Fencelines

[Dotch]

Well, I hear it's fine if you got the time…

The scurs called the early week snow on the money but were a little overzealous in their low temperature forecasts. Odd. No one complained that it was warmer than predicted. Wimps. This go round, starting with Wednesday, mostly sunny with a high of zero to 5 above and overnight lows falling to – 10. Partly cloudy on Thursday, warmer with highs of 15 and lows near 10. Partly cloudy Friday and Saturday, highs both days near 25 and lows of 15 – 20 with a slight chance of snow Friday. Mostly cloudy Sunday, highs around 25 and lows near 15 with a chance of snow. Mostly cloudy Monday, highs near 10 and lows around 0. Partly cloudy on Tuesday, with highs around 15 and lows near 0. The normal high for February 5th is 26 and the normal low is 6. The scurs figure they should be able to keep warm for the rest of the winter by incinerating old Fencelines columns in their high efficiency pot belly stove. Going green!

Daylight hours are becoming measurably longer it seems. As of February 4th we’ll be back to over 10 hours of daylight once again for the first time since November 6th of last year. As of February 3rd, the sun will also rise before 7:30 a.m. for the first time since December 3rd. All I know is it’s nice to actually be able to see what’s going on during chores as opposed to wondering where that patch of ice is and falling like a ton of bricks. Snowfall for January has been rather sparse relative to what we endured in December. At least it was cold however with much of the month trending below normal in the temperature department.

Frost in the ground is not deep but has been measured at about 10” at the SROC. There has been a lot of speculation about area flooding for this spring. Tough call at this point. If we see a slow gradual thaw or even one more rapid like last spring, chances are the problem may be minimal as we probably won’t see the frost depth become much deeper than it is. Over the winter, drainage systems have taken away much of the excess moisture from area fields. Many tile outlets and ditches have had water running in them since freeze up. The drier than usual January doesn’t hurt but the temperature and precip for the time prior to spring remains an intangible. We can only hope at some point it will be spring after what has suddenly become a long winter.

The alien has struck once again at the Mall for Men. No one is claiming responsibility for turning it loose although there are always plenty of suspects. This one apparently was particularly virulent, a quick hitter knocking yours truly out of action last Friday. The chills, aches, sneezing and coughing preoccupied much of my time. It did allow me to catch up on mind expanding programs like “I Dream of Jeannie” and “Bonanza” however. Oh, I learn all kinds of useful knowledge and information when I watch these “good old” shows. For instance, did you remember that Ben Cartwright’s 2nd wife was named Inger, and was Hoss’s mother? She was killed by the Indians at Ash Hollow. Of greatest interest to me was the fact she was a Swede. She did seem stubborn and one can easily surmise that those barrels strapped to the sides of the covered wagons were full of bland white food. No wonder the Indians were upset!

The edition of Outdoors on the Farm filmed at the ranch aired this last week on RFD TV. Apparently not many people saw it as I didn’t get a ration of guff about it. If some wish to see the program, it can be viewed at this address: http://www.agweb.com/outdoors_on_the_farm.aspx

Look for Episode 13 and be prepared for it to take awhile to download depending on your internet connection and computer speed. It didn’t make it off the editing room floor but we did manage to scratch out one drake mallard that day or I should say Chip did. His dog Remmy fished the duck out of the long grass making our lives much simpler. One thing I’d forgotten about was how breezy it had been. It’s always windy here seems like. Not a surprise that the windmill companies have set up some test sites in the area. And no, the skies are not always clear here at the ranch but it sure does seem that way when someone wants to shoot a duck hunting episode.

I’m convinced my cell phone and my confuser epitomize part of a larger conspiracy designed to waste people’s free time. The two of them recently decided it was time to update my Blackberry and while they were at it, monopolize the computer with warning boxes, tones, checklists, error messages, update boxes and download prompts asking me for more information all the while informing me it would take until the 12th of never to download. All of this while I’m busy trying to do something elsewhere on the confuser. Sounds great but it seems like every time after jumping through their hoops and barrels, nothing has improved as promised or makes my life any simpler. Usually quite the contrary. I have a sneaking suspicion someone is laughing their behind off, knowing full well they’ve annoyed and consumed lots of poor saps’ time. What’s even worse they got paid for it. I have an idea: Give me back my bag phone. It worked. I could get a signal even if I was on the moon. They could understand me and vice versa. Since the device was rather bulky, there was no temptation to drag the thing into the bathroom in a veiled attempt to multi-task. The pickup was a good place for it. Don’t you think too it was more fulfilling when social networking meant sitting down to converse with your little fat buddies over coffee and cookies? Well I sure do.

See you next week…real good then.

[Dotch]

Gimme all your lovin', all your hugs and kisses too…

The scurs had another passable forecasting week with snow remaining on the light side over the weekend. What about this forecast period? Starting Wednesday, mostly clear with a high near 5 and lows of – 10. Partly cloudy Thursday with highs of 10 and lows near 5 above. The start of a warming trend begins on Friday, partly cloudy with highs of 25 and lows of 15. Partly cloudy and warmer Saturday with highs of 30 - 35 and lows of 20 - 25. Sunday, partly cloudy and again warmer, highs of 35 - 40 and lows of 20 - 25. Partly to mostly sunny Monday and Tuesday, highs around 35 and lows of 20. The normal high for Lincoln’s Birthday is 28 and the normal low is 8. The scurs will be getting their sweeties something that surely will elicit hugs and kisses.

The sky at choretime still provides fascination in the early twilight. In the mornings Venus continues its role in the SE sky as a “Morning Star” and will continue in that capacity until mid-July. Of most interest on the evening of the 7th was the near conjunction of the planet Jupiter just below the crescent moon in the western sky. The only downside was that Vista’s noted Swedish astronomer was recently hospitalized and probably didn’t get to see it. All of us little fat buddies are wishing him a speedy recovery and holding a spot at the training table for him.

The small bird activity at the bird feeders has slowed to a snail’s pace. The goldfinches were rare visitors last week, leaving the feeders clear and open for the 2 chickadees to consume sunflower seeds at will. Sure there are a few blue jays and plenty of downies and hairies on the suet but it’s rare for us to see a lull in overall activity such as we have. The pheasants on the other hand continue to be regular customers. There have been more hens too the past week so that’s encouraging to see. They all appear healthy too. Their feathers are smooth and they are showing no signs of obvious stress. The forecast thaw will still offer a welcome respite from all the snow and cold we’ve become so used to though. Even us humans will probably enjoy it, if we have to, I guess.

The Packers pulled off a big Super Bowl win much to the chagrin of many MN sports fans. There are probably worse teams to have win it all if only they didn’t have to live right next door to us. For awhile they’ll probably be busy in their basements dismantling their old Brett Favre shrines and replacing them with new Aaron Rogers components so we may get a brief reprieve from all their boasting and bragging. Few things are more obnoxious to a Minnesotan than a Green Bay Packer or Iowa Hawkeye fan, especially when they win something.

Fortunately we have Ruby to entertain us. On Saturday the roof needed cleaning off once again so the Roof Razor was assembled to do battle. This device has been a lifesaver because it doesn’t require climbing on the roof and rather than pull the snow off, it slides off on a chunk of plastic tarp. Ruby of course thought the chunks of snow zipping down the slide were great fun to attempt to chase as were the shovelfuls of snow scooped in front of the entry. After we were finished she was doing her best imitation of a powdered donut.

Ruby does need to learn to slow down some however. For the 2nd time she’s run into the bottom of the ladder on the bulk bin at full throttle. It’s sharp and I managed to slice myself open on it when pulling some weeds. Ruby bounced off the thing about 3 weeks ago and we could feel a scab had formed. The wound was healing nicely until one day last week she must’ve decided it itched so she tore it open again. A trip to the vet revealed it wasn’t infected and shouldn’t require stitches but would require some antibiotic ointment as well as capsules twice a day. Right away she was on the defensive as they were difficult for her to swallow. Some skinless wieners we had on hand worked nicely when hollowed out with the pill tucked inside. The procedure wasn’t entirely foolproof however. With only a few capsules left in the prescription, one managed to squirt loose and land on the floor. This caused Ruby to look at it quizzically first then she daintily picked it up and swallowed it. Can’t ask for better

Shearing day is rapidly approaching with Lincoln’s Birthday having become a traditional date at the ranch over the years. The main focus ahead of shearing is to keep the animals dry. I’ve never understood how some producers seem to ignore this major point. You know the shearer is coming, you know it’s likely to snow so it’s always a good idea to keep the animals bedded and able to get dried off as much as possible before that time. For what ever reason, some seem to think the shearer won’t mind shearing wet sheep. Nothing could be further from the truth. Shearing is tough enough without adding more frustration to the experience and wet wool is a no-no when it’s being sold to the mills. Wool is finally worth some money too so one would think putting the best product into the system would be a producer's top priority. Some people’s kids…

See you next week…real good then.

