Finally Friday!!
Friday has finally made it here...
i don't remember it taking so long in the past
but that was the two weeks between teaching middle school
and starting my new (old) job...
yeah yeah I know it wasn't a long time but long enough to
fly by quickly and become accustom to not having a calendar...
around our farm you don't schedule a hay cutting
you check the weather...
pray it will rain when you need it...not the day you cut hay
So Monday was my first day back at my job with the county.
I am an Environmental Outreach Coordinator...
basically i teach others about water quality and other environmental issues...
Some people wonder since I am a farm wife how can I teach others about the environment...
i have to take a minute and not laugh out loud...compose myself
Farmers were the first environmentalist...so its an easy job
actually its a perfect fit!
As cattle farmers we are dedicated to leaving the environment in better shape for the next generation. Like these kiddos, who all have plans to grow up and be involved in agriculture...one day!
On just our farm alone we use numerous practices to help protect the environment...by the way on average each cattle farmer has 13 different practices in place to accomplish environmental goals, such as nurturing wildlife, preventing erosion, and conserving and protecting water...here are just 3 of the practices we use...
1) Rotational Grazing...due to urban sprawl we have less land to grow our cattle own than a generation ago, so we graze our cattle in smaller sections and move the cattle to a new section once they have grazed that piece...this give the land time to recover and new grass to grow
2) Limited Stream access...to help with erosion along creek beds and banks we have limited where our cattle can access water and in some cases fenced them completely out of the water source and provided the cattle with water troughs...which some of you may think whats the big deal but putting a well in the middle of a cattle pasture is a big deal especially when there isn't a power line for a few miles!
3) No-till...the majority of our crops are planted using no till practices...this helps reduce erosion in our fields...it also improves our soil so that we use less fertilizers and pesticides. Which when we do use fertilizer we spread animal waster generated on our farm...which is a natural product!
Those are just a few of the practices we use on our farm.
We do them because it is the best for the Earth and our business...
but there is another reason...
HIM
We are hopeful that one day he will follow in the footsteps of his father and grandfathers...
and farm the land...grow food for the world...and pass it on to another generation.
Farmers are the FIRST environmentalist.