Every evening when I go to get the sheep with Robbie, the border collie and usually quite a few of the other dogs who like to tag along, I notice the trees. In the summer the black poplar trees, which line the edge of the pasture, emit the most beautiful fragrance. I wish it could be bottled! It is sweet and fresh and oh so wonderful. Now the leaves have started to change colours, especially after the last frosts we have had, the fragrance of the trees is changing too. It is still remarkable, sweet and inviting, but different. There is also the musky smell of death.
The observation of the death of the leaves made me wonder if the trees are hurting, but then I thought, no. When we shed our hairs, it does not cause us pain or grief, that is normally shed. Of course those losing hair under duress and harsh circumstances will feel differently, but I am thinking only of the day to day hairs that are lost in the brush. There is no pain associated with that so the trees must not feel pain asscociated with the death and loss of their leaves.
It is a time to prepare for winter, to send nutrients to the roots, so that in spring, in the awakening time, the roots can return the sap to the branches and new leaves will once again grow.
So it is with life. I, too, am preparing for winter. Fall is in the air. I cleaned the nesting barrels for the geese and think I will repurpose some of them for the goats this winter. They are just big enough for the young Nigerian Dwarf goats to curl up in and the young goats could even share with a friend. I also cleaned the large kennel which was used to house the young rabbits for half the winter before butchering. This year, to make it easier, I would like to run the rabbits communally instead, so that only one feeding and one watering is done for the colony. There are not many rabbits, so this might be possible. I have been researching how best to accommodate the rabbits for winter. Without a heated building they require lots and lots of bedding they can burrow into in order to stay warm.
There are still two hens and a duck sitting on nests. I wonder if they feel some sense of urgency in their endeavours. The nights are chilly, going down to freezing temperatures and they sit there still, doing their vigil. The mother hens are very good at stopping often to warm their chicks, but the ducks amble off and forget. I think I best take the mamma duck and her little ones and provide a shelter with some heat until they are big enough to regulate their own temperatures. I did that with the three Muscovies hatched a month ago, then let them out and they are doing very well. Otherwise, they get lost, eaten or become raven bait.
It is time to start planning the breeding pens, think about butchering the birds that are not kept for breeding and to do the yard clean up and pen set up, for when that snow comes, all must be in order. The days are warm, the nights are cool and fall is in the air.
The observation of the death of the leaves made me wonder if the trees are hurting, but then I thought, no. When we shed our hairs, it does not cause us pain or grief, that is normally shed. Of course those losing hair under duress and harsh circumstances will feel differently, but I am thinking only of the day to day hairs that are lost in the brush. There is no pain associated with that so the trees must not feel pain asscociated with the death and loss of their leaves.
It is a time to prepare for winter, to send nutrients to the roots, so that in spring, in the awakening time, the roots can return the sap to the branches and new leaves will once again grow.
So it is with life. I, too, am preparing for winter. Fall is in the air. I cleaned the nesting barrels for the geese and think I will repurpose some of them for the goats this winter. They are just big enough for the young Nigerian Dwarf goats to curl up in and the young goats could even share with a friend. I also cleaned the large kennel which was used to house the young rabbits for half the winter before butchering. This year, to make it easier, I would like to run the rabbits communally instead, so that only one feeding and one watering is done for the colony. There are not many rabbits, so this might be possible. I have been researching how best to accommodate the rabbits for winter. Without a heated building they require lots and lots of bedding they can burrow into in order to stay warm.
There are still two hens and a duck sitting on nests. I wonder if they feel some sense of urgency in their endeavours. The nights are chilly, going down to freezing temperatures and they sit there still, doing their vigil. The mother hens are very good at stopping often to warm their chicks, but the ducks amble off and forget. I think I best take the mamma duck and her little ones and provide a shelter with some heat until they are big enough to regulate their own temperatures. I did that with the three Muscovies hatched a month ago, then let them out and they are doing very well. Otherwise, they get lost, eaten or become raven bait.
It is time to start planning the breeding pens, think about butchering the birds that are not kept for breeding and to do the yard clean up and pen set up, for when that snow comes, all must be in order. The days are warm, the nights are cool and fall is in the air.
Charka in the edge of the forest. Isn't is grand that the sheep and goats keep the trees so nice and neatly trimmed? Why one would think a landscaper had taken the time to clean the bottoms up so nicely.
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