If I Win the Lottery
crunch
Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 271 Niagara County, NY Pics |
2007-05-18 142204
I will retire early, purchase a 100 acre farm, and one tractor of every color will sit in my barn. I would also purchase a Kawasaki Mule and a Honda Foreman. I would cut my own wood to burn in my wood stove, and make my wife cook the game that I bring home every night. Dinner should be on the table when I am hungry.
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Chief
Join Date: Jul 2003 Posts: 4299 Southwest MiddleTennessee Pics |
2007-05-18 142205
Sure hope your wife doesn't read this forum. ;-) ....
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If I Win the Lottery
hardwood
Join Date: Dec 2002 Posts: 3583 iowa |
2007-05-19 142216
Crunch; So till you win the big one, is your wife now cutting the wood, hunting the game, cooking it and having it on the table when you are hungry? Where did you find a woman like that? Does she have a sister? Frank. ....
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If I Win the Lottery
crunch
Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 271 Niagara County, NY Pics |
2007-05-19 142218
Frank, this is a wish. The reality is far different. I would say that my wife is the boss in our house. She has lists. Several lists. I do the work on the lists and dinner is served when she gets good and ready :) ....
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hardwood
Join Date: Dec 2002 Posts: 3583 iowa |
2007-05-19 142221
Crunch; Now that's more like it. And you've did what so far today? Vacummed the whole house, the supper dishes, got biscuts in the oven and the sausage gravy in the skillet before you wake the Mrs? Now you know that is my normal routine on Saturday mornings, on weekday mornings I do twice that before the Mrs. is up. This is almost like the local coffee shop, first liar don't have a chance. Yawn. ....
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If I Win the Lottery
Murf
Join Date: Dec 1999 Posts: 7249 Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada Pics |
2007-05-22 142331
Since handing over (mostly) the reins at the shop to my right-hand man, I'm semi-retired now.
Most of what I do now is running the farm.
If win the big one now, at this stage of my life, I don't think I would do much differently.
I'd just keep right on farming till it was all gone. ;)
Best of luck. ....
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kthompson
Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 5275 South Carolina Pics |
2007-05-22 142352
The difference between what you have said and our senators is...yours is funny. If you you guys could get one or two of the ladies here to join in your story telling, you just might beat out Jeff Forworthy and those other guys on Blue Collar Comedy. kt ....
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hardwood
Join Date: Dec 2002 Posts: 3583 iowa |
2007-05-23 142372
Murf; I'll hekp you out, it don't matter how big the jackpot is, we can have it gone before fall. We'll start with a section of good farmland, Then a couple hog confinement "Centers", we don't build confinement buildings anymore, we build "Confinement Centers", meaning a complex of buildings, ( the concreet contractors love these, they can have a truck every fifteen minutes for days at one site ). Maybe a few shares in an ethanol plant. Now how about a couple new Deere tractors and a new combine. ( We aare for the most part green or red paint addicts here, it don't mater how much Deere or Case IH charges, we are addicts, we'll buy it. Four dollar corn is a reality now, but have you priced anhydrous ammonia lately? I farmed for 43 years and am still involved at a much smaller scale, we sold the the major part of our farmland, the grain center, and the serious farm machinery over the last couple years. For the life of me I don't have a clue where the money is coming from to keep all this going. I'm not bragging or complaining, just telling it like it is nowdays in Iowa. Frank. ....
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Murf
Join Date: Dec 1999 Posts: 7249 Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada Pics |
2007-05-23 142378
Frank, I'm sure we could have it done for by the 4th of July if we put our mind to it. ;)
My Dad keeps telling me I don't know what I'm doing running the farm, it keeps making a profit, he's concerned I'm upsetting a long-standing reputation for farming. :)
I've turned a lot of acreage over to potatoes and turf fields, both do far better than the average crop.
Quite a few folks around me would like to do the same, but either don't have the coin for the required equipment, or couldn't afford to carry it through to harvest, turf is a 4 year crop. It's also labour intensive, the fields must be kept cut like a lawn, on a few thousand acres it adds up fast.
Best of luck. ....
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kthompson
Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 5275 South Carolina Pics |
2007-05-23 142380
Murf, tobacco was and still is the big money crop here. But turf is moving up quickly. The time line here is not four years, is 2 or 3 if I understand depending on the field and the exact grass. kt ....
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Murf
Join Date: Dec 1999 Posts: 7249 Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada Pics |
2007-05-23 142385
Kenneth, I could have been a little clearer, it is a 3 year cycle here too, you plant in the first year, feed, cut & wait in years 2 & 3 and harvest during 3rd year.
