How Was Your Day?

I am sitting in the office on a August day with the temperature sitting at 76. I have the window open and am enjoying a wonderful breeze brushing against my skin, what a feeling. To add to this serenity, with the window open, I can here the beautiful sound of happy chickens, the sound of singing birds and the rustling of leaves. Folks, it doesn't get much better on a Sunday afternoon.

I was thinking of the day I had yesterday. I got up early to load the van for the market and, after breakfast, sent my lovely wife off to sell some stuff. I took advantage of the cooler weather and seized the opportunity to try out my recently fixed chainsaw. She purrs like a kitten now. So, naturally, I had to really put it to the test and cut some trees. The weather was so nice that I got some nice fire wood cut and some cedar fence posts cut by noon. At that time the temp was climbing and I could feel the saw getting quite warm, myself as well.

But I got some wood cut. I think my wife was beginning to get rather nervous about our supply (we have none), so I proudly displayed the newly created pile to her upon her arrival home. I was so proud of it, but we know what God does to our pride, don't we? She took a glance and said "that's nice dear" and went on about her business. I was shattered.

We have a couple of round bales of old hay, or straw, coming to use for mulch. We are excited about this as we struggle to find enough to mulch with. This I leave to my dear wife, she knows her stuff about that. I have settled into the "manual labor" role when it comes to the garden.

All in all I had a good day yesterday. The weather was perfect. I just am a bit apprehensive about winter. I am praying that this cooler, summer weather doesn't transfer into winter. You know, skip fall and right into ice and snow. But< I can't live for then, I have to live for now and take the Lord's blessing in the nice weather while I can.

I hope you're enjoying some nice weather, wherever you are. Keep growing the grass. Thanks for stopping by.

Chuckwagons?

I was reading an article about modern day cattle ranches and their drift back to the days of yesteryear. OK, I skimmed it. Alright, alright, I just read the captions under the pictures.

None the less, the gist of the article was how modern day ranches are going back to the horse drawn chuckwagon as a means of cutting expenses. I can't say that I relate to using a chuckwagon to feed my cowboys. I don't have any cowboys to worry about and, frankly, every part of my homestead is within easy walking distance.

I suppose I could make believe that I, and my cowboys (my wife and daughters) were out on the open range. We could pitch a tent in the pasture, build a fire, sing songs and eat beans, (followed by plenty of Beano). I could play the harmonica to the melody of the singing coyotes in the distance.

Somehow, though, the romance of it all would be lost the first time one of the cowboys(girls) had to use the restroom, a walk to the house and back before I finished the first verse of "Home On The Range".

Truthfully, this whole thing got mee thinking about money saving ideas for the homestead. Like using oak leaves for toilet paper. I doubt that would fly in a household of women. Us rugged men types would have no trouble (ahem...).

Speaking of flies, here is another tip. Just let them be. The house flies, I mean. What kind of farm would it be if we didn't have a bunch of flies zooming around. No money spent there.

And who needs a disk plow? Just get yourself a herd of armadillos. They can turn dirt like nobody's business.

You don't need pesticides. Chickens are bug killin' machines. If you have a problem with rodents, don't call the Orkin man, just do like we do, employ an army of cats. They are quite remarkable hunters. They are so efficient, in fact, it is almost as if they never leave their favorite napping place on the front porch.

You can own your own fertilizer company, all natural, just buy some rabbit. They make good fertilizer and meat too.

I hope this helps. Let me know what you might add to this, I'd love to hear it. Thanks for stopping by.

Should You Back Fence?

I am going to assume you know the term "back fencing". I have been observing and thinking, lately, that there are two things that I have learned in my mob grazing/MiG hybrid system. I must add that I do favor the mob grazing style as it produces much more dramatic results in a quicker amount of time.

The two things that I have learned relate to one concept, that is the idea of back fencing. The first is elementary, back fencing keeps the animals from wandering back to a favorite spot and grazing it into nothingness. The idea is to allow the grass to regrow without hindrance, to promote fresh green stuff the next time through.

