-
Upgrading some pastures…
…and using a no-till drill. In addition to clover, which we often spread, this year we’re mixing in perennial rye, cereal rye, turnips, radishes and cow peas. We’re doing several pastures hoping to extend the natural grazing season. Not only should it mean extra nourishment for mama and calf in the winter slump but some of these plants put down very deep roots. The theory is that will loosen the compacted soil and bring more minerals closer to the surface to feed the plants. It also should help capture rain water, limiting the effects of drought. As they say on television…”only time will tell”! David
-
The magic of grazing…
This photo by son-in-law Curt Humphreys captures the harmonious relationship among soil, grass, animals and sky that is an on-going process on the pastures of Thistle Hill. There are no losers in this kind of farming…the soil, the grass, the cows and the environment all prosper. And the farmer does, too. It’s easy to lose sight of the Big Picture but every once in awhile we come across a kindred spirit, such as Suzanne Nelson Karreman in North Carolina, who puts it into words better than most of us can. She deals with the holistic nature of this kind of husbandry…yes, including the ultimate death involved. https://reverencefarms.com/ruminants-make-more-life-than-they-take/ David
-
Bill Gates…devil or…
…conspirator. Gates is by no means the first well-meaning billionaire to float his save-the-world schemes. And in the process cause as much harm as good. Not surprisingly he has a technological solution for everything and that has put him cross-wise with the regenerative ag movement. Gates’ recommendation now that rich nations all abandon meat for the artificial stuff is nonsense but it’s getting a serious hearing. Our neighbor down the road Joel Salatin neatly skewers the pretensions of Gates in his latest blog. https://www.thelunaticfarmer.com/blog/2/18/2021/who-will-censure-bill-gates At Thistle Hill we’re satisfied with our 20-year experiment of doing things naturally. Raising grazing animals on grass without chemicals…fertilizers or poisons…producing meat that is…
-
A virtual hug…
…to three families who welcome Thistle Hill cows to their property. We couldn’t operate the way we do without them. Mary Schindling Perrine sent this view of her farm…our cows in the foreground…Cobbler Mountain at sunrise. Confederate raider John Mosby—the Gray Ghost—always made his getaways to Cobbler and the Union troops could never catch him. The Perrines…and the Ferro’s adjacent…provide us with 20 acres of pasture for our young heifers. We’re convinced that the tender and personal care of these two couples make our young ones even more gentle. Could I say our calves our “house broke”? Well, grandchild broke anyway. Just around the corner, the Rowland’s are keeping a…
-
Our namesake…
…and a stubborn little plant! The Canadian Thistle dominated our pastures 20 years ago…along with Rosa multiflora. It’s taken a long time (and many grandchildren serving hard labor) to get both weeds to manageable proportions. We simply keep cutting them to ground level and eventually the plant gets the message and quits trying. The multiflora was an earlier brainchild of someone who wanted to duplicate European hedgerows on this property. While neither is considered edible, we’ve heard of people successfully training their cows to consume thistles. They simply spray the plants with fish oil, the cattle love it and eventually the fish oil isn’t necessary. David
-
An excellent explanation…
…of just what holistic grazing is all about. About seven years ago we were introduced to the concepts of Alan Savory and even hosted a session here with Michael Mitchell-Innes. It was a milestone in the history of the farm, particularly for Wooz, who had grown up here. In sum, holistic grazing puts the land into the perspective of the entire ecosystem. It can be pretty heavy stuff so I was delighted to come across this short video…just three minutes…by Blaine Hitzfield of Seven Sons Farm in Indiana. In everyday terms Blaine describes what it has meant for their farm. The experience Blaine describes…raising organic matter from two percent to…
-
Strip grazing…
…and the main herd has settled in…changing paddocks with no more than a whistle. I’m sure you could set up an automatic gate opener and they’d move themselves. There are 33 pregnant cows in this group. The section already grazed is in the foreground. By enlarging the picture you may be able to see the single strand of polywire which is all we need to keep them together. The grass as we began was about a foot tall, and we’ve taken the top half before moving on. In recent years a technique has developed called “mob grazing”…or “high intensity grazing”…that is jamming the equivalent of 500 to 700 cows into…
-
End of the trek…
…we take this for granted now but it is quite an advantage to raising Devon…particularly Thistle Hill Devon. Here the herd has moved itself from one of our main pastures to another…perhaps a half mile with lots of tempting grass in-between…but they trust Church and don’t break ranks. (Looks like they’ve survived the winter pretty well, too!) David
-
A picture only a farmer…
…can love. A spade full of our western pasture taken at random. The worms (I count six!) confirm a lot’s going on out there. We’re planning on improved organic matter readings with more hooves on the ground in the coming year. Here is what it looks like right now too…over in the eastern pasture. Church is holding back the herd…wants six more inches of grass before he starts strip grazing. A few more days like today and he’ll be putting in the temporary fencing. Love the clover. It’s the second year for this stand. That’s nutrition for the cows…the ground…and those worms! David
-
Couldn’t have said it better….
…mostly I ignore the rants of vegans and the extreme animal rights people…because they’re beyond reason. But I was tempted to sound off after Joaquin Phoenix used his Academy Award victory to launch a diatribe against those who eat meat. In fact commercial farming of vegetables is far more destructive of the earth and its environment than responsible grazing. But Joel Salatin, a neighboring cattleman who is a leader in the grass fed industry, did the job for me. https://www.thelunaticfarmer.com/blog2/2/14/2020/joaquin-phoenix-hates-you-nbsp