ADVENTURE'S DOWNUNDER OR FARMING IN PARADISE:An Old Rams view.

[dragonlaurel]

We have quite a few people on this site that raise rabbits, so that flystrike info could be helpful.

Your sheep may be a big help on that land. Are those the same types of grasses on his property? They didn't seem to be bouncing back from the drought as well.
Ruby is becoming a good livestock dog. What breed is she?

We had the hunting idea too, but the property is his home, so I can understand wanting to keep it private. Most of that hill is young trees (probably logged before), but he might want to work on the variety aspect. Grapes could be trained up tree trunks for support and food. He wants to plant some fruit trees and elderberry.
I thought about adding some walnut or pecan for eventual food, income and it would make a nice canopy layer. A few small retaining walls could catch the falling leaves and eventually make terraces of great soil.

 

[framing fowl]

Hey TOR, sorry for the misunderstanding on the question. I wasn't saying you shouldn't ask because it is a very important event with possible worldwide ramifications. I was merely meaning that I personally couldn't really address it without causing myself and others grief .

Thank you for the photos. What an amazing difference.

Dragonlaurel: what a great idea on the retaining walls. It wouldn't take long at all for the leaves to compost naturally in place that way.

 

[dragonlaurel]

framing fowl - Thanks. I stole the idea. This town is very hilly so there's lots of small (1-3 ft high) retaining walls around. Still guessing how to anchor a wall there.
I wonder if any of the living fence type trees or shrubs could do it. Do any of them grow well on mountainsides?

 

[stano40]

What problems do you have with predators.

bob

 

[The Old Ram-Australia]

G'day How'ya'goin?Well we hope!

We are happy to see everyone turn up again.

The flystruck ram:I have posted an update on that "thread".

Today was an early start,fixed that lamb up and off I went to the truck doctor,it took a couple of hours but with her new fuel pump and her injectors all blown out she acting like a "perky-breasted "teenager,rather than an "old doll" her age.

Took the dogs down to check those ewe's and because their not yet used to going in the "new gate",I got Jack to put them into a "mob" and eased them along the fence line and through the gate they went (it will only take another day or so and they will do it by themselves).Filled up the "mix "containers for one group and that was it for today.

We had a nice storm this arvo,about 1/2 inch or so I guess,still have not had a "frost",so we are still getting a little bit of growth.

Questions and Answers:
dragonlaural:Ruby is a Black and Tan Kelpie(she's in the photo in post 15).I thought that photo may raise a question or two.Heres the thing as farmers we are at opposite ends of the spectrum.His pastures are high input annual ones and ours are native/naturalized exotic(we fiquire after 10yrs of drought,anything that survived we can look on as local)perennial which responded straight away to a rain event,whereas his seasonal annuals "fail" if it does not rain at the right time.He had failures 3 yrs in a row during the drought in that paddock.
Originally both pastures were similar to ours,but he has "ploughed out" all what we would call the good "stuff".

I hate to throw a "wet blanket" on your ideas for your friends place,but Grapes need a min number of hours of sunlight,fert, and reliable water,if your going to sit on the porch at sunset and drink a bottle of wine or two.the idea of the fruit trees is all very nice ,BUT are not compatible with Goats....If you have lots of "fieldstone",look for the natural drainage lines and put your little walls in there (by the way are most of the trees deciduous?).If not ,maybe this is what your additional plantings could be.If it was me I would dig a trench about 6ins deep and start with a stone foundation(Google,Dry Stone Walls,there is some good stuff from Britain there,I got our library to purchase one book,it was so popular that I had to line up to borrow it.).If as you build it you lean the wall a little into the slope you may find it will be quite stable.
It seems as though you have enough trees its a matter of water speed in the drainage lines that you need to control so all of your organic matter is not swept down the slope in the rain.(the next time you visit ,go down into the bush and take a few snaps,so we can get a picture of what its like).

We use the photo's(see last night) of the farm to plan all our fence lines,I'm sure that fencing is on the list of subjects to be discussed in the future.

framing fowl:That Ok ,I asked the question in all innocence,I would not wish to offend anyone on the forum.

