shannon brook farm newsletter 12-28-2013shannonbrookfarm.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/...dec 28,...
TRANSCRIPT
Shannon Brook Farm Newsletter December 28, 2013 The Farmer’s Tuning Fork As we roll into 2014 we are revisiting our farmer’s tuning fork. And what on earth might that be? Several weeks ago as I walked the fields to check on sheep and dogs the phrase ‘farmer’s tuning fork’ kept running through my mind. Farmer’s tuning fork, farmer’s tuning fork…I have been known to concoct plenty of verbal silliness so I dismissed the phrase even as it persisted in trying to gain my attention. After several weeks of the farmer’s tuning fork reappearing in my thoughts I decided there must be something to it. Revisiting the definition of a tuning fork I realized that as new farmers we first have to work towards understanding what our tuning fork is. And from there we work to align our activities and their outcomes with the perfect pitch of our tuning fork. One of the newly implemented features of the farm has turned out exceedingly well this year and is key to the care we provide the sheep in the winter. Late in the grazing season, as Fall rolls in with cooler weather, I’m happy for the sheep, dogs and cattle as they are comfortable compared to their existence in the heat and humidity of mid-‐summer and the bitter cold of winter. They express their happiness at random and surprising moments -‐ the sheep spring and leap in the air, the cattle buck and kick while racing around the pastures and the dogs tackle one another as if they were puppies once again. Then I remind myself that the beautiful fall weather will give way to something serious and that all the animals must be in tip top shape in order to sustain a level of health through the winter months that is key to the success of the farm.
Clive the Gander Three Scottish Highland Heifers Samson the Katahdin Ram Plenty of people have our kinds of animals in far colder climates but still I worry about how they will fare even in our Finger Lakes microclimate. The upside to worrying is that we can take our concerns seriously and add them to the list of animal husbandry issues that need special attention. In the late fall we moved the sheep faster and faster to new sections of pasture, giving them the opportunity to graze the most nutritious forage. As we accelerated the pace the sheep put on a bit
of weight, giving them the extra cushion of fat that protects them from zero degrees Fahrenheit and 60 mile per hour winds. That was the many weeks long prelude to the actual act of protecting the sheep on the first cold and stormy night. In addition to being in top physical condition sheep need protection from the wind. The original barn of the Jennings farm blew down in a windstorm many years ago because the barn doors were left open. A neighbor called the man who owned the farm at the time and advised him repeatedly to close the barn doors. The doors, facing west, remained open and a strong wind moved into the structure inching it eastward towards Seneca Lake, eventually blowing it right off the old stone foundation. In a sense, the original heart of the farm now lays collapsed in a heap. Architecturally speaking it’s unfortunate to have lost yet another upstate New York, Dutch-‐style barn that was beautiful with its large timbers and angled roof. A hand-‐painted photograph of the house and barn with the hundred and forty year old maples as saplings still exists, showing the barn’s location and form. Farming-‐wise it’s a loss as well. Although we are practicing a contemporary form of farming that relies much less on buildings and other expensive infrastructure a sturdy barn would be a blessing. Now and again all livestock farmers need a warm place within which to house vulnerable animals that, for one reason or another, need extra protection from the elements. It could be a ewe that is getting ready to lamb, a cow or horse with a leg injury that will take longer to heal out in the cold, or a ram that has hurt his hoof on a rock in the field. Although we have a pole barn that we use for such scenarios it’s certainly not large enough to house many animals as it is occupied with tons of hay and a large poultry brooder that we use to raise young birds in the summer and house ducks in the winter. With all of this in mind a Cornell Cooperative Extension agent who raises beef cattle suggested we turn a naturally occurring pine plantation in the middle of the property into a ‘living barn’. The pines have grown up over the past 20 years filling in what was once sheep pasture. To develop the living barn we first fenced the area with woven wire and three gates to access the surrounding pastures. Then we led our four Highland heifers into the newly fenced area to live there over the summer. They ate a lot of the invasive species and cleared paths through the thick undergrowth while snapping off the old, dried pine branches. By the end of the summer we went in to find the cattle and lead them out to an open field where they could wander and graze in the sun.
The sheep eating hay in the protection of the living barn during winter
Walking through the living barn we were stunned to see how much work they had done simply by roaming around in the pines for weeks. They broke hundreds of branches off at a height that works well for people and sheep. The first time the cold weather arrived this winter we discussed when to move the sheep from the pasture into the living barn. The goal is to minimize its use as piles of hay on the ground and regular compaction of the soil has the potential to kill the trees over time. The first cold and stormy day came so we decided to try it out. In the afternoon we picked up the hay feeders, the bowl of minerals and the stock water tank and moved them in under the pines. The sheep followed and began eating in the quiet of the trees that blocked the wind, shielded them from the snow and held the heat in below the tree canopy. The next morning we went out to feed the ewes more hay and we could see that they had slept in large groups lying on beds of pine needles. The water in the stock tank was still liquid though the water in the tanks in the field had a thick layer of ice. Since that first night we have used the living barn several times and feel confident that the sheep are safe from the elements. The livestock guardian dogs stay in the woods with the sheep and have roamed the area extensively. They know their way around and are quick to run towards a potential threat, which almost always comes from the south where the coyotes travel the Big Hollow that runs to the lake.
Walter and his new sawbuck Shannon & Billy Buttonwood outside the living barn