January 27, 2011

Here is the latest addition to our menagerie. Her name is Jazz and she's a 17 year old Paint mare. My daughter Katie is on her in the pic. She came to live with us last Sunday.

I haven't written much here this winter because not a lot is happening on the farm. The bull calf has been closed in the barn since early December and we'll probably let him outside in the next week or so. We've kept him confined so he wouldn't go through the fence and go back to nursing the cow. He should be fully weaned by now. Last year's bull, Porter, never tried to nurse again after he went back in with Sugar. If he went through the fence and bred her at her next heat it would mean a calf in November; less than ideal but not unworkable. Assuming he obeys the fence, we'll put him in with Sugar in June for planned breeding.

Spring is in sight and we'll be ordering garden seeds soon. I've gotten to the point where I usually buy plants instead of starting seeds indoors. Since we heat primarily with our woodstove, the cellar is too cold and we don't have any other place to do seed starting. On the plus side the cellar is perfect for aging cheese. I've got 25 pounds aging right now. When it warms up, though, it will have to go into a refrigerator because the cellar will be too warm.