Texas Spring/Summer Thread

[farmgirl19]

Picked 3 more zucchini and 3 more yellow squash today! Then went out and did some brush hogging in the smallest pasture. Here is the fun I had doing that, in pictures! And the weather was almost perfect, with cloudy skies and a nice breeze!

 

[NativeSon]

Picked 3 more zucchini and 3 more yellow squash today! Then went out and did some brush hogging in the smallest pasture. Here is the fun I had doing that, in pictures! And the weather was almost perfect, with cloudy skies and a nice breeze!

Brush hogging is therapeutic(?) when the weather is good. It's those windy/ dusty days I don't like.

Charlie

 

[jinman]

Every year, I have to force myself to wait on the mowing to preserve my wild flower population. My bluebonnet seeds are beginning to dry and pop open, but now the greenthread, Engelmann's daisies, purple coneflower, and foxglove are really pretty. I also have lots of bright orange butterfly weed. Actually, I need to cut one place near my pond with a lot of thistle while it is still in bloom, but the birds will thank me if I leave it to go to seed. If we have a fairly good year for rain, my Maximilian sunflowers will also be pretty. I don't have open fields or farm animals like you do, FG19. I get to mow around trees, over gulleys, and a few flat areas. Your pasture needs to be mowed now to kill weeds and keep the grass growing well. I don't see many wildflowers in your photos.

 

[Bird]

Jim, you know what all those flowers are, and I guess I only know bluebonnets and Indian paint brush.:laughing: This past week, they've mowed the I35E right-of-way on the west side of the highway, so I reckon they'll be doing the east side soon. Pretty smart contractor, I guess, because they're using Kubota tractors.:thumbsup:

 

[Western]

Outside of the wind, the last few days have been actually,,,,pleasant. Good weather for mowing and other out door chores. The lack of humidity sure has been welcome.

 

[sseelhoff]

Brush hogging is therapeutic(?) when the weather is good. It's those windy/ dusty days I don't like.

Charlie

I refer to that as "Tractor Therapy." Especially good on a pleasant spring or fall evening. Gets my mind right after an especially long day at my real job.

John Deere and diesel is as effective as Jack Daniels and Coca Cola.

 

[NativeSon]

I refer to that as "Tractor Therapy." Especially good on a pleasant spring or fall evening. Gets my mind right after an especially long day at my real job.

John Deere and diesel is as effective as Jack Daniels and Coca Cola.

It's a pretty heady mix to chase the Deere (or Kubota) and Diesel with the Jack and Coke at the end of a day of Therapy. Is this a great country or what?

Charlie

 

[Western]

It's a pretty heady mix to chase the Deere (or Kubota) and Diesel with the Jack and Coke at the end of a day of Therapy. Is this a great country or what?

Charlie

Charlie, tell you what, I have "shredded" enough that it isn't that enjoyable!:laughing: y'all mow and I'll watch while I drink a Crown and Coke:thumbsup:

 

[pacerron]

I don't have open fields or farm animals like you do, FG19. I get to mow around trees, over gulleys, and a few flat areas. Your pasture needs to be mowed now to kill weeds and keep the grass growing well. I don't see many wildflowers in your photos.

Jim,
There's the reason you don't get much rain and have to water all the time.
If you just had hay fields and wanted to make good, never wet, horse hay you'd be watching the weather maps and looking for groups of 3 dry hot days in a row about now, instead of rain.
Then you could have the thrill of dust, runny eyes, nose, sore rear and all the other things that go with it. The tension release doesn't come till its all safe in the barn
and cured out. The weather man must not know the old saying about hay, "When it's ready, it's ready"
We start our first cutting tomorrow, with a tight 3 day window. Wish us luck; not a rain dance:dance1:
Ron

 

[farmgirl19]

jinman; I have some wildflowers, but not many, in the pastures. And the nightshade and other weeds will take over, if I don't get them cut before going to seed. My winter grass is dying quickly, and don't want it to become a fire hazard. It has gone to seed, so time to be busy, and yes, it will let the summer grasses grow, if we get rain. I do have some serious rock outcroppings, that I can't mow close to, and if wildflowers are near those, they get to stay around all year!

I find being on the tractor to be great for my mind, body and soul. If the weather is nasty, and I'm stuck indoors, once home for the day, I'll likely have a drink in my hand. However, with nice weather, I can sit on the tractor all day long! (And usually have enough work to do with it to keep me on it too!)

