Harvest continues to roll on. They have had to make small moves each of the past three days. Poor L had to help with that on Monday and Tuesday while I was at work so spent many hours in the field. Today I gave her a break and took my turn. I made lunch and took it over, and they were ready to move shortly thereafter so I helped with that. They moved to J's leased land, the last place that was seeded and the place where M got the sprayer stuck. J saw the tracks for the first time so then understood how stuck the sprayer really was.
I ran grain samples to Opheim to have the protein tested--not as good as the previous place, only 13.4. I then went to visit my mom. It had been awhile since I had had time to see her. We always have enjoyable conversations, mostly about books--so many books, so little time! I was there a couple of hours and just as I was thinking I should head home, M called to say that his parents were bringing pizzas from Glasgow. They were in their car so I said I would wait at my mom's and take the pizzas to the field to feed the crew which I did just before dark.
While the guys were having a pizza break, J mentioned the rock piles in the field. He hit one and a huge rock landed on the canvas of the header and stopped it because it was so big. He was puzzled as to how a rock that big flipped up onto the header and when he went to move it noticed there were some others piled there. He thought that a bit odd but continued on and hit another pile and was thinking "what the hell?" Was someone mad at us and trying to sabotage our equipment or had Indians moved in during the summer and piled them up for some purpose. No, it was just his dad who had piled the rocks up when he was seeding intending to come with the 4-wheeler and load them up and haul them out and never got to it. Luckily, nothing was damaged and we all got a laugh over it. We'd better try to remember to move those rocks after harvest!
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Harvest Resumes
After 11 days of no harvesting (yes, 11, I can't believe it), they are back at it. Today it is sunny, windy and 80+ degrees so it should be a good drying day. The forecast looks good for the week so our nephew from South Dakota came to help out. We're hoping to get a third combine to come help, too. They put the new reels on the headers this week, and they are working well. I spent most of today outdoors. First I went for a walk, then mowed the yard and then washed my car. The gale force winds finally drove me indoors where I have a few chores to do.
Yesterday M, R and I vaccinated another group of calves in the morning. In the afternoon M, R and J went to haul more hay and M brought in another load this morning. R brought his dog, Trip, along yesterday. Three weeks ago he whacked his head on the door of the service truck. He had a little bump which got bigger and bigger until his eye was swollen shut. R took him to the vet last week and the vet thought he might have a clotting problem especially given the swelling that occurred when he was neutered. He sent blood to a lab but the lab results came back normal so now he's not sure what the problem is. The good news is that the bump is finally going down, but they shaved half his head so he looks a little goofy. R thinks he needs pet insurance since Trip has had a rough life and just turned 1.
I'm wishing I didn't have to go to work the next two days since the guys will be busy in the field, and I'd rather be there.
Yesterday M, R and I vaccinated another group of calves in the morning. In the afternoon M, R and J went to haul more hay and M brought in another load this morning. R brought his dog, Trip, along yesterday. Three weeks ago he whacked his head on the door of the service truck. He had a little bump which got bigger and bigger until his eye was swollen shut. R took him to the vet last week and the vet thought he might have a clotting problem especially given the swelling that occurred when he was neutered. He sent blood to a lab but the lab results came back normal so now he's not sure what the problem is. The good news is that the bump is finally going down, but they shaved half his head so he looks a little goofy. R thinks he needs pet insurance since Trip has had a rough life and just turned 1.
I'm wishing I didn't have to go to work the next two days since the guys will be busy in the field, and I'd rather be there.
Friday, September 24, 2010
Pre-Conditiioning
We had rain again on Wednesday and fog on Thursday and this morning so it's still to wet to cut wheat. M decided we may as well do our cow work while we had the time. He had planned to bring the cows home from R's as well as the ones down by Richland, but the road was too muddy to get them to where the rest of the cows were so we will have to work them in two bunches.
Today we worked the ones close to home at the neighbor's. He bought the land adjoining ours a couple of years ago and built a nice corral system so it worked well to run the cows up there. R and I got chewed out because we were too efficient and had the cows rounded up and out the gate too quickly. M was coming with the trailer to haul the bulls home and wasn't where he wanted to be before we had cows coming at him. I thought it would take longer to round them up and get them to the gate. We got them down the road and into the corral without incident so it was all okay.
