13-Jun-2024: Garlic, Mowing Rushes, New Planter Boxes, Milking Parlour Cleaning

Starting Garlic Harvest

We had a very wet May and the garlic stems developed rust - small yellow dots and patches - so we started harvest a little earlier than normal. In addition to the rain (which has been heavier than typical since July-2023) the colder temperatures resulted in smaller garlic bulbs and late development of most of our fruit and veg. But most of the bulbs we pulled were in reasonable condition and they were hung to dry in the old hay barn.

Mowing Rushes

The so-called "rush field" is next to forestry planted with Sitka Spruce in the 1990s (seen in background). The rush field used to be pasture for cows when the property was a working dairy, but has been let go for many years and had filled out to 90% or more in tall rushes roughly 1m - 1.2m (3ft - 4ft) tall. We are planning to start a tree nursery later this year primarily growing native broadleaf species and this field is well protected so a good option for saplings in pots to soak up sun and rain.

But in order to have room for the saplings we need to mow the rushes and then a layer of wood chips to suppress grasses in the areas where the pots will be staged. And rushes are some of the hardest things to mow which is why we recently upgraded to a larger Rinieri TRC-185 flail mower with opening rear lid. The TRC-185 is at the edge of what our Kioti 50HP tractor can handle power-wise, but it did the job well.

The flail mower spins a few dozen hammers along a central axel which cuts and mulches the material. For very heavy cutting like these tall rushes the rear lid is left open so the material is ejected faster. Subsequent passes with the flail mower or a topper mower cut the material smaller, and it will mostly break down over time in the field adding nutrients to the soil. Here is a section on the east side of the field - it took about 3 hours to mow roughly 1.5 acres because the rushes were so tall and thick.

New Planter Boxes

We built several new boxes and filled them with compost. This smaller one is for a Sassafras tree that Marisa found at a nursery recently:

In the longer boxes we planted pumpkins and corn, but after nearly a week crows had broken the new pumpkin starts at the stem. So fresh seeds were planted and then the boxes were covered with plastic (top) and chicken wire (bottom) to keep the birds out. A couple weeks with protection and then the plants were big enough that the birds left them alone. The ones covered by plastic also grew faster - presumably due to more heat from the covering (which had holes poked in the material to allow water in).

Milking Parlour - Cleaning Up

The old milking parlour was pretty dirty and equipment far outdated when we purchased the farm in late 2020. We removed most of the glass milking jars and cracked rubber hoses a couple years ago, but otherwise the back room where the cows were milked was in a poor state. In the past we have stored some of the potatoes and garlic in that area, but were always worried that critters (mice, etc) would get into the produce. I've wanted to have more storage space so embarked on removing most of the old pipes, feed bins, and debris. Here is the space after removing most of the old rubbish:

Next comes pressuring washing the concrete surfaces and then building platforms. The space is generally cool and dark throughout the year, perfect for storing root vegetables - if we keep the doors closed...