 

[Bird]

Charlie, in 1977, we bought a house that had a wet bar, so I stocked it with a good variety, including black Jack. 11+ years later, that bottle was still there and almost full. I'd heard how great it was, but neither I nor our friends and family like it.

Dennis, now you're talking about the right stuff. Crown is good in 7-Up and Ginger Ale, too, but my favorite is Coke Zero.

 

[farmgirl19]

I managed to take a few more pics today, while out mowing some in the larger cattle pasture. I am actually running an experiment too. I put new tires oon the front of the 1050. Instead of putting tractor tires back on, so I could fuss every time I had a flat due to a mesquite thorn (or 10), I put 26 ply, aircraft retread tires on it. So far, I haven't even worn the shiney off of them, and have driving them right over the mesquites, with no flat yet. :thumbsup: I have 12 hours mowing with them now. I am also trying to burn the diesel down in the fuel tank. (This boy will go all day, every day for about a week, on 11 gallons.) I changed my fuel filter assembly, this spring, and ended up with a slight seep from the old fuel line, from tank to filter housing. I think I have burned enough now, that I can drain the rest and change the fuel line.

Anyway, here are a few pics from this afternoon's hogging. One can see how low my stock tank is. If anyone is cutting and baling, I volunteer to take any of their rain!

 

[farmgirl19]

Bird: Jack Green Label is a smoother whiskey, and is good straight up or on the rocks. I'm not much into soft drinks, so usually pass on those.

I make a mean margarita though!

 

[Western]

FG19, your pastures look great, considering the drought! but in your 1st photo, your "deere" is showing

 

[Bird]

Bird: Jack Green Label is a smoother whiskey, and is good straight up or on the rocks. I'm not much into soft drinks, so usually pass on those.

I make a mean margarita though!

I do love Margaritas, but haven't had one in a good while. Actually most of what I drink is Sangria wine, although I also like Scotch and water; only learned about single malt Scotch in the last couple of years, first here on TBN, and then a daughter and son-in-law brought me a bottle from one of their vacation trips abroad.

 

[farmgirl19]

only learned about single malt Scotch in the last couple of years, first here on TBN, and then a daughter and son-in-law brought me a bottle from one of their vacation trips abroad.

See, this place is where one needs to be, for an education! :laughing:

 

[farmgirl19]

FG19, your pastures look great, considering the drought! but in your 1st photo, your "deere" is showing

Oh my. Guess it's a good thing I'm not *too* modest!

 

[jinman]

Bird, you are right that I know a lot of wildflowers. It's a hobby that I find very interesting. Don't ask me to name a lot of different trees though. I know most of our local stuff, but I can only identify about 8-10 different types of oak trees. I can identify a mulberry tree if it's dropping berries that stain my car's paint too.:laughing:

FG19, if the weatherman is right, this ain't a good week for haying. BTW: I had steamed snow peas from my garden for dinner tonight. I put olive oil and garlic powder on them and steam them over wine and soy sauce. With my little steaming dish, it takes 4 minutes in the microwave. I also picked a bunch of sugar snap peas today. They are crunchy, tender, and sweet.:lick: I have 4 yellow squash that I could pick tomorrow or thursday. I've staked my squash plants to try and keep them from breaking in the wind. If I can stay ahead of the bugs, I'm gonna have a great garden this year.

 

[Kyle_in_Tex]

So I went to Victoria to visit my mother and go to a funeral last weekend. A Tornado hit on Saturday afternoon, luckily it went through the field behind the movie theater, mall, and tractor supply.

VIEWER PHOTOS: Tornado sighting in Victoria | kens5.com San Antonio

It rained and rained. I think my mother's house got almost 5" while someplaces had over 8". My poor buddy spread out $800 worth of some new kind of hay seed and he didn't get any rain. 2 miles from him got 3". So I watched the radar online and while Txdon got his, we got none.

It's time to water the garden....

 

[Western]

We "had" some rain coming in from the West, but that petered out, now we are downgraded to a 29% chance, so I watered this evening. I found several 3" squash and zucs! man how do they show up so fast?? All I have been able to eat so far is the radishes, 1st ones where sweeter than normal, now they are getting some heat:laughing:

Caught mole #3 WHOOOT:thumbsup: little bastages.