Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday of the year. Sure, I am glad to live in this country, but the reason I so enjoy Thanksgiving has nothing to do with pilgrims or the Mayflower. It has everything to do with the fact that when I was a hungry little fellow, Thanksgiving was a time when there was so much good food to eat that everyone in the family seemed happy … I believe that they really were. It was one of those days when my dad would spend time with me cutting the giant grapes with pits in them (remember grapes with seeds?) in half to remove the seeds. Making the fruit salad was one of my responsibilities, and it was always made better because dad was there to help. Once we had enough of those giant green and purple grapes, we would cut apples and bananas and chop some walnuts. The grand finale was getting to play with the Sunbeam Mixmaster, to whip the whole cream. Later I graduated to pumpkin pies. I still make them today … sometimes with fresh pumpkin.

Fast forward a lot of years, and Thanksgiving is still my favorite of holidays. These days a collection of daughters, sons-in-law and/or boyfriends come home for a few days of food, fellowship and fun. There’s almost always a little bit of drama, but for the most part each of us takes on some meaningful dish and we wind up crowded in the kitchen, cooking way too much food for a feast that flies by too fast. If you could rationally analyze it, I bet you’d discover that our highpoint is the kitchen and the cooking. Actually, the highpoint is likely spending time with people you love.   

Then there will be the hikes around the farm, fooling around with the utility vehicles and even some chores. This year we hope to get five big spruce trees planted … along with the garlic. On Sunday, there will be the choked up trips to the airport … just enough emotion to let us know we are alive, and that there are some very special people in the world who care to care about us.

I don’t know what your tradition is, but I hope that you have plenty to be thankful for this year … and I hope you’ll spend a bit of thought giving thanks.

See you on Monday.

Ruralpolitans and other folks who have a few acres to look after have an entirely new array of tractors to choose from, thanks to John Deere’s commitment to bringing big tractor function to part-time producers and hobby farmers. These so-called utility tractors come out of the company’s agricultural division with engines ranging from 45 to 105 horsepower. The new lineup includes the 5D, 5E, 5E Limited and 5M Series; all designed to perform virtually any task, with any implement, within any budget.

“This is the most complete line of utility tractors we’ve ever offered,” says Rex Edmunds, division marketing manager. “We’ve designed these tractors to meet the requirements of many different customers with many different applications, and we’re providing a wide array of options to bring the optimal configuration and horsepower to their operations.”

I had the chance to look over all these machines and put them through their paces earlier this year. I am tickled to report that Deere and Company has hit the nail on the head with this lineup. I am still a big fan of the compact tractor, but there are times when you need a bit more bulk and some additional ponies to get the work done safely and efficiently. If your budget allows, and you have lots of loader work in mind for your tractor, I would definitely recommend Deere’s proprietary shuttle transmission called the PowerReverser™. It makes forward-reverse shifting a matter of fingertip control.

The no-frills 5D and 5E Series range in horsepower from 45 to 75 and offer durability at economical prices. The 5D Series is only offered with a two-wheel-drive (2WD) axle compared to the 5E, which offers 2WD or mechanical-front-wheel-drive (MFWD) configurations. These open station tractors feature synchronized transmissions designed for smooth shifting and easy-to-reach, color-coded controls for simple operation. These tractors provide an economical solution that’s just right for many folks.

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“The more powerful 5E Limited Series Tractors range in horsepower from 83 to 101 engine hp. These units have more deluxe features including a cab, PowerReverser™ transmission, wet traction clutch, and MFWD axle – all in base equipment,” Edmunds says. “We’ve packaged the 5E Limited Series to offer select performance and comfort-enhancing features at a very low price.”

The 5M Series Tractors range in horsepower from 65 to 105. These higher-end machines feature new transmissions, increased lift capacities, more stability for larger implements, and a new operator environment for increased comfort and productivity. 

“For customers who demand premium performance and comfort, the 5M Series, which ranges in engine horsepower from 65 to 105, is designed to be the benchmark for quality and durability in the utility tractor marketplace. These tractors offer a vast array of options and horsepower levels, with exceptional hydraulic capacities to handle any utility-tractor implement. These tractors will definitely bring more productivity to the farm or jobsite, which makes them ideal for customers who spend many hours in a tractor and depend on their tractor to help make their living,” Edmunds says. “With more weight, a wet clutch design and enhanced serviceability, these tractors provide dependable service for the tough jobs they’re built to handle.”