We had to sort the cows from the calves and run all the calves through, give them two vaccinations each and put a button tag in their ears. Our calves are age- and source-verified this year so require the buttons. The buttons can be read by a scanner and the calf traced back to us. We were done with 70 calves by noon with a minimum of mishaps. R got kicked once, early in the day. J got stabbed by the M with the vaccinating syringe. Does that eliminate the need for a tetanus shot after he stepped on a nail yesterday? Two calves got through untouched so we had to sort them out and run them through again. We also found a steer with one nut still intact so they had to use the bander on it. No major problems and decent weather. I made a big deal of the sun shining when we started out, and then it clouded up and got windy. It's sunny again now but still windy.
They cut out the bulls (two of ours and two of the neighbor's) and hauled them home where L had a great roast beef and potato lunch ready for us. After lunch M decided they could move the cows from R's so he and R went to do that while Pete and I walked the two miles home--against the wind. We can start all over again tomorrow after he does some work on his chute. I always enjoy having a good reason to be outside with my family on a nice day even if we're working.
Today we worked the ones close to home at the neighbor's. He bought the land adjoining ours a couple of years ago and built a nice corral system so it worked well to run the cows up there. R and I got chewed out because we were too efficient and had the cows rounded up and out the gate too quickly. M was coming with the trailer to haul the bulls home and wasn't where he wanted to be before we had cows coming at him. I thought it would take longer to round them up and get them to the gate. We got them down the road and into the corral without incident so it was all okay.
We had to sort the cows from the calves and run all the calves through, give them two vaccinations each and put a button tag in their ears. Our calves are age- and source-verified this year so require the buttons. The buttons can be read by a scanner and the calf traced back to us. We were done with 70 calves by noon with a minimum of mishaps. R got kicked once, early in the day. J got stabbed by the M with the vaccinating syringe. Does that eliminate the need for a tetanus shot after he stepped on a nail yesterday? Two calves got through untouched so we had to sort them out and run them through again. We also found a steer with one nut still intact so they had to use the bander on it. No major problems and decent weather. I made a big deal of the sun shining when we started out, and then it clouded up and got windy. It's sunny again now but still windy.
They cut out the bulls (two of ours and two of the neighbor's) and hauled them home where L had a great roast beef and potato lunch ready for us. After lunch M decided they could move the cows from R's so he and R went to do that while Pete and I walked the two miles home--against the wind. We can start all over again tomorrow after he does some work on his chute. I always enjoy having a good reason to be outside with my family on a nice day even if we're working.
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Building Project
Yesterday M and I took a trip to Havre to pick up finger reels for the combines. The wet weather has caused the wheat to droop and these reels will help it feed into the combines better. We were at the shop and ready to go by 8 am. J had wood on the trailer so had to get that unloaded and then C noticed that the plug for the trailer lights was broken. Then M noticed that one tire on the trailer was bad. They put a new plug on but the lights wouldn't work correctly when hooked up to the pickup. They finally determined that one wire in the plug was in the wrong position so fixed that and put another tire on, and we were ready to roll--an hour and a half later.
As we were driving along south of Opheim I thought I noticed snowflakes. M assured me that I was seeing things until we went a bit further and there was some white accumulation in the grass along the side of the road. It snowed hard at times, but eventually turned into rain and it rained all the way to Havre.
There was much discussion as to whether we should get one reel or two. J told me not to let M buy two. C called as we were on the road and thought we should get two. M did eventually decide to get two which came unassembled. We had lunch in Havre and picked up the reels, then stopped at Big R--M's favorite store. I like it, too, and found a few things to buy--even some Christmas gifts.
Today they began the assembly process--think giant Erector Set with bad instructions! M called me this morning and requested my presence at the shop ("you'd better get in here") to make sure they read the direcctions. I kept reminding them that I'm not very mechanical. I'm the girl who rebelled against the college physics class because "I don't care how things work." Anyway, the reel is 36', built in two 18' halves. The first half took about 6 hours and the second half took about 2. We learned a few things along the way! There was some cursing of our neighbors to the north (Canadians) who manufactured these things when parts didn't fit properly. We've gone as far as we can until we fit it onto the header, and tomorrow we'll start the second one.
