The whole milk parlour was dripping moisture today. It's really muggy out there, but is seemingly going to cool down significantly by Tuesday. Plan on cutting hay on Tuesday, or Monday afternoon as it's not supposed to rain on Monday after a high chance of rain from now until Sunday.
Herbie straightened the chain channel on the haybine, but the drive-shaft popped out after he cut one side. He knocked it back with a hammer, and I found the tiny inverted screw that had fallen out. Need an alan key to secure it tightly, as I only finger tightened it back in place. Please God, let me get the whole field cut without the haybine breaking.
I baked today ! Delicious KitKat brownies ! They turned out well. I always cut the amount of sugar the recipes call for, added extra vanilla extract, plus hazelnut and coffee extracts, and used olive oil :).
Caught up with Herbie who was taking the buggy out through my temporary fencing after I took the brownies out the oven, and we went morel hunting. Found a huge one after about 20 minutes of hunting, then found my first false morel, or rocket fuel ! Then a whole lot on the South side of the farm where we didn't find any last year. So, another place to add to our successful morel areas :).
Also found lots of pheasant back mushrooms, but didn't pick any, just took photos as I didn't take a knife with and they're firmly attached.
Anni keeps on rolling in some disgusting smelling dead creature and then wants attention. She did it yesterday too. Don't know why she does that, Rosco never does !
Had to go chase Daisy May out of the back pasture today again. All the others ran up for the grain I sprinkled in the trough, but not her. Dolly started up the temporary channel outside the gate, but I had to close the gate as she wanted to follow me back into the pasture. Chased Daisy May up, told her to wait at the gate so I could open it to let her out, but Dolly came back in, so shoo'd Daisy May out, then had to shoo Dolly out again. Oh boy. Started putting a little whole corn and sunflower seeds in the feeder in the lower barn before going to fetch them in the hopes of training them (read Daisy May) to eagerly run to the lower barn every evening. Think Eleanor is on heat again as she was lying as close to Parrot as she could get with the electric fence between them.
On Friday I took a milk sample from Dolly to the vet for culturing, as I need to clear her spotty mastitis before drying her up. The meds I got from them for her previously didn't work, nor did the Today meds from TSC. Hoping to isolate exactly what bacteria is involved so that I can beat it for once and all. Haven't milked her one back quarter this past lactation, and have been feeding all her milk to the dogs and cats since trying to dry her. She's only producing under a gallon, so I'm waiting for the culture results, to get the correct meds to clear it up and then dry her. Think her calf is due in July.
Eve is such a cheeky lamb. Often see her grazing under the trees at the side of the house, but when I step outside, or send Anni after her, she shoosts back through the hole in the fence ! None of the other lambs do this, suppose there's one every year ! Now that she's about 7 weeks old, think I'll put her, and the other little girl, up for sale on Craigs' List. Liquorice still hasn't produced any lambs. She's my favourite, but I'm going to have to make a decision about her as her back leg still just flops around. I was hoping that it would just fall off, but nope.
Have found 23 of the 29 asparagus I planted, so just missing 6 still. Can see where they should be, and did some additional weeding this evening. Also dug out all the burdock I saw in the berry garden. Read up on it as there were some good sized roots, so want to use it in my natural medicine stock. Still need to go harvest the stinging nettles too.
The geese are all still sitting but haven't seen any live goslings yet. Found 4 different nests the ducks have been laying in, but none of them are sitting yet. Have 2 chickens sitting, one in the truck liner in the lower barn, the other in the doghouse, plus the little serema bantam is sitting on little eggs, I think from the white silkie, in the eaves of the chicken house. Have a 2nd clutch of eggs in the lower barn, mainly the blue / green ones from the Americuanas, but no hen is sitting on them yet. Hopefully they'll all hatch so we can be more sustainable here and not have to buy chicks anymore. That's the plan, anyway.
Tomorrow is our 6th wedding anniversary. Love you, Herbie :).