The other thing is that with the back fence in place, and the forward fence in place, I can control not just how much the cattle eat, but what kind they eat. This is one of the bonuses to the mob system. In other words, I am forcing them to eat the things they would otherwise pick around. This is not bad, just good management. If you have observed ruminants very long you will notice that they have their favorite spots. These spots are over grazed if they are allowed to. You end up with "patches" of ungrazed grass that, eventually, grow out of control. I have noticed that in this system, the cattle will eat Sericea Lespedeza readily. If it is let go and gets tall and "woody", then there is a challenge to get them to eat it. It can be done, I have seen them eat the tall stuff too, when they are hungry.

The point, here, is that you control more than just the size of the paddock. The goal is to control what they eat, as well as how much.

Happy grazing.

Yup, Leaves Are Good

I had written about this subject not too long ago. I found this to be very interesting, in that, many farmers still insist that animals will get sick eating the leaves of trees. More research is now proving that to be false. Thanks to Alan Nation for keeping us posted, he did it agian. Read on.




Willows Make Great Forage

Friday, 21 August 2009
Unwormed lambs with full season access to low-growing willow trees often had significantly fewer internal parasites than wormed lambs grazed solely on pasture in a New Zealand research study reported by Jerry Brunetti in the Northeast Organic Dairy Producers Alliance July newsletter. The New Zealanders also found that the willows eliminated maladies such as facial eczema and ryegrass staggers that are caused by soil zinc deficiencies. The willows were found to be extremely high in both macro and micro mineral elements. The anthelmintic effect of willow is thought to be based upon its high level of tannins. These tannins convert highly soluble protein from immature cool-season grasses into a by-pass form that is digested in the lower gut. This helps prevent the buildup of urea in the animals’ blood and fat that can cause severe health problems as well as off-flavored raw milk and grassfed meat. Brunetti said the willow trees in New Zealand are typically pollarded to create a low bushy top for the animals to graze upon. He said "fodder trees" of willow and poplar are common in the drought-prone areas of New Zealand for the summer supplementation of cattle, sheep and farmed deer. Brunetti said he has done forage analyses of woody plants in Pennsylvania and has been amazed at how nutrient-dense they were compared to pasture.

How Does This Government Grab Grab You?

August 14, 2009

Legislation could extend federal control to rain & underground water? Largest federal water & land grab in history?

How's this for a scary possibility?

The Army Corps of Engineers and the federal Environmental Protection Agency could regulate "all waters of the United States".
In short, the feds would monitor and regulate all bodies of water in this country.
What! It's feared that control could even extend to rain water and underground water -- even if you don't have surface water.
Believe it or not, there is a proposal (S 787) -- recently passed out of U.S. Senate Environmental and Public Works Committee -- that could result in the largest water and land grab in U.S. history. The strictly party-line vote (12 Democrats to 7 Republicans) opens the door for full Senate consideration and a possible future vote.

Here are some of the questions floating around since that committee approval:
* Is this a Congressional move to seize control of all U.S. waters?
* Do you want the Corps and the EPA in your backyard?
* Do you want the EPA and Corps to control your water?
* Do you want the Corps and EPA to control all your watersheds -- that means all your land too?
* Does this give federal regulators the right to control private property?

That's the fear raging if the new Clean Water Restoration Act (CWRA) passes Congress.
Now, it's scary enough that this type of legislation could pass out of the EPW Committee. But it's scarier when you realize that committee failed to hold hearings in this 2009Congress. How could any lawmakers in his/her right mind vote on something without public hearings? The same way they vote without reading the legislation!

Now, back in 2008, James Oberstar, chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, held a hearing on his proposed CWRA. Public outcry killed the proposal in committee. You have a chance to end this latest proposal too if you make sure your Congressional delegates hear from you about just how bad this bill is.

The scary part of this legislative proposal comes because the committee voted to take out the limitation in the Clean Water Act requiring the Corps of Engineers and the EPA to regulate only "navigable" waters. (Navigable: wide or deep enough, or free enough from obstructions, to be traveled on by ships.)

