Off to the races 

Passion takes all the time in the world 

It cannot be common to wake up almost every day at 5 a.m. with a sense of wanting to get up and hurry up and get into the fields.  I don’t recall ever being so anxious to get things done with any other job in my life.  The other day, I was pumping standing water out of a section of field and looked up to discover that the late evening, multiple colors of dusk, and early night had vacated the premises and all that was left was pitch black.  The concept of losing oneself in the work is a beautiful thing.   

Steve Harvey says, “Your God-given gift is the thing that you excel at doing, with the least amount of effort.”  I think the same can be said for doing something that brings happiness.  If it makes you feel a sense of accomplishment and fulfillment, that is a positive thing.  Being a steward of the land is cool, and I’m glad it only took me half my life to appreciate the hard work that comes from it. 

Field No. 4 

Working on an established field is fun. Any field that has some type of vegetation that can be leveraged is a plus for morale and helps to get the creative thinking going.  Taking a field from raw dirt is more work, but it is also very fruitful and has its perks.  Field No. 4 was my arch nemesis in the past years.  In a previous article, I had posted that some mean thistle that had overtaken the field.  The field had literally no other growth other than noxious weeds and prairie dog holes.  I think that even the prairie dogs gave up on living there and moved on to greener pastures.   

Two years ago, the field was disced multiple times before being seeded and fertilized.  I was not able to get much water on it at the time, and without hydration, thistle took over again.  The process was repeated last year, and because the sprinkler was finally finished, we could water in the fall and then continue in spring this year.  The pictures I included for this article of the Drum highlight progression of this field over the past two years.   

Some farm work has immediate results, and some takes a few seasons to develop.  Establishing tonnage per acres, diversifying away weeds from established fields, and building new growth into difficult ground may require extended durations and a new appreciation of patience.  Progress pays off and in time, field No. 4 is now showing promise in taking on the new growth of grasses.  Thistle and other noxious weeds are still present in the growth, but mowing has been helping to knock down these weeds before they go to seed and to help build a stronger grass blade for future growth of the field. I will leave you with those pictures as a “years in review” of this tough field and look forward to bringing forth new pictures of a turning of the tide for positive growth.