Calmsden Farm Adventure

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paul_c
Posts: 414
Joined: Thu Nov 25, 2021 4:13 pm

Re: Calmsden Farm Adventure

Post by paul_c »

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So, October is about contracts. Lots of contracts. Here, harvesting some corn.

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With a powerful tractor and on private land, we can put together a roadtrain using my trailer and the two contract ones. It should save some time.

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Nearly forgot to sell the eggs again.

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Jacki is trusted with a plough again. Will she finally reach completion on a job?

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More contracts...still have the corn to finish.

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Full.

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I have to take apart the train and deliver the trailer loads one at a time on public roads, then put it back together.

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It takes some skill to stop the roadtrain at exactly the position in between trailers, but I manage it.

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Jacki's getting there....

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More spraying....my own field though, the "2nd" fert after the oilseed radish did a first boost.

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A cotton harvest will keep me busy through the evening.....what could possibly go wrong??

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Yes! I can handle a 2t bale if needed...

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Jacki completed it! And is almost unstoppable and wants to finish the field! Fortunately for me, she did stop just in time.

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Hmmmm, the cotton sell point isn't accepting our bales....this is a problem. So I phone up Jimmy (landowner), he says "aaah don't worry about it, just keep the bales for your efforts".

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Jacki wanted a go of the cotton harvester (it takes hours after all), so I let her, and have a relaxing evening instead.

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So with last evening's failed cotton contract, Jimmy sued me! And my bank didn't even intervene, they just let him take the money out my account and now I have £133,979 unauthorised overdraft!!! Yikes! After a conversation with the bank manager, he agrees to give me until the end of the day before there's issues.
paul_c
Posts: 414
Joined: Thu Nov 25, 2021 4:13 pm

Re: Calmsden Farm Adventure

Post by paul_c »

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November should be fairly quiet but I have 2 fields to silage and fortunately a bunch of contract jobs too. Doing the silage around the other jobs.

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Annoyingly, once the autoload bale trailer had made 2 trips, 2 bales were left over. If it were 1 I'd have just stabbed it with the forks. So I used the small trailer instead of lugging the autoload again.

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All done (nearly), just rolling and one more cultivating job.

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This contract job will pay off the overdraft (converted to a normal loan).

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Done!

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And on to winter.....Haven't my little saplings done well! No contract jobs so I'll just chop some trees down (and plant more).

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The snow is coming so I'll crack on.

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Canola price has peaked so I'll sell.
paul_c
Posts: 414
Joined: Thu Nov 25, 2021 4:13 pm

Re: Calmsden Farm Adventure

Post by paul_c »

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Tomorrow (January) is predicted to be a busy day so I'll load up some trailers now.

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I've rented these.....

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This will save time getting it home after the long slow trip last time!

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It works!

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Bought a bunch more forestry stuff too - a tree planter and a stump grinder/bush mulcher thing.

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A magical American Elm, they're dotted around the edges but I didn't make much from selling this one vs the hassle of cutting it down, so I'll leave the rest for now.

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Bush clearance has gone well, much more airy to see felled trees etc.

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This winter I'll plant 120 new trees.

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Just the one contracting job.

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I stayed up all night to watch the prices (and the snow come), looks like sugar beet has peaked.

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Roads are icy! I struggled badly on the hill but there's no alternate route. After a few tries, I figured the way to do it is switch to manual at the bottom, select 1st gear and just keep going. The changing of a gear loses the speed and then it just spins.

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6 or 7 trips to sell silage today too.

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The snow stopped but it took until midday for the roads to clear. Traction is better now. I'll also sell this useless oats while I'm taking a trip to the sell point.
humbe
Posts: 1364
Joined: Sat Jan 18, 2020 9:33 pm

Re: Calmsden Farm Adventure

Post by humbe »

Hehe.. My old tractors dont manage to get up that hill in winter so I had to take scenic off road route.. Though elected to sell most stuff elsewhere due to it..
paul_c
Posts: 414
Joined: Thu Nov 25, 2021 4:13 pm

Re: Calmsden Farm Adventure

Post by paul_c »

My underpowered, unmaintained Zetor (supposed to be 171hp) struggles with a full load, or even just with a trailer, yet alone a loaded one. Its a PITA being a manual too, there is a gap when changing gear. It would be nice if there was a button to switch to manual mode (just like in a car...) but you need to do it through the game settings, which is awkward if you're driving at the time and need a quick switch to manual. So I ended up stopping at the bottom of the hill, switching to manual then ascending. Then on the flat and straight, back to auto mode.