The modified version of S 787 gives the Corps and EPA the authority to regulate "all waters of the United States". The committee tried a trick by taking out the reference to "all activities affecting these waters" but most everyone seems to agree that because of terminology elsewhere in the bill, courts will have to rule the two agencies will have authority to regulate all activities affecting all waters of the U.S.

This same EPW Committee voted to overturn two Supreme Court decisions in 2001 and 2006 that required the Corps and EPA to only regulation "navigable" waters.
There is very real fear that the term "waters of the United States" as passed in this bill could refer to all waters subject to the ebb and flow of the tide, the territorial seas, and all interstate and intrastate waters, including lakes, rivers, streams (including intermittent streams), mudflats, sand flats, wetlands, sloughs, prairie potholes, wet meadows, playa lakes, and natural ponds, all tributaries and impoundments of any of these waters.
Some groups nationally have already spoken out in opposition to what is being classified as the biggest federal water and land grab in American history.

Cattlemen have expressed fears the bill would expand federal regulatory control to unprecedented levels -- "essentially putting stock tanks, drainage ditches, any puddle or water feature found on family farms and ranches -- potentially even ground water -- under the regulatory strong-arm of the federal government.
The National Cattlemen's Beef Association and Public Lands Council strongly oppose this legislation and are asking lawmakers to stop this proposal should it come up for a full Senate vote. There, as yet, is no bill number in the House.

Some fear this legislation would grant to the Corps and the EPA control over "your water and all your watersheds," including National Land Use Controls as well as control over all water and land.
How could that be? The bill redefines what the term "wetlands" means in law. If all land is wetlands, who would have power and jurisdiction to control all the watersheds in the U.S.?
This is scary stuff!

Imagine one effect here in Nevada might be the elimination of any monitoring and control presently held by Nevada Water Law as interpreted by the State Engineer. If our State Engineer had no control over water in the Silver State, all kinds of bad things could be predicted. Chaos"»

And how would special districts such as the Walker River Irrigation District be affected? Its farmers and ranchers?

Just think how the Walker River Basin Project would have been handled if the Corps and the EPA had control of its waters. With Senator Harry Reid's power over federal agencies and their budgets, Mason and Smith Valleys would already be dustbowls and Walker Lake's water levels would be at historic highs -- if they could get that water past the reservation.
Remember when the small community of Walker on the shores of the lake feared the tribe would own the bands and bed of the lake? If the feds control it, line up the moving vans.
Of course, plenty of our representatives back in Washington, D.C. will denounce this concern as fear-mongering nonsense. Fortunately, we have learned not to trust these people.
This all comes back to the public's lack of trust in our elected officials. We fear the steps being taken by elected officials who profess they know what's best for us when all they truly want is more and more control.

They hold the electorate in disdain. We are not smart enough to take care of ourselves, so they have to do it.

This is yet another example of a federal government "control grab".
And, Washington wonders why Americans don't trust them.

--Jim Sanford is a longtime Yerington/Mason Valley resident a a former Editor and Publisher of the Mason Valley News.

Be Careful Where You Keep Your Cow

A farmer kept a prize cow in a pasture through which a railroad track ran. Each day, at the same time, a freight train barreled by. One day after the train had gone, the farmer discovered his cow was missing. He promptly sued the railroad.

The railroad hired a young lawyer, and just before the case came to trial, the attorney bargained with the farmer, getting him to settle for half of what he had demanded. Proud of his achievement, the lawyer boasted as he handed over the check to the farmer, "You really had me worried. I didn't have any witnesses. The engineer was asleep and so was the brakeman. You could have won the whole amount."

"Well, young fella," the farmer said as he pocketed the check, "you had me worried too. You see that dumb cow came home this morning."

Are Chemical Fertilizers Harmless?

I received this in an email from my Fertrell supplier. The gentleman that wrote the letter is someone whom I've never met, but, he gives some very compelling statistics. I will spare you the body of the letter and just provide you the statistics as they should cause pause for thought, if nothing else. The background is that he and his wife were leaving the hospital after the birth of their second daughter. He noticed the nice, manicured lawn that surrounded the hospital that was completely devoid of all weeds and unwanted grass. Surely it had been doused with weed and feed. A strange time to think about chemical fertilizers, perhaps, but some things struck him and he began to ponder the future for his two daughters. Here is an excerpt from his letter.

