Filed under: March 2018 | Tags: draft animal power, draft horses, family time, Farming with Draft horses, maple sap, maple season, maple syrup, maple syrup production, RFD TV, Rural Heritage, Rural Heritage magazine, Small Farming
March 22, 2018
My horses are stars again! They just had the role in a video showcasing our farm’s maple syrup operation. The footage was shot by Rural Heritage magazine and will appear in the future on RFD-TV. The CD will also be available for purchase from Rural Heritage magazine. You can look for this and other episodes made here at the farm by going to their website Ruralheritage.com
It was an amazing day. We gathered maple sap. We tapped a tree and we boiled the sap and made some syrup all while being filmed. The horses gave me a little “push back” at first , but soon settled into their routine and worked perfectly…. as expected.
Maple season has been hit and miss, but these last few days we have been very busy. We boiled for the 7th time yesterday. The next few days look pretty good too. We will be in a rush as the season will soon be at its end, but for now we will work hard, even into the night….working at times, when the stars are shining!
Special thanks to Susan Blocker for the amazing photo of Hoss and Knight pulling the sap sled!
Filed under: November 2016 | Tags: corn, corn picking, draft horses, Farming with Draft horses, husking corn, maize, Small Farming
November 1, 2016
What a beautiful day today was. The temperature was in the mid seventies. A small breeze blew and the sun shined overhead all day. The corn husked easily and the horses worked perfectly. After a late start getting things ready, I still managed to get two loads picked and put into the crib. Many thanks to friends and some family. We could pick four rows at a time. So every round got us out of the tracks from the last load.
The ground is very soft from recent rains. My corn is spotty due to a goof at planting time. The weeds too are a bit out of hand from our summer drought, but ears I am getting are large and easy to pick. The horses are sinking in a little, but the wagon, not too much. Because we get to move over with each round, the field should be in great shape once the job is done.
I am picking this corn by hand. I like to do it that way anyway, but this year with the soft ground, I am especially happy to be doing it. I am avoiding calling the field muddy, because so far it isn’t, not for horses anyway. If I was using a tractor, I would be buried up to the axles with no hope in sight. Thanks to my horses, I am picking and grinning!
Filed under: March 2016 | Tags: Draft horse videos, Farming with Draft horses, Log skidding, RFD TV, Rural Heritage magazine, Small Farming
March 24, 2016
Yesterday, the folks from Rural Heritage magazine were here to make a movie about my farm and draft horses. We spent the entire day filming. The horses pulled my sled, hauled the manure spreader with the power cart and skidded logs with our log cart. They performed beautifully, as expected…but you just never know…they are animals after all.
We will finish up this morning with the film crew. The movies will appear during the month of May on RFD TV. The videos will also be available from the Rural Heritage website. If you check out the Rural Heritage Facebook page, you can see some teaser photos taken during the filming.
They will be making two segments one geared toward our environmental and woodland stewardship. The other video will be about using draft horses for power on a mixed powered farm. The videos showcase our work horses Knight, Hoss and Duke. (each horse was played by himself) I am there too, but the real stars were the horses.
These are exciting and busy times here at Riceland Meadows. I’m sure glad you folks are along for the ride!
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