However, you can't harvest the whole crop (field), prepare the soil and be ready to plant early enough in the year to be able to start the cycle over again in the 3rd year.
So you lose that season and it is then a 4 year cycle.
We had tobacco here for years too, luckily we got a very good offer to buy our quota so we jumped at the chance. I don't think I can recall ever doing a job on the farm more unpleasant and physically demanding than bringing in tobacco. Yech!!!
Best of luck. ....
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hardwood
Join Date: Dec 2002 Posts: 3583 iowa |
2007-05-24 142408
Murf; With the local home building frenzy in and around Cedar Rapids, sod farms are springing up like weeds here too. I've always wondered how much topsoil goes with a roll of sod? No criticisim intended, just curious. Frank. ....
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Murf
Join Date: Dec 1999 Posts: 7249 Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada Pics |
2007-05-24 142414
Frank, no worries, we get that question all the time.
A single harvest of turf takes a 3/8" slice of topsoil with it. So it would take a long time to do much serious damage.
However we are more responsible than a lot of operations, we have a deal with several of the large construction and 'factory' farms near us, we put probably more than that back in top-dressing with topsoil, sand and compost which is surplus from construction site near us.
I have put down over 5,000 tri-axle loads of material just this year alone.
Best of luck. ....
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kthompson
Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 5275 South Carolina Pics |
2007-05-24 142418
Murf,
"5,000 tri axles" but Murf you farm the eastern half of Canada. :-) kt ....
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Murf
Join Date: Dec 1999 Posts: 7249 Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada Pics |
2007-05-24 142419
I do indeed Kenneth, but we have big weight restrictions on trucks here.
Dump trucks can't haul anything more than 10 yards on a tandem rear end, they can get up to nearly 15 yards on a tri-axle.
During the few weeks of spring thaw when the frost is coming out of the ground we are further restricted to 5 tons per axle on all but the biggest main roads and highways, period. Not even municipal or government trucks can exceed that.
Most people in the construction industry just take a month off as their spring break. :)
Best of luck. ....
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DennisCTB
Join Date: Nov 1998 Posts: 2709 NorthWest NJ Pics |
2007-05-24 142421
Murf,
I always wondered how do Turf farms get rid of grass like weeds (goose grass, nut grass etc.). Pre emergents? What chemicals.
Dennis ....
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hardwood
Join Date: Dec 2002 Posts: 3583 iowa |
2007-05-24 142422
Dennis; I heard Murf say that he has geese and squirrels that take care of the goose and nut grass. Just couldn't resist that one. Yes that is a good queation. The sod farms I drive past don't have weed one in an 80 acre field. ....
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Murf
Join Date: Dec 1999 Posts: 7249 Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada Pics |
2007-05-24 142424
It's the quack grass that's the problem, those quacks are a PITA to deal with, and they don't eat very fast. ;)
Touche!!!
Seriously, or as serious as I can get after that.
We use a variety of stuff, mostly just good old fashioned Glycosulfate, before planting and some 2,4-D early on, then just feed the daylights out of it, grass is a very competitive plant and a healthy crop doesn't need much help to choke out the competition.
Generally speaking we use 2,4-D in the early fall of the first year and again in the spring of the second year, and nothing further is required.
The key is the preparation of the seedbed and the maintenance once it comes up, after the turf is well established it can fend quite well on it's own. The big problem is that the super healthy turf we grow takes more nutrients than even the best topsoil can provide for long. If you take a sample of your topsoil from your lawn into the local County Extension office and tell them you want to grow really good turf, they will tell you how much of what per acre you need to apply. We fertilize mostly by spraying manure tea on the fields, something the average person wouldn't want done on their lawn. It gets rather... well....aromatic. ;)
Basically speaking, quack grass of any kind, or weeds in general are a sign that the grass is not strong enough, and that means it needs more fertilizer.
With a good program of a quality 'weed'n'feed' applied according to the manufacturers recomended quantities and frequency will guarantee you a MUCH better lawn with fewer weeds.
Best of luck. ....
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kthompson
Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 5275 South Carolina Pics |
2007-05-24 142427
Murf, it is my guess you don't scalp the grass either in your mowing. A lot of homeowners here like their grass short, which tends to let weed seeds sprout very easy. Most have no idea at what height their variety of grass does best. Matter of fact some lawnmowers tend to not have sufficient high setting for some grasses. kt ....
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