"Did you know that a recent study found traces of 287 different industrial chemicals in the umbilical cord blood of 10 random babies? Did you now that pediatricians are reaching near unanimity in their conclusion that these environmental exposures are the root cause of increases in childhood diseases ranging from autism to ADHD and leukemia? Did you know that lawn chemicals, in particular, are outrageously dangerous for developing minds and bodies?So many toxic exposures cannot be controlled in this crazy world. Some that can, though, include lawn and garden chemicals. Two states, Connecticut and Illinois, have taken a look at the evidence and passed laws to eliminate lawn pesticides from schools and daycare centers. In Canada, courts have evoked the Precautionary Principle -- otherwise known as better safe than sorry -- as rationale for allowing lawn pesticide bans to sweep nationwide."

Do yourself a favor, visit the fine folks at Fertrell and give a second thought to using chemical fertilizer on your lawn or garden, or, even your pasture.

Out Of The Woods?

I love to read news bits from Alan Nation. When I come across one that I feel is worthy, I post it here. This is another one of those worthy tid bits, written, of course, by Alan Nation of the Stockman GrassFarmer. Yet more proof that we are far from being out of the woods. In fact, I would argue the case for a round of hyper inflation to come, but that is for another time, or blog. So, here is Mr. Nation's article, enjoy.


Farmland Values Fall

Monday, 17 August 2009
The USDA’s annual report said that farmland values fell for the first time in 20 years last year. Overall average farmland values were down 3.2% to $2100 an acre, the first drop since 1987. However, farmland declines were far more severe in the Mountain States where land prices were down 11%. In Montana, land prices were down 22%, the most in the USA. In general, areas dominated by livestock saw the worst land price declines and areas dominated by grain farming the least. However, grain farmer incomes are expected to drop 20% in 2009 and this could effect Midwestern land prices. The highest price farmland was in Rhode Island where prices were $15,300 an acre. The lowest prices were in New Mexico at $480 an acre.

So, You Want To Know More About The Meat You Eat, Eh?

You may have guessed that I am a real food, fit to eat advocate. In part, it is because of this book. I encourage anyone who is interested in where there food comes from and what is in it, to read this book. It is an expose' on America's industrial food complex. Frankly, it isn't very nice to the agri-businessmen who call themselves farmers. However, it is also very explicit in details and can be considered gruesome. It is not a book to turn you into a vegetarian, rather, a book that should make you look for a local farmer to supply your meat.

Here is a review from Publishers Weekly:

From Publishers Weekly

There are probably few surprises in this exposé of American agribusiness; if you haven't read horror stories about megafarms and slaughterhouses in Fast Food Nation, you've undoubtedly heard animal rights activists talking about the deplorable conditions in which cattle, poultry and hogs are processed "from semen to cellophane." To these tales Midkiff adds an overwhelming flood of animal feces (usually referred to in much more pointed terms), from frightened cattle that soil themselves in the slaughterhouse and don't get fully cleaned to liquefied manure that seeps into the land of neighboring small farms. Using formulaic left-wing parlance, Midkiff points out how giant food corporations wield political influence to save themselves from reform—ensuring, for example, that despite their size they will continue to be classified as farmers exempt from EPA regulation. He also advocates buying from local farms that practice "sustainable agriculture" as a means of resisting corporate meat without going vegetarian. (A useful appendix offers contact information for farmer's market associations across the country.) The book doesn't quite follow through on the claim to depict "the decline of the American diet"; although it certainly reveals the contamination risks in our meat and eggs, not much is said about the direct health consequences for consumers. (Aug.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The Economy Is Not "Improving", IMHO

Nothing New Under The Sun

This was sent to me in an email. I cannot vouch for the validity of the sermon, but it speaks volumes, none the less. Also, bear in mind, that this idea of nationalized health care is not new. FDR tried to do it too. These things are like a bad headache, they keep popping up.