I was seriously worried about smashing a finger or damaging my new nails, but they came through without a scratch so it's all good!
As we were driving along south of Opheim I thought I noticed snowflakes. M assured me that I was seeing things until we went a bit further and there was some white accumulation in the grass along the side of the road. It snowed hard at times, but eventually turned into rain and it rained all the way to Havre.
There was much discussion as to whether we should get one reel or two. J told me not to let M buy two. C called as we were on the road and thought we should get two. M did eventually decide to get two which came unassembled. We had lunch in Havre and picked up the reels, then stopped at Big R--M's favorite store. I like it, too, and found a few things to buy--even some Christmas gifts.
Today they began the assembly process--think giant Erector Set with bad instructions! M called me this morning and requested my presence at the shop ("you'd better get in here") to make sure they read the direcctions. I kept reminding them that I'm not very mechanical. I'm the girl who rebelled against the college physics class because "I don't care how things work." Anyway, the reel is 36', built in two 18' halves. The first half took about 6 hours and the second half took about 2. We learned a few things along the way! There was some cursing of our neighbors to the north (Canadians) who manufactured these things when parts didn't fit properly. We've gone as far as we can until we fit it onto the header, and tomorrow we'll start the second one.
I was seriously worried about smashing a finger or damaging my new nails, but they came through without a scratch so it's all good!
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Another Break
The guys got about 12 hours of work in (8 hours on Monday and 4 on Tuesday) before we had rain again yesterday afternoon. We knew rain was in the forecast but were hoping the it would hold off for a couple of more days. Fog has rolled in this morning, and the rest of the week doesn't look good either. Very frustrating, especially when they are cutting 45 to 50 bushel wheat and some that actually has protein!
Grain price scales are based on 14-protein wheat. Right now the scales are -40 cents a quarter down, meaning that there is a discount for any grain under 14. So, 13 protein would be $1.60 off the listed price, 12 protein less $3.20, etc. So, if the wheat price is only $5.00/bushel and we had 12-protein wheat, we'd get $1.80. Thank goodness the price is closer to $7.00 right now, but than can change in a hurry. There is sometimes a 12-protein bid, but some elevators have pulled that lately. The grain market is affected by what's going on all over the world, weather and yields, etc.
A friend said the other day that the farmers shouldn't be worrying because they've never not gotten the grain harvested. There always could be that first time! Easy for him to say since he doesn't farm anymore.
Last night when I got home from work I called M to see what he was doing. I told him I thought he was probably somewhere crying in his beer. He assured me that wasn't the case because he doesn't drink beer anymore, has moved on to Jack Daniels. I'm beginning to worry about him.......
Grain price scales are based on 14-protein wheat. Right now the scales are -40 cents a quarter down, meaning that there is a discount for any grain under 14. So, 13 protein would be $1.60 off the listed price, 12 protein less $3.20, etc. So, if the wheat price is only $5.00/bushel and we had 12-protein wheat, we'd get $1.80. Thank goodness the price is closer to $7.00 right now, but than can change in a hurry. There is sometimes a 12-protein bid, but some elevators have pulled that lately. The grain market is affected by what's going on all over the world, weather and yields, etc.
A friend said the other day that the farmers shouldn't be worrying because they've never not gotten the grain harvested. There always could be that first time! Easy for him to say since he doesn't farm anymore.
Last night when I got home from work I called M to see what he was doing. I told him I thought he was probably somewhere crying in his beer. He assured me that wasn't the case because he doesn't drink beer anymore, has moved on to Jack Daniels. I'm beginning to worry about him.......
Friday, September 10, 2010
More Rain
Yesterday we woke up to fog, then it started to drizzle and then rain. It poured in the middle of the night last night and neither M nor I could sleep. Today it is gray and cloudy and windy again. Not good.
I made M sit down this morning, and we worked on our CSP documentation. We're caught up with that now so that's a good feeling. He also went through some of the stuff on his desk, and we even cleaned out his closet! J and C are hauling lentils so maybe they will be able to free up a bin in case we ever get back to harvesting.