THE CHAT:Knowing the limits of your country.
We believe that the key to "Sustainable and Profitable" Production is to make the livestock fit the feed available,not the feed fit the livestock.You will always get it wrong and you never recover the cost of buying feed for the stock when you sell them.The aim is to know when your "feed gaps" are,ie:Summer Dry or/and Winter.Lets say the spring is drier than normal,go through the flock and decide which are the animals you need the least(backward lambs ,old ewes that are really past their best)and sell them so the available feed is kept for the best of your flock.This becomes a little easier once you have achieved your target max flock numbers(an old farmer once told me that the "best" stock you will ever own ,are the ones you have bred your self).

Take some time and have an objective look at the flock/herd or whatever,take off the "rose-colored glasses"and write down where your flock is lacking,these then become your "breeding objectives",remember,if the flock as a whole is not going forward in performance,then your profits are most likely going "backwards".In any given year we will cull up to 40% of our ewe lamb drop and only retain the top1/2% of ram lambs for breeding and even these are accessed again at 12mths old and if they are deficient in any of our breeding goals ,they are sold.We en-devour to sell the oldest ewe drop every year,so the total flock turns over every 5 years.(this year is an exception because our total numbers are so low).

Well its getting late and the two typing fingers are tiring,we hope you have enjoyed your "visit' with us and you will call again as you are always welcome,so as always "stay safe",until next time "so long " from ....T.O.R...............................

 

[TanksHill]

THE CHAT:Knowing the limits of your country.
We believe that the key to "Sustainable and Profitable" Production is to make the livestock fit the feed available,not the feed fit the livestock.You will always get it wrong and you never recover the cost of buying feed for the stock when you sell them.The aim is to know when your "feed gaps" are,ie:Summer Dry or/and Winter.Lets say the spring is drier than normal,go through the flock and decide which are the animals you need the least(backward lambs ,old ewes that are really past their best)and sell them so the available feed is kept for the best of your flock.This becomes a little easier once you have achieved your target max flock numbers(an old farmer once told me that the "best" stock you will ever own ,are the ones you have bred your self).

......

This is a paragraph to print!! I am saving this and adding it to my SS notes.
g
Thank you.

g

 

[dragonlaurel]

Ram- Glad your truck is "perky" again.
I remembered seeing the dog in a pic. A well trained farm dog is a blessing.
Any grass that survives 10 years of hard conditions has become a local. The fact that your grass is still alive and your sheep are doing well after a drought, says plenty. It may hurt your neighbors pride to need to learn from somebody that has such a different way of doing things.

About my friends place- The front and side yards have the brought in topsoil, and are still open and sunny. A few semi-dwarf fruit trees would fit there, and help keep the home cooler. They already put a fence around their garden cause the dog liked laying in the new seedlings.

Their back yard is the steep wooded slope with lots of deciduous trees and scattered pines. I think that slope faces East. I'll pay attention to suitable spots for walls and try to get some pics. I'd love to help build them, since it's a good skill to have. Gotta read up on dry stack stone walls.

Stan 40 - Not sure if the predators question was for The Old Ram or for me. My friends have bobcat, wolves, coyotes and pigs coming around sometimes. Their German Shepard helps keep the predators back.

 

[The Old Ram-Australia]

G'day, the journal will be in "sleep mode ' for a few days while we are away from the farm.See you all when we get back............T.O.R...........

 

[framing fowl]

Hey DL! We are in the heart of dry stone wall country here in central Kentucky. They're everywhere and absolutely beautiful. Many of them are original from the late 1800's and early 1900's. Apparently many were done by the Irish for the local horse farms around that time.

I did a quick search and found www.drystone.org. It's a conservancy for the craft. They've got a list of upcoming workshops.

 

[dragonlaurel]

Framing Fowl - Thanks for that link. They have some beautiful stone works on there. The classes are too far away for me, but I can still do some "how to" reading on it. I don't think my friends would mind me practicing there. After all- if it turned out well, they get a retaining wall for an area. If it doesn't, the rocks slow down the dirt loss in an area. Either way = less erosion.