[MN Shutterbug]

It sounds like you have a high maintenance dog on your hands.

[Dotch]

You got that right. At 10 months, she has two speeds; fast and faster.

[MN Shutterbug]

Dotch, you have a PM.

[Dotch]

I just got paid today, got me a pocket full of change

The scurs were popular once again as the weather finally broke after some brutal cold in the middle of last week. What’s on tap for this session? Starting Wednesday, mostly sunny becoming cloudy with a chance of fog and drizzle. High of 40 - 45 and a low of 35 – 40 . Mostly cloudy becoming partly cloudy on Thursday with a chance of drizzle and light rain. Highs around 45 - 50 with lows near 25. Mostly cloudy becoming partly cloudy on Friday with a chance of snow. Highs of 25 and lows of 5 - 10. Partly cloudy on Saturday with a chance of snow. Highs 20 – 25 and lows of 15 – 20. Mostly cloudy Sunday with a chance of snow. Highs near 30 and lows around 25. Mostly cloudy Monday with a chance of snow. Highs around 30 and lows near 20. Mostly sunny Tuesday with highs near 30 and lows around 20. The normal high for February 18th is 31 and the normal low is 11. The scurs cannot tell a lie; it’s still too early for it to be spring just yet.

February 18th ushers in another Full Moon, this one know as the Full Snow Moon and by some of the Indian tribes of the northeast the Full Hunger Moon as the deep snow often made hunting difficult. This doesn’t seem to be a problem at the Mall for Men since the Girl Scout cookies arrived and not a moment too soon. The Ojibwe knew this as the Full Sucker Moon for the suckers that were running in the rivers and streams. The Sioux called this The Raccoon Moon for the raccoons that often woke up for a stroll around during thaws such as the one we experienced. They also knew this as the Moon of Dark Red Calves as the buffalo calf coats became almost reddish in color late in their first year from the weathering.

Quite a contrast in weather this past week. On Tuesday February 8th at the ranch, we recorded a morning low of – 15 on both the digital and official Edna thermometers. On Sunday the 13th, we recorded a high temp of 45. Water began to pond here and there already and some of the hilltops were becoming bare. The drone of snowmobiles was heard over the weekend as the days of decent snow for them may be numbered. Fret not however. It’s still February, this warm spell will not last and who knows what March will hold. Chances are it won’t be as dry as what we experienced in 2010 when we recorded only a trace of snow at the ranch.

Last weeks cold weather did have its benefits. The fruit fly population at the Mall for Men was getting out of hand, especially in the garbage cans holding the pop cans and coffee grounds. When it didn’t get above zero on Wednesday, it presented a perfect opportunity to take the waste containers outside and pop the lids off. Oddly enough at those temperatures the fruit flies just nicely make it up above the rim then suddenly plummet back to earth. Leaving the crushed aluminum cans outside overnight seems to reduce their numbers significantly without the use of pesticides. Unfortunately it’s a little tough to do that in July unless of course we experience slightly more extreme climate change.

Friday morning while shaving I spied something running across the yard in the reflection of the window in the mirror. Without my spectacles on it wasn’t east to tell just what it was but given the numbers, pheasants were a good guess. Once I could put them on it confirmed the pheasants were on their way across the backyard to their feeder. Hopefully the thaw will allow more of the fields to open up so they’ll be able to get at whatever food is available. There were a few goldfinches back again last week and our resident chickadees continue their loyal patronage at the feeders. The woodpeckers stay busy on the suet although those icky starlings are back once again. In between ewes lambing or any other time my trigger finger itches, their population needs a good thinning.

Shearing is in the books for another year. Wool’s a better price than it’s been for a long time, about $.40/lb., but still no big money maker. It was about the perfect weekend to do it from a weather standpoint though with highs in the low 30’s on Saturday. We were fortunate the neighborhood shearer had enlisted the help of a good sheep catcher. Even though he’d had no prior introduction to Cheviots, he was a gamer, admitting they were tough for their size and kept him on guard with their quickness. All I know is with him there, it allowed us to haul the wool away, give injections and delouse the ewes while the shearer kept on shearing. Of course it isn’t all pure drudgery. There is always an exchange of information concerning those inside as well as some outside of the sheep raising clan. While the shearing equipment and shearers may have changed over the years, that part remains the same.

The process went about as well as could’ve been expected. We hammered through the first group by 11:15 and found the one we’d been looking for shortly after 1 p.m. Not bad considering we had to set up and start over again in the other barn. The ewes spent much of their time outside after being peeled down. They looked nice and appeared to be in about the right condition so hopefully there are few problems lambing. Just like in the good old days, when we were finished we shed our outdoor clothes and went inside to wash up. The aroma of the hot food Mrs. Cheviot had prepared was the first thing to hit us when we opened the door. It smelled absolutely heavenly. Everyone had worked up an appetite and eating was definitely the next item on the agenda. After our company departed, it was time to enjoy a break, some basketball and take a well deserved nap. Mission accomplished, once again.

See you next week…real good then.

[Dotch]

Out on the prairie where the winds blow long and hard

The scurs were correct when saying it was too early for spring just yet, at least in MN. What’s their take on the upcoming week? Starting Wednesday, partly cloudy becoming mostly cloudy with a chance of snow. Highs of 35 and lows of 15 - 20. Thursday, partly cloudy and colder with a chance of snow again in the evening. Highs of 20 - 25 and lows of 10 - 15. Mostly cloudy Friday with a chance of snow. Highs near 20 with lows of 5 - 10. Cloudy on Saturday with a continued chance of snow. Highs of 15 - 20 and lows around 5 above. Sunday, cloudy and slightly warmer with a chance of snow in the evening. Highs of 20 and lows of 5 – 10. Mostly cloudy on Monday with a chance of snow. Highs near 20 with lows of 10 - 15. Cloudy on Tuesday March 1st with a continued chance of snow. Highs near 25 and lows dropping to 15. The normal high for March 1st is 35 and the normal low is 15. The scurs will be selling sticks, coal and carrots as part of their new money making venture: Snowman kits. Just add snow, something that doesn’t appear to be difficult to find in the near term.

At least we’re making some progress in the daylight department. One can actually see during chores now and with good reason. February 24th, the sun will rise before 7 a.m. On the 27th, we will see the sun set after 6 p.m. On the 26th, we will experience over 11 hours of daylight for the first time since mid-October. Now if we could work on this snow and cold thing a little more we just might have something.

Last week’s thaw was certainly a welcome break after all the miserable cold we’ve experienced. Small trees around the yard that had been buried in the snow all winter suddenly reappeared. Fields opened up again and a good portion of the snow melted, helping to reduce the chances that it would be a factor in spring flooding. Ponds such as the one at the ranch were once again covered with water. What a shock when we were suddenly dumped on again Sunday morning during the “thundersnow”. Accumulations were rapid and at the ranch between about 7 a.m. and 11 a.m. we received somewhere in the neighborhood of 6” of wet, heavy snow. For the day the accumulation was about 8” and with roughly 3 more inches the next day for laughs, right around 11”. And to make matters worse, the prairie wind continued to blow, negating most of my snow removal efforts. Coincidentally back in 2009, I wrote about a thundersnow event that occurred locally in late February and even more coincidentally, mentioned seeing geese the day prior to the snowfall event. The night prior to the most recent thundersnow, we heard Canada geese flying over in the dark as we made our way from the barn back to the house after chores. Probably the same geese.

The wildlife has been more evident since the weather turned ugly again. The pheasants became orbiting entities around the farmyard during the thaw and left the feeder largely untouched for several days. Monday they were back at the feeder in numbers again. There were around 30 counted when I was moving snow on Monday morning. More hens again so there is some positive to what we’re seeing. The ice from Sunday’s weather appeared to have affected some of the rooster tails but otherwise they were in good shape. During the thaw, there were a number of horned larks spotted along the edges of the road. Always nice to see them even though they normally seem to show up this time of year and the weather turns lousy again. Some nuthatches are back again after missing in action for a month or so. The fox squirrels at the ranch have been less active but are staying out later in the day now. One was still at the ear corn feeder at 5 p.m. before calling it a day. At the Mall for Men a loud, familiar “boom!” was heard out back shortly before 5, something that generally means a transformer has blown, again. Instead, Red found a gray squirrel that had tried to imitate a fuse, complete with the burned fur down one side of its body to prove it.

Now that the weather has decided to be winter once again, the lambs have been coming in fast and furious. In a matter of 5 days, we lambed out nearly 1/3 of the ewes. The biggest issue has been keeping them dry, what with the bred ewes going outside to get their hay and grain, then coming back inside to shake off the heavy, wet snow. Fortunately we got a load of straw on Saturday so that part of the equation has been solved. During the straw loading process, several cars drove up at the Dubya’s containing female occupants. Those of us who were loading said straw decided it was a good time to hide in the barn a while longer as surely nothing good could come from such an event.

