Category: Construction and Maintenance
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Clearing Brush, Fixing Rock Walls, and More Rock Work
We started April with nice weather, and after repairing the tractor hydraulics, Ken was able to start on some work. We cleared brush from the rock wall and repaired damage done by trees and country road maintenance. Meanwhile, David and Ryan, AKA Dai & Jammy, continue working on the Little House foundation. Continue reading
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Shearing and Rock Work
We started shearing the flock at the end of March. The weather has been sunny, but surprisingly cold and windy. We’re also getting the rock put on the Little House foundation. At least on those days, it’s warm enough for the mortar to be mixed. Continue reading
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Solar Panels, Ready for Hay, and My DNA Sweater
It’s time to get the solar panels up onto the shop roof for the PV system. It’s quite a long way up, and everyone is using safety harnesses and ropes. The hay barn is cleaned out and ready for new hay. It should be arriving today or tomorrow. My DNA cable-knit sweater is also coming… Continue reading
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More Lambing and Solar Work
Desert Weyr Alice is a first-time ewe, and she seemed to be having some lambing problems. Ken was holding her head while I checked to see what she needed. Fortunately, she was quite calm during this process. She ended up having a nine-pound, five-ounce lamb with horns about half an inch long. The horns got… Continue reading
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Building a Lamb Box and a Second Solar System
We’ve had a lot of cold and rain here, and we had some lambs born in the irrigation ditch. We made a small lamb box to put the coldest lamb in for a few hours. It worked well, and by the time the lamb got warm and climbed out, everything was fine. The hay in… Continue reading
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Mowing the Lawn
Ken finally got the mower we got last year working. At first, it was blowing a lot of oil smoke, but that soon cleared up. He had to rebuild the engine. Since the sheep did not finish grazing around the guest house before they had to move for lambing, there was actually some lawn to… Continue reading
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Rebuilding the Sheep Sweep: Ewes on Pasture
We’ve had some problems with our sheep sweep over the years. The sheep have worn a path down the middle, and the panels have sunk into the ground. This year, we decided to put some gravel down over weed block, then use an old mine belt to make a more durable surface. We also finally… Continue reading
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More Brush Burning
We still have more burning to do, so we got the brush from the east orchard done today. Continue reading
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Burning Brush
We started to burn the west orchard brush piles today. That’s where the ewes will go first for lambing, so we need the brush gone. Continue reading
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Moving Fence Panels
Larry’s back to build another section of our fence. Our first task was to remove the welded wire panels that make up our temporary fencing. He used the brush rake to move the panels. We built a large stack over by the guest house in front of the shop. Continue reading