Our Big Announcement......Our newest addition!!!

The Old Five Notch Farm is thrilled to have a new addition!

As any farmer knows, having the proper equipment to do the many jobs around the farm makes the work so much easier.  Well, we invested in a piece of equipment today!

A Kabota 3200L series with a front loader :0)

Our newest addition!  On the trailer so I guess it's ours!

Our salesman at Greenwood Equipment & Sales making sure our new tractor is secured

My Farmer Man with his new toy...er....tool ;0P

The first "load" for the new tractor....25 pounds of grass feed beef we picked up at the Greenwood Farmers Market! He was coming up to the house anyhow and said he'd help! lol

We are so blessed! Kabota had 0% financing and 0 down. Nothing like having 5 years to pay for something and not paying any interest!! AND Mr. Farmer AND I got new Kabota caps....and mine is PINK! lol ;0)

Scott has already put 1.7 hours on the tractor "working" around the farm today.  He pushed up the pile where we had burned the trees and stumps we took down to make room for The Chick Inn II, moved some old logs around the outside of the fence in the backyard, cleared all the brush and limbs from around the outside of the fence and started to fill the trench back in where we have run the electric and water to The Chick Inn II. 

This investment will pay for itself in time saved on many upcoming projects...and you know how long that list can be!

I'm so happy for my Farmer Man...this is something he has always wanted...his very own tractor.  He works so very hard not only at his "real" job, but here on the farm as well. I'm hoping this new addition will make his jobs here on the farm a little easier or at least a little more enjoyable :0)

We have been blessed with friends and neighbors who have always been so very generous in either coming and doing the work with their tractors and equipment or allowing us to borrow a tractor and equipment.  We are ever so grateful for their generosity and their help!  We hope we can repay some of that kindness now that we can help others.

We'll have some more news, more additions!, later this week....so stay tuned!  

Landscape Shopping, The Turkeys in Their New Home, and Hungry Ducks...

What a wonderful day today!  I had the opportunity to go to Park Seed Company in Greenwood, SC for the Master Gardener Day.  I found many wonderful plants, shrubs and trees to help landscape our farm.  There was so much more I could have bought, but we have to pace ourselves and the pocketbook. 

Here's this haul for today from Park Seed and Lowe's:

Red Twig dogwood, Yellow twig dogwood, Pygmy Japanese Maple, Lilac bush, Gingko Trees, a couple different Hosta, Rhododendron-several varieties, Dwarf  Navel Orange tree, Dwarf Lemon tree, Dwarf Mandarin Orange three, Several varieties of Butterfly bushes, a Bay Laurel, assorted annuals for hanging baskets, honeysuckle, and more!

This is where the Woodland Garden will be...still need to clear some scrub trees and get it ready!  Some of the plants I bought today will be used in this garden. I want to add some azaleas too.

The Square foot garden is coming along quite well...

The zucchini (top left) and the winter squash (bottom right) is too. Blossoms on the tomatoes :0)

The turkeys are slowly settling in to their new home.  They have separation anxiety and peep loudly when we leave the coop :0(  They are getting a little better each time though.  They are growing so quickly!

"Tommy" is getting so big! I really need to keep the camera close...he was strutting yesterday :0)

 A turkey baby aka "The Buzzard" :0) perched on top of the waterer

 

Here's the inside of The Chick Inn II and the partition for the turkeys:

Mr. Farmer Man did an awesome job...as usual!

 The Chick Inn II aka The Maximum Security Poultry Palace is almost completed!

The Turkey Babies have the small coop on the front left and the chickens have the large run.  As soon as we figure out which two hens we are going to keep with "Tommy" and they are big enough that the chickens won't pick on them, we will allow everyone to have full access. 

We will add an outdoor roost shelter to the larger run for the turkeys when they are all allowed to be together.  I don't think the turkeys will be able to go into The Chick Inn II once they are larger.

The ducks are becoming quite the characters!  If you are late getting down to the pond to feed them they will meet you either at the barn or come running across the field towards you.  On evening, Scott was at the barn after work and I hadn't fed up yet.  Next thing he new the ducks came FLYING down the driveway, banked a right and landed in the field, just before the pond. LOL  They were hungry!

Here's the crew tonight as they came to find me:

Two of our Mallard Drakes :0)  Such handsome boys!

It's always fun here on the farm!  The critters keep us entertained and we aren't ever bored...there is ALWAYS something that needs to be done. We are so very blessed to live in the country and enjoy the farm life. <3

This next week we are hoping to finish the wiring for the electrical and running the water to The Chick Inn II, finish securing the fence around the top and plant some more muscadines and scuppernog grapes around the runs for shade.  Have a great week and thanks for stopping in!

You know you live on a farm when....

There are often so many stories of living on the farm and farm life that just make you smile.  The simplicity and joy of everyday living on a farm puts everything else in perspective.  Here's my little farm story for this week:

Since we have had so much rain lately, I have been on hold getting our field mowed and the neighbors yard mowed as well.  This allowed me the wonderful opportunity to work on a scrapbook for a dear fellow firefighter who is recovering from a violent, senseless attack on him and his date while they were on a date at the Augusta Riverwalk.  We held a BBQ Benefit Supper to raise funds for him and his expenses and I wanted to get all those photos in a scrapbook for him to see just how many people love and support him.

I was in The Scrapbook Nook working away when I heard the Turkey babies aka "The Buzzards" calling....a little louder than usual from their temporary brooder on the screened porch.  I thought to myself, Ok, they are hungry and wanted their boiled egg in their food. I'll get to them in a minute. Another "sweet, sweet, sweet" from babies and something said to me.....that's a little too loud.

I walked into the den and was headed for the door to the screened porch when I found 5 not so little turkey babies curled up in front of the TV Cabinet! Apparently the door was not latched well and they had let themselves in!

Here they are:

All five turkeys in the house!

 I went to get the camera and this little one followed me :0)

I rounded everyone up and took them the egg they were wanting.  I have no idea how long they were in the house before one of them decided to see if anyone else was home.  Thankfully, our Boykin Spaniels were asleep in the kennel room when these little ones decided to join the family.

We have almost completed the large run for the chickens so hopefully this weekend we will have turkey brooding area completed in The Chick Inn II and we can transfer these little trouble makers to the coop.  I think they will be happy to be able to be outside and have more room to roam around....although I will miss their antics!

We are also double checking the security of the outside runs.  We found raccoon scat in the nursery pen area the other morning....a little research about all the seeds we found in it suggests is was a raccoon. He/she wasn't actually in the pen, but on top of the pen and left us a present.  I should have taken a picture of it! I'm so thankful that Mr. Farmer Man is so diligent in securing the coop and keeping everyone safe.

I had another wonderful farm moment this morning :0)  I went to feed our ducks, who will meet you half way between the barn and the pond, loudly demanding that you feed them NOW.  After they had their crops full and a drink to wash it down, 6 of the ducks flew across the pond and made a graceful landing.  They swam over to the far corner where the Wood Duck Momma and her 6 ducklings live.  I wasn't sure what was about to happen..... a mom with babies can be very protective.  Our little pod of six slowly swam to the corner where Momma Wood Duck swam out with her 6 babies.....one of the hens in the pod quacked loudly and then the Wood Duck Momma and all the babies swam over and blended in with the pod!  They all swam over to the other corner were the pod tends to hang out among the reeds.  It was so peaceful and beautiful to see these different ducks watching out for each other. I really need to remember the camera when I feed up in the morning!

Living on the farm never ceases to amaze me...the beauty in everyday life if just amazing.

The sun is shining so I will finally be able to get mowing today!  I love the smell of a fresh cut field or yard :0)