Ruby enjoyed the thaw especially all the mud. True to form like her predecessor Gus, it is never a good idea to go around a puddle when you go straight through them at full speed. As luck would have it, the puddles are all frozen again so at least we know what we’re up against. Inside, Ruby has been adding that special touch Border Collies are capable of. The Westminster Dog Show in HD set her off when it appeared one of the dogs was going to jump right out of the screen. Barking and growling she nearly launched herself at the tube until we simmered her down and convinced her that it wasn’t real. Somehow, she remained unconvinced. We were watching Bonanza a few days later and when the intro started playing with, Ben, Hoss, Adam and Little Joe all riding across the range towards the camera, Ruby was sure there were people on horses riding straight at her through a window. Guess Ruby must be more of a Gunsmoke fan.

See you next week…real good then.

[Dotch]

They're wearing steel that's bright and true…

Looks like the scurs were thinking snow and aside from the Monday and Tuesday being nicer than they forecast, they were pretty much on task. This week’s fare? Starting Wednesday, partly cloudy with highs of 15 - 20 and lows of 10 - 15. Cloudy on Thursday, warmer with a good chance of snow. Highs of 35 and lows of 25 - 30. Mostly cloudy Friday with a chance of some lingering snow in the morning. Highs around 35 and lows of 15 – 20. Cooler on Saturday, with highs near 25 and lows near 10. Cloudy on Sunday with highs near 30 and lows near 15. Monday, partly cloudy becoming mostly cloudy with a chance of snow. Highs of 25 - 30 and lows around 15. Mostly cloudy Tuesday with a chance of snow. Highs of 25 and lows around 10. The normal high for March 5th is 36 and the normal low is 17. The scurs are readying their kites for the windy month that is March.

March always comes in like a lamb at the ranch but what does the weather sound like for the month? Some are calling for up to 80” of snow, something that while possible, is still a stretch considering we haven’t seen 80” of snow yet for the season in most locations. Looking at the NOAA forecasts for the month there is no indication as of the February 28th that above normal precip is predicted. There is an even chance of above or below normal precip and better than normal odds of below normal temps for March. Not exactly what we want to hear after getting a taste of spring back in February. For those facing the possibility of flooding however, a slower, gradual release of the water contained in the snowpack would be in their favor. Chances are though that we will see some snow this March. Looking back at the records at the ranch for last March, only 1 day saw snowfall recorded and that was only a trace. Odds of that happening 2 years in a row would seem to be extremely remote.

I must like moving snow because I sure seem to do it a lot. Not that it’s horrible work it’s just the principle of the thing. The steel chains the tractor wears in the winter are bright and shiny from all the use after starting out in their typical rusty condition. The snow that fell last week at the ranch amounted to about 14” although that’s a little deceiving. The 8” during the thundersnow was wet and sticky while Monday’s contribution was light and fluffy. The snow that fell all day on Saturday and part of the night was like cotton candy and contained very little moisture. Very fortunate that there was no wind following that or there would’ve been snow in every nook and cranny imaginable. As it was, much of the snow melted off the main roadways so plowing was averted on many county roads until Monday morning. It still managed to whiten and brighten the landscape after seeing some black soil starting to poke through. Keep telling yourself it will be spring, someday.

Lambing blew by the halfway point at the ranch this past Saturday and is nearing two-thirds done. It’s been nearly a full time job trying to keep up with them as the lambing barn will only hold about 10 pens before we have to climb over panels in order to feed. That bites so moving ewes and lambs to the loafing area in the main barn has been necessitated every few days. This is one of the areas where Gus seemed to help. Ruby hasn’t been allowed to show what she can do in that department yet but her day will come. Right now she’s more obsessed with playing with and staring at the water coming out of the end of the hose. Not sure what value that talent might have other than entertainment.

The goldfinches return! After missing in action much of the last month they suddenly appeared in numbers once again. They’re not as faithful as the chickadees who appear to be staying overnight in one of the bluebird houses near the yard. Speaking of overnight, the pheasants are hanging around now until about 5:45 p.m. and then decide it’s time to find their roosting perch for the evening. Some will sail the less than quarter mile distance to neighbor David’s thick spruce and some go on a dead run to the same spot. Others choose to stay in the Austrian pines here about the time we’re heading out to do evening chores.

At the Mall for Men we continue in our quest of wisdom and knowledge. Actually it probably bears a closer resemblance to a rural version of TMZ with cookies than anything. No discussion of the Oscars or Charlie Sheen’s problems unlike the constant prattle of the mainstream media though. We actually discuss the issues of the day. Take healthcare for example. We were curious about the costs of some medical procedures and what impact they might have on one’s future well being. Only bad thing being male, none of us could ever have the procedure! Just the way we are, always showing concern and looking out for others.

See you next week…real good then.

[Dotch]

Move over old dog cause a new dog's movin' in…

As luck would have it, the snowfall the scurs predicted last week was on the scant side. Oddly no complaints from anyone. What’s this week hold for snow chances? Starting Wednesday, mostly cloudy with snow likely. Highs of 30 and lows of 15 – 20. Partly cloudy on Thursday, highs near 30 and lows of 15 – 20. Partly cloudy becoming mostly cloudy on Friday with a chance of a rain/snow/sleet mix during the day, becoming all snow overnight. Highs around 40 and lows of 20 – 25. Partly cloudy on Saturday with a slight chance of snow. Highs of 25 – 30 and lows around 10. Partly cloudy skies on Sunday with a chance of a snow/sleet mix overnight. Highs of 30 – 35 and lows near 30. Mostly cloudy on Monday with a continuing chance of a sleet/snow mix. Highs of 35 – 40 and lows of 25 – 30. Cloudy on Tuesday with a chance of a rain shower or two. Highs of 35 – 40 and lows around 30. The normal high for March 12th is 39 and the normal low is 20. The scurs will be emerging from their lair to set their clocks ahead one hour at precisely 2 a.m. on March 13th as per government mandate.

You knew it had to be coming and not a minute too soon. That lovely pain the rump known as Daylight Saving Time. Even the do-gooders who support the folly go so far as to correct you if you wrongly refer to it as Daylight Savings Time. They need to go lay by their dish. It’s no secret that we are a nation known for sleeping disorders and sleep deprivation. While the debate about whether or not the practice actually saves energy or not rages on, the evidence in studies continues to mount that heart attacks, suicides and traffic accidents increase sharply following the spring time change. There are also plenty of suggestions for dealing with DST to ease the potential problems with the transition. I have a thought: Rather than putting band-aids on a self-inflicted wound caused by allowing the government to play Russian roulette with our health, let’s leave the clock alone once we get it set one of these years. Think of all the lost time at work that would save, not to mention all the emergency room visits that would be averted when people fall of their chairs while changing their clocks. It would be one way to cut health care costs and no one would lose sleep over it.

An interesting week of keeping an eye on the birds. There was a pair of bald eagles circling high above St. Olaf Lake last Thursday and that was also the morning the first robin was appeared at the ranch. Horned larks continue to be noted along the edges of roads and the pheasants are still parading around the yard. It won’t be too long and we’ll see the roosters in their full breeding plumage, something that is a sight to behold in the bright early morning sun.

It was a good weekend to take advantage of some of the weather conditions and get things tidied up a bit at the ranch. One of the first orders of business was to get the gravity box of screenings back into the slot where it belonged in the barn. After leaving it out for a couple days the beeswings had managed to swirl around the yard, giving it a pinkish hue. so it had taken up temporary residence where the tractor usually sits. Luckily the ground was frozen out front so it made it relatively easy to bend the wagon around the corned with the skid steer. Between tasks of course there were bottle lambs to feed and a quick trip to procure supplies at the store where you go to the bathroom in the big orange-roofed silo.

The second task consisted of getting the little old Electric flare box out and heading north to get some avena sativa. It first of course needed the tarp removed, the tires pumped up and to be properly attired with a SMV sign so the nice policeman wouldn’t give me a ticket. Over the years one forgets how slow one has to drive with one of these little pieces of now ancient farm equipment in order to keep them from whipping. Following an uneventful trip and a great visit with the supplier, the trip back home came off without a hitch. Upon backing the wagon back where it belonged, it was time to pen up another ewe that had lambed. Shortly after that it was choretime again and I was shot. The next day it was time to take advantage of the snow piles and prune the apple trees. The snow was so deep there was no need for a ladder and best of all, no need for the pole saw. I could stand on the snow and reach the sapwood needing trimming with the loppers! When not eating sheep afterbirth, Ruby played with the sticks as they fell to the ground. Luckily there were only 4 trees in need of pruning and with the wind howling out of the east, it was good to be done.

