It's been 128 days since I last wrote a Muschopauge Musings update... Almost a third of a year! A lot of life and a lot of stories and things I wanted to write about but didn't do. I'd started this blog during the initial covid "shutdown" and when I look at the August update I see the hay crew all standing together without masks. Things almost got a little normal for a while there as new routines developed and I kept busy with the altered riding program. There are always things to do on the farm. Ann is still working from home and our in-person socializing is generally on walks with friends. We avoid shopping as much as we can; but it's a little less of a weird experience now when we visit a grocery store or other place of business. Times are hard for many businesses. My riding program grew over the summer as kids seemed to need structured outdoor activities. It got so busy that the garden and farm maintenance fell behind. So here's a brief update of what's happened the past four months or so; with lots of laughs and stories and happenings that I'll have to skip over for now...
The garden: I had a large plot and excellent carrot crop due to some timely weeding and soil that carrots seem to thrive in. Beets were good as were tomatoes and sweet corn. Brassicas did fine as did eggplant. Peppers were so-so. Beans didn't get a third planting in because of the dry spring. The potatoes were pitiful (we should have just eaten the seed spuds); even though they were well weeded; I think they just matured too early due to the dry conditions. Likewise, the squash and pumpkins were limited. But the market came and went each week and we got a winter supply of tomatoes, corn, and squash stored (and more than a winter's supply of carrots).
I also invited folks and we had more than a dozen volunteers who came one day to help plant 1000 daffodil bulbs in our orchard just to beautify the world (and maybe provide a little early nectar for the bees.
The bees, by the way..seemed strong this fall and are tucked away for winter...
The horses: Worked really hard this summer and fall; and currently enjoying the snow and a little time off.
The beef and lambs: Have been marketed on schedule due to a heads-up tip this spring from my friend, Bruce, that the small butcher shops were mostly booked up until 2021 due to the covid outbreak at the large abattoirs. I did get my animals scheduled although one processor was down by the cape and the other was in CT. Only a slight fiasco in distribution but the customers seemed satisfied. We did keep back the bottle lamb, Molly, as breeding stock, because of her good genetics (and she was just too cute and friendly to sell). Meanwhile, the ram, after spending the last 16 weeks yearning from his pen by the outbarn, is now gleefully back with his ewes and we're hoping for a large lamb crop next May.
The poultry: The chickens grew rapidly with minimal loss and a few friends and their friends came to help and learn the butchering process. A successful (not necessarily fun) day and we have a freezer full of meat again. The peafowl have been growing rapidly and about the middle of November I noticed the males have started growing their covert feathers again.
The wildlife: The barn swallows started gathering together on the highline cords, and mixed with other swallows on their way south, because there were 40 or 50 of them in late August. On or shortly after labor day the barn they and their aerial displays were gone. But they've been replaced this fall by a large flock of starlings that cascade in all directions like jedi knights in combat. At first I thought they were ordinary blackbirds- because starlings have yellow beaks; but I've since learned that starlings beaks are only yellow in the breeding season and they turn dark in the fall; so the pepperyfireworks displays we see exploding from the ground or settling in trees are starling. And I learned a new word; their displays are called "murmurations". We'll sometimes see a small squad of these birds break off from the flock and escor one of the numerous Cooper's or Rredtail hawk out of their territory.
Other birds we see a lot of are migrating Canada (not Canadian- a pet peeve of mine) geese hanging around Muschopauge before heading south; and we hear the barred owls almost every evening; joined recently by the yodels of coyotes.
I've got an opossum living in the barn, I believe, as I've startled him on a couple occasions when I did night checks. They aren't particularly attractive or athletic; instead it seem to stagger around like an undersized R.O.U.S. from "The Princess Bride" movie. My concern is they also carry the protozoa which causes protozoal myeloencephalitis EPM, a disease that can be fatal to horses when thehost possums deposit the parasite in their feces on hay. Of course, our barn is empty of hay just now as we're still waiting for the structural contractor who was supposed to do the work last May. I guess I'm not the only one who falls behind on work.
The health of society: Skipping over the recent tumultuous presidential election and some of that unhealthy discord; Covid is in the news in a big way again; not only because of a huge uptick in those who have it but also because of the anticipated new vaccine.
Next projects;
I took this week off from teaching to prepare for our annual live nativity and begin a reduced winter lesson schedule; and was greeted by a foot of snow last Saturday. Lots to do on many fronts; and we'll see if I get some opportunities to catch up on writing...
First photo (from trail camera): Everyone is wearing a mask these days
Second photo: The morning after the first heavy snow of the year.
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