Putting up Fencing

Saturday January 2nd was a gray, chilly day - one of those gloomy winter-like days that is perfect for sitting in front of the fireplace, looking at seed catalogs, and planning the spring garden.  But there was work to be done.  At 10:30 a.m. Russ, Benjamin and I arrived at the farm in Oberlin.  Dad's rye grass field (which looks 100% better than ours) needed a little work.  Dad mixed wheat seed in with his rye grass and it is thick and healthy.

We always put a dividing fence right down the middle to separate the field into two large paddocks. The electric fence is then turned on and the cows are put into one half of the pasture to eat.  Later they are moved to the other side and in such fashion half of the field is 'resting' and growing.  If you left the cows in one side for too long, in their exuberance to eat the lush, green grass, they would walk around and mash all the grass into the mud, ruining a lot of it.  Rotational grazing prolongs the life of the pasture.

Lush, green pasture under a gloomy, grey sky

With the abundance of rain we've received lately, the field was saturated with water and muddy.  We had to put the Kubota ATV in four wheel drive to make it through the muck.  Dad stood at the other end of the field right in the middle and we drove to him.  Then we strung the electric wiring from one end to the other, pulling it tight.  Once the fence was pretty tight, we had the straight line traced to put in the T-posts, ensuring a straight fence.

Putting up fencing

We do this job every year at this time like clockwork.  The job is not for average folks, no sir.  This job requires a PhD - in this case that doesn't mean a Doctorate of Philosophy.  It means a Post Hole Driver.  My nephew and Russ and Benjamin split up the jobs.  Since I'm the oldest, I had the easy job.  I stepped off 15 steps and put a post in the ground.  Russ was the post driver, banging the T-post into the ground with a banger and Benjamin drove the Kubota, delivering the posts as we'd go along.  Conner would then attach the plastic insulator to the T-post and put the electric wire on the insulator.

Division of labor

Then we took a lunch break and headed to Oberlin.  Right down Main Street there is a grocery store called Landreneau's.  As you exit the vehicle in the parking lot, the aroma of smoking meats fills your nostrils.  The smokehouse is billowing out back and the scent beckons you inside.  They have a full service meat market and deli and their meat case is filled with fresh smoked sausage of all varieties, smoked rabbits stacked high, stuffed ponce, stuffed pork roast, a big pile of smoked pork ribs, and a wide assortment of other specialty meats like cream cheese and jalapeno pork pinwheels and bacon-wrapped jalapeno poppers.  Landreneau's also has the best hamburger around.  Huge, freshly ground meat patties in a buttered bun, loaded with onions, pickles, lettuce and tomatoes.  You need both hands to hold this burger.  You need a big appetite to finish it, but we had that covered. The only hard part was going back to work after lunch!  I needed a nap instead.

With our fuel tanks topped off with the Landreneau burger, we were powered with sufficient energy to finish the task.

Gittin' it done!

In no time the task was complete.  In a day or two the happy cows will be turned into one half of the pasture and they'll eat to their heart's content on that green, green grass.