Lambing is thundering down the home stretch. We’re a tad over 80% done with only 7 ewes left to lamb. Ruby got her wish to help this past week and help she did. We move ewes and lambs from the lambing barn to the main barn as space for lambing pens or jugs as they’re commonly called is limited. Once off to a good start, both the lambs and ewes do better if they’re allowed more space and are in a more social environment. When we move the ewes with lambs, we take the lamb or lambs and the ewe will generally follow based on their lamb’s scent. It helps however to have someone, human or canine tailing this miniature exodus. That’s where Ruby caught on almost immediately the first night we allowed her to assist. Mrs. Cheviot and I each grabbed one of the two twin lambs and we moved down the hill with the ewe following us. We wondered where Ruby was and looking behind us, there she was on the ewe’s tail in the little walking crouch that Border Collies are noted for. Just as pleasing was the fact she stayed on the ewe all the way up the alleyway to the main pen, keeping the ewe from doubling back. The best part though was that none of this had to be taught, it was pure instinct. Oh sure, there are things this dog needs to learn but one certainly had to be proud of her accomplishment that night. I know she was as she wiggled and whined with delight as we heaped on the praise.

See you next week…real good then.

[Dotch]

And spring became the summer…

The scurs were overly pessimistic about last week’s forecast although there was snow most days it was forecast except Monday. Are we headed toward spring this week? The scurs tell all. Starting Wednesday, mostly sunny becoming cloudy overnight with a chance of showers. Highs of 50 – 55 and lows around 40. Thursday, mostly cloudy with a chance of showers. Highs once again of 50 – 55 and lows of 25 – 30. Partly cloudy on Friday and cooler. Highs around 45 and lows of 25 – 30. Partly cloudy on Saturday becoming cloudy overnight with a chance of showers. Highs near 50 with lows near 35. Mostly cloudy on Sunday with a chance of showers. Highs near 50 and lows around 35. Cloudy on Monday with a chance of rain. Highs 45 – 50 and lows near 25. Partly cloudy for Tuesday and cooler. Highs of 40 – 45 with lows near 20. The normal high for St. Patty’s Day is 41 and the normal low is 22. The scurs will be seeing leprechauns after consuming mass quantities of green malted barley beverages.

The Full Moon is upon us on the 19th. This is known as the Full Worm Moon as the worms come to the soil surface, leaving their castings while enriching Mother Earth. It is also commonly known as the Full Sap Moon and the Full Lenten Moon, the last full moon of the winter. This was also known as the Snow Crust Moon by the Ojibwe as the snow that was thawed during the day became crusted and frozen at night. The Sioux called it the Moon When Buffalo Drop Their Calves, same as many farmers in the area. At the ranch we know it as the moon when Border Collies Are Caked with Mud.

Up to this point Old Man Winter has done his level best to make sure the landscape is white. After giving us a thaw on Friday, the weather was anything but spring-like for much of the weekend. Water buckets in the lambing barn froze and there were times on Saturday one would’ve sworn it was January with the snow was blowing so hard that visibility was greatly reduced in areas. On the way to Owatonna there were times I wondered if it was a wise decision to attempt the journey. By the time I returned however, the snow squalls had subsided and travel was safe once again. Such is March. It may be like a lamb one day but the next day the lamb grows fangs and takes a hunk out of your behind. Even though the weather is supposed to warm up this next week, most of us have lived through enough March snowstorms to know that just about anything goes this month in the precip department.

There are some glimmers of hope though. On the 18th we are back over 12 hours of daylight once again. Spring officially begins on March 20th with the vernal equinox occurring on March 20th. This of course means lots of irate chickens when their eggs all stand on end. In the house at the ranch, the ladybugs are also coming to life although their numbers appear to be diminished over some years. Other signs outside this past Monday that indicate we are about to see some change include a red-winged blackbird as well as more robins. There have also been more hen pheasants showing up and that’s a good sign. The snow piles are shrinking and unless something drastic changes in the forecast, the fields should become bare once again as they basically were during the thaw back in February. The horned larks will appreciate that on their short grass nesting area. Tough to hatch eggs on top of the snow.

The ewes are nearly done lambing. There are only a couple left to lamb now and the crop has been bountiful. The loafing barn is at capacity and we need the weather to melt the snow so the fence can be charged again. Some of the lambs that were born a month ago are about 25 lbs. already so they really can use the exercise. The snowmelt thus far has created a huge lake in front of the barn so that needs to melt a channel through the snow banks. Otherwise Ruby gets extra filthy especially when her first official act each night at choretime creates a rooster tail of water behind her as she zooms into the barn.

The seeds have been ordered for the garden once again before the selection gets picked over. It’s always a great little surprise to find that package in the mailbox partially because it covers up all the bills. In the early garden, we’re trying several varieties of snap peas this year. The prairie winds always seem to raise heck with some of the taller types, defeating the purpose of putting up trellises for them to climb on. In the late garden department, we’re always heavy on the vine crops as some of the varieties we like are tough to find without ordering through a catalog. Thanks to Betsy’s Dad’s cousin, we’re going to give the winter radishes a whirl this year. They were welcome table fare about the time much of the garden produce was done for the season last fall. Kindled thoughts of what to look forward to in the next garden.

See you next week…real good then.

[Steve Foss]

Good reading again, Dotch. Congrats on your columns getting more than 100,000 views and counting. You are reaching a lot of people!

[Dotch]

Well, (to quote Ronald Reagan) I'm just happy all these fine folks have taken the time to read it. A special thanks to you Steve for your kindness and encouragement here over the years. Now if someone could just tell me how to get that last ewe to lamb I'd really be happy (or at least half in the bag).

[MN Shutterbug]

Wow. That is an impressive number. Congrats. On your way to 1/4 million?

[Dotch]

And it makes me wonder

The scurs had it goin’ on again last week although the rain predicted for Monday took a day off until Tuesday. What’s in store for this go round? Starting Wednesday, cloudy with a chance of rain and snow. Highs of 35 and lows around 20. Partly cloudy Thursday and Friday with highs of 30 – 35 and lows of 20. Partly cloudy becoming mostly cloudy on Saturday with a chance of rain changing to snow. Highs of 35 and lows around 20. Mostly cloudy on Sunday with a slight chance of snow. Highs once again of 35 and lows near 25. Monday, partly cloudy with a high around 40 and lows of 30. Mostly cloudy on Tuesday with another possible round of a rain/snow mix. Highs around 35 and lows near 25. The normal high for March 26th is 46 and the normal low is 26. The scurs will be patching their 5-buckle overshoes to prepare for whatever the weather throws at us.

Spring finally showed its face last week and as predicted the fields largely cleared once again. Local rivers and streams are up yet perhaps not as much as they might’ve been had we not experienced the thaw back in February. The snow that’s left is in the fencelines and around building sites. Frost depth was quite variable around the yard at the ranch already on Friday. Had wondered why the birds had taken a shine to the south facing slope south of the house. Took the divining rod out to check and sure enough, the frost was out there! Around the rest of the yard it was more variable, ranging from 2” – 4” down on the north facing slopes yet. After Sunday’s .28” rain, it was down to 4” – 6” deep. It won’t be long now and it will leave. The frost is officially out at the SROC in Waseca as of this past Monday. One thing that is a little curious is the amount of ice yet on some of the small, shallow wetlands such as ours. In the February thaw, some of those same wetlands were full of water yet largely free of ice.

What a week of wondering for seeing signs of spring in the bird department! Killdeers were present on Tuesday the 15th shortly after chores were done. So were flocks of grackles winging their way north to points unknown. Wonder where they all wind up? While the frost is out of the hillside at home, there apparently aren’t many earthworms yet with the cool temperatures. The crabapples were picked clean in a matter of a couple days by the robins and red-winged blackbirds. Wonder why they like the one tree so much better than the other one? Juncos appeared in large numbers, making me wonder if we weren’t seeing them begin moving through to the north. House finches and chipping sparrows were back in force, making me wonder if perhaps they are the summer residents at the ranch. Bald eagles have been common this spring east of Bugtussle with some reporting numbers as high as 18. There were 2 right down the road from the ranch feasting on a road kill deer left over from January. Made me wonder if they’d pick off a small lamb given the opportunity. Good thing perhaps that the snow hasn’t melted off the fence. Over the weekend rooster pheasants were being seen in full breeding plumage, their red wattles making them easy to pick out from a brown background. Wonder if the rooster who has set up shop on the edge of the yard is one of Little Jerry’s grandsons? Sandhill cranes were in the neighborhood too. They were heard on Saturday morning but their dull gray color made seeing them against a drab landscape difficult. Sunday night they were seen on the wing, setting down somewhere near the wetland and continuing their telltale call. Makes me wonder if they were the same two that were seen near the pond last fall. Monday afternoon on the way home to bottle lamb patrol, 2 great blue herons were spotted over the golf course. Made me wonder where they’d go if the weather took the sudden turn for the worse forecast.

