I am currently learning to drive the tractor with the silage feeder attached so that I can help to feed the cattle silage when they are in the fold yard.
This is the tractor I am learning to drive and here is the tractor with the silage feeder attached.
When you have not been brought up on a farm and are not used to driving an tractor, being asked to drive a tractor and operate machinery on the back of the tractor can be difficult. Well it is for me!
I have had a couple of lessons so far and I think that I can now remember what buttons to press and which switches to move. The only trouble I am having is driving the tractor at the same time as operating the silage feeder as I have to look behind me inorder to work the silage feeder and then my feet can’t reach the tractor peddles as I stretch behind!!! At first I also found it difficult to reverse the tractor with the silage feeder on the back but I am beginning to master this.
After two lessons my husband doesn’t think I am quite ready to drive the tractor alone, so at least silaging the cattle is one job I don’t have to do morning and night. Well at least for the moment!!!
Can you remember the first time you drove a tractor or do you have any interesting stories to tell about when you learnt to drive a tractor or operate some farm machinery?
Curtis @ Growing Thumbs has been gardening for almost 20 years and his website is full of gardening tips and tricks he has learnt along the way. We have become blogpals via comments left on each other’s sites and I recently learnt that Curtis lives near his grandparent’s farm and thought that he might have some interesting farm memories that he could share with us. He does and he has, so if you are sitting comfortably then Curtis will tell you about the………milk cow on the farm.
When I was about 8 or so my Grandmother bought a Jersey milk cow so she could have her own milk. Lucky for me and my parents, we lived next door so more milk and cream for us.
At first getting used to this milk was difficult. This stuff was full bodied with a little cream still in. Once we got used to it, drinking milk at the school or while out tasted strange and thinned out. My Grandma had enough milk that she sold it along with butter. Butter talk about work!
At this time she had chickens making eggs for us and to sell. I remember them buying the chicks there were 100s of them.
Milking a cow is no easy task. Milking is one thing. Having to milk in the morning and evening day in and day out is something else. When the cow had a calf you had to milk her some for the calf which we hand fed and the rest for the dogs and cats. Because there is a certain period after giving birth when the milk will not be any good for human consumption. I think it was six weeks then.
After my Grandparents going through nearly two milk cows and all the work that came with it. They sold the last one. Again going back to store bought milk. A change that took time to get used to it. But now when I do drink milk, it’s skim milk.
So the next time you go out and buy a gallon of milk or other dairy product. Remember there was a lot of work put in it.
If you have a farming story, memory or farm visit that you would like to share then please send me your story and I will happily include it on a guest appearance post.
The Autumn flowering crocus sprung into life this week signalling the start of Autumn.
I love to see the crowds of delicate crocus break through and shout that Autumn is here with their beautiful pastel pink petals waving in the Autumnal breeze, or gale force winds if you live in the North East of England like I do!!!
How The Guinea Fowl Got Her Spots is a delightful picture story book for children. It is, “A Swahili tale of friendship retold and illustrated by Barbara Knutson.”
The characters in the story are Nganga the guinea fowl, her “big friend” the cow and the lion.
As the story unfolds, not only does the reader learn how Nganga, the guinea fowl, got her spots but also how friendship is important.
The pictures are beautifully illustrated and help the reader to identify with the characters.
This is a lovely, endearing story of friendship. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who has small children.
The story can be shared with small children who will enjoy listening to the story and looking at the beautiful illustrations. The book can also be shared with children to help develop their reading skills.
I bought this book recently from Amazon as I was drawn to it because I love guinea fowl. It only cost £4.99. I will certainly be buying further copies that I can give as a gift to friend’s with young children.
Hatty the hen is my White Leghorn chicken. She is about 3 years old and she was given to me by one of our kind neighbours along with Hetty in 2004. Unfortunately Hetty is no longer with us but Hatty has befriended the flock of guinea fowl and when she isn’t finding somewhere new to lay her white eggs, she can be seen running around the farm yard with Charlie, Camilla and Diana the guinea fowl.
Here is a video clip of Hatty pecking her way across the garden.
At a family gathering recently, my niece thrust a piece of paper in my hand saying that this was Hatty the hen. Not only has this lovely hen touched my heart but that of my niece too. Here is the lovely picture my niece drew. I love this drawing.
Now having looked at the photographs and video clip of Hatty, I challenge you to have a go at drawing Hatty the hen. I would love to see your pictures so take a photo of your drawing or scan it into your computer and email the Hatty portrait over to me with your name and age, if a child has drawn the picture. Here is my attempt!
I’m sure you can all do better, so pick up that pencil, crayon, chalk or paint today and create a Hatty portrait!
If you like the look of Hatty the hen and the Cool Chick picture then visit the cafepress shop for Hatty the hen - Cool Chick merchandise.
I like to link the photo hunt theme to farming in some way so the paper theme was going to be a real challenge. Then I remembered I had photographed the farming puzzles and colouring sheets I have created on paper.
If you would like to download any of these farming activities I have created on paper then click on the links below.
If you have a farming, smallholder or countryside related company, website, product or service then you can now advertise on the Farming Friends website for only £12 a year, that is just £1 a month.
Click here for how to advertise on Farming Friends. Or click here for the adverts page.
If you have a farming story, memory or farm visit that you would like to share or a farming issue that you would like to raise, then please send me your story or article via the contact form and I will happily include it on a guest appearance post.
All the articles, educational resources and growing cards are available for free on this site. If you have found the information useful and wish to help to pay for the maintenance and continual addition of information, then you are welcome to make a donation.
Many thanks, and I hope the information has been useful.
If you cannot find the farming information or growing card that you are looking for then just ask and I'll try and offer some advice.
Sara @ Farming Friends
