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September Farm Update:

Hi friends,

The weather is cooling down and reminding us to enjoy these last few weeks of summer!

This was a fun month. I did some work on the sheep yard, made some more hay, and am looking forward to getting the chickens off pasture.

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I worked on welding up some rebar to our gates to help keep lambs from escaping from the sheep yard when they are little. This was an idea I got from some friends this spring when I was helping with lambing.

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We were able to get a second cutting of hay off some of our pastures and also did a first cutting off another 2 acres just down the road from us.

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The broilers are doing very well! They will be butchered tomorrow morning.

I was able to take another trip down to Iowa to visit the sheep farmer that I helped with lambing this spring and see some of their operation during the summer, which was really fun!

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A good laugh is like manure to a farmer. It doesn’t do any good until you spread it around.

Michael Pritchard

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Judah,

for Cadwell Agriculture

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August Farm Update

Hi friends,

It is hard to believe that we have just one month of summer left.

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This year has been quite dry here in Wisconsin, like a lot of the Midwest. We had decent rains until late May when it just shut off. Other than a few showers here and there, we got hardly any rain for all of June and a lot of July. The pastures have been quite stunted and were growing hardly at all. But thankfully, a few weeks ago we got about 2.25 inches of rain.

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Before rain

After

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The rain came at a perfect time. It gave the grass a few days to green up before we moved the broilers out to pasture.

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“People who say it cannot be done should not interrupt those who are doing it.”

George Bernard Shaw

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I’m excited to also announce that we are now on Facebook!

Like and follow us there for more frequent updates!

Check us out on Facebook

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Judah,

for Cadwell Agriculture

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July Farm Update:

Hi friends,

Hope you all are having a fantastic 4th of July weekend! This summer has been great here so far. We even got some much-needed rain last weekend.

We were able to finish all the paneling on the sheep fence this month and finish all of the electric.

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And I’m very excited to have the baby chicks finally arrive on farm, middle of last week!

They will stay in the brooder until they are old enough to go out on pasture in about 3 weeks.

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This month I did an experiment on our extra pasture that turned out really great!

I made my first crop of hay…

using my grandpa’s old rake that he converted from the original horse pulled style to be able to be pulled by a tractor.

We got about 20 small square bales off of about 2 acres of pasture. We use hay for bedding for my parents’ layers, and I’d like to switch over to using it for my broiler chicks as well when they are in the brooder.

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“When my time as a farmer is over, I want to be able to say… that I was a good steward.”

Laura Rutherford

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Judah,

for Cadwell Agriculture

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June Farm Update:

Hi friends,

May began the summer rush of fun!

I spent a good portion of May working with some farmers from the area with their spring planting.

When that finished up, I got started working on my fence for the sheep yard. This week I got about a third of the woven wire up since planting finished up.

Last summer, as an experiment and to try and save on some start-up costs, I cut down locust trees and used them for my fence posts. Surprisingly, they are starting to sprout branches.

“…a good farmer is a craftsman of the highest order, a kind of artist.”

Wendell Berry

Judah,

for Cadwell Agriculture

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May Farm Update!

Hi friends,

It’s been a while since I’ve updated you all. Details below…

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Starting at the end of February through the first few days of April, I had the amazing opportunity to help a farmer/friend out with lambing season! This gave me lots of hands-on experience and access to a lot of practical knowledge from an experienced shepherd. This will help me tremendously with my own sheep adventures!

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“Working hard for something we don’t care about is called stress. Working hard for something we love is called passion.”

Simon Sinek

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Judah,

for Cadwell Agriculture

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February Farm Update:

Hi friends,

January brought a beautiful mix of unusually warm and cold weather.

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Even though this month has kept us busy with behind-the-scenes office work, there always seems to be some excuse to get outdoors.

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I’m looking forward to spending many hours outside in February and March, helping a farmer/friend with his sheep. I’ll be getting some hands-on experience with the lambing and post-lambing processes.

“In everything give thanks…”

1 Thessalonians 5:18

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Judah,

for Cadwell Agriculture

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January Farm Update:

Hi friends,

Winter has finally arrived, allowing a bit of a break from the outdoor work.

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The first snow we got was wet and heavy, which made the trees around the chicken field look beautiful. And although outside work has slowed to a minimum, we still have plenty of work in the office and the shop to keep busy until spring.

We are mostly working on planning for next year’s production, as well as working on my grandpa’s skid loader. It broke down early this fall, and we are working on getting it running again.

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“The future lies before you, like a field of fallen snow; be careful how you tread it, for every step will show.”

Doris A. Wright

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Judah,

for Cadwell Agriculture

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December Farm Update:

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​Hi friends,

Harvest finished up the week before Thanksgiving. It was a fantastic season and went extremely well, with very few hiccups.

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I was able to finish putting most of the posts for the fence into the ground, using my grandpa’s old tractor and post pounder.

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A piece of fall beauty that we can often take for granted when we are in a rush to get things done.

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“I think having land and not ruining it is the most beautiful art that anybody could ever want to own.”

Andy Warhol

Judah,

for Cadwell Agriculture

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November Farm Update

Hi Friends,

This last month has been a busy, yet simple month.

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This month kicked off fall harvest with some local farmers here in Wisconsin.

I also spent the last two weeks in Iowa at my grandparents’ farm, helping Jay, the renter, with harvest. This is a special yearly event for me because Jay is the seasoned farmer who brought me onto his harvest team and invested in me when farming was just a dream.

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When harvest finishes up later this month, I will continue the work on the fence for the sheep yard and hopefully get all the posts in before the ground freezes.

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“I would rather be on my farm than be emperor of the world.”

George Washington

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Judah,

for Cadwell Agriculture

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October farm Update:

Hi friends,

October is here!

I always love this season for two reasons. The beautiful fall colors begin to appear, and the fall field work begins!

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This month we wrapped up the production year with the processing of our last batch of chickens.

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We got the chicken tractor cleaned up and put the water hoses and other supplies into the shed for the winter.

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The sheep shed is now completely finished, other than the dirt grading, which we will continue to pick away at until the ground freezes this winter.

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We also got supplies for fencing in the sheep yard, and we cut up some locust trees that we will be using as fence posts.

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“The country life is to be preferred, for there we see the works of God.”
Luther Burbank

Judah,

for Cadwell Agriculture

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