As you might expect, all 5 Series Tractors can be matched to an array of implements offered by John Deere, Frontier Equipment and other makers. Enhanced hydraulic systems, standard three-point hitches and PTO are all part of the package. Spend some time with your local John Deere agricultural product dealer to find out how a 5 Series utility tractor can become a top hand at your place.

November 25^th and there’s still at least two months of good pasture left … assuming continuous hard freezes or deep snow don’t shut it down. We put up about a quarter mile of temporary electric cross fence last weekend to give the cattle and donkeys a fresh break.

The east and west boundary fences on this farm are pretty well shot. The old barbed wire hasn’t had any but the most rudimentary maintenance for what appears to be the last decade. The north and south boundary fences, on the other hand, are in good shape. So far, we have reinforced the western boundary with a couple of strands of 14-gauge low-tensile electric wire that pulses around 8,000 volts with the makeshift grounding system we cobbled together. I just wrapped the ground lead from the charger around an old copper water pipe that goes somewhere beneath the barn … this is far from the right way. That fencer will likely send closer to 10,000 volts through the wire once I get a proper ground field put together.

At the moment, the cattle are far enough from the eastern boundary that we use a single strand of 14-guage wire stretched between the north boundary fence and one of the permanent cross fences, which is still in fair condition. We charge that single wire with a Premier IntelliShock 20B battery-powered charger. This little box sends a consistent 9,000 pulsed volts through the wire … which is plenty to keep the animals from testing it.

Those who believe that cattle don’t experience joy have never opened up a fresh break of grass to the herd. This is one of the special treats for those of us who choose to manage how the animals graze the pastures. The animals know when it is coming, they appear to anticipate it, and they burst through the gate, literally kicking up their heels, as they take mouthfuls of lush growth from all corners. Eventually they get down to business, put their heads down and don’t come up for air for more than an hour. There is nothing like the sight and sounds of contented cattle doing what they were designed to do … harvest grass.

Photos courtesy of Kate Will.

Freezing temperature not withstanding, I set to work on the chicken-house-from-recycled-materials bright and early last Saturday. It was a beautiful, clear morning, and since the wind was calm, the cold wasn’t difficult to take. Within a couple of hours, the temperature was in the 50s.

The first order of business was to frame the human-door end of the house. I used more scrap 2x6 material for that. Next, I cut and installed three purlins across the rafters. The purlins were roughly 1x6, although some boards were flitch sawn, so they followed the curves of the tree that provided the lumber. I needed roofing metal in pieces about 5 feet long, so I headed back to the pushed-in shed with a crowbar and brought several long pieces up to the barn to cut. My el-cheapo power sheet-metal shears made the cuts, although the old steel roofing is corrugated so it wasn’t as quick as it might have been. I used six pieces of roofing, and it went on without a hitch.

With the roof on, my attention turned to the human and chicken doors. Since this was supposed to be a project that used things we had on hand, my first task was to locate sufficient hinges. It took a while, but eventually, I found a box of old garage door hinges in the barn’s loft and picked out five. Next, I cut and hung the doors. I used an old piece of machinery chain to hold the chicken door open and an old homemade steel handle for the human-door latch.

The finishing touches, other than painting, included cutting and installing 1x4 and 1x3 material for the corner trim and knocking together a perch inside the house. I also cut 4-inch diameter hand holes for outside access to the nesting boxes. I haven’t created the “doors” for those yet, but I will soon.

Since the Kubota loader tractor is even more buried this week than last week, I decided to try something unconventional to move the chicken house to the chicken yard. I know the folks at Polar Trailer  won’t recommend using their heavy-duty tandem trailers as jacks and house-moving dollies, but I can tell you that the trailer performed flawlessly as the primary tool for moving this 700-pound house.

Within minutes of setting the new chicken house, the hens were curious. Within an hour they had begun to claim it. During chores this morning, I heard a hen laying an egg in it. I can’t wait to paint both the chicken house and Mulefoot pig house … green with red roofs and white trim. Hopefully I’ll have at least one additional warm day to get that done this season.

Photos courtesy of Kate Will.

When I was in college and graduate school in Chicago, I managed to pull off some kind of a vegetable garden in vacant lots here and there. Gardening was good for my soul, and it seriously stretched our meager food budget.

One summer we were blessed with a bumper crop of Roma tomatoes and several dozen scrounged, bail-type glass-lid canning jars. After processing one batch of tomato sauce by hand with a cone-shaped colander, I figured there had to be a better way.