I really ought to buy a CVT tractor.
humbe
Posts: 1364
Joined: Sat Jan 18, 2020 9:33 pm

Re: Calmsden Farm Adventure

Post by humbe »

Too bad there's no tires with chains on them one can fit for winter use, which should help with traction on icy roads.. Well.. Maybe repairing the tractor would improve it so the engine was working fine at least ;) Though I guess you don't lose too many hp for being unrepaired..
paul_c
Posts: 414
Joined: Thu Nov 25, 2021 4:13 pm

Re: Calmsden Farm Adventure

Post by paul_c »

I think its 30% power loss?

There's also the gritter and road salt, but at £8000 + £100/bag, its not worth it so long as you can actually make it up the hill. Even if you couldn't and had to go somewhere the same side of the valley at a £5/ton price deficit, that's "only" £1500 lost for 300 tons of product.
paul_c
Posts: 414
Joined: Thu Nov 25, 2021 4:13 pm

Re: Calmsden Farm Adventure

Post by paul_c »

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They're a bit of a pain to set up (and you need to keep shuffling them as the stuff is depleted) but finally I got the knack of the conveyors. Not doing root crops again though.

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Not long to go.

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If the prices are anything to go by, tomorrow will be a big money day. So I'm loading up now (2 loads will be needed). Don't need a special cotton trailer here!!

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Waiting at 3:19am for the prices to peak.

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Something I've noticed. The indicator will show the red (prices dropping) but they still go up. Worth watching closely for the peak. Of course, the only way to know is when they come down again!!

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2nd load of cotton sold and a big payout. Well over £500k means I've cleared the £300k seed money easily, and have a bunch of land and equipment too.

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Shopping time! This cute little thing came up at a bargain price but with neither front loader nor front hitch, its very limited in jobs.

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This came up though! By sheer chance, the same as humbe's new tractor in a parallel world, but this one is secondhand and much more affordable. I don't actually need the power, but its too good a price to pass by....

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Posing time for the fleet. I don't care about colour (or make) of tractor, but its just the way it is that the MFs and Zetors are on the affordable end of things. So they're the chosen ones.

Anyway....two contracts have come up, both seedings so I can borrow the one for the other too. And I need to think carefully what I'm doing with my money....This post: viewtopic.php?f=963&t=188365 shows my detailed cost analysis, it would be obvious to just go buy more grassland, right?
paul_c
Posts: 414
Joined: Thu Nov 25, 2021 4:13 pm

Re: Calmsden Farm Adventure

Post by paul_c »

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Due to my stewardship of the forested area, I was gifted ALL the land in between the defined fields! Including the roads, stream, shops, houses etc for £0. There has to be a catch.....

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In theory, this stream is now mine, and I am responsible for it.

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This enchanted area is next to field 10.

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Anyway, back to a few contract jobs.

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Quite a big seeding job....

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Fortunately I have quite a big trailer.

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Its March and spring has sprung. I have plenty of work ahead of me today. And a spare few mins to play with the dog.

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Don't mind me, just walk over the trailer, its fine...

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Next to field 23 is a grassy patch. I was cutting down an American Elm and THIS happened!

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I shall call it "the box".

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I managed to drag it out to the road...

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And after wasting a lot of time, put it into the neighbour's field. I am sure they won't mind.

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This is a special order 10m mower, the other one they had in stock seemed very poor value compared to the 8m.

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The Zetor is trying to mow with the 10m on the back too, but is pretty hopeless. It managed the 8m fine.

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So the new powerful MF is used for the first time. It can JUST about cope with the weight of the rear mower on the front, to give better visibility doing the edges etc.

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I bought field 33 (and 12) too.

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There is a handy little gap by the riverside, just big enough to squeeze a tractor through.

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33 is long and thin, which is ideal for mowing, windrowing and baling. I am hoping my round bales don't all end up in the water.
paul_c
Posts: 414
Joined: Thu Nov 25, 2021 4:13 pm

Re: Calmsden Farm Adventure

Post by paul_c »

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So, with the area next to 23 also being next to the stables, it makes sense to open up a little pathway.

