Till The Cows Come Home

We set out to the woods and began marking trees for clearing our next pasture.

This pasture will be used to rotate horses for future grazing purposes and for beginning our starter herd of cattle for beef.

We will use our Kioti Tractor to brush hog the lot, and then go through with a chainsaw to remove any larger trees that are in the way. We want to encourage more sunlight by removing trees that create a shady environment. Letting more sunlight in will allow us to seed the area and grow a bit of grass for grazing, paired with our ample supply of fresh fertilizer.

We will add a shelter structure for the livestock so they can be protected from harsh weather, and have shade when needed.

During our walk about, we also determined where gates will go, feeders, water troughs, and manure management. Efficiently planning routes of entry and exit for the day to day care and chores.

We also identified wet areas where we could dig down to create smaller holding ponds. This will keep the pasture from being too wet and muddy - but that will require repairs to our old excavator first.

This is the first step of many, but an exciting one, as it gave shape to the vision. We will utilize tree lines to create visual distinction between pastures, and all of the trees we cut will be utilized for heating our home in the woodstove for the following year.

Till the cows come home, you can find us hiking through the woods! It will be neat to see how the property changes and opens up.