 39734 wrote:

Me too, all Fords, one chevy, but I am not loyal to any of them as they all seem to break down equally.

Ditto – except after seeing the Henry Ford story my opinion of that company is forever tainted.

[near horse]

Scott and Carl – can you send that info to Axe Men? Please.

[near horse]

The single horse cultimulcher I posted was demonstrated in already worked soil with good tilth. A friend I plow with also built one himself although it was a 2 horse unit and he ran it over ground that we’d just plowed —- so pretty rough. It did okay.

The modified riding cultivator I never saw in action but they did demo one of those single horse walk behind cultivators and that thing was pretty impressive …. like a hundred ft row in about a minute vs how long to hand hoe?

Can’t speak to the draft much but if anyone can give us a calculated number it’s Andy! What do you think?

[near horse]

With regard to wheat grass alone – I assume it’s just the growing vegetation minus the spent grain:

A typical one-ounce serving contains only seven calories, no fat and virtually no carbohydrates and protein. Wheatgrass contains no essential omega-3 fatty acids nor does it have much vitamin content with the exception of 7 percent of the daily value (DV) of vitamin C. A one-ounce shot also contains 10 percent DV of iron, but only a trace amount of any other well-known vitamins and minerals.

So why all the hoopla over wheatgrass? Chlorophyll — the green pigment that plays a critical role in photosynthesis, allowing plants to absorb energy from the sun — is touted by natural health advocates as an all-star health compound that increases the blood’s oxygen content.
It’s the chlorophyll, wheatgrass advocates claim, that helps rid the body of toxins, strengthens immunity and improves the micro-flora ecology of the digestive tract.

IMO – the benefits seen in feeding sprouted grains over unsprouted are related to more full use/digestion of the stored energy in the grain. As has been mentioned, whole grains often can and do pass through the gut intact and undigested and that is why most grains are “processed” in some fashion (dry rolled, steam rolled or flaked etc) to expose the starch (stored energy) to digestion/fermentation. But even then, some starch might not get digested completely. Sprouting (just like one does when making beer) triggers the grain into “thinking” it’s time to grow and thus convert the stored starch into simple sugars (that we then ferment with yeast into beer) which are easily digested/utilized and more readily available than the starch was.

[near horse]

@NB axemen 39525 wrote:

I know that in the past they did most of the garden work with the horses…
This summer I plowed a new plot for the garden 100’x50′ or so… and then disked it, hilled it and cultivated it most of the summer.
Problem was when the stuff started to grow, my wife didn’t really want me in the garden and hilling it again as she feared the horses would walk on the rows.

I know they used to do it and i’m wondering what exactly can you plant and keep hilling/cultivating with the horses that will make you only have to hand weed the 2″ where the plant stocks are?

I plan on doing a “test Garden” this summer and seeing how good I can keep it up with the horses compared ot the hand weeding.
I know they will probebly walk on “some” of the plants, but is there a better way or equipment you can use when the plants get too tall to fit under the hiller?

TO my understanding, they planted most things on hills, then they would pass the cultivator between the rows and then take that loose soil and re-hill the rows to make the dirt smother the weeds??

I plan to make a hiller on my cultivator once the plants get too tall like tomatoes, so I don’t have to drive over them, but between them?

What do you guys think?

As you said, “I know they used to do it” and still do. Here’s a pic of an older riding cultivator modified with Swedish S tines and a pair of hilling discs.

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Here’s a link to one in operation.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KSGL1F7Cw1U

Michael – some I have seen are nearly 5′ in diameter – possibly for ease in deeper snow?
BTW – you did a great job with your roller. Nice work.

[near horse]

Not practical but certainly a marketing tool ……. haul your team and one of those HD treadmills to power a freezer. That would bring some more interested parties to your stand!!

[near horse]

George,

What type of coolers are you using? Just a standard “ice chest” style? Many don’t have much for insulation so I’m wondering about some home built jobs (similar to Andy’s freeze resistant waterer but not so big) for the storage. They do also make an insulated bag (breifcase sized) that comes with a gel pack that is removable and covers the bottom. It’s meant for heating in the microwave and then holding heat to keep food warm but I’m pretty sure it is also approved for freezing. Might that work for an up front sample of your product?

[near horse]

No remedy but a thoughtful prevention — keep your hands away from your face/mouth and wash them when you can.

[near horse]

I’ve been on forums where you have limited access as a guest user – example would be access to the draft animal subsection only while being made aware of the other “member only” sections. Maybe you’ve discussed this possibility already.

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I understand how you feel Marshall. It seems that if we’re not counted then we are assured of being of no consequence to the govt. It might be futile to expect to be able to outcompete the highly paid lobby big ag has but this might be one of the few places we can be counted.

Sadly, when I worked in animal science at the U of I, the prevailing belief was that the handful of farms/ranches that made huge money were the main constituents to worry about – not supporting all farmers in the state which is what a land grant school was designated to do.

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We’ve lived for over 20yrs with coyotes within 25 – 50 yards of our house and sheep/goats/dogs and chickens have all lived without a single incident and our fencing is not very good. Worst thing they did was teach our dogs how to howl!

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I end up doing as Carl mentioned. Don’t fill it out and then get a call from a very accomodating lady who hops thru the questions and … done. And I think “fogish” has it right … they just want to know what the distributions of various farming operations are and that can/does determine what support/assistance is available ( not to mention lobbyists).

I don’t think there is anything sinister behind this.

[near horse]

Wow – that is pretty neat. I read a part regarding trail/road maintenance and never heard of “rutters” tht go out and recut ruts for sled runners after a snowfall and “sprinklers” that water over the ruts and trail to ice it up for ease of load movement. Great pics too!

Thanks for sharing Andrew.

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