This Just In: Farming in Winter Sucks
I found this post from February of this year, but for some reason I never posted it. We're in the dog days of summer now (August is the worst), so it feels kinda nice to read about being frozen on the farm. Enjoy!
I have always loved colder weather, but man, farming in winter — even wimpy hobby farming like we’re doing — has absolutely no glory. We’ve got nothing to show for ourselves, not even eggs. I’m pretty sure real farmers who read this are pointing and laughing at us (I know our neighbors are), because, duh, farming is hard in any season.
And living in an old 1700s farmhouse is a delightful thought in spring and summer because you don’t have to chop wood or carry the wood in or freeze while you try to get a fire going. Chris and I have been cheap bastards for years, but that just meant keeping the heat at 63 in the winter with a simple thermostat. If you want to be warm in the farmhouse, get your ass out to the wood shed. And make your kids do most of the work.
But quit your bitchin’. You bought the farm, Sarah. You bought the animals. You signed up for this gig.
And you’re right. And I wouldn’t change a thing.
But just in case you’re curious, here’s a little “day in the life” (but in the evening) of barn chores in winter. The temp tonight is about 25F. The entire yard is encased in thick-ass ice due to the weird weather lately. Thankfully, Chris and Grady created little paths to the barns so we don’t have to slide to the animals.
Tonight, the girls take care of the animals. We’ve got water that’s not frozen, lettuce for the rabbits, and potatoes for the piggies! We’re in barn boots and warm coats and hats and scarves and gloves. (And some of us are comfortable wearing a fancy dress with no tights or leggings…) It’s best to go outside before it gets dark; otherwise, the Ice Farm Yard gets a little more difficult and dangerous to navigate.
First animals to feed are the piggies. They’re in a barn all by themselves – probably because of Bill’s adult habits… Here’s a small clip of Gretta feeding Bill and Imogene: piggies.
Next are the rabbits:
We have to feed each rabbit (and give them lettuce for a snack), along with water in their heated jugs (this was an exciting discovery – buying a heated water bottle for each rabbit at $25 each…), but we also need to give the beasts plenty of straw to stay warm. As you can see, it’s a lot of work, and Perry’s working really hard, posing for the camera…
Outside we go to the enclosed pen!
Once again, Perry’s working really hard.
We must feed the goats and make sure they’re warm enough. Here’s Gretta doing a bang-up job feeding Holmes and Watson: Gretta and the goaties.
And then the chickens. They don’t produce eggs during the winter, but we gotta treat the ladies nicely or they won’t lay eggs in the spring either.
And before we go in for the night, and even though it’s freezing, we have to fart around for a bit:
So that’s farm life in the winter. This process (minus the farting around) takes about a half hour, if everyone (including the little farmers) cooperates. When super cold out, we try to make this process last only fifteen minutes!, because humans are wimps, and all our animals are hearty li’l devils and can handle the cold much better than we can.
But isn’t it pretty from the inside?
-2 Comments-
Cute story! And lovely to read about in this humid weather!
Loved your story, as always!! Thanks for sharing. Your kids are certainly living the dream!!!