Join The Flock!

Wild Rose Farm picked up this tidbit from the American Sheep Industry weekly email.  Check out the Join The Flock project from the UK!  It would be really fun to get more folks from this side of the pond to make these little sheep pom poms & send them over.  Follow the link & get the pattern plus the address.  What a perfect activity for a group of kids or the knitting clubs & guilds ....

Get Started Now & Join The Flock!

Have fun!  Go to the web-site & print out the pattern!

Saskatchewan Screamer?

Wind Damage - Cutting Tree Off Of Fence!

This is the first time we've heard the weather referred to as a Saskatchewan Screamer , and it did do some damage at Wild Rose Farm.  We got a little snow, but high winds turned out to be the real problem.  We spotted this dead elm tree down over the fence along Route 30.  The light snow was still blowing around Saturday morning when the above picture was taken. This time the top wire of the high tensile fence was snapped.
One of the sheep feed bunks ended up about 4 feet off of the ground in some trees and the other one ended up against a back fence line.  Luckily the plastic portion of the feeders separated from the metal runners and went airborne up over the electric net fence ...... that could have been a tangled mess!

Curious Deer

By the time the afternoon rolled around, the deer had ventured over to the tree to check it out.  All I did was step outside of the house. See how they both spotted me immediately from about 300 feet away?   This will merit a walk around all of the fencelines to look for more damage.  Just more of the mundane side of farm activity ......

Another Old Fence Post!

Old Fence Post In Clearing

Let's continue the Wild Rose Farm fence post theme ...... here's a shot of the area that we're clearing for a building.  Notice the old fencepost front & center in the picture among the sumac tree stumps.  Let me tell you, we cut down the single largest sumac tree that we've ever seen in this group.  It's really a junk wood, so it wasn't cut up for firewood either.  The orange spot in the picture is the saw dust left from the cherry logs that were sawed into boards last fall.  To the left of the saw dust is the the pile of slab wood left over after the boards were cut.  They will be cut up for firewood too.

Starting Back Clearing For The New Fenceline

Off to the left is where we're starting back for the new fence line.  So here's the thing about old fenceposts.  Have you ever been out in the woods on the top of a hill and found yourself standing next to the remnants of an old fence line?  A couple of posts in a broken line, some leaning ..... Think to yourself about the person who set those fenceposts by hand, sweating in the July afternoon sun, tamping the dirt in around the post and making sure it was plumb.  Then they came by a few days later with a hand barb wire fence stretcher & stapled the wire tight to the posts.  Those fortunate enough to own ground that has been in the family might know who set those old posts years ago.  Most of us just encounter them and have to wonder who did all that work ...... you appreciate the work once you've built a fence!

Winter Colorways!

Colors In Nature

I don't have a dyebath going right now, but the nature study above could be an inspiration ......
And speaking of inspiration, it looks like the daffodils are starting to emerge in the flower beds.
Coming back from the walk in the woods yesterday, we spotted the old fashioned double daffodils on the "Todd property" poking up near the old barn foundation area.  Will this be the year that I finally dig a clump & bring it over to a spot near the house?????  Been saying that I'm going to do it for years .....

Just Starting To Poke Through! 

Winter Walk In The Woods .....

Glenda In Winter Woods Camo

We went out for a walk in the woods today.  It was colder than it had been last week, but still sunny & pleasant for this time of year.  Never one to miss out on any Wild Rose Farm action, Glenda made sure to follow us at a safe distance.  We are looking at doing some more clearing this winter in preparation for putting in some new interior cross fencing.  This area is surrounded by high tensile woven wire & needs to be cleared out somewhat & sub-divided. 

Old Fenceline

You can tell that it was a pasture field some time ago by the old fence lines .... we marked some of the posts so that you can see the direction that the old line took along the hillside.  We won't follow this line exactly, but winter is the time of year to be able to get a half decent sight line through the brush.  Notice the dead tree stump on the right.   The woodpeckers have been all over it.  That's why we always leave some dead trees standing.   Here's Glenda poking around near another old fence post.  Behind her, over her back, you can see a tree that just recently twisted in the wind & blew down.  It had a pretty large poison ivy vine on it that must have made it top heavy.

Trees Always Grow Up Along The Fence Line

Finally, we came across a little harsh reality in the woods.  We're a couple of hundred yards off of the road here ..... maybe the deer was hit by a car and made it this far.  Who knows?

Well Insulated For Snow .....

If you ever doubt the insulating power of wool, just look at the sheep after a snowstorm.  Our little Wild Rose Farm ewe lamb gazes up over the backs of 2 older ewes.  It hadn't snowed since morning & here we are at 4PM feeding time.  The snow is still just sitting on the tips of their wooly coats ...... not melting.  They are warm & comfortable under there!  Just a few minutes before the ewes were frisking around and running back from the water tank.  Typical sheep behavior ...... they get distracted eating or doing something & then they look up to realize that they are alone!  Accckkkk!  They take off at a run to be back with the rest of the flock.

Upper Spring Development Water Tank

As for the water tank, it was flowing freely with just a touch of ice along the edge.  The flow of the water from the spring development means that it is at deep ground temperature.  The spring development flows from the top water tank to the lower tank before exiting through the overflow pipe.  No moving parts, just gravity flow!

Barn Stones & Lower Spring Water Tank

Back To Snow!

Glenda Braying!

A new weekend and more snow overnight at Wild Rose Farm.  We were already planning to bring Glenda in since the temps were going to drop all day & the wind was picking up.  She had some commentary above when we went out to feed this morning! 

Let's Put On The Halter ......

Glenda Following At Her Own Pace .....

The trick to leading a donkey sometimes, is to let the donkey think that it is going where it wants to go!   Anyway, here she goes back up to the barn for a few days during the coldest weather.  Given a choice, she would prefer to be outside with the sheep.  She really thinks that she's following her feed trough.

One Week Later & Sunny!

Sheep & Rooster Enjoying The Sun!

It's amusing to include the rusty rooster in the Wild Rose Farm pictures ..... he serves as a reference point now, compared to the whiteout we had last weekend.   It's close to feeding time, so the sheep are all watching the house waiting for someone to come out of the basement & make their way to the barn.
The next shot backs that up ...... the cats are also all out in front of the barn waiting for their afternoon "moist food".  It's just one can of moist food split between 4 cats, but it's our way of making sure that they're all around & ok.  They have free choice dry food, but they never miss an evening meal!
What a beautiful February (!) day.  Double click on the picture & see if you can spot Stripe sitting on wagon wheel.  He's has perfect camo against the barn.  I just happen to know he's there. 

Wild Rose Farm In February