Six Weeks and Counting

Did you know it's only six week to spring planting?  We didn't realize it until yesterday!  Last year at this time I had the whole garden planned, seeds ordered, and plants started.  This year I think I know where to find our old seeds and that's it. 

It's also time to transplant the lettuce to bigger pots and thin the celery.  They are all doing well.  While I was at it, I got some cabbage started.  Now what else do I need to plant? 

I better look through my notes and get our garden planned!

We still have stuff going on from last year's garden.  We grew several rows of turnips to give the cows over the winter but I've been lazy and haven't gotten to it.  I finally went out and picked a bunch.  They cubed up into over half a 5-gallon bucket.  We'll give them a some each day and make this last a week.

Although maybe it's not a good idea to give Christina much of anything new.  She got a case of bloat that she's still recovering from.  We'd been giving her people-bicarb from WinCo but we got some cow-bicarb at the feed store last week.  We noticed that she hadn't been eating much since we switched, and the other morning she was poofy.  We pushed on her and drenched her with some bloat stuff (olive oil, hot water, soda).  That morning while we milked she didn't eat any of her grain.  Not one bit.  That was creepy!  We checked her temp (the same way you check a baby's temp) and it was 98.5ºF.  Whew, not an infection.  By the time we were done milking she looked more normal, we walked her a bit, and she went straight to the hay.  Praise God, at least she ate something.  It occurred to us that probiotic would be a good idea so we gave her some of that.  That evening she was bloated again, but responded quickly to medicine.

In that two days her milk production dropped for 5.5 gallons to 3.5 gallons.  That's what not eating will do to a cow.  But today is better.  She doesn't look poofy at all.  She's eating good.  Her production is right back up.  Even better, that quarter that keeps showing some reaction on the CMT test has been clean two days in a row. We're feeling like very happy cow people right now!