Took a nature walk to see how the trees and shrubs around the place had survived the winter. There was surprisingly little rabbit damage this time around and even the black chokeberries escaped relatively unscathed. While the arborvitae had been singed a little, there were only two out of the new planting that needed to be replaced. Everything else survived very well. Time will tell on the peach tree. Some new crabapples are on the slate for this spring and that’s good news after seeing how many birds used them over the course of winter and early spring, including the pheasants.

It is good to look around the yard and see the shrunken snow banks under the apple trees that were pruned a few weeks ago. There’s no way they could be pruned without a ladder and pole saw now. Seeing a little green grass reminds me that it won’t be long or at least not long enough and the lawnmower will have to be dealt with. Gazing at it in the garage the other day it appeared to be listing to one side. Indeed it was. One of the rear tires had decided to go flat as a pancake over the course of the winter. Another project to add to an already overloaded fixit schedule.

Doing it all the other day while muttering epithets under my breath, it amazes me how everyone, including my little fat buddies suddenly desert me when I utter the words “unload hay”. About the only help I got was from Ruby and it’s pretty hard to qualify that as help. Maybe she will be more help with the straw that needs to be hauled to sop up some of the weather in store for us. I doubt it. It’s much more fun to get as wet and muddy as possible before going to the house. She’s pretty easy to clean up though. Let her dry off for a little bit first, tell her to jump in the tub which she does without hesitation and rinse her off with the handheld shower while she stands there. This time of year many Moms would probably like to know my secret for use on their kids. All I can say is speak softly but firmly, reward them with lots of praise when they stand still for you, towel them off well, then give ‘em a hug and a dog biscuit when you’re done. Works for me.

See you next week…real good then.

[MN Shutterbug]

I see where you mentioned that the birds favor one crabapple tree over another. Is there a difference in crabapple trees? I have a flowering crabapple in my backyard and have seen just 1 robin yesterday sample a couple berries. Other than that, it's remained pretty much untouched the 11 months I've lived here. I'm puzzled.

[Dotch]

Apparently there are some they like better than others. Mrs. Cheviot was the nursery person and she knows which one is which out here. One they pick the apples off early on and when push comes to shove they'll eat the other ones. One has redder colored apples and the other one is lighter colored. I can't remember but I'll ask. She also said Red Splendor, the variety we'll be planting this spring is a wildlife favorite.

[Dotch]

That's the way it oughtta be

The scurs called for a cool week and a cool week we received. Will it rebound this week and be spring again? Starting Wednesday, partly cloudy with highs of 40 – 45 and lows dropping to 25 - 30. Thursday, partly cloudy becoming mostly cloudy with a chance of showers. Highs of 40 – 45 and lows of 35. Mostly cloudy becoming partly cloudy on Friday with a chance of morning showers. Highs near 45 and lows around 30. Saturday, mostly clear. Highs around 50 and lows of 35. Cloudy on Sunday with a chance of showers. Highs of 45 and lows of 35. Cloudy on Monday with a chance of rain. Highs near 45 and lows around 25. Mostly cloudy Tuesday with a chance of more showers. Highs of 45 – 50 and lows . The normal high for April 1st is 50 and the normal low is 28. The sun will rise before 7 a.m. for the first time since February 24th. At this rate the scurs think it will surely be spring by May or possibly June. No foolin’.

Last week could only be characterized as a real weather downer. Just when it looked like we were suddenly playing with the lead, temperatures decided to behave more like the last week in February. High winds and cold rain followed by snow as a coup de grace nearly sent some over the edge. At the ranch, it was cause to put the tank heaters back in the water tanks, to smash ice out of the water buckets and drain the garden hose after each use. The long handled underwear were dug out of mothballs as was the heavy chore coat. It was a bit of a double edged sword in some respects though. It did allow for some seed deliveries on the frozen yards and made spreading a few loads of manure possible until the fields got too greasy. Oh it can still be spread when it’s greasy but the resulting mud on the road raises the ire of motorists and can be a safety hazard when it becomes too thick. The water in the rivers and streams has been metered somewhat by the overnight freezing and thawing. Some of the predictions of record flooding have largely been averted. March precip has also run below last year in this area so that hasn’t hurt.

There were some positives at the ranch however. The frozen ground keeps Ruby much cleaner and for that we can be thankful. She doesn’t like having to stay inside when it’s muddy especially when it’s time to feed the bottle lambs. Speaking of that, they are starting to get into the creep feed as evidenced by their occasional absence at bottle time. The end of that business is coming nearer to a close. Along those same lines, after what seemed an eternity we found the lamb we were looking for: The last one born for the year. Last Friday morning there she was, no more than an hour old with the ewe licking her off. Put mother and daughter in a pen, got the ewe a bucket of warm water then went off to do the chores in the other barn. When returning with feed for the new mom, the lamb was already up nursing. That’s the way it ought to be.

On the bird front, a large contingent of goldfinches has settled in. Only a few are starting to show some yellow color again but all are showing signs of being hungry. It had been a while since the thistle feeders had been filled so that suddenly needed to be done. With the snow largely gone, the pheasants have dispersed across the landscape although there is one large rooster who appears to have staked a claim to the brushy area on the edge of the yard. Sunday afternoon he pecked at the corn and other goodies then sunned himself apparently waiting for Miss Right to show up. Monday morning he was up bright and early, drumming and crowing before sunrise. That close to the house the drumming almost rattles the windows. Some of the sandhill cranes must’ve decided the water was too hard to wade in. 6 of them were heading back south on Friday morning. Swans were spotted Saturday lumbering along after I’d procured some straw from the Dubya’s . There are some areas where there is deeper open water so one can bet they were heading towards it. The swans, not the Dubya’s. While at the Dubya’s however, we determined that the Le Sueur River Lutheran church steeple at 125’ was taller than their silo. The swans were flying higher than that.

At the Mall for Men, after solving the world’s problems the little fat buddies have been busy tackling local issues. Odd that at an establishment known only for the truth would train it’s thoughts on the wind. Generally wind is considered Al Batt’s turf, hence the reason most of those windmills were built in his backyard. The flashing lights on those windmills have been of particular interest to our panel of experts. There have been instances when those of us of who get up in the middle of the night to make sure they’re blinking have noticed they haven’t been. Some nights the white strobe lights were on and that prompted even more discussion and speculation. Apparently there were some problems that arose from an ice storm and that had the lights all out of kilter. Now we’re focusing our attention on the 2 small windmills east of town, trying to determine why the blades are sitting still. Conclusion? It’s because they’re not turning.

See you next week…real good then.

[MN Shutterbug]

Speaking of swans, there had to be over 100 on a flooded field 1/2 mile south of Waseca. That's probably where they were headed.

BTW Dotch, it was a pleasure meeting you and Ruby today. You have a fine dog there. I can see why you mention her a lot. She's a honey.

[Dotch]

Pleasure was all mine. Always enjoy putting a face with the writings of those I meet online. I'll bet all those swans in one spot were a sight. From your description, I can just about guess which field too. Ruby really liked you and could tell you were a "dog guy". She is a special little animal. Spoiled, but so are we.

[Dotch]

It's been a long time since I did the stroll

The scurs did well in the near term and not so well in the longer term last week. Can they make amends with their latest prognostications? Starting Wednesday, partly cloudy with highs around 55 and lows near 35. Thursday, cloudy with a good chance of rain. Highs of 45 and lows of 35. Mostly cloudy on Friday with a chance of rain developing by evening. Highs of 50 – 55 and lows of 35 – 40. Cloudy on Saturday with an increasing chance of showers. Highs of 50 – 55 and lows of 35 – 40. Mostly cloudy with a chance of showers once again for Sunday. Cooler with highs of 45 – 50 and lows near 40. Mostly cloudy for Monday with a chance of thunderstorms. Highs 0f 45 – 50 and lows near 30. Cool with a wintery mix for Tuesday. Highs 40 – 45 and lows around 40. The normal high for April 10th is 55 and the normal low is 32. We will experience 13 hours of daylight on the 6th, the first time since early last September. The scurs will be hoping the forecast April showers will not produce snowmen.

The weather was on everyone’s mind last week. With the ground freezing in the mornings, spring was approaching ever so slowly. With Saturday’s warmth, one could sense the pace picking up as temperatures made it into the 50’s. Just seeing the number of tractors pulling farm implements by the ranch was an indication that people were starting to get anxious. We were fortunate that March precipitation was relatively light. At the ranch we officially measured 1.16” which isn’t all that much. So far in April as of this writing, we’ve only accumulated another .2” so the drier trend is continuing. The only problem has been that until Sunday, we hadn’t hit 60 degrees. Cloudy weather has been a hallmark of the spring thus far further slowing drying. Last year at this time small grain was seeded and field conditions had allowed for fertilizer applications. The ice was off St. Olaf Lake the end of March and is not off as of April 4th. Many snow banks remaining in the fencelines and in the groves as well. Not to worry however. Given some breezy, sunny, warm days and the spring could turn on a dime. The only problem is getting it cooperate.

The weekend made me antsy that’s for sure. I got tired of waiting for the snow banks on top of the electric fence in a couple spots to melt so I dug it out with the scoop shovel. Afterwards it was time to check the fence to see how winter had ravaged it once again. About this time Ruby decided to disobey a key command in her operating system so as we went strolling along fixing the fence, she was in learning mode. By the time we finished we came to an understanding. Charging the fence once confident that all the wires are back on the insulators and the wires are up off the ground is a little like the scene when Clark Griswold plugs in the Christmas lights: It usually doesn’t work the first time you plug it in.

Oddly enough it did work this time so the next step was to let the ewes with lambs out for the first time this spring. Removing the wire holding the overhead door down caused quite a din as they were convinced they were going to be fed. When the door opened up it was mass pandemonium as about 90 head surged out into the afternoon sunshine. Soon the lambs began to run and the ewes kicked up their heels as well. It was definitely a moment we had been anticipating for far too long. Of course with 70 degree temperatures Sunday all the snow melted making me think I should’ve shoveled that fence out back in January.

There have been some positive signs that spring is edging closer. Last Thursday evening while coming in from chores there were over 50 swans in various small groups of a dozen to 20 or so flying in formation to the northwest. A meadowlark was heard Saturday morning after getting the hay unloaded. As we made our way around the fence on Saturday afternoon one could make out the slow, faint croaking of one western chorus frog down near the pond. Over half the pond surface was still occupied by ice so that must’ve been one chilly little frog. 2 days later however and all the ice was gone so the first warm night, the sound from the pond should be deafening. The juncos are everywhere. It seems there’s one in or under just about every brush pile, automobile, grill or any other place they could possibly hide. Some of those brush piles need to see a match before much longer but will wait until the juncos are done with them first. Male robins are fighting for territory. Watched a couple of them tangling in the yard while grilling one evening. Obviously hadn’t heard the “plenty of fish in the sea” line yet.

At the Mall for Men, the little fat buddies were the beneficiaries of a colossal error. When Mrs. Cheviot got a birthday cake to share last week, the bakery where she purchased it misunderstood her order. The little fat buddies wound up eating the better part of a whole sheet cake. It was musing watching a group of a dozen grown men sitting around a table peering at the cake like a flock of vultures. Sure, it was torture and took a couple days but somehow they managed to struggle through it. Quite a feat considering one of the best eating little fat buddies was away on business in Atlanta. Luckily it was pretty good cake and the only complaint was there was no ice cream to go with it. Oh well, sometimes we must sacrifice.

See you next week…real good then.

[Dotch]

Ain't no change in the weather, ain't no changes in me

The scurs have had a hard time predicting the warm weekend temperatures as of late. Does this mean from now on we’ll only see warmth on the weekend? Guess again. Starting Wednesday, cloudy with a chance of showers. Highs of 50 – 55 and lows around 35. Cloudy on Thursday with an increasing chance of rain by evening. Highs near 45 and lows of 35. Cloudy and cooler with a good chance of rain and snow on Friday. Highs of only 35 - 40 and lows of 30. Saturday and Sunday, partly cloudy. Highs of 40 - 45 and lows dropping to 25 - 30. Cloudy on Monday with an increasing chance of showers by evening. Highs of 50 and lows around 35. Cloudy on Tuesday with a chance of more rain showers. Highs of 55 and lows around 40. The normal high for April 15th is 57 and the normal low is 34. On April 17th the sun will rise before 6:30 and will set at 8 p.m. The scurs will be double checking their taxes in the slim hope of getting enough money back to buy more fire wood until the weather decides to change.

The Full Moon for the month of April occurs on the 17th, Palm Sunday. This moon has many names including the Full Pink Moon for the commonly occurring ground phlox in the woodlands. It also goes by the Sprouting Grass Moon, the Egg Moon and the Full Shad Moon for the fish that were running in the streams of what is now the northeastern US. The Ojibwe called this the Broken Snowshoe Moon and the Sioux, the Moon of Greening Grass or the Moon of Red Grass Appearing as particularly the warm season native prairie grasses such as the bluestems would commonly start off the spring slightly reddish in appearance. After the recent rains and warm temperatures, lawns and pastures have begun to green up, something one wouldn’t have bet on a month ago.

Spring made some significant progress this last week as there were signs that perhaps we have turned the corner. Temperatures at the ranch skyrocketed to 78 degrees on Sunday afternoon as we dodged a weather bullet from the strong storms that developed to our east. Rains were generally lighter than forecast so that doesn’t hurt when it does decide to dry up so field work can be accomplished. Buds on trees are swelling and some such as the silver maples are showing signs of pollinating. Removed the protective barrier and tree wrap from the peach tree and it appears to be alive when peeling back some bark, revealing a lime green cambium layer beneath it. While the snow piles in the yard have all melted there are still some vestiges of snow banks on the north sides of fencelines and groves. By next week they should be a memory. The ice went out on St. Olaf Lake sometime on the 9th or 10th. Since it is a relatively deep lake, it takes a little longer than some in the area. The western chorus frogs are out in force now. Near Silver Lake on Thursday, they were already loud and after the weekend warmth, the noise was deafening when conditions were still. On the 5th, I saw my first striped gopher of the season. Pocket gophers had been digging for several weeks prior to this. The initial leaves are unrolling on the rhubarb and given some warm rains, a piece of warm rhubarb pie before a weekend afternoon nap seems all but assured.

The birds are coming back too. On the 6th, the first of the tree swallows was seen checking out the nesting box in the windbreak. Definitely need to get around to all the bird houses to clean them out and make sure they’re ready for occupation by our feathered friends. The goldfinches continue their change to summer plumage. Right now they’re blotchy looking with an occasional male getting closer to full power sunshine yellow. On the 10th, there were 2 brown creepers probing the bark on the ash trees for insects. These little guys make an appearance every year about this time but have never stayed. Too bad as there are lots of insects including those pesky multi-colored Asian ladybeetles that suddenly have sprung to life. There was a male mosquito in the pickup last week and Mrs. Cheviot swatted one in the house as well. On Monday the 11th while soil sampling near the Little Cobb River, I spied a dragonfly. Just what we need to eat up some of those early season mosquitoes. On the same journey, there were white pelicans lazily making their way north, highlighting an all too rare sunny weekday afternoon.

Tree wrap and protective coverings were removed this past weekend. So far so good. Everything came through the winter in good shape. Even the peach tree appears to be very much alive. The pruning mess from the apples was picked up and the grapevine that had become a nuisance was beat into submission for another spring. Sunday we picked up a couple pear trees so the spot still needed to be decided on, along with a spot for the winterberries and dwarf burning bush, yet to be purchased. This decision making process makes me oh so nap-ish. Some things never change.

Ruby has kept things amusing during he wet weather although some of the things she does make one wonder about being man’s best friend. After the most recent rains, when we let her out for potty, rather than use the wet grass, she’s decided the sidewalk looks like a better place to keep her feet dry while doing her business. Oddly enough, when it comes to running around down by the barn at choretime, suddenly it doesn’t matter how wide or deep the puddle is, she’d rather run right through it than go around it. Go figure.

See you next week…real good then.

[Dotch]

I take for granted that you’re always there…

Looks like the scurs will be out of the running for Miss Congeniality if they continue to deliver forecasts predicting crummy weather. Such is life. Starting Wednesday, cloudy with a chance of snow in the morning and early afternoon. Highs near 40 and lows of 25 - 30. Thursday, partly cloudy with highs climbing to a balmy 45 and lows dropping to 35. Chance of a rain/snow mix by evening. Cloudy on Friday with highs once again near 45 and lows of 35. A chance of rain and/or snow in the morning, a chance of rain in the afternoon and a slight chance of snow in the evening. Saturday, mostly cloudy with a slight chance of afternoon showers. Highs of 50 – 55 and lows around 35. Partly cloudy on Easter Sunday with highs of 60 and lows of 45. Monday, mostly cloudy with a chance of rain. Highs of 60 and lows of 45 – 50. Mostly cloudy Tuesday with a slight chance of a rain shower. Highs near 70 and lows around 50. The normal high for April 23rd is 61 and the normal low is 37. We continue to add daylight at just a little under 3 minutes per day and on the 27th, we will have achieved 14 hours of sunshine, except for the fact of course that the sun only shines about 2 out of 5 days! The scurs will be eating the remains of their headless chocolate bunnies left over from Easter Sunday.

