Spring into Summer

Some years it seems that everything comes on at once in the spring and the work piles up faster than there is any hope of getting it done. The weeds need to be sprayed, the hay needs to be cut, the grass and everything else seems to grow five inches a week and any crops need to be planted or otherwise tended and all of this needs to happen at exactly the same time. And of course the animals, which are our entire raison d'etre, need to be tended every day which leaves only a banker's hours to get everything else done. On this and every other working farm in Middle Tennessee the spring of 2012 was such a year. One of my blogger friends wrote recently that she was thankful for the rain...not only for the moisture it brought but also for the temporary break in the work. That would aptly describe the situation this entire spring here too.
Of course the horses take everything we do in stride and they seem to enjoy spending a good bit of their time watching us work like fools while discreetly following our movements (and no doubt making snide remarks about our task aptitudes) like a never ending peanut gallery. I usually wear a straw hat while I'm working in the sun and Melissa often remarks that it's funny to watch the straw hatted dude and his animal audience from afar.

As spring moves into summer and as we catch up with the leftover spring work we are very much looking forward to a steadier, more manageable day. We usually try to start our morning chores at or just before sun-up and we schedule any hard physical activities right after we're through with morning chores. This really pays dividends because it means we get most of our hard work done before the heat cranks up and we can focus on lighter tasks during the heat of the day. Summer days can be very long but the pace is usually a lot more relaxed than it is in the spring. If you show up on a nice day in March, April or May I am probably going to wave at you from the seat of the tractor and keep right on working. If you show up in July I'm probably going to stop what I'm doing and suggest a cold drink and a visit in the shade.

Depending on soil moisture and weather we try to put up as many cuts of hay as possible before cool weather comes. By far this is our hardest and most labour intensive summer task.  What are you up to this summer ? How does your household or horse routine change with the seasons ?

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Chili and Renny

Faune and Gus having a grooming session while the sun was rising

Maisie, Calimba and MyLight grazing in the morning sun

Kennedy and Stormy

Trigger

Thomas

Tony and Baby grooming

Titan and Lotus

Elfin and Grand

Apollo