Cool and wet

Now that we are well into November, the weather has firmly taken a turn for the wet. The turf is constantly wet, so that thinner patches turn muddy. The appetites of the animals are all picking up as the weather (now barely touching 50 on any given day, frequently less) closes in. We have had frosts firm enough to make ice flowers bloom from molehills, but not every morning is frosty.

The sheep are settling in well, in their new accomodations, and their latest motivation is to beg for carrots, which we supply as supplementary snacks. Tlingit's ram lamb, still less than a year old, is growing rapidly. In due course he will be a fine flock sire, although his wool promises to be rather kempy.

We are stemming the tide of losses among our ducks, at the price of repeated raccoon hunts. This has the pleasant side effect of keeping the ravens fed.

We spoke to local people about the raccoons, and heard that while most people regard them as a pest, some people buy dog food in bulk quantities at the farm store to feed raccoons and possums. This is a trifle annoying, because while they have their cute aspects, they really are something of a menace on multiple grounds. The possums are actually an invasive pest which does the local ecology no small harm.

Our biggest project currently under way is to trim the trees on our northern border, and replace the fence there. It is a lot of hard work, but should be very rewarding once completed.