Sermon from a church in Virginia recently. Gen 47: 13-27

Good morning, brothers and sisters; it's always a delight to see the pews crowded on Sunday morning, and so eager to get into God's Word.Turn with me in your Bibles, if you will, to the 47th chapter of Genesis; we'll begin our reading at verse 13, and go through verse 27.

Brother Ray, would you stand and read that great passage for us?...Thank you for that fine reading, Brother Ray..

So we see that economic hard times fell upon Egypt, and the people turned to the government of Pharaoh to deal with this for them. And Pharaoh nationalized the grain harvest, and placed the grain in great storehouses that he had built. So the people brought their money to Pharaoh, like a great tax increase, and gave it all to him willingly in return for grain. And this went on until their money ran out, and they were hungry again. So when they went to Pharaoh after that, they brought their livestock - their cattle, their horses, their sheep, and their donkey- to barter for grain, and verse 17 says that only took them through the end of that year. But the famine wasn't over, was it? So the next year, the people came before Pharaoh and admitted they had nothing left, except their land and their own lives. "There is nothing left in the sight of my lord but our bodies and our land. Why should we die before your eyes, both we and our land? Buy us and our land for food, and we with our land will be servants to Pharaoh." So they surrendered their homes, their land, and their real estate to Pharaoh's government, and then sold themselves into slavery to him, in return for grain. What can we learn from this, brothers and sisters? That turning to the government instead of to God to be our provider in hard times only leads to slavery? Yes. That the only reason government wants to be our provider is to also become our master? Yes. But look how that passage ends, brothers and sisters! Thus Israel settled in the land of Egypt , in the land of Goshen. And they gained possessions in it, and were fruitful and multiplied greatly." God provided for His people, just as He always has! They didn't end up giving all their possessions to the government, no, it says they gained possessions! But I also tell you a great truth today, and an ominous one. We see the same thing happening today - the government today wants to"share the wealth" once again, to take it from us and redistribute it back to us. It wants to take control of health care, just as it has taken control of education, and ration it back to us, and when government rations it, then government decides who gets it, and how much, and what kind. And if we go along with it, and do it willingly, then we will wind up no differently than the people of Egypt did four thousand years ago -as slaves to the government, and as slaves to our leaders. What Mr. Obama's government is doing now is no different from what Pharaoh's government did then, and it will end the same.. And alot of people like to call Mr. Obama a "Messiah," don't they? Is he aMessiah? A savior? Didn't the Egyptians say, after Pharaoh made them his slaves, "You have saved our lives; may it please my lord, we will be servants to Pharaoh"? Well, I tell you this - I know the Messiah; the Messiah is a friend of mine; and Mr. Obama is no Messiah! No, brothers and sisters, if Mr. Obama is a character from the Bible, then he is Pharaoh.

Bow with me in prayer, if you will. Lord, You alone are worthy to be served, and we rely on You, and You alone. We confess that the government is not our deliverer, and never rightly will be. We read in the eighth chapter of 1 Samuel, when Samuel warned the people of what a ruler would do, where it says "And in that day you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for yourselves, but the LORD will not answer you in that day." And Lord, we acknowledge that day has come. We cry out to you because of the ruler that we have chosen for ourselves as a nation..Lord, we pray for this nation. We pray for revival, and we pray for deliverance from those who would be our masters.Give us hearts to seek You and hands to serve You, and protect Your people from the atrocities of Pharaoh's government. In God we Trust.

The Every Once In A While Fertrell Highlight

Here is another product from the fine folks at Fertrell . This is a good way to add to the nutritinal need of your ruminants over the winter months or anytime you feed harvested feed.

Nutri-Sil. When added to silage and baled forages, Nutri-Sil’s live bacteria aids in fermentation. Forages retain moisture, protein and energy value, thus increasing the palatability and digestibility of the harvested crop.
Available Sizes: Paper Bag 50#FREE-Choice Livestock Supplements

As always, if you have any questions about Fertrell and their products, we'd be happy to answer them. You can click on the link above and visit their web site and you can find a dealer near you. If we can be of assistance, please email to: sppowers@iglide.net

The Last Of The Oklahoma Vacation Pics

These pictures were taken at the Cherokee Nation History Museum. The women you see in this picture are live and they are part of the walking tour through a Cherokee village. THere is also a nice, air conditioned history museum adjacent to the village. It was nice to see how the Cherokee's lived in the 1500's.
The first picture (with the women in it) shows a summer home. This is a picture of a winter home. All families had one of each, fairly close together, used in the mentioned seasons.

