| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Talntedmrgreen |
Posted - 12/26/2012 : 22:18:51
THat's what the weather man said last time, and we got rain. Well, he said it this time, and we got 7X's that much  I pushed around 4" before gtting to other chores, and have another 3-4" waiting on me for tomorrow 
What they called for...48hr snowfall
What we got between 4:30 and 8pm
Felt great, but barely made up for this month, much less the deficit we're still feeling from last winter. |
| 10 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Talntedmrgreen |
Posted - 12/27/2012 : 15:55:36
Interesting! Yeah, I'm in a big fruit area...lotsa blueberries, grapes, cherries, apples, etc, and they all got hurt this year. Apple cider at the grocery store was $7...for a HALF gallon. =] Then the Washington apple cider made its way in and things dropped to around $4/gal. At deer camp it became cheaper to leave the apple cider out of our 'cider and rum'. Makes for entertaining comaraderie. |
| mikemeehan |
Posted - 12/27/2012 : 15:22:22
I had heard that MI and NY had it real tough this year. We had the same problem, though not as severe. Bloom about 2-3 weeks earlier than should have been, then some bitchin' cold temps. Some orchards around here (though not too many, probably not nearly as many as in MI) lost everything. Literally locked their doors for the year and called the insurance company. Even if they did have a crop, every day in October you would hear of another orchard nearby that was closing for the year because they were out of apples. This orchard got lucky, in the grand scheme of things. I would estimate we lost 25% of our crop in the freeze. So, we had to close our u-pick operation early as well, but not as early as some. But, whaddaya gonna do? Mother Nature giveth, Mother Nature taketh away. Perhaps next year, she will feel more generous. |
| Talntedmrgreen |
Posted - 12/27/2012 : 13:52:39
How'd you guys do on apples this year? We had a terrible series of freezes, after that real big, early warm up, and I heard MI apples were harvested at MAYBE 4% of average. We didn't so much as have blossoms up at deer camp, where we hunt old, retired orchard groves. |
| mikemeehan |
Posted - 12/27/2012 : 11:49:14
Mrgreen, thanks for the info. Gotta get me a 365 farm dog. I absolutely love my chihuahua, and he actually does really well on the farm, considering he's a toy breed, but it gets awfully lonely up here in the winter!!
Phil, I am in Massachusetts, and I am pruning apple trees. The January 1 pruning start date is rather arbitrary (old school was 25 days at 25 degrees, then you start), but that's when I break out the chainsaw and snowshoes (if necessary), and let 'er rip. I got about 3,000 trees to prune, plus I am not very fast, so that is why it takes me about 3 months. But, what else am I going to do on a farm in the winter in Massachusetts??? :-)
Kindest Regards,
Mike |
| Talntedmrgreen |
Posted - 12/27/2012 : 11:07:16
Dog is a Labradoodle. Hands down, the best dog I've ever crossed paths with. My wife just had to have a puppy, shortly after we wed, and I didn't feel like dealing with an animal, now I fear the day he's gone. He's brilliant...he goes everywhere with us, by the request of our hosts! If we show up to friends or relatives places without him, we get a ribbing as to why. He listens so incredibly well, has never once left the yard, even poops in a designated area.
We take him on overnight visits to friends cabins up north, and he's the perfect gentleman. Always does his business as directed, obeys and loves any affection he can get. 90% of my pics on this site, were taken just before or after he steps in the way. He even knows now, that when I wave my arm a certain way, he has to clear the scene and come sit behind me. =]
He loves boating, swimming and 'fishing', and I take him hiking/hunting whenever I go. I do love to snowshoe, and have to leave him behind then, when the snow is too deep. I sometimes wonder if I should have tried to train him for bird hunting, as you can tell the lab in him is tuned into it, but his demeanor is so perfect now, I wouldn't change a thing.
Now that we moved and had the baby come, all at once, he has changed a bit...he barks some now, when he hears or sees activity outside, and he no longer sleeps in sight of the front door. He sleeps whereever that baby is.
I think a lot of it is in the way you train them...the real smart breeds can learn nasty habits or tricks just as easy as they can learn to behave. My wife had a female of this breed prior to moving out of her folks place, and that dog was a Dennis The Menace. Smart, and bad to the bone. It caught up with her too...she couldn't escape from the yard and cross the street too many times before one of those soccer mom minimvans was a bit too fast for her. |
| skunkhome |
Posted - 12/27/2012 : 10:54:22
Mike, where are you? Generally? and what are you pruning in January? |
| Cvans |
Posted - 12/27/2012 : 10:24:20
Up to 4 inches here today. Time will tell.
Thanks for the nice photos.
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| mikemeehan |
Posted - 12/27/2012 : 09:46:56
Got about 6"-8" here, but it's hard to tell, cuz it's so windy here. Just got done plowing out around the buildings. More to come, though, I think.
Hey, Mrtaintedgreen, what kind of dog to ya got there? I need a cold tolerant dog that I can bring up to the farm with me in the winter. I have a chihuahua that acts as farm dog during the summer. I bring him up to the farm and he follows me around all day to keep me company, but I can only do it for about 3 months out of the year, cuz if it's below 70 or so, he gets too cold (yah, I know, my dog is a wuss, but it's not his fault, I think he had some sort of chinese crested or mexican hairless or something without fur hiding behind the woodpile of his ancestry).
Anyway, enjoy the winter, all! Pruning starts next week for me, keep me busy for the next 3 months or so.
Kindest Regards,
Mike |
| skunkhome |
Posted - 12/27/2012 : 08:45:12
At first I thought your tractor was wearing a Mohawk on the hood. That would be a lot of snow here. I thought y'all would be getting a lot more since we had atrocious weather for Christmas day. |
| cschmidt62 |
Posted - 12/27/2012 : 08:30:00
Got about 6" here! |
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