Triple A&R Farm

First day of square bale baling. Not a lot, but enough to shake the rust off the equipment and make sure its all tuned and ready for more.

I am pondering this quote I recently read in light of the recent disruptions of the food supply chain. I would encourage you to take a few minutes to think about this also. "Agriculture is one of the last remaining professions that gets passed on from generation to generation. Buying from a local farm is an investment in food for future generations."

Hay season 2021 officially started today with round baling around a few field to open them up for square baling later. Amy is accepting cards of condolence at our snail mail address. #Baling2021

One of the privileges that come with being permitted to work our plot of God's land is the opportunity to interact with some of God's other creatures that we share this land with. This killdeer family has made their spring home next to the small field I was working beside the house the other day. Killdeer are quite the interesting and entertaining creatures when you stop to watch them.

The day all farmer's look forward to.

An editorial in a national farm periodical I subscribe to: It took a pandemic to give ag its due. It's been a few generations since the average American knew, or for that matter cared, who their local farmers and ranchers were. This year, for the first time in many people's lives, grocery store shelves and meat counters were empty as COVID-19 disrupted supply chains across the nation.... People started to think about farmers. They started to think about ranchers and anyone with a flock of layers, a herd of milk cows, poultry or hogs. And, no big surprise here, they started to look for ways to connect. These consumers drove their shiny cars out of town, down a few dusty roads, all to find their nearest farmer. They came to buy food for their families. No middleman. No buying clubs. Just one on one, buying from the guy who grew the sweet corn and vegetables, who raised the livestock, who milked the cows or gathered the eggs. Funny thing, no one seemed to care back in March if that side of beef was organic or grass-fed. They didn't worry if the chickens that laid their eggs were free-range. For a moment, all the marketing mantras in the world didn't mean a thing. More than that, farmers were no longer faceless cogs in some industrialized system. Farmers had names, they had families, and they felt like friends now, because they cared if you could feed your kids. They were willing to share, to help. While the rest of the world panicked, they followed the seasons and let nature dictate what they would do rather than some cable news channel. They tilled the ground, planted for the harvest, put the bull in with the cow herd and showed a faith that reminded those new friends, the ones who drove out and met them for the first time, that agriculture has a face, a heart and a near limitless amount of strength and resiliency. See more

People often ask how long it takes me to load my hay trailer. Well know you know.

A little farm humor for your Thursday evening...

How fast do piggies grow? These two pictures were taken 4-1/2 months apart. Shortly after we brought the 'band' to our barn and this morning, two days before the 'band' leaves for freezer camp. (You can use the boards in the background for scale.)