I was a subscriber to Mother Earth News at the time and was aware of many expensive, and therefore unobtainable, machines that would have made making tomato sauce and paste a piece of cake. One of the more affordable pieces of equipment advertised in Mother was the Squeezo Strainer. As luck would have it for us, we were regulars at the once famous Maxwell Street Market on Chicago’s near South Side, and before I spent the money on a new Squeezo, we found a used one at the market. It was all metal including the hopper, as I recall, and it looked like it hadn’t been worked hard at all. Using the Squeezo, we actually had fun processing that bushel of remaining Romas.

Our Squeezo Strainer processed hundreds of pounds … perhaps thousands of pounds … of tomatoes, grapes, apples and other fruit before it was retired many years later. We replaced it with a strainer attachment on our first KitchenAid Mixer … one of the last to wear the Hobart brand. I can tell you that we stripped the main drive gear in that mixer twice … we never stripped anything in the Squeezo. But for the life of me, I can’t remember what we did with it … perhaps it was a casualty of some yard sale or another.

Earlier this year, I learned that the Squeezo Strainer is still being produced … built in the U.S.A, in fact. The good folks at All Seasons Homestead Helpers, Inc. in Vermont have kept the Squeezo alive, and they were gracious enough to send me a new one. What I discovered about the Squeezo this year is that it is still every bit as hard core as that old model was. And even though our tomato harvest this year was pretty slim, running some of the fruit through the strainer was a delightful blast from the past.

If you are looking for a high-quality juicer/strainer that has relatively few moving parts, requires no electricity to operate, and will serve your children, and perhaps even your children’s children well, then I suggest you make the $250 investment in the deluxe model. It comes with three strainer screens (different perforation sizes), a 2-plus quart hopper, wooden plunger, brush and recipe/instructions booklet.

 If you are looking for other useful low-impact stuff to help around the homestead, be sure to spend some time exploring the All Seasons Homestead Helpers website.

Last Saturday, after Kate and I finished the Mulefoot hog house and called it quits on the chicken house, we poured each other a glass of wine and pulled our Adirondack chairs up to the fence that encloses the Mulefoot pigs’ pasture pen. We were relaxing, taking in the sights and catching up on the prior week’s events when we noticed that whatever the pigs were eating was making quite a crunching sound. Not only were they crunching, they were squealing, snorting and wagging their tails sufficiently to make Kate and me believe that they were enjoying themselves.

After a bit of investigation, we discovered that the Mulefoot pigs were happily munching hackberries that had blown out of one of the huge hackberry trees near the edge of their paddock. Earlier this season, we noticed that the chickens devoured windfall hackberries, so why not the pigs? I checked to be sure that they still had plenty of commercial hog feed in their bowls … and they did. So we concluded that the pigs simply preferred hackberries over extruded beige pellets.

Kate and I raked up a pile of hackberries and leaves and tossed them into the pig pasture and went back to visiting in the Adirondack chairs.

A short while later we noticed the Mulefoot pigs reaching for the tall lush grass on the outside of their enclosure. It’s true they have clipped the choicest grass in their paddock, so Kate and I pulled many handfuls of that lush, green, unreachable grass and tossed them into the pen. Once again, the pigs made all kinds of happy sounds, and their tails were positively whipping back and forth.

Carol Ekarius’ book on livestock breeds  notes that Mulefoots perform well on pasture … in fact she says they do not do well in confinement at all. That characteristic automatically endeared the neat little animals to me, so I shouldn’t have been surprised that they preferred a variety of natural forages over the extruded pellets. Once our Mulefoots had eaten their fill of grass, they moved to the pellets, ate for a little while longer and then trundled off to make a nest in their new house.

By then it was dark and cold … a perfect ending to a perfect day.

Photos courtesy of Kate Will.

Lingering scent of skunk not withstanding, I was up bright and early last Sunday to see how far I could get with the chicken-house-built-from-scraps project I started Saturday.

The house’s base was constructed with 2X6 dimensional lumber and ¾-inch plywood. It was an entrance ramp in its former life, after all. We made the nest boxes with some ½-inch plywood (painted green on one side), some once-lovely spruce molding, and slats that once decked a pallet. I used exterior-grade “drywall” screws and roofing nails to do the nest-box fastening.

The first step on Sunday was to attach the nesting box structure to the floor with a couple of 2x4 cleats screwed to both the floor and the nest box. Next, I attached a 4x8 sheet of ¾-inch plywood (green paint side out) to the back of the house. I screwed it to the edge of the platform and the nest box, and I built a non-conventional 2x6 frame for the back wall and attached it to the floor and the back wall. You might be wondering why I am using 2x6 lumber for the framing … it is simply that we have about a ton of lovely used 2x6s, 2x8s and 2x12s stacked in the barn … and not a single full-length 2x4 in sight.