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More spraying....

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Field 33 goes right down to the waterline

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The new tractor is proving economical to run, although Gerald doesn't like it. There was nothing wrong with it - he charged me £224 for a "diagnostic scan" using his fancy new code reader.

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Only one bale in the soup. Do I need to phone the Environment Agency or shall I skip it?

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1st cut silage, part 1/2. Reviewing last year shows that the 1st cut (in March) is never quite as high yielding as the others. Also November (2 months growth from Sept) isn't as good either. So instead of squeezing in 4 cuts, I'll just do 3 cuts and space them out 3 months apart too. It means I can do half the fields Mar/Jun/Sep and the others Apr/Jul/Oct AND it means all the silage is fermented by the price peak of Jan.

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A cunning plan is hatched. I shall put a sheep pen next to the chickens! So I'll need to tidy up the bushes and remove a tree. Another crazy tree, hope this one doesn't go bonkers when I cut it down (if I cut it down...can't find the wood with the saw???)

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That's neater.

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About the right spot. Not much room with the chicken sheds and bale storage which needs the big trailer to swing around etc too.

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Ok so things start going a bit crazy. I tried to place unfermented silage as "grass" feed, but no visible difference (later I'll find out, crazily, the bale DOES deplete but remains same shape/size). So I am pushing and pushing the stupid bale around.....

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....And the tractor rides up on a bale....and the brush mulcher disconnects and drops into the sheep pen!!!

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Amazingly I hoik it out but risk the whole tractor going in there now. Its stuck so the little one with the front loader to the rescue.

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Even with the sprayer as a counterweight, its too small really but it gets it shifted enough to save the day (for now.....)

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The forestry mulcher will have to have a plan hatched to save it.

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Things not going my way on the contract seeding work either....

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The forks are somewhere else but the logging fork does it sideways....its enough to get it in...

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Rolling...that tree is on my to-do list now!

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Seeding into the night...

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After a late night, an early start and a bumper number of eggs. Maybe I forgot to deliver them in March??

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I will need this, to help out with the sheep in the pipeline.

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I will borrow this for now. 3 or more trips and it works out cheaper, I think?

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Fed, watered and happy. These are 0 month old lambs but are enormous already! The small sheep pen is so I can run tests on feed rate and water consumption as they grow, the large pasture will accommodate adult sheep.

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Looks happy.

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They almost look excited for their new home.

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This was plan A to get the mulcher out......Log grabber can't seem to grip it properly though.

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A cunning plan B is being formed....yes, it is possible to lift a tractor with a tractor on the forks....

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So I'll pop my little tractor into the pen....

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Hmmm, THAT wasn't part of the plan!

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I forgot to plan how I'd get it out though.....This isn't working, its hung up and all 4 wheels are spinning.

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Backwards is better, the little one is able to inch its way out, it takes ages because I have to shuffle the big one helping it carefully backwards too, inch by inch.

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Eventually the rear tyres contact the barrier and there is hope.

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In theory I could detach the mulcher now but I don't want the tractor stuck in there.

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Its balanced on its own now.

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Getting there....

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Just a few more helpful prods with the forks and its almost there. Then I was able to detach and move away the mulcher and get the tractor out too.

ALL because the stupid bales don't indicate when they're depleted! At least I can feed the sheep the occasional unfermented bale of grass, I don't need to worry about hay or baling unwrapped ones (until winter, that is). I need to do some research and find out the feed rate of sheep and lambs at various stages of growth, to see if/when its worth selling them or keeping for wool etc. Amazingly, I did a thorough search on the internet and the guides on sheep don't include that info.
humbe
Posts: 1364
Joined: Sat Jan 18, 2020 9:33 pm

Re: Calmsden Farm Adventure

Post by humbe »

You have some struggles I see ;).. A bit more intuitive with the small bales you carry as you see info popup on foot. I've noticed that if you put bales next to the through, they can automatically fill the trough over time.. I must admit I use superpower mod to get out of some such issues. Yesterday I was driving to sell silage, and I jumped out of the tractor to open a gate, but I hadn't completely stopped it, so it drifted through the gate while I was opening it. The trailer ended up 2 meters underground so just the highest bit of it was visible, and no superpower or anything could move it, and the tractor was on the back wheels dancing. The tractor was fine after just disconnecting the trailer. To get the trailer out without resetting (and losing the 15000 liter of silage), I ended up editing the vehicles.xml of the trailer to be 3m higher in elevation.

