"Sumer Is Icumen In"

That tree again

"Summer is a coming in," as the old English round has it, and an English summer at that! Well it must be, because we have had copious amounts of rain in June and July. However: the offsetting temperatures (and, of course, the humidity) have been much higher than we are used to in the UK. There, it crept into the 90's a couple of times this year and the whole nation went into shock!

Life at Triskelion Farm usually has that seasonal rhythm of farms everywhere. Gray and brown turn to green, and then to the pinks, purples and reds of the summer plants and trees. This year has been a little different. Normally by now, our metabolically-challenged horses can be let out without their muzzles as the grass begins to die back and lose some of its carbs. This year the paddocks and fields are still bright green and, much to their occupants disgust, muzzles are still de rigeur. Our first hay cutting was a good one, and with a half decent second cut we will have our year's supply. With El Nino arriving, we might even get a small third cut.

On the vegetable front, the consistent rainfall has resulted in an unusually good year, though we have had some early blight in the tomatoes and the Squash bugs marched through the zucchini like an invading army. Now,we have the anticipated surplus when everything ripens at once and our evenings are spent boiling jars and chopping veggies. The small amount of working surface in our miniscule kitchen is covered in tomatoes, beans, squash and the best looking egg plants (aubergines) I have seen anywhere. Jorg makes a mean meal chopping them into thin slices, salting them, soaking in beaten egg and frying them. Yummy, and extremely moreish!

We did some experimenting this year with new veggies and learned a few things. What did really well: white squash, kale, kohlrabi, beets, eggplants - both ichiban and black beauty, peppers, black-eyed peas, cow peas, tomatoes, cucumbers, potatoes. More trouble than they were worth: radishes, onions, zucchini (succumbed to marauding insects). Jury still out: parsnips, turnips. Things we'll try this fall: spinach, cabbage, more beets (these were better than we thought they would be).

Elvis and "Auntie" Bessie

Elvis is now 3 months old and has grown into a good looking, if very macho, young man. His debudding went well, he is hale and hearty and so is about to be weaned. This will, of course, entail much plaintive bellowing and crying (and that's just Jorg and I) until Priscilla realizes she is no longer a milk-giving punchbag for a rough calf and settles down to my gentle ministrations on the daily milking. This year, Priscilla has given us our first case of mastitis and a real doozie, at that. We tried the natural methods like Masto-blast and Mint Cream without much success so we went to a more aggressive treatment, a penicillin infusion. I don't know how many of you have contemplated shoving a plastic nozzle up a cow's teat, but I can tell you I wasn't looking forward to it. Any male who has had a urological examination will understand the problem. Luckily for me the treatment is actually a painless procedure and easily accomplished, especially with a patient cow like Priscilla. For all her sensitivity to activities around her head, she is patience personified when it comes to milking. We pleased to report that the mastitis has finally cleared and her udder has returned its normal shape.

Bessie and Rosebud are officially pregnant and will freshen in November. Somewhere in Ohio, a bull is stocking up on cigars. But that means we will not get a break from milking until we dry them out next year, during the last two months of their next pregnancies when their bodies need a break before nursing another calf. We intend to get all three girls on the same cycle in order to give us a vacation during this period and a chance to get some time away.

Our new White Bird web site is finally up and running (thank you, Jones!) with its own blog, so expect to see rescue news over there, we will continue to post highlights on here.

Picture courtesy of GETTY IMAGES

A final note, under the "proud to be Manx" heading. As early readers of the blog know we chose the name of the farm and our logo, Triskelion, for my Manx heritage. For all you cyclists out there, the winner of the last stage of the Tour de France, in Paris (and his 6th stage win of the Tour) was Mark Cavendish from the Isle of Man. Not bad for an island of 81,000 inhabitants. Urrmagh ries Mark.

C'mon, you can do it.

The rain started last night, initially as a thunderstorm, then settled down to a soft, monotonous soaker- exactly what we need. Like many hay growers we have been viewing this summer’s weather with some apprehension, as conditions are drier than we would like. Last year, drought conditions forced the price of hay up so high that many people either gave up their livestock, or tried to do without hay. Cattle owners resorted to unconventional silage sources and horse owners picked up an interest, many for the first time, in hay extender pellets. Rescue operators in the southeast faced the dual stresses of trying to feed their horses and trying to accommodate the high number of distress calls. Like many rescues, we reached an all-time high for the number of horses we housed.

While we recognize that recent weather patterns and economic conditions have made for more expensive hay and feed, we encourage people to hang in there and keep their horses. If you have had your best guy or gal for 20-something years, now is not the time to send them packing. If you do not feel a sense of responsibility to them, how in the world can you trust in strangers with no emotional connection to them to keep them safe? We rescue the horses that have or will have absolutely no one else to take care of them. Virginia has the 5th largest equine population in the country and we have many horses displaced through genuine owner hardship or lack of owner accountability. Please don’t add your horse to this population. Do the right thing- keep them safe at home, even if you have to give up Netflix and fast food for awhile. It’s not that hard. Maybe not everyone can do it, but most of you can.

Still no calves. The cows are oblivious to our anxiety.

Yesterday, a potential adopter met one of our horses for the first time. It was love at first sight. Our little mare, to our great relief, was the epitome of grace and good behavior- especially for a four-year old. Four-year old horses are generally more likely to step on your feet and panic in wild-eyed, snorting, full-scale alert over bugs and planetary motion when someone shows up who might be interested in them. The potential adopter was kind and skilled and I was jubilant when she handed me the application.