Easing into Spring

Finally!  We appear to be easing into spring.  We have at last had several days of warmer weather that coincided with our schedules and allowed us to spend almost a week at the farm catching up on our chores.  We have cleaned up a bit from the construction of our flagstone patio and walkways.  Now, our front walk extends around both sides of the house, allowing us and our four-legged companions to stay out of the mud.  (well, mostly)

John’s BBQ pits have their own walkways and pads.

Colin from Dig This nursery and garden shop in Hamilton came out and trimmed up the big live oak tree east of the house.  I should have taken a “before” photo; the limbs almost touched the ground, and we were terrified that a strong wind or ice storm would do significant damage to our tree.  Now it looks magnificent, and provides a great place for our swing.

The dogs have their favorite spots on the patio, and we have arranged furniture to take advantage of the views across the pasture to the creek and stock pond. 

It has been a big project, but well worth the effort.  Now we move on to adding grass to cover some of the bare spots and reworking the flower beds.  

The last month has seen 4+ inches of rain, which was badly needed.  Here is a photo of our lower stock pond taken in mid-February.  You can see a couple of feet of bare dirt above the water level.

And here is a shot taken this weekend.  The pond is now full and running around the spillway.  Look out, bass, here we come!

Strangely, the upper tank did not catch much water from the recent rains.  Its primary water source is a tributary of Neils Creek instead of runoff.  It is still very low and a concern if we do not get good rains this spring.

We can only speculate that the lower pond is receiving more water than usual because of the clearing we have done over the last couple of years.  There are now many fewer cedar trees to take up the rain that falls on the mountain to our west and on the flats adjacent to the pond. 

The recent rains filled up more than just the lower stock pond.  When we arrived, the area under the corn feeder had been turned into a feral hog spa.  They had even tried hard to dig up the T-post on the right side of the photo which holds our game camera.  I just wish I had turned it on prior to their arrival so I could see them taking mud baths.

There are other signs of spring, as well.  John found a new red-tailed hawk’s nest in the top of a big elm tree east of the creek.  We’ll be watching over the next couple of months to see if we can spot the hawklets when they hatch.

The tree plums are blooming, and promise a good crop if we don’t get a late freeze.  These plums are hard and very tart…not good for snacking, but they make killer jellies and jams.

Our new calf is thriving, and we expect he will have a brother or sister by our next visit.

The pasture grass, while still showing its winter colors, has a flush of green at its base and beside the road.

And, then there was the unmistakable sign of spring that we could hear as well as see...a flock of sandhill craned sailing over, calling as they went.

On Saturday, it was warm and dry enough for the dogs to have bones outside.  Kota always takes her bone away and buries it, then returns to see if she can snatch one from Colt or Rue.  

Her strategy is to stand beside whoever's bone she covets and bark until it is abandoned.   Rue was having none of it, and continued chewing happily in spite of all the noise.

Kota's behavior brings back fond memories.  Feathers, Kota's immediate predecessor, employed a similar strategy.  Her ploy consisted of running to the edge of the yard, barking furiously as if to scare off an intruder.  When the other dogs ran to help her, she quickly circled back to claim one of the bones they had left.  It was a better strategy than Kota's and almost always resulted in Feathers getting the bone she wanted. (And they say dogs can't think!)