Filed under: October 2014 | Tags: Compost, draft horses, Spelt, speltz, straw, sustainability
One of the planted spelt fields
October 3, 2014
Against many odds, after losing sleep and pushing through, my eight acres of speltz are planted and fertilized. I worked into the darkness last night after a long day of field work to get the planting all done. I ran out of steam a little after nine pm last light. I closed the barn doors and headed for a shower and a soft bed.
This morning, with rain looming, I attacked the task of spreading soil amendments onto the recently planted seedbed. My younger sister gave me a hand. I would not have beaten the rain without her help. As I made the last round, the rain started to fall. My shirt got wet, my glasses got spotted, but nothing could dampen the jubilation I felt in my soul! All that hard work and loss of sleep, was worth every minute!
I cannot take all of the credit. My son helped me plow. My sister helped me beat the rain. My wife had meals ready, lunches packed and a thousand other details in order, so that I could focus on getting this crop in the ground. This crop provides the horses grain for the entire year. It gives us valuable straw for the animal’s bedding. The carbon source of this straw is the foundation of our compost pile, the main fertility of our farm.
Last year, the fall rains made getting a crop of speltz in impossible for me. I had to buy horse grain. We are running short on straw and are in search of some. It is hard to believe just how important this crop is to our operation. The grain is the fuel source for our horse powered farm. The straw a key building block in our sustainability. To say that I am happy is an understatement.
Even Cinch is Smiling
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