I found two matching storm windows stashed in the corner of the barn’s loft and framed them fairly conventionally into the front wall before screwing the works to the platform. With top plates and rafters in place, I installed more of the green-painted plywood on the end wall where the nest boxes are located. By the time evening set in, I had the front wall sided with green plywood, too.

All that’s left now is to side the end opposite the nest boxes, frame the human door and install it, install perches, build the chicken door and ramp, and roof it. With any luck I will accomplish that next weekend … and hopefully it will be warm enough to do a little painting, too.

Part 3 of this adventure will hopefully appear early next week.

Photos are once again courtesy of my sweet bride Kate Will.

Last Saturday, after moving the Mulefoot pig house to the pigs’ paddock, I noticed that we hadn’t put much of a dent in the pile of lumber and other miscellanea in the barn. I was considering spending the rest of the day sitting and watching the pigs, chickens and cattle, but Kate wondered whether I might spend the time more productively by building, or at least starting, a chicken house.

I had tripped over the remnants of a wooden ramp (that once connected the mudroom door with the garage) enough times that I decided to use it as the base upon which to build the structure. Of course, the bulky piece was wedged between the box blade on the Kubota’s 3-point hitch and the barn foundation. After a bit of jockeying and levering, I managed to free the platform and tipped the heavy wooden structure up on edge. This would have been uneventful if the terriers and I didn’t just happen to be staring face to face with a couple of startled skunks who had been huddled beneath it.

After a quick assessment of the situation, I decided to lower the platform to the ground before taking the skunks’ fury full-force in the face. I was so hurried that I trapped Woodrow, the Cairn terrier beneath the structure, right along with them. Knowing that Kate would get after me if I let Woodrow battle two skunks alone, I lifted the platform again, narrowly missing the aromatic spray as I propped it with a stick. Woodrow, in a rare moment of obedience, headed out of the barn on my heels.

The scent wasn’t altogether unpleasant at first. It had tinges of musk, onion and other sulfur-containing compounds. As its power dissipated somewhat, and my over stimulated olfactory nerves calmed down, the smell was, well, very skunky.

Since I really wanted to get the chicken house started, I went back into the barn with a 12-foot-long stick. I peeked over the box blade. No skunks. After a bit of investigating and poking, I discovered that the skunks had moved to the space behind the old Allis-Chalmers combine pickup, left leaning against the wall by the farm’s previous owner. In spite of the smell, I horsed that old piece of ramp outside and set to work.

The first task was to spray some of that de-skunking solution on the underside of the ramp to make the work bearable. And it did.

Kate and I managed to install four short legs beneath the platform and cobble a nest box together before it became too dark to see. By the time we packed up the tools, Lucy the Westie and Woodrow had visited the skunks’ new hideout often enough to wear the badge. Luckily, we had plenty of that magic de-skunk formula left and gave them a good going over. It worked again.

Part 2 coming tomorrow, hopefully .

Photos courtesy Kate Will.

Last Saturday was one of those days when I woke up knowing exactly what I was going to do. I had been mulling pig shelter designs for the past couple of weeks … this mulling usually takes place around 2:07 a.m. when the dogs join the local coyote chorus and wake me up. What I decided on was a low, floorless shed that would be relatively easy to move around and that could be stuffed with straw for our little Mulefoot pigs to make into whatever kind of bed they desired.

During one of those sleepless early morning sessions, I mentally inventoried all the used lumber accumulated and left behind by the farm’s former owner. My initial reaction to all the wood was negative … the stacks are messy, and I loathed the idea of removing them from the barn and burning them. But that particular sleepless morning, I realized that we had everything in the barn that I would need to build the pig palace … everything except the roofing, that is. But as luck would have it, the sagging metal-roofed shed that the insurance company made me push in (it was a liability hazard, don’t you know) was still in a heap inside its limestone wall foundation, and most of the 12-foot tin roofing panels were relatively intact.

In a nutshell, this pig house began with a topless shipping crate turned upside down. I cut away part of the front framing to make room for the opening and clad it with some exterior-grade plywood I found … it was painted green on one side, so I installed it green side out. I screwed three purlin-like affairs to the bottom of the crate (roof side) to support and provide purchase for the metal roof. After careful consideration, I decided that 6-foot-long pieces of roofing would be ideal. I used this as an excuse to purchase my first power sheet-metal snips. They only had an el-cheapo version at Tractor Supply, so try as I might to add another Milwaukee tool to my chest, I paid less than $50 for a more or less disposable version. It worked just fine though, and who knows how many times I will really need to cut a lot of sheet metal.