Would be nice with a lamb model. My pen keep filling up without me noticing it, as the amount shown is cut off at 20 or so..
paul_c
Posts: 414
Joined: Thu Nov 25, 2021 4:13 pm

Re: Calmsden Farm Adventure

Post by paul_c »

There's so much which is counterintuitive with animals, I shudder to get involved with them.... I am sure we can all think of significant areas which could be improved. But it doesn't spoil the enjoyment of the game, I just need to reset my thoughts on what's right/best and see what works or doesn't in-game.
paul_c
Posts: 414
Joined: Thu Nov 25, 2021 4:13 pm

Re: Calmsden Farm Adventure

Post by paul_c »

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After the 'excitement' of the new arrivals, its back to normal work. I'm still heavily reliant on contract work but I am investing it wisely, I haven't bought a tractor for ages and have been buying land! The next planned purchase is field 8, which will complete a notional "phase 1" of buying up grassland.

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After the spraying jobs, I can afford to buy field 8 and still have plenty of daylight to silage it. Mowing, windrowing and baling done, I'll do a quick chicken feed then go collect the bales. Since the grain trailer has a hitch on the back....

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Field 8 all done, barring the rolling which can be done in the evening.

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This is all the 1st cut silage. Since the bales can be "last in first out" and there will be more, I will stack them tighter this year.

Still plenty of work through a beautiful April's evening to do - 3 big fert jobs which will bring in useful money; and the rolling. In May I have no silaging but a list of other, tidying up jobs around the farm. Soon it will be harvest time, which is just as well since that was the last of the Sorghum fed to the chickens! And no way am I buying food from that shop!
paul_c
Posts: 414
Joined: Thu Nov 25, 2021 4:13 pm

Re: Calmsden Farm Adventure

Post by paul_c »

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Barley is looking good.

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More spraying through the evening.

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Up early, checking on the sheep. Yep, its still a sheep.

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Today's work is mainly to tidy up some errant trees and create usable spaces around the estate. A beautiful large tree.

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Now on its side.

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And stacked up, ready to sell. Not much income off the wood, but its better than nothing (or chipping it).

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The next area is the one to the south of the farmyard.

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That's better. No fixed plans for the area yet, but its useful that its now clear.

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This is the wooded area between fields 8 and 10.

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I did look into a subtle, low, wooden shed but the large metal one is more economical and practical. The locals aren't too happy with the eyesore though!

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The old sprayer has 45 hours on it and repair costs are creeping up, so I've bought another one.

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More spraying....getting bored of it!

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Some areas where trees were, need a bit of help to restore to grassland.

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Patch repairs.

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...And more spraying. It looks like I'll be spraying into the night but I've planned out tomorrow for the barley harvest, I should have some decent daylight for that.
paul_c
Posts: 414
Joined: Thu Nov 25, 2021 4:13 pm

Re: Calmsden Farm Adventure

Post by paul_c »

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So, June is barley harvest time. Once again I'll lease the combine. It was very early and I was half awake and accidentally bought the header though.

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I notice that the field edge is not too far off one of the angles Jacki likes, so I get her involved. It means I can just cart grain back and forth and save some time.

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There is some silaging to do today too.

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Some quick sums reveals I have enough food for a 3rd large chicken pen....just need to move bales to make space for it.

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Its more or less in line with the other 2 sheds. Space is becoming tight in that field.

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More bales to find storage for...

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And straw bales...

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This is going to be a good one to try and explain on the insurance claim form. Luckily I took a pic. It seems the complex hydraulics and moving parts of the bale trailer caught on the barn poles during unloading. I eventually got it down by poking it with the loader forks.

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This month's "new" field is the grassland next to the garden centre. What lies beyond?

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Feeding the sheep. They really have no common sense.

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They are producing wool, but I'll store it (don't know where...) until the price peaks.

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I had better top up their water too.

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And rolling, just as it goes dark. Tomorrow (July) is MORE silage, but August is a month off. No doubt some contract work will come up though.
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