These are the pillars that are left from the all Cherokee girl monestary/school that burned in the late 1800's. The fromer sight of the monestary is where the museum now stands.

That is all of the pictures of our trip to Oklahoma that I will bore you with. Trust me when I say that we had an outstanding time and there are many things to see, just in the Tulsa area. There are still many things we didn't get to see, and a couple we would like to see again, when we can actually arrive more than two hours before they close. So, if you're thinking of taking an inexpensive trip to Oklahoma, go for it. It is well worth the drive.

Grass Fed Is Best

I came across this at Allan Nations blog, at the Stockman GrassFarmer web site, all credit goes to Mr. Nation. I have posted it here for your information. I have read this kind of information and the studies that go with it and find that this list is absolutely consistent. Choose grass fed, makes my mouth water for that little fella in my paddock!



A comparison of grassfed versus grainfed beef by Clemson University has found ten health advantages for consumers in the grassfed product. These are:

1. Lower in total fat
2. Higher in beta-carotene
3. Higher in vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol)
4. Higher in B-vitamins and riboflavin
5. Higher in minerals calcium, magnesium and potassium
6. Higher in total omega 3's
7. A healthier ration of omega 3 to omega 6 fats (1.65 vs 4.85)
8. Higher in CLA (a potential cancer fighter)
9. Higher in vaccenic acid ( which can be transformed into CLA)
10. Lower in saturated fats linked with heart disease.

This study was published in the June issue of the Journal of Animal Science.

The Nine Lives Of NAIS

Just when we thought we had this thing cornered, it pops up with a vengence. The NAIs bill is still alive and well, I found out this weekend. Apparently, congress shelved the idea, saying that too much money was spent with little result, only to tell the USDuh that they would not fund it UNLESS they came up with a MANDATORY plan. To make a long story short, the mandatory bill has passed the house, with little, if any, press or fanfair (surprise!) through the back door. This deal is now moving on to the senate. Folks, our ability to raise our own food and provide for our families is in serious jeopardy here. I urge you to look into HR 2749, which is passed, and beat on the doors of your senator's homes and tell them to knock it off! We don't want, we don't need it and it will be a nightmare to enforce! HR 2749-look it up, please.

Count Your Blessings

With so many very dumb things coming out of the federal government these days, it is hard to stay positive. Sometimes you just want to throw up your arms and yell, what are you people thinking?

With battles being waged on so many fronts it is difficult to remain on top of them all. In times like this, I am reminded to count my blessings.

One of those blessings is the fact that we have been receiving much needed rain. This has allowed me back into my pasture rotation that I thought I would have to abandon during the dry summer months. As it turns out, I only had to back off from the rotation for the week we were on vacation. The grass has recovered enough that I can fore go the hay, for a time. That is good news. We have to buy all of our hay as the hay around us has been taken.

This gives me comfort. However, our fine government is forcing the NAIS through the back door, with little awareness, and that causes angst. More on that later, as I get full details.

On another positive note, we will be placing our order for the fall crop of broiler chickens soon. We have received enough orders to fill our chicken tractors and our own freezer. We have found that these birds really sell themselves. People just love real food, and it is a blessing to do a small part to provide some to them.

One thing we are working toward getting a handle on is our rabbit program. We have stuck to it as it is a holon enterprise and has the potential of providing another salary. We, quite frankly, have been terrible with the rabbits. We have struggled to have a plan and breeding program in place that would be labor effective. We are working on this but time has become a scarce commodity these days.

Once we get that going the way we want it, we can then concentrate on getting good at it. The side benefit is that our family loves the meat. So, even if we don't sell a whole bunch, we can put them into our own freezer.

If anyone has ideas of suggestions on rabbits, or anything else, let me know by leaving a comment. I love to hear from you. Thanks for stopping by.