Kate gave me a hand with this project, and she was invaluable as an extra set of hands, photographer, general morale booster and moving contractor. Since I haven’t had the Kubota loader tractor out of the shed for a while, it is kind of buried … lazy old me didn’t want to un-bury it to move the completed pig house to the pig paddock. So with Kate’s help again, we tipped the entire house onto a little foldable garden cart called the Fold-A-Cart and even though the house’s weight caused the cart's tires to compress to almost flat, we rolled the shelter into place in no time.

After stuffing the house with straw and placing the pigs’ dog-crate inside, the growing Mulefoot hogs began to investigate. By the time the temperature had dipped below freezing, they were nestled, four-abreast, inside the dog crate, inside their new house, with the straw all neatly arranged.

Who ever heard of building a palace for $49.99 and a couple of boxes of fasteners? In time, we plan to freshen up the green paint and paint the roof with Rustoleum … Kate wants the roof to be red. What do you think?

Building on the brand’s 47-year history of innovation and quality, Cub Cadet has taken the lawn tractor to the next level with its redesigned 1000 series. The Series 1000 lawn tractors include eight models with deck sizes ranging from 42 to 54 inches. These machines will be available at independent dealers, The Home Depot and Tractor Supply Co. in February 2009 with suggested retail prices ranging from $1,499 to $2,599 depending on engine and mowing deck width.

So what makes these new 1000 series tractors so special? According to the folks at Cub Cadet, all models in this lineup will be constructed around a 9-gauge steel frame, which is the thickest in the industry, and cast-iron front axles. The company feels so good about the quality of these machines that they are backed by a five-year limited warranty.

Cub Cadet engineers chose 19- to 25-horsepower Kohler power plants for their durability and exceptional performance. Kohler engines powered the very first Cub Cadets back in 1961 and have been available throughout the life of the brand. These new Series 1000 tractors also have a remarkably tight 12-inch turning radius, which makes them almost as versatile as a zero-turning-radius machine. I took out a piece of fence with a ZTR at a product demo day, so I really appreciate a tighter turning radius in a more conventional lawn tractor.

Cub Cadet’s innovative cutting system leaves no grass uncut, even in the tallest, thickest stand. All components in the cutting system – from deck to blades, from dome design to discharge chute – work together to ensure an unsurpassed quality of cut. Added strength and rigidity keep the high-lift blades from deflecting and flexing under heavy loads, severe conditions or high speeds. This deck creates a powerful vacuum and smooth, continuous airflow, the result of which is that every blade of grass is lifted and cut. Clippings are evenly propelled and distributed through an extra-wide discharge chute, disappearing into the lawn. No unsightly clumps, streaks or uncut grass are left behind.

I haven’t had my hands on one of these machines yet, but I can’t wait to demo one. I probably won’t trade any of my 20-something vintage Cub Cadets for a new one just yet, but it gets more tempting every year.

We got started a little late with this year’s laying flock … I don’t remember the exact date, but it was at the end of spring. We needed to start over this year because our independent minded chickens took to roosting in the pine grove last year, much to the coyotes' delight. Actually, they were safe in the trees, but they were easily startled, which caused them to fly to the ground at the sight of a coyote and into the waiting jaws of the trickster himself.

It would be accurate to say that we were bummed about that chain of events, but we also know that coyotes need to eat too. So this year, we enclosed the flock in a portable electric net. They roosted in the mobile pen (I built as a modification of this plan), which was located inside the net. Surprisingly enough, we didn’t lose one chicken to anything, and the netting helped the dogs get used to watching chickens rather than chasing them.

Now that we have staked a firm claim on this formerly uninhabited farm, the coyotes give us wider berth. Our dogs taunt them some, but so far they have agreed to keep a healthy distance. I recently moved the chickens into a semi-permanent pen that’s about an acre in size. We surrounded it with welded wire that’s 4-feet high and topped that with a single strand of electric. When we installed the welded wire, we took care to give it good ground contact … not even Woodrow the Cairn Terrier has been able to squirm under the fence.

As winter approached, we were just a little blue that we hadn’t had any fresh eggs from the flock yet. And then it happened. Last week, one of the Welsummer hens began delivering some of the most beautiful and delicious eggs we have had all year. Kate says that they poach perfectly. I just marvel at the bright orange yolks, firm whites and yummy flavor. I also think the copper-colored shells are absolutely beautiful. For more on the joys and benefits of home-grown eggs, check out this article.

