We had strong winds and rain last night. This morning after I let the chickens out and before I fed the horse, I noticed the large gate to my garden was wrenched off of its hinges. In my garden stood seven calves. As soon as the yellow dog noticed, he ran in and started barking. Four of the calves leapt the three foot decorative chicken fence, bumped a bee hive and started for the road.
At this point, I yelled for my husband to get out of bed and come help. By the time he got out there, I had gotten the remaining calves out of the garden and propped and wired the gate closed. The calves headed for the orchard where they nipped the new growth on my new trees. I righted the bee hive and thenmy husband herded the calves back around the house. In the meantime, the horse decides to leave through the gate we opened to let the calves back in. As the calves start through the gate he bursts through at a canter and heads out onto the highway. Instead of going into the field where we want them, the calves jump the cattle gap and high tail it over the hill. We decide that while they are not where we want them they are safe so concentrate on the horse. He is easy enough. I just bang the side of the metal container holding his oats. He, even though we could not see him, ran back up into the yard and through the gate. All this action occurred before 6:30 a.m. and in the sloppy remains of the night's storm.
A little while ago, it finally quit raining and I went to my garden to check the damage. The cows ate most of the tiny corn plants, about half of the sugar snap peas, the beets, onions, and broccoli. They knocked over the bean pyramids I constructed yesterday, damaged the asparagus beds and that was all I could bear to see. I just cried and left. I'm angry, but have no direction for the anger. That makes it worse. We sold the calves last week, but they will stay with us until June.
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4 comments:
oh my, I really feel for you, what a wrechad morning! It is so hard to see all the work and time one has poured into a garden shredded and trampled.
Yesterday all the plans I had for the day were thwarted by my chickens, long story but I felt so mad and defeated by days end, and had nothing for my anger to do but sit in my gut and waigh on my shoulders.
I tried to comfort myself with the notion that it is early in the season, there is still time to help the garden recover, and plant new starts. I found that notion a bit more comforting than my attempts to get existential and imagine that these trials help me accept that I do not have control over events and need to be open to rolling with what happens.
cyber hug!!
We do have time to replant the corn. The others are just lost until fall. I will now concentrate on the warm weather crops. Our temperatures will consistently be in the eighties and above for the rest of the summer.
So sorry, I am really sorry for me too as I was really looking forward to some of the produce. Just when I get those homesick pangs and wishing for the country life you remind me of how nice the life at the Kroger is...How did the calves get out? Susan
Don't worry, there will still be enough to share. