The Tough Life
July 23rd, 2007 by Northern FarmerThis summer we’re in the midst of a severe drought in our area. I thought last year was bad, but this is just adding to it. You couldn’t get it to rain here for anything, plus I was just driving through a local town and the bank thermometer said 99 at 6:15 PM, so it’s a tad bit on the warm side. The neighbors are combining oats as I write and I’m next, in a day or two. I use their grain head, put it on our combine when they’re through. I was swathing oats last week and it seems like a good portion of the oats is average or slightly above average. Anything on high knobs is down to almost nothing though. But at the edge of swamps it’s awesome. Same with the corn, lookin good in the lowlands, but burning to a frazzle anywhere else.
This afternoon I did something I’ve never had to do before, I had to abandon a pasture and bring the cows and calves home to stay a while in the feedlot. Makes sense too. There were several reasons. One, absolutely no grass what so ever, second, no more water, the creek officially dried up, and third and this is a big third, the electric fences wouldn’t hold cattle anymore. The ground being so dry they just walk through them. Don’t get the slightest shock, nothing. Well, we put up ground wires but the calves are so addicted to getting out they just crash the fence, ground it out and walla, dead fence even with ground wires.
To make matters even more interesting, in another pasture the water pump burned out this morning, and with near 100 degree temperatures coming for the day water is a bit important to sixty head. So in one pasture this morning the fence was tore down by the calves, meanwhile we’re getting water going in another pasture. The joys of farming eh! I’ve come to the conclusion about watering systems on this place and I’m going to scrap the solar powered systems on all pastures. Why? Cause they ain’t worth a tidily! Nothing but pure trouble and end up costing me many times more than any other system a person could have. I’m more than satisfied with our Honda pump, a four hourspower jobby, that can fill our 800 gallon stock tank in less than five minutes on a thimble full of gas. Just have it out in the pasture, setup for the season and everyday when checking pastures in the morning just give em a pull. Now this might go against the grain of some who figure that these alternative systems are so great but I gotta say, they ain’t worth anything. When it’s hot out and the watering system doesn’t work and there’s sixty head of desperately thirsty critters waiting for a solar powered system to dribble out water once we get it going again, well anyone with any experience with cattle know, that’s a nightmare. The energy savings will be huge, scrapping the solar waterers because of all the trips saved to and from the pastures, all of the time in pickups. A huge savings of energy and money.
So it looks like a long, rough season ahead. Nothing new there. Sometimes I like to write things like this because the joys of farming ain’t all joys. To tell the truth I was getting pretty down in the dumps the last few weeks watching everything go caput. But if you want to stay farming, down in the dumps is not the place to be cause you won’t be farming long. Either you’ll end up quitting or be swinging with a rope around your neck tied to the machine shed rafters. I’ve known of both, it happens, more often than a person cares to admit. This ain’t la la land. This is the last bastion of man going head to head with nature and man sometimes loses, big. I’ll write it and I’ll say it, there’s a little to much joy, joy being handed out on back to the land, back to farming as far as I’m concerned. It ain’t a tranquil happy go lucky life. It’s all out tough. If a person wants what’s called security in this day and age, stay away from farming and just be happy with the corporate masters cause there’s a whole lot less to worry about if you can just accept your life being a cog in the machine. And I mean it, there’s insurances, a paycheck, you ain’t gonna get hailed out, droughted out, flooded out, burned out, you name it. You’ll have weekends, holidays, vacations and all that. We have none of that, none.
So why am I stuck here in this burned out land, feeding cows in July, the second year in a row and third year of drought? Quite simply, I was born to do it and can’t see myself doing anything else. I’ve worked out in my younger years and always dreamed of farming, being on our own. I look at this drought, just smile and laugh saying, “You though you almost had me done in eh? No way! I’m gonna fight back with everything I have and I’m gonna win!†And someday when the rains return steadily and things are green again and our eyes ain’t red and sore from the never ending dust we can be satisfied that we beat the odds. To some that might sound stupid or some other words could be used that I don’t ever use myself, but folks, that’s the bare truth of the matter. That’s the heart and soul of anyone that’s gonna make it here. It’s a fact! It’s a determination that society can’t and probably never will figure out. This, “you deserve it†society is so far disconnected from what real farming is that it’s like a whole nuther world. The thinkers can think, the experts can expert, but the farm families will defy all odds and keep going on.
July 23rd, 2007 at 9:58 pm
Ya know..I used to comment here often but after a time it seemed that if you didn’t agree with the post your comment was either ignored or answered in a way to let you know your comment really didnt’ mean a hill of beans anyway. Maybe if my name was Patrick instead of Patti my comment might pull a little more weight? oh well ..we women should just stay in the house baking thoses yummy cookies eh?
July 23rd, 2007 at 10:10 pm
Well my friend I thought I had it tough down here in Kentucky. Been fighting with my cows a couple think they are deer and want to jump fences (Been tempted to mount there heads on the wall) if ya know what I mean. Funny my pump is broken also leak between pump and source. We started the year with a small drought hay crop was about half normal yield. Craziest year I have ever seen. Warm in January froze out crops in April no rain all spring until a couple weeks back now here it is in late July 85degree days and 50-60at nights. JUST REMEMBER GOD IS SOVERGN!!
Left public work after 21 years to return to the farm now I mom, and our six kids are trying to live our dream. As you said it is tough, aggravating, and tiring, and we love every minute of it. After hearing your “Plain Talk†with Rick I wish we were neighbors. Love to have some over the fence talks with you, or some good old hard working conversation. We will be praying for you guys, for a pouring out of both rain and for more fruit of the Spirit. We all need the later.
July 24th, 2007 at 5:53 am
And the top of the morning to you Patti!
Well, if you ever bake up a batch of them yummy cookies just holler cause I like cookies!
AC,
Get to know all the local news that you’d never find in the local paper, you know, the important stuff!
Thanks for the comment! Sounds like you have a wacky year to and I do know the feeling of wanting to mount a cow head or two on the wall, heck, maybe even a calf head or two!
Is Rick still selling that CD? Hmm, I was hoping it would be forgotten, oh well, I wonder what Rick would say if he seen this place now. Lookin like it got hit by an air burst nuclear bomb. Even the thistles are getting done in, then you know it’s serious!
One thing about the cattle walking through the electric fences this year, it does make visiting with the neighbors an almost daily event cause sometimes they’re helping me get those varmints back in. Takes five minutes to get the cattle back in, (they know they’re guilty), and then an hour shot shooting the bull with the neighbors. Not a bad deal really
Thanks for the prayers, they’re always welcomed and needed. And may God Bless You and Yours!
July 24th, 2007 at 8:32 am
Well Tom,
If it was easy, think of all the fun you wouldn’t be having right now. Gotta agree with you on the pumps. After years of trying anything from solar to old boat bilge pumps, I’m pulling starter cords now too and loving it. (OK, maybe not loving it……). Now while I pump, I can catch up on the Gospel (someone told me to carry a bible with me once), or squeak and squawk away on the ol harmonica.
The other truth is that electric fences are the devil incarnate!! I’ve just finished refencing All them blasted things with barbed wire or field fence.
Come to think of it though…. those things were solar powered too… Hmmmm… and too much sun is causing the drought…. and solar water pumps are evil…….. and I never liked the song “Here comes the Sun” by the Beatles….and……
Have fun with them oats, I think I’ll just sit back and drink a Sundrop…….
Brad
July 25th, 2007 at 12:24 am
Hi Tom…
Dead Thistles huh? That’s pretty dry. Our thistles are still green here. Good thing too, because at least the sheep have something to eat! HA!!
Sounds like we need to have you guys over soon. Only problem here is that it’s sooo hot! We probably would have to grill out because the oven heats up the house so much… We arent’ eating too much stuff that comes out of the oven if you know what I mean. Maybe some grass-fed beef and some watermelon for dessert.
GFJ
July 25th, 2007 at 5:53 am
Morning Brad!
Busy around here and wasn’t able to get sat down in front of the computer yesterday evening to answer.
To the cattle waterers, the more I think about it there’s not even a comparison between the small gas powered pumps and the solar powered. The solared are energy hogs because they’re always trouble and I waste more gas driving back and forth to the pastures, plus buying parts all the time and also the headaches. Yesterday we went out to a remote pasture and the solar pump was dead, (again), the water was only down a foot or so in the 800 gallon stock tank. I had the Honda pump set up out there from the day before and one pull on the recoil and away we go! Pumped a couple hundred gallons in a minute and a half, the moter barely warmed up and I over flowed the stock tank. I figure it would take around two gallons of gas an entire season to pump their water when I do pasture checks. The Honda pump cost less than three hundred dollars, and Honda’s usually last near forever. The total cost is far, far less than the simplest solar unit. Plus, well, I can’t read the Good Book, it pumps too fast, but think of all the swear words I wouldn’t be temped to say. I’m tired of spending half the day suppressing a swear word explosion, would rather have peace and happiness with a full stock tank
This farm is mostly good fence but the remote pastures still rely on solar fencers and I hate them! Next year, if it rains enough to soften the ground, we’ll pound in real fence here and there. Another few miles of five strand barb wire and my blood pressure should drop considerably
Have a good One!
GFJ,
Gonna be another hot one today! I gotta figure out the right combination of jobs so I can lay a bit low! I’ll start combining in a day or two, rumor has it that it should cool off a bit around Thursday.
We were thinking about toodling over your way one of these days, it’d be another couple of weeks or so cause I want to get this oats and straw all done and hopefully there’d be a break before salvaging the silage. We’ll see. But one way or another I’d like to come over your way before we have to wear winter coats!
Looking forward to the viddles at your farm, mmm, that sure was good last year! I’d better finish the blood sausage I’m eating here and go take care of our dust farm another day!
July 25th, 2007 at 6:53 am
Wow! It was great to read your post and get some good honest sense of the tough times that farmers experience. You are probably right, there is too much joy-joy being sold in the back to the land movement, but I wonder if I would have bought in without all the joy-joy marketing. I especially appreciate the feedback on the solar-powered everything - sounds like it isn’t much appreciated.
Thanks again!
July 25th, 2007 at 4:43 pm
Don,
Well I tell you, there’s nothing wrong with the joy, joy stuff cause I know I do plenty of that. And that’s because there definitly is plenty of good times and they far outweigh the bad. I think it’s a good thing to write about the tough times as well so someone doesn’t figure it’s all tip toeing through the tulips.
Even with the rough years we’ve been having I just think back to the years I worked out and that’s about all it takes to put me back on the straight and narrow. Plus these heat waves, which I hate, don’t last forever and there’s better days coming. I still ain’t wishing for winter though, it gotta be pretty rough for that! But I look forward to Fall which is my favorite time of the year.
As far as all the solar stuff, I’ve experimented more than most folks and have come to the conclusion that it’s not what it’s touted up to be. Even for such minor tasks as fencing and watering. It might go against the grain of popular back to the land opinion but as far as pumping water for herds of cattle a gas powered pump is by far the most energy efficient and trouble free. Saves huge amounts of money, headaches, and energy. Again the energy I’m talking about is saving all the driving back and forth to remote pastures trying to keep the solar powered system pumping water. A rough estimate for us is a savings of fifty gallons of gasoline every time we switch to a gas pump verses solar. Plus the constant buying of parts and stuff for the solar units. And that’s not considering the huge amount of time and headaches that go with the solar systems, plus high blood pressure when there’s sixty head in a 100 degree pasture and the solar water system ain’t working and a person has a million other things to do!
I’m only writing this from my experiences, so if someone else is having incredibly good luck with them, more power to em! Whatever works! I just share our experiences as something not set in stone, just our opinions of things when we work with them everyday.
Thanks for your comment!!
July 26th, 2007 at 9:22 am
Alright anyone. I think I know what a swather is (like a haybine for oats…right????), but I can’t figure out why you would swath oats??
I guess I’m just showing my ignorance, but I always thought you just used a grain head and combined em. Do they have to dry some before combining?? I thought the seed heads would shatter if they were dried.
Hmmmmm…. any answers would be appreciated.
Brad
July 26th, 2007 at 3:32 pm
Hey Brad,
I’m trying to put up a link here with a swather picture and your’s truely swathing last year. We swath oats because it dries out properly. Tried straight combining a little once and it’s way to wet when we do it that way, and that was during the 88 drought. I usually swath and then let it lay a few days or around a week.
http://healingwatersflow.blogspot.com/2006/07/harvesting-grain-is-ancient-job.html