Now that it is dark when I get home after work, I try to do all my animal bonding and light-requiring chores in the pre-dawn glow before heading off to town. The Highlands are on their third small pasture paddock, and they still have a couple of days of good grass left before I open up the next break. These animals are pretty serious foragers and have cleaned up the brush in the pine grove very nicely. They also have made efficient use of a small creek for drinking, even though I keep a stock tank filled with fresh clean water in the corral.

I really enjoy working with cattle on foot using a combination of the Bud Williams approach and a bit of common sense. In keeping with that low-stress approach, I like to be able to call the cattle into the corral … rather than whooping it up and driving them in. It worked with our Angus herd, so I figured it would work with the Highlands. In this case, I call once or twice (hey bos) and rattle some 100-percent-natural, 20-percent-protein cattle cake in a small plastic bucket. The stuff smells like molasses … I have been tempted to taste it myself.

This morning, even though I was out of town last weekend and part of last week, the cattle heard me feeding the Mulefoot pigs, headed to the corral and were waiting quietly for a couple of cake cubes apiece and a chuck on the chin. When the ritual was completed, they turned one by one and headed back out to the pasture. What fun. Jack the donkey, who lives with the cattle, lingered to get his treat. His rank is pretty well in the basement of that little herd. Valentine, who lives in the adjacent paddock, waited to get her cube until Jack was finished. She also got her ears rubbed.

I can’t really think of a better way to open up each day than with a glorious sunrise and some quality time with the animals whose lives so enrich ours. I cannot wait for the winter solstice to arrive … I am already anticipating longer days and more daylight on the beginning and end of the work day. I like the seasons well enough, but I thrive on daylight.

Highland cattle photo by Kate Will.

The folks at Cub Cadet have taken new advantage of the company’s relationship with diesel engine builder Yanmar. I am not referring to the highly fruitful Cub Cadet Yanmar joint venture that has already brought several new compact tractors to the market. I am instead referring to the company’s switch from Caterpillar/Perkins to Yanmar diesel engines to power its diesel Volunteer utility vehicle. While I am a big fan of both Cat and Perkins, I was not thrilled to learn that servicing the Cat-badged engine was the province of a certified Cat dealer and not your neighborhood Cub Cadet dealer.

The new 4x4D Volunteer has a wider stance, beefier structure and better ride quality when compared with much earlier iterations of the Volunteer. This UTV is capable of towing and carrying a full 1,400 pounds, has an adequate and safe top speed of 25 mph, and features cast-iron rear axle housing. The most exciting part of this new machine is its engine, however.

Yanmar’s 854 cubic-centimeter displacement, 3-cylinder diesel engine makes 21.9 horsepower at the flywheel and nearly 37 lb.-ft. of torque. This small, heavy-duty diesel has been well proven in all kinds of industrial and agricultural applications, and it is a member of one of the most reliable diesel engine families in the world.

I haven’t had the opportunity to operate this new Volunteer yet, but if it is even better than the gasoline-fueled Kohler-powered Cub Cadet UTV we use around the farm, I know it is a winner.  

I saw and smelled a few road-kill skunks on the way in today. It reminded me of the day late last summer when Kate called to tell me that the dogs, all five of them, had dispatched a skunk during their collective daily walk around the farm. At first I thought, poor skunk. Then I thought, good for those feisty Will dogs. And then it occurred to me, there might be some olfactory ramifications to that skunk encounter.

Kate told me she had never smelled such an intense scent in her life. She noted that it wasn’t altogether unpleasant … pungent, yes. And then she asked if I knew of any magic formula for removing the scent of skunk from the dogs, especially since she didn’t have gallons of tomato juice in the house.

As it turned out, I did have a magic recipe. It came my way from former Herb Companion and CAPPER’s staffer Stacey Couch. Stacey says this recipe is from Maxiene Linder of Alexandria, Nebraska.

RECIPE FOR DE-SKUNKING PETS OR PEOPLE

“Mix 1 quart of 3% hydrogen peroxide, ¼ cup baking soda and 1 teaspoon of liquid soap (dishwashing). Spray on pets or people. It works by chemically changing the skunk essence into sulfonic acid, a completely odorless chemical. Can spray on furniture or carpets where pets have urinated. Give the pet a bath afterwards. Don’t spray the eyes, nose or mouth of pets or people. Don’t leave mixture in bottle, it could explode. This really works.”