The weather continues to be stuck on the March cycle. There is a chance that we may actually register more snow at the ranch in April than we did in March, something that usually doesn’t happen. It has made fieldwork a bit of a challenge as the ground is not quite fit to plant especially as one moves north. The weekend snow/rain has also made life miserable with the sun shining only occasionally and temperatures remaining well below normal. Last Saturday's high was typical for what we’d see the 2nd week in March. Snow always makes for a special problem as it takes time to melt when it’s cool, thus keeping the soil surface wet and slimy for additional time versus the same moisture equivalent of a rainfall event with warmer temperatures following. All in all, this is shaping up to be a later spring than we’ve become accustomed to the past several years. We have been pretty fortunate.

Ruby got to ride along to the kindly neighbor’s pasture as it was getting time to work on the fence there. Winter had not been kind to the fence and as luck would have it, with the cool spring the grass has not grown rapidly enough to stock the sheep just yet. While I mended the fence Ruby was having a blast with the resident standard sable collie Sophie. Last fall when Ruby came along she was intimidated and not real friendly towards her. After playing hard several times since then with Fudgie, this time it was a no brainer. Sophie and Ruby were immediately running at full speed and spent the whole time while there rolling, wrestling and romping. When it came time to go home, Ruby was almost reluctant to get in the truck, not unlike some kids I recall who were playing at someone’s farm while their Dad was in the house conducting business.

There were plenty of bird sightings this past week. Monday night the backyard ash trees were crawling with woodpeckers and the like. They were host to 4 downies, a couple hairies, a white breasted nuthatch, and a male red-bellied woodpecker while a red-headed woodpecker was nearby in an aging silver maple. At the kindly neighbor’s pasture, the calling of male cardinals was present from many points and the chickadees kept a close eye on the dogs as the fence mending proceeded.

The entire town lost a great farmer, friend and public servant this past week. Davey Swenson unexpectedly passed away last Tuesday. He had made his morning breakfast excursion to the café and from there had stopped at the Mall for Men for coffee just as he’d done so many, many times over the years. There was paperwork to do and I didn’t get a chance to go back to the training table to be with the little fat buddies, gleaning the kind of wisdom and knowledge that only comes with experience. About 9:45 as I was on the phone I saw Davey wave at me and smile as he was heading for the door. I waved back and went back to my phone call. About a half hour later the sirens went off and emergency vehicles left town heading north. Not long after that there was a call trying to determine what time he’d left the Mall for Men. It was confusing to try to piece together details of what had happened but it was apparent after a few hours that he’d suffered fatal a heart attack.

I kicked myself that I hadn’t taken the time to go back to have coffee that morning. After all, it went against the grain of one of the most important lessons he taught me. Davey always took the time to take a break and visit and encouraged others to do the same. I can’t recall a time over the years when planting or harvesting plots at his place when we didn’t stop to have something to eat and visit for a bit. Sure, he usually had lots of crop left to harvest but he always said not to worry, it would get done. And he was right. This was always a man who I could count on to pick me up when I was having a bad day too. He’d sense it and before I knew it we were having coffee and conversing. The next thing I knew the problems suddenly didn’t seem so significant. Perhaps his practice of taking time to care drove some area workaholics nuts but I’d contend that the results were reflected in the huge crowds present for the visitation and funeral. And perhaps it was meant to be that I was among the last people to see him alive. It served as a reminder of the lesson he taught me, and like Davey himself, one I won’t soon forget.

See you next week…real good then.

[Dotch]

I can gather all the news I need on the weather report

The scurs should redeem themselves this week: No snow in the forecast! That said, will we see more seasonable temperatures? Starting with Wednesday, mostly cloudy with a slight chance of showers. Highs near 45 and lows of 35 – 40. Thursday, cloudy becoming partly cloudy. Highs of 55 and lows near 40. Partly cloudy Friday becoming cloudy by evening with a chance of overnight showers and thunderstorms. Highs of 65 and lows of 45 - 50. Cloudy Saturday with a chance of showers. Highs of 55- 60 with lows near 35. Sunday, partly cloudy with a slight chance of showers. Highs around 50 and lows of 30 - 35. Mostly sunny both Monday and Tuesday with highs of 55 – 60 and lows of 40 – 45. The normal high for April 30th is 65 and the normal low is 40. The scurs are looking to cash in two weekends in a row, sure in the knowledge that May baskets are headed their way on Sunday.

The weather hasn’t been conducive to fieldwork for most of the month but that could be about to change. Rather than being obsessed with the upcoming royal wedding, most farmers are tuned in to weather forecasts. Fortunately those of us in greater Bugtussle and environs have been spared the heavy downpours thus far. As of the 25th at the ranch for the month of April we have only recorded 1.37” of liquid precip. All it would take would be for some dry, warm breezy days and most would be able to get moving. It’s not early any more but the stretch of winter we’ve experienced since last November has been a throwback to the days many of us grew up with. Yes, those days when we walked to school uphill both ways in snowstorms during the month of April. Somehow we always managed to get a crop and sometimes surprisingly good crops when corn was planted in May. The data indicating we lose very little in yield before May 10th still has a great deal of validity. The restraint most have demonstrated to this point has been admirable. Sure, we might burn more dryer gas but we need to keep things in perspective sometimes.

The weather has been affecting more than just crop farmers. It’s also having a negative impact on the movement of garden and nursery stock as well as making it tough to move ewes to pasture at the ranch. No sense to put animals out there if it isn’t sufficiently greened up to carry them. It’s getting time though. One muses how much longer the body can take the greedy, aggressive ewes pounding on knee joints that are designed to move primarily back and forth. What’s worse is some of the lambs are getting big enough so they can potentially inflict the same kind of damage. Snap! Crackle! Pop! It’s not just for breakfast anymore.

Gardening has been on hold too. Potato planting on Good Friday didn’t happen nor did the radish, onion, pea, lettuce or carrot planting. There is still time however. Would rather do it once the right way as opposed to mudding it in and having to do it over. It takes time and money to do that too. There has been time for some tree planting. Think I mentioned the Patten and Parker pear trees we planted. We also got our Red Splendor crabapples planted. After the big ash tree landed on the nice one we’d planted about 20 years ago, it was great to plant some wonderful replacement stock in case that one bites the dust due to fire blight or other assorted maladies. Hopefully we get a chance to finish planting the Freeman maple and Nigra green arborvitae this week.

Some time was made for cleaning out the bluebird nesting boxes although they usually are occupied almost immediately by tree swallows. This year was no exception and within minutes of seeing any mouse nests or last years leftover nests removed, the swallows were circling. A quick trip to the pond while on the birdhouse cleaning excursion revealed about a dozen blue-winged teal and a pair of giant Canada geese who took loud exception to my presence. The wood duck house needed to be cleaned too. The kestrels that nested in it last year were not particularly tidy tenants and removed all the cedar chips from the box before they constructed their nest. Due to the horrible mosquito infestation last year, I never did get back down there to see how many babies there were. Judging by the mess there must’ve been several. The goldfinches are slowly but surely changing into their summer outfits. It won’t be too long and the orioles should make an appearance. One can only hope we don’t have to put heaters in their nectar feeders.

Ruby had another big weekend, this time travelling with us to visit my Mom and her Border Collie Fudgie near Spring Valley for Easter. The two red and white dogs picked up right where they left off last fall with lots of running, growling and chasing. They genuinely seem to like each other as evidenced by Fudgie allowing Ruby to drink out of her water dish and eat her food. All dogs have distinct personalities but Border Collies seem to take it to an extreme. One can definitely see that Fudgie and Gus were out of the same litter as some of Fudgie’s head tilts and expressions leave no doubt they were closely related. While Ruby is not as closely related she has the same drive that her great grandmother did along with her same desire to play ball 24/7 if you’d let her. It’s time to get Ruby checked out for heartworm soon and would encourage those who haven’t done so to do the same for their dog friends. Mosquitoes are starting to show up with greater frequency. The last thing anyone wants to see is their favorite pet, companion or in our case little helper suffer and possibly die from that highly preventable affliction.

See you next week…real good then.

[Dotch]

It’s better to burn out than it is to rust…

While the scurs were celebrating their newfound popularity after forecasting no snow last week, things turned ugly. Readers looked outside late last week to see snow falling as they were watching another Twins defeat on the tube. Hate mail ensued. Will the scurs redeem themselves? Starting Wednesday, partly cloudy skies with a high of 65. Clouding up overnight with a good chance of rain and lows near 45. Cloudy becoming partly cloudy on Thursday with a slight chance of showers during the day. Highs near 60 and lows around 40. Partly cloudy on Friday with a slight chance of a shower during the day and a better chance of showers overnight. Highs Friday of 65 and lows of 45 - 50. Cloudy on Saturday with a slight chance of showers. Highs near 65 and lows of 50. Partly cloudy Sunday with a chance of lingering showers. Highs around 65 and lows near 45. Monday partly cloudy with highs of 65, lows of 50 and a slight chance of showers. Becoming cloudy on Tuesday, warmer, with a chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs near 70 and lows around 50. The normal high for May 5th is 67 and the normal low is 42, about the same as we experience on October 2nd. The duration of daylight however is the same as that on August 7th. May has continued the April trend of cooler than normal. On May 2nd, the high was 37. This is the normal high for March 6th. The sun will rise before 6 a.m. on May 6th so hopefully the longer days will start to warm us up. The scurs will be celebrating Cinco de Mayo with some cactus juice.

