27/04/26: Our freshly ploughed field in the foreground where potatoes have been set. The rows turned out particularly straight this year. The soil was nice and crumbly (we had sown winter rye beforehand) and easy to plow.
The tilled soil sits alongside a bright green meadow. Mixed woodland of conifers and deciduous trees with fresh spring foliage lines the slopes.
This year, we were able to plow the loose soil even without the fore-cutter, which was no longer attached to the plow. It probably got lost in the field earlier. We couldn't find it. Maybe it'll turn up next year.
On ca. 10 rows we set potatos. The rest (ca. 1/2 of this field) is for various vegetables, field beans and oats.
The manure was very crumbly this year, so the nitrogen content wasn't as high anymore. We'll see if it's enough for the heavy feeders.

#potatoes #field #meadow #hardwork #traditional #farmwork #ploughed #spring #mountain #wood #landscape

Hand-plucked hay in our barn. Photographed from below with flash light.

#hay #hayraking #traditional #farmwork #barn #stable #old #stonewall #flashlight #photography

The wall of our barn (where some hay is stored) is certainly several hundred years old. Plucking hay from the haystack by hand can sometimes be exhausting. But the pleasant smell of hay is encouraging. In the past, people had their own tools for this; let's see if I can get hold of something like that or make a replica.

#old #rustic #wall #stonewall #barn #hey #handwork #farmwork

No sooner has the stone area been cleared of the larch logs and chippings than the next batch of firewood arrives. We felled the dead spruce trees (bark beetle wood) near our property. The large pieces are somewhat lighter because the wood hasn’t been sap-filled for several years. The firewood value is also slowly declining. The advantage is that you can burn it right away without needing to store it for a long time.

#firewood #deadspruce #sprucetree #wood #logs #hardwork #farmwork

Our four gray cattle calves can still spend a few weeks outside and enjoy the beautiful weather. They eat like champions and always demand dry meadow hay as a change from fresh grass. They are waiting for fresh hay again. I have to bring two large basket full to the pasture a day. They are supposed to gnaw on young willow shoots in the forest above in the meantime as well. I read an article that said roughage from young shoots reduces greenhouse gases and ammonia in excrement.

#graycattle #tyroleangrey #cattle #calves #cowcalves #pasture #farmlife #farmwork #autum #nature #forest #landscape

Our slow Rapid transporter tractor is loaded with a large pile of hay from the second grass cut (known as "Grummet") and parked on a farm path beside a metal shed. Next to the Rapid tractor our Ford 3600. Both solid old 4x4 tractors. This pile (ca. 800kg) is going to another barn nearby, since our is more than full.

#meadow #tractor #traditional #farmwork #handwork #hardwork #hay #haywork