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What a difference a day makes….
….less than 48 hours after planting our Italian ryegrass on a sunny and warm Spring day, this was the scene that greeted us this morning. Five inches of snow. Not only beautiful but perfect for the seed snuggled below. Hopefully, the borderline freezing temperatures will mean a slow melt for the next few days. That’s much better than a washing rain. Our “experiment” is off to a perfect start.
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Why do women live longer?
Sorry men, “because we take such good care of them” is not an acceptable answer! But reading one of those health blogs this weekend I discovered there’s something we can do to balance things out: Yes, eat more grass fed beef. You have to read a long way for the payoff, but it’s there. http://blog.grasslandbeef.com/bid/82922/How-Do-Women-Outlive-Men?utm_source=Mar+17+Newsletter+-+New+Edition&utm_campaign=130317&utm_medium=email My browsing this weekend also revealed a new disease: orthorexia. Roughly, it describes a condition among those who carry diet and exercise to slavish extremes. To fight the problem, I have found avoiding exercise to be effective.
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A low bar….
….now comes a British expert who says we’d be safer eating hamburger than those bags of pre-cut salad. The label says the salad has been washed, of course, but that’s not enough. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/foodanddrinknews/9948987/Salad-is-more-dangerous-than-beefburgers-leading-food-expert-warns.html Now about the line: “safer than hamburger”. Suffice it to say we think there’s probably nothing more dangerous to eat than commercial hamburger, whether you get it at the store or a fast food outlet. Or even a fine restaurant. The only thing more dangerous is chicken. Stick with naturally raised meat from a farmer you know….or can find, if you want to.
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Just in time for the snow….
….please. On his last visit, pasture guru Jim Gerrish had recommended we try seeding some Italian rye grass into one of our pastures and here we go. A beautiful early Spring morning; hard to believe 8 inches of snow is on the way. But that’s perfect for new seeds. I sometimes think we should call this “Thistle Hill Experimental Farm” for all the things we try. But it is part of the fun. For our non-farm readers, we’re towing a “drill”. A row of blades cuts grooves in the sod and seed is carefully metered into the grooves. Rollers then pass over the seed, covering the hole. The seed, the…
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Yes you can….
….find happiness away from home. Thistle Hill’s 312 certainly has in the pastures of Tomina Farm. Of course, Regina Tesnow really pampers her cows and 312…now nicknamed “Chantilly“…has fit right into the Tomina herd. Wooz has always insisted we be careful in placing her girls and she’s become a big fan of Regina’s for the way she’s handled the adoptions. (If you look carefully, you’ll see tiny hooves behind Chantilly. We had to delay shipment until the calf was born.)
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Spring fever….
….a group of Thistle Hill yearling heifers camped out by the electric wire, convinced that the grass is indeed greener. They’ll have to wait a few more weeks, though, before we begin their rotation. Right now, they’re still being fed hay and a little beet pulp. In fact, the grass closest to the camera isn’t where they’ll really be going. We’ll start them farther out in the field, where we left a good supply of residual grass last fall. They’ll begin on the fresh grass right after the first of April and be back to this point about mid-May. We’ll also be starting the main herd across the road about the same…
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Red Bull in the sunset….
….our new, pure, traditional English Devon baby bull. He’s THF Falcon, son of Ashott Barton Falcon, grandson of Cutcombe Millennium. And his deep red coat makes him stand out even among our very ruby red herd. We’re keeping our fingers crossed. Right now he seems to be everything we hoped for. Broad in all directions and perfect lines. Sadly, we’re going to have to clip his horns but even the English do that now. His dam, Snowdrop, is from another outstanding traditional farm: Ivan Rowe’s Goldings herd at Lands End. As our regular readers will know, we’ve been importing the purist, most traditional Devon we have been able to find in…
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Old news butt….
….still worth repeating. Studies show that “processed” meats are bad for you. Processed, in this case, is any meat that has preservatives or flavoring or coloring added. Bacon and sausage, the kind you generally buy in a supermarket or eat at a restaurant, are the prime offenders, of course. Here’s the report on the British study: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-21682779 We do love that British term, “fry up”. So well, in fact, that I plan to have one for lunch. Needless to say, but we’ll say it anyway, there are no additives of any kind in Thistle Hill sausages and bacon. For the observant, yes, the two “t’s” in the heading was intentional. …
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A Whole Foods spa….
….is in the works at a location somewhere in the Austin, Texas area. Whole Foods continues to try to find ways to extend its “brand” and now has decided to build a competitor to places like Canyon Ranch. Earlier, the company dabbled in wellness centers, but that didn’t work. Here’s a report on its latest marketing effort: http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2013/03/13/whole-foods-health-resort-canyon-ranch-pritikin/1985281/
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A trip to the salon….
….yes, sometimes some cows need a pedicure. Regina Tesnow of Tomina Farms sends a photo of one of her animals getting a trim. Look carefully, or enlarge the picture, to see the hooves jutting out. The cow has been walked into a chute that is actually a tilt table. She was turned on her side for the work. Most cows don’t seem to really mind, though Regina says they’re sure in a hurry to get back in the trailer and head home! When hooves need trimming at Thistle Hill, we just bring the cow into the chute, tie her leg off the ground, and the vet does the job. We’ve found…