Today, Yesterday,and the Days Before

Wow! How time flies.   I have passed my fourth week mark and almost one month.  This week has gone by fast.  We have kept very busy, and I have been fairly tired by the end of the day.

Days start with a sunrise check of the cow herd.  We are monitoring for calving difficulties, luckily, we have not had anymore difficulties with our calves (knock on wood).  We only have eight calves on the ground so far, but should have ~120 by the end.  One person checks each  morning and then heads in for breakfast.  After a plate of eggs, fruit, bread/tortilla, and sometimes beans we head out to accomplish chores.    Basic chores are going out to move the fence for the cow herd and dry herd.  The fence is scooted across the pasture instead of taking up the line everyday and laying a new thin strip of pasture.  We recently put up a back fence behind the cow herd to prevent them from back grazing new growth.  The valley is experiencing some absurdly high temperatures (like much of the US) and the grasses are starting to green up (about two months too early). 

Water season started yesterday.  I posted a couple pictures of our ditch work yesterday.  The well was turned on and we are flooding one of our pastures around the ranch.  We will turn off the well in a few days to save our water for later in the season.  La Nina has apparently entered a neutral state, meaning it will no longer effect North American weather systems.  La Nina has severely effected the local weather here and perpetuated the drought.  We are not expecting much to change, but it would be nice for some of the annual rains to come back. 

Some of our work this week has pertained to our grazing schedule.  We will be making our way around many different properties in the coming months.  After spending a day projecting our grazing plan, I feel more comfortable with our future.  It is nice to know the outlook.

Other fun things I have been up to this week include, dragging home meadows, riding Nellie the horse and sorting bulls, moved portable corral from one crop circle to another, and attended a NRCS meeting. 

The NRCS meeting was a great experience because it was on how farmers could integrate grazing animals into their operations.  Many farmers attended and discussed their crops and ways to conserve soil and water.  Little grazing was actually discussed, but it was great to hear some progressive farmers discussing ways to feed the land and save it along the way.