I can tell you that it really works … and very well. I can also tell you that if you don’t get it rinsed off the dog fairly quickly, the dog’s hair will get a little bleached. Our border collie, Clover, took off and hid under my truck after Kate sprayed her … it was an hour at least before we could give her a bath. Her normally dark-red head hair had turned a little blond by the time we  rinsed her off.

Skunk Photo:  iStock Image 1500714 by Geoff Kuchera

Dog Photo: Hank Will

Last weekend was a busy one for me. After I got the stock moved around and some fences built, I turned to the yard … although I still don’t have the garlic planted. The backyard wasn’t terribly overgrown, but it looked patchy with grass that needed one last mowing and clover that was just about right. Rather than fire up the old Kubota-diesel-powered Cub Cadet with 50-inch mower deck, I decided to try out Neuton Power Equipment’s battery-powered Neuton CE 6.2 mower instead.

I had unpacked the Neuton and charged up its battery a couple of weeks ago, so it was ready to go. I was a little skeptical that this 19-inch-cut electric rotary mower would be up to the task, but since it is produced by the same folks who invented the original Field and Brush Mower (Country Home Products), I figured it had to be good. My mower came with a removable side-discharge chute and a mulching plug that fits into the discharge opening when the chute isn’t in place. Our yard was full of leaves, and I generally don’t ever collect clippings, so I installed the plug.

The CE 6.2 was pure joy to operate. At first, I had the deck set too low for our rough ground … 5 seconds later I had effortlessly raised it with the adjusting lever located under the mower’s hood. The Neuton performed flawlessly. I mowed for about 45 minutes, chopping with ease the remaining long grass and leaves into bits. The machine’s battery meter was still in the middle of the green zone when I dusted the Neuton off and put it back in the barn.

The things I really liked about this mowing experience center on the Neuton’s electric power system, its low-noise, no-fume characteristics, and the fact that it has one of the nicest safety interlock systems of any power mower I have ever used. Gone are the lever and bail type safety clutch controls. In their place is an ergonomically perfect switch that’s been integrally designed into the handle. Wow. What a treat.

Stay tuned until spring when I have a chance to put the Neuton to the test. I don’t think I will tackle the whole yard with that mower, but I do think I will trim around trees and fence lines with it … and I am certain I will continue to use the Neuton for the backyard. It’s much easier to maneuver a 19-inch-wide electric walk-behind mower around Kate’s flower gardens than it is a big garden tractor … safer for the flowers, too.

When I was a youngster, one of my first outdoor chores was mowing the lawn. I desperately wanted to mow with the Briggs and Stratton motivated rotary power mower, but my parents didn’t think it wise to let an 8-year-old push that cutter around the yard. Instead, they ordered a clunky, heavy, difficult-to-push reel mower for me out of the Sears Roebuck and Co. catalog. That poor excuse for a machine quickly made me hate mowing for the simple reason that it was really difficult to push … especially with the grass-catcher attached. A neighbor had a Tecumseh-powered reel mower. The engine made the reel and the wheels turn, so the mowing appeared effortless … from where I stood anyway. Eventually, I turned 10 years old and was able to graduate to our old power mower. What a relief.

Last year, while mowing the lawn with one of our many vintage garden tractors, I fell into a moment of reverie relating to that old reel mower. Luckily I snapped out of it before I ran over the tree seedlings that Kate and I planted in the spring … but the reel mower concept crept into my thoughts frequently. I wondered whether that old Sears mower was really a piece of junk, or whether it just wasn’t adjusted properly, or heaven forbid, I was just too small and weak to make it work correctly.

Earlier this year, I received a compelling PR pitch from Sunlawn, a company devoted to conscientious garden solutions. It seemed that they had a lightweight self-sharpening reel mower, and they wanted me to try it out. I didn’t tell them how much I loathed the concept when I was young. The thing finally arrived last month, and I put it through its paces last weekend.

Wow, the Sunlawn LMM35 does everything the PR blurb says it does. I used it to do the final mowing in hard-to-reach places in our yard. It munched its way through the leaf-covered grass with little effort on my part. This machine would be a perfect primary mower for folks with a small lawn … or a strong and eager daughter or son with energy to burn. At 17 pounds, cutting with the LMM35 took less effort than pushing the ancient stamped-steel power mower affair that I had been doing the trimming work with.

I can’t speak to this reel mower’s long-term serviceability, but with a 2-year warranty, the company obviously expects it to last. I can say that my experience with the LMM35 was sufficiently positive that I will use it next season for trim work (possibly more) and that not having to deal with gasoline and oil and smoke and noise and vibration was really a treat. The whirring click of the blades was mesmerizing at times, and relaxing at others. This reel experience was definitely at the opposite end of the happiness continuum compared with 44 years ago.