Here are the photos I promised, compliments of our brother-in-law, Ray Graff.
I made M sit down this morning, and we worked on our CSP documentation. We're caught up with that now so that's a good feeling. He also went through some of the stuff on his desk, and we even cleaned out his closet! J and C are hauling lentils so maybe they will be able to free up a bin in case we ever get back to harvesting.
Here are the photos I promised, compliments of our brother-in-law, Ray Graff.
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| There's a new straw boss in town--Pam! |
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| The Farm |
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| J and his auntie |
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Christmas in September
There's been a festive mood this week with extra family around. Last night we all had supper at the in-laws, and it felt like the Christmases we have. The only ones missing were K who was working and our niece and great niece in South Dakota. Someone (probably her brother) suggested that we call her and tell her it was just like Christmas but without her. She would have had a meltdown so her mom wouldn't let us. A bunch of us had lunch together today and supper again tonight. Good times.
The guys (and sister) worked on combines yesterday and cut a sample in the afternoon, but it was still too wet to go. They taught their sister all about welding. It was fun to hear her take on the family dynamics as they were working together. She asked J who he listens to when his dad tells him one thing and his uncle tells him something different. He says he just does what he wants!
They finally started cutting this afternoon and worked until dark when it cooled off and got tough. Lots of moisture in the air, and there is more rain in the forecast for tonight and tomorrow. The extra family is leaving in the morning, so harvest will be much less fun from here on out. Our brother-in-law took a ton of photos while he was here, some of which I will post later.
The guys (and sister) worked on combines yesterday and cut a sample in the afternoon, but it was still too wet to go. They taught their sister all about welding. It was fun to hear her take on the family dynamics as they were working together. She asked J who he listens to when his dad tells him one thing and his uncle tells him something different. He says he just does what he wants!
They finally started cutting this afternoon and worked until dark when it cooled off and got tough. Lots of moisture in the air, and there is more rain in the forecast for tonight and tomorrow. The extra family is leaving in the morning, so harvest will be much less fun from here on out. Our brother-in-law took a ton of photos while he was here, some of which I will post later.
Monday, September 6, 2010
Rain Again
We weren't lucky enough to miss the rain last night. Our gauge showed 0.2" but the in-law's showed 0.4". Then this morning we had gale force winds, and we had cool temps all day, maybe hit 60 degrees. Finally, this evening the sun was shining and the wind had gone down.
The guys were working in the shop this morning. J and M picked me up about 2:00 and we went to the in-laws for prime rib sandwiches and ended up staying there visiting with M's sister for the next four hours or so. She is determined to get them cutting tomorrow, but M says there's no way it will be dry enough for that so I'm not sure what they have planned for the day. We are longing for the beautiful September weather we had last year. All I know is that I have to go back to my regular job.
The guys were working in the shop this morning. J and M picked me up about 2:00 and we went to the in-laws for prime rib sandwiches and ended up staying there visiting with M's sister for the next four hours or so. She is determined to get them cutting tomorrow, but M says there's no way it will be dry enough for that so I'm not sure what they have planned for the day. We are longing for the beautiful September weather we had last year. All I know is that I have to go back to my regular job.
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Back At It
We finally got back to cutting on Friday afternoon. I had mentioned to R the day before that the guys needed to get busy or they were going to kill each other as the nerves were a bit frayed. He agreed. Friday morning M was trying to bale some hay barley and peas. When I picked him up on the way to take lunch to the other guys at the camper he was ready to blow up the baler. He has struggled with it all summer, some electrical problem, and was at his wits end. He had J help him work on it after lunch, and I made J promise to not let M blow it up since it does have some trade-in value. They got it working and he thought he could finish baling but then broke a belt and was done because the wheat was finally dry enough to cut.
Yesterday they were able to cut all day, well almost. I was riding the combine with M making a bin chart of what wheat was stored where when we smelled burned rubber. We stopped and got out to check where it was coming from and found a belt rubbing on a pulley because a bracket had broken. I caught a ride in a truck to get the service truck which was in the previous field, brought it back and they set to work taking things apart and fixing the problem. Luckily, the belt was a double belt because one side of it was damaged and separated when M started the combine back up. He's running it that way, but I made a trip to Plentywood today to get a new one just in case.
