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Producer| Blog > When will winter end? | |
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| When will winter end? | May 02, 2008 |
| Don't get me wrong. We LOVE winter! We have enjoyed the best and most extended cross-country ski season of our lives this year. Our oak savannah ecosystem is ideally suited to more than grazing...it's perfect for recreation.
But now has come a time when the hay supply is nearly gone, the pastures are showing only a slight tinge of new green growth, the organic wheat is the only crop that's been planted, and the forecast is for snow and cold. It's May masquerading as March, and it's worrisome. Farmers everywhere share weather concerns. Last week I toured musk ox, elk and bison ranches in Alaska. The farmers were burning their pastures to cause the soil to warm up a little faster and stimulate grass growth. The following day, the Anchorage area received 2 feet of snow in 24 hours--the 3rd largest snowfall on record. Burning pastures was no match for what mother nature had in store! At Prairie Horizons, after 2 years of serious drought, we are trying to look on the bright side of snow in May. At least it's moisture! The "class of 2008" calf crop is nearly complete. We are waiting on just six more arrivals. It's a great pleasure to see young calves trying out their legs in exaggerated maneuvers to evade their playmates, and supplying us with more entertainment than Netflix. Calves romping in spring pastures is remote from, yet related to, the larger and increasingly foreboding picture of world food supply. With food and energy costs soaring, populations growing, food recalls increasing, dietary patterns changing, global incomes rising, domestic employment and the US dollar falling, my hope is that many more people will want to know how and where their food is produced, and how to reduce the real cost of food through choices based on nutrient density as well as environmental and social costs. We(our customers included)are buffered to some extent from the rising costs of food. For human, animal, and environmental health reasons, we have chosen to not feed no grain to our cattle. Rotational grazing and conservation management cuts our fossil fuel use to one half gallon of fuel per head of finished beef, compared to an estimated 34 gallons to finish one feedlot beef. We are happy to have the opportunity to farm in a way that is a win-win-win for our customers, ourselves, and our planet. Now is the time to order beef for June. With grilling season upon us, we expect to sell out early, so place your orders now. Have a wonderful Spring! Mary Jo | |
| posted by forbord1 | |
