02/28/2009 Saturday: Neutering Three (Bull Calf); Removing Wild Cherry Trees from Gazebo Garden, Barn Cleaning

02/28/2009 Saturday: Overcast and only a few sprinkles.

Another busy Saturday around the farm.

Enrique and Juan drove down from Lacey and arrived here around 8:15am. I asked them to move 8 bales of hay and two bags of feed over to the green barn. The hay should last me more than two weeks and the feed only about a week and a half. They put a pallet on the forks and piled all 8 bales of hay and the feed onto the pallet and drove it over to the green barn and unloaded it for me. So nice not to have to do that myself.

Charles and I put in another bale of hay in the Dexter pen and tomorrow we'll have to put two more in the Hereford pen.

I had them cut down the copse of wild cherry at the south east corner of the gazebo garden and also some branches at the more southern end of that fenceline. Each time they work they cut back the undergrowth so that the farm looks more open. I keep thinking we'll get done with all the work but it doesn't look like it will happen anytime soon.

When Gabe showed up at 10am the four of us went into the Dexter pen with the tractor and box scraper. We began leveling the ground out about 20 feet away from the lean to where it makes a rise. If you don't level the ground ahead of time when you try to use the box scraper it just digs a big hole near the barn as the front of the tractor rises to get over the hump.

I moved hay out of the lean to for awhile and then drove the tractor. After awhile it became clear that trying to move the hay with the box scraper just wouldn't work. Instead we piled the already loosened hay and muck into the bucket and I hauled it over to the new compost heap to dump.

We got quite a bit cleaned out of the barn but not quite all of it. I guess we worked about 2 hours. I estimate we have another 3 or 4 hours to go before we get it thoroughly cleaned of hay and muck.

After we had lunch (sandwiches) we headed for the green barn with a halter and my castrating equipment. I put the lead on the calf and we dragged him over to the nearest tree. Juan held the rope where it was looped around the tree, Enrique held his shoulders and Gabe held his tail up in the air so that Three couldn't kick.

I kept dropping the band out of the catch in the castrator. You basically hold the castrator in your left hand, wrap your left fingers around the testicles and use your right hand to snug up the band. I was having trouble wrapping my hand around the testicles so that I could hold them while I fastened the band. I finally got it on much to everyone's relief.

After that we went back to the green barn for 20 minutes to do a bit more cleaning and to bring out the tractor and pitch forks.

While I was preparing lunch the bull rubbed against the left light and loosened it. I think Chas can put it back in place.

While we were working on the barn Chas was assembling my field harrow/scraper. He's attached the chains to the railroad tie that sits on the screen with very large nails that he then folded over the chain to lock it into place.