My in-laws were gone all week and arrived back home last evening along with M's sister and her husband and their son (aka our third son) from South Dakota. The husband wanted to "experience harvest." I asked M's sister if she told him harvest wasn't all that fun. They've been riding the combines and helping out as needed AND he has a prime rib in the oven. That should take care of lunches for a few days!
We missed rain last night and had a beautiful morning today but now it's cloudy and cool and windy. I've seen a couple of raindrops on the window, but we're crossing our fingers hoping that we'll miss most of it. We still have thousands of acres to cut so really want to keep going.
Yesterday they were able to cut all day, well almost. I was riding the combine with M making a bin chart of what wheat was stored where when we smelled burned rubber. We stopped and got out to check where it was coming from and found a belt rubbing on a pulley because a bracket had broken. I caught a ride in a truck to get the service truck which was in the previous field, brought it back and they set to work taking things apart and fixing the problem. Luckily, the belt was a double belt because one side of it was damaged and separated when M started the combine back up. He's running it that way, but I made a trip to Plentywood today to get a new one just in case.
My in-laws were gone all week and arrived back home last evening along with M's sister and her husband and their son (aka our third son) from South Dakota. The husband wanted to "experience harvest." I asked M's sister if she told him harvest wasn't all that fun. They've been riding the combines and helping out as needed AND he has a prime rib in the oven. That should take care of lunches for a few days!
We missed rain last night and had a beautiful morning today but now it's cloudy and cool and windy. I've seen a couple of raindrops on the window, but we're crossing our fingers hoping that we'll miss most of it. We still have thousands of acres to cut so really want to keep going.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Rain Delay
We had about 3/4" of rain on Saturday night. On Sunday night, I checked the weather radar and saw two systems, one to the south and one to the west. I told M that they were both going to miss us. I was right about that, but we had rain on and off all day Monday and got another 1/2". Not exactly what we need right now. As expected, I had to remind M of some things he said he was going to do "if it rains".
Yesterday, M and R planned to pull the bulls from the pasture near Richland and move them home. They had one cut out and when they tried to get the second one, the first one headed to the water and wouldn't move. Even Pete couldn't get him out so they left them there, and they may stay there until the water freezes.
This morning M woke me up early to help move the neighbor's cows. I told him it just wasn't right that I had to get up earlier on my day off than on a work day. He informed me that I don't have any days off. Swell! It was a bit cool and cloudy, 50 degrees when we took off, but it was really pretty nice as long as I had my hood up and my gloves on!. R and I had the 4-wheelers as well as Pete. M was in the pickup with Trip. Not sure how he would do chasing cows. We rounded the cows up to send them into the fields of hailed out wheat hoping they will clean up the pigeon grass that's coming and the remains of the wheat. The cows and calves were very cooperative, and it didn't take us long. We did find a dead cow in the bog. Not sure what happened there.
More rain was in the forecast for today, but we haven't had any, thank goodness. Hopefully, we can get back to cutting soon since everyone is getting stressed and crabby because we have so much left to do.
Yesterday, M and R planned to pull the bulls from the pasture near Richland and move them home. They had one cut out and when they tried to get the second one, the first one headed to the water and wouldn't move. Even Pete couldn't get him out so they left them there, and they may stay there until the water freezes.
This morning M woke me up early to help move the neighbor's cows. I told him it just wasn't right that I had to get up earlier on my day off than on a work day. He informed me that I don't have any days off. Swell! It was a bit cool and cloudy, 50 degrees when we took off, but it was really pretty nice as long as I had my hood up and my gloves on!. R and I had the 4-wheelers as well as Pete. M was in the pickup with Trip. Not sure how he would do chasing cows. We rounded the cows up to send them into the fields of hailed out wheat hoping they will clean up the pigeon grass that's coming and the remains of the wheat. The cows and calves were very cooperative, and it didn't take us long. We did find a dead cow in the bog. Not sure what happened there.
More rain was in the forecast for today, but we haven't had any, thank goodness. Hopefully, we can get back to cutting soon since everyone is getting stressed and crabby because we have so much left to do.
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