It’s Election Day, and the grass is still green. The animals are all grazing contentedly, and the trees that still have their leaves are pouring on the color. I don’t think I have ever spent the first full week of November with my sleeves rolled up basking in what appears to be a full-blown Indian summer … just one more reason to like Kansas, I guess.

Last Sunday, after I finished moving the chickens to their new quarters … their temporary billet was in the garden … I noticed that the large oak tree in the backyard had turned flame orange. That change happened rather suddenly after the hard frosts early last week. And frankly, the explosion of color in the low morning light took my breath away.

Fall has always been my favorite season. I like the way the dried-down corn rustles in the wind. I like the dusty, earthy smells emitting from the vegetation whose only remaining purpose is to condition the soil. When we were in South Dakota, I enjoyed the distant whoosh of grain driers located on neighbors’ farms in the sections adjacent to ours. The three days of bawling calves and cows after we separated them, while stressful at times, was something I looked forward to. 

Fall in the country is a great time to take stock. Once the harvest is in, the community breathes a collective sigh of relief. The uncertainty associated with yield is over … price uncertainty might still be there, but at least folks know what their beans made, good or bad. Gone is the worry about timely rains or drying winds. Faces appear less strained. If it was a good year, farm stores bustle with entire families getting fit with new boots, coveralls and shirts. If it was a really good year, that Kitchen Aide mixer changes from dream tool to working partner.

In North Dakota, where I am originally from, fall was well under way by early October. I often wonder if I came to love fall because my birthday falls on the 6^th of that month. In our household, about the only day of the year you really felt special was your birthday, and I mean to tell you that my parents pulled out all stops on that one day … or so it seemed. The pinnacle to me was that I could choose any homemade supper and dessert that my hungry little heart desired. For many years, I chose my mother’s comforting macaroni and cheese and lemon meringue pie. When I was in junior high, my tastes had become much more sophisticated, and my choices were homemade pizza (with smoky link sausage) and this amazing chocolate mousse pie.

I still feel pretty special on my birthday, but in Kansas, early October feels more like summer to me. So last weekend, with the grain trucks and combines passing, and all of the other cues right in place, I concluded that everything associated with the season makes fall so wonderful to me.

These photos are once again courtesy of my lovely bride Kate. She went out and took them for me yesterday when I was thinking about this blog. Thanks Kate!

Kate and I have now gone beyond toying with the idea of adding sheep to our growing collection of farm animals. You might notice a theme here … all the animals, including the pigs and the chickens, make a significant part of their living through foraging. Our place grows native and near-native forages very well, and we aim to make use of that.

Mark Smith, a friend and soil conservation guru from Ohio, is the person who turned me on to management intensive grazing, many years ago now. Mark is a sheep guy who also keeps a few head of cattle … he always said that the sheep and cattle were complementary grazers. What that means is that the sheep and cattle can be run over the same ground, in the same grazing cycle, and they will take advantage of different stuff in the ungulate salad bar known as pasture. Kate and I have thought about adding sheep before, but dealing with shearing and the like kept us from doing it.

Another friend, Bryan Welch, raises meat goats, sheep and cattle on his grass farm here in Kansas. Bryan introduced us to hair sheep … that’s right, sheep that shed their hair in the summer ... so we decided to go ahead and pull the trigger. Bryan has a sweet Katahdin ram with our name on it, just as soon as we get a few ewes and beef (mutton?) up the fences.

Since our place in Osage County is pretty thick with coyotes, no matter how good I get the fences to be, we wanted to have some guardian animals in place before the sheep arrived. Bryan swears by donkeys as guardians, and indeed we were quickly captivated by his donkeys, so it was really a no-brainer to go looking for a donkey or two to guard our eventual flock. Bryan also convinced us that it was perfectly fine to keep a jack and a jenny … that’s exactly what he does.

So, after a bit of searching, we settled on an older jack named Jack and a young jenny named Valerie, and with Bryan’s help brought them to the farm last Wednesday. Kate renamed Valerie … she is now Valentine. Both animals are friendly and seem well adapted to life in Osage County and the cattle. It is pretty comical to see them get after our dogs, but in a good way.

I strung about a half mile of fence over the weekend. It is good enough for cows and donkeys, but not for sheep. We’ll get there eventually, but I need to build the chicken house and finish up the pig palace first.

Photos courtesy of Kate, the camera queen, Will.