Desiccation

I was out on the tractor yesterday cutting a paddock that I had not gotten around to since the stock was last there in November some time.

The sward has shrunk down considerably just standing there. I did the cutting a full gear faster than I would have been able to in November. This is North Florida. We have had frost about three times this year, but no hard freezes yet.

The grass pretty much quit growing in mid October. The weeds are another story. Last year I cut the dormant grass sward and pulled a drag harrow over the ground to break up the cow and horse piles. When the grass did start growing in the spring it came up so lush and green that several neighbors ask me if I had put down fertilizer. I think I’ll drag it again this year as much as time allows.

By the way, we have several ornamental citrus trees on the place that have put out an incredible amount of fruit. Cows think oranges and tangerines are delicious. I never would have guessed but a friend clewed me in.

Most of the sheep like them too, but they had not been given any before. This means that while they are still trying to figure out what to do with it, one of the cows comes by and eats it up. Oh well, we have lots of oranges.