A Little Light Reading...

One of the things that I enjoy very much is reading. Whether it is a great historical novel, such as the Jack Aubrey series, or a 18th century journal I love to read it. Usually you will find a few different books or magazines in my night stand, but lately there has been a subject matter other than the normal history or Christian books ... Farming books, magazines, and articles have made their way into my reading library. With Christmas coming just around the corner I put together a list of a few of the books that I would like to tackle next. Most of them come from Joel Salatin because he has written very candidly and to the point on the subect of small scale farming, but there are a few others that look to be interesting also. So, here is my list of light reading...

Salad Bar Beef by Joel Salatin Amazon

You Can Farm by Joel Salatin Amazon

Pastured Poultry Profits by Joel Salatin Amazon

Making Your Small Farm Profitable by Ron Macher Amazon

All Flesh is Grass by Gene Logsdon Amazon

And then for a practical approach from the past...

Five Acres and Independence by Maurice Kains Amazon

Those are some of the one's that I have picked out from the research I have done. I hope to be able report back with some more information soon!

IN OTHER NEWS ::: I finally received my new boots. I had ordered a pair of Georgia Boots, but a seam on the tongue hit my ankle at the wrong angle so I had to fork out a little more cash and buy the Wolverines. All in all I am pleased with them so far and hope they will last.

A Little Farming Yesterday...

I was able to live a little farming yesterday. Nothing big or special ... more like, "social farming". My family and I traveled up to my Uncle's farm for a plow day. As you can tell from the picture it was a little cool ... and a little snowy. I had a great time plowing with his 1955 Minneapolis Moline UB Special pulling a three bottom plow. The UB is a 48 horsepower tractor according to the Nebraska Tractor Test. My Dad, my Uncle, and my Cousin all were out their driving MM tractors (all of which were my uncle's) because that is our families brand. My Grandfather ran a MM dealership in Nevada, IA in the 50's and it has been in our blood ever since. My dad also has a MM M5 down it his farm. Other neighbors were there with their tractors also and we had a great day plowing.

In other farming news ... I plan on attending a agricultural seminar this December over in Davis County through the county extension office. The seminar is called, "Diversiying into fruits and herbaceous perrinials". It will cover strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, and grapes. I believe it will look into selection of varaties, disease, and pest control amog other things. I'm looking forward to this as it will be my first "class" dealing with some potential "crops"! I'll be sure to let you know how it goes...