Wow! What an ugly April that was and as we said last week, a throwback to the days of my youth. Seems like those were more the norm in the ’60’s and ‘70’s. I still recall sliding down the hill at home on the 29th of April after a spring snowstorm dumped 6” or so. Some details on this April at the ranch: We measured precipitation of one sort or another on 20 of the 30 days. We recorded a trace on 3 more. Logic tells you if it’s precipitating, it’s generally cloudy. With little sunshine it was also cool. On any given day, it seemed temperatures were off the average mark by about 10 degrees, more March-like than April-like. Cloudy and cool led to little drying in the fields and very little fieldwork was accomplished. On the flip side, while it rained and/or snowed frequently, the amounts were moderate. At the ranch the gauge tallied a total of only 2.54” with slightly over an inch of that falling last week. Given some sun, warmer temperatures, breezy conditions and a little luck, we still have a decent chance to get this crop planted in without resorting to extraordinary measures. Plant in the mud, the crop is a dud. Plant in the dust, bins will bust.

Gardening has followed suit with fieldwork progress. Difficult to make any headway in areas where drainage is lacking and fall tillage was not performed. Wednesday’s rain pretty much put the kibosh on any gardening plans. So when the weather deals you a lemon, you make lemonade. Tree planting needed to be done and the beauty of it was they didn’t need watering. There was already water in the bottom of the hole in places. There are still a few potted shrubs to put in but one needs to ease into these things so as not to burn out on them. I did manage to get all the vine crop transplants seeded into the flats thanks to Bill, Deb and Amy. Mighty nice to have everything ready for me then just show up to plant. It’s even nicer to get a jump on the season when it includes Bill’s favorite and mine, those sweet Mooregold squash.

The little male goldfinches are close to full color now and the rooster pheasant we call Little Jerry II is biding his time courting the young ladies on the edge of the lawn. Some of the travelers are moving through to their summer homes far to the north and some are arriving here for the season. It’s that time of the year. Included in this week’s sightings were the barn swallows on 4/27 and a brown thrasher in the backyard on 4/30. A half dozen white-crowned sparrows and a Harris sparrow were spotted on 5/2, and all were glad I didn’t decide to torch their favorite brush pile over the weekend. It was alive with activity and makes an excellent place for them to conceal themselves when there are no leaves on the trees. Chipping sparrows are picking out potential nesting spots in the evergreen plantings. Some of the trees are measuring 7+ feet tall now. Not sure if it’s the same one but a robin is back in the barn adding to the top of the same nest that has been used for at least the past 3 years. It’s starting to resemble a chimney and if they keep coming back eventually we’ll have to cut a hole in the roof.

With spring planting season here, the little fat buddies are on sabbatical once again or at least until the rainfall that knocks us out of the field. To send us off in the right frame of mind CS recently made a pan of caramel rolls, still almost too warm to eat when they arrived. Lynne S brought in a cake to thank those who had taken Davey to his appointments in addition to those with whom he shared those morning bomb sessions. Without that nourishment for our bodies, it would be difficult for us to nourish our minds. What’s more, it would be nearly impossible to convey all that wisdom and knowledge accumulated over the course of a long winter to the masses.

See you next week…real good then.

[Dotch]

Who was given a pat on the back…

The scurs covered the bases last week which is more than you can say about the Twins recently. What’s on tap this time around? Starting Wednesday, partly cloudy becoming mostly cloudy with a good chance of thunderstorms. Highs of 80 and lows near 60. Mostly cloudy on Thursday and cooler with a good chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs near 70 and lows around 50. Friday cloudy and cooler with a chance of rain. Highs of 55 and lows dropping to 45. Slightly warmer but remaining cloudy on Saturday with a moderate chance for showers. Highs of 60 and lows around 45. Partly cloudy Sunday with a slight chance of a shower. Highs of 60 – 65 and lows near 45. Partly sunny on Monday with highs of 65 and lows of 55. Partly cloudy becoming mostly cloudy with a good chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs of 75 – 80 and lows of 55. The normal high for May 15th is 71 and the normal low is 46. Sunset will occur after 8:30 on the 13th, the latest it’s been since last August 7th. The scurs are mailing their property taxes in with an IOU.

May 17th will mark the Full Moon for the month of May. This one goes by several names, the Full Flower Moon, the Full Corn Planting Moon and the Full Milk Moon. It was at this time that many farmers could curtail the feeding of hay and turn their cows out on pasture to graze as the grass had finally become lush and thick enough to support them. This was not a good time to stand directly behind the cows while they were in the stanchions however, for obvious reasons. The Ojibwe called this moon the Full Blossom Moon and the Sioux, after horses had been introduced of course, the Moon When Ponies Shed.

Soil conditions this past week definitely shaped up in the greater Bugtussle area as farmers were planting corn in earnest. Some were fortunate enough to finish planting corn and in some cases, managed to get their soybeans planted as well. The drier April in this area turned out to be in their favor as temperatures allowed little drying in that timeframe. To the north and west, farmers were less fortunate with rains slowing and stopping progress on Friday night then again on Sunday morning. Monday morning brought more general and substantial rain across Waseca and adjacent counties. It’s tough to venture a guess as to what percentage of corn is planted. Around Bugtussle it’s probably close to 75%. Not far to the north it’s probably closer to 15%. Just not enough rain free days and hours of drying weather to allow for much more than that.

The weather has been allowing for a lot of bird migration however. This past week about the time I’d sent the copy to press on 5/3, of course a white-throated sparrow showed up amongst a group of Harris’ and white-crowned sparrows. They usually do and this year was no exception. A brief stop at the kindly neighbors pasture on 5/5 revealed that the bluebirds had returned to their favorite nesting box again for what is probably the 5th year in a row. On 5/6, the song of the first house wren was heard at the ranch and on 5/7, there were several female rose-breasted grosbeaks but as of yet, no males here. On 5/8, the first 2 Baltimore orioles were at the jelly feeder that had been put in place a few days before their arrival.

5/9 brought a mixed bag with a rooster pheasant trying to migrate through the side of the house. The house won of course but the pheasant managed to break a hole in the vinyl siding before breaking his neck. The electric fence was grounded out so it was time to track down the ground and take a peek in the wood duck house while I was at it. Opening the observation door on the side I could see it was occupied. A brown feathered tail with black bands was evident so I calmly slipped my hand over the body of the nesting kestrel and slowly brought her out where I could see how many eggs were in the nest. She looked at me and my leather-gloved hand with total amazement and disbelief as I counted the 3 eggs, then gently replaced her on the nest. She didn’t get excited and fly out as expected. Amazing how small these little falcons are, even smaller than a robin when you actually get your hands on one.

Ruby had another busy weekend of appointments to keep. First she went to the Heartworm Clinic in Little Jerusalem where she received many compliments on how pretty and well behaved she was. I must have a little of my mother in me as I wasn’t particularly amused by some of her antics since she isn’t real used to being on a lead rope. She minded but just barely. After all the attention it was time to get the lawnmower fired up and as most Border Collie owners will attest, that usually fires the dog up. Time for the time honored tradition of biting the lawnmower tires passed down from generation to generation. That was followed of course by herding the lawnmower back and forth across the yard, getting her nice white socks all grass stained. Lawn mowed, the chores were next and after that, playing in the garden dirt. The tiller occupied Ruby’s attention while she wisely kept her distance from the rotating tines. Now her socks were not only grass stained they were muddy too. Sound familiar to you Mom’s out there in the audience? We finished up in the dark and went in the house to scrounge up some food and refreshments. I sat in my chair and Ruby flopped down on the rug a few feet away while I petted and stroked her back. We were both tired and knowing there was another long day ahead, we both needed our beauty sleep.

The next morning she was ready for chores and then, up for planting the potatoes. Since we were heading to Mom’s for Mother’s Day, I made her stay in the house. Planting what turned out to be 40 hills of potatoes (I thought there were only 30 until I added the 10 hills of Norkotah russets) she would’ve started out the trip all mud. As it was she played with Fudgie again and had another long day of seeing the world outside of Bugtussle. She must adapt more rapidly than we do though. When we arrived back home, I was tuckered and she wanted to play ball until almost 11 p.m. There may be a Tommy John surgery in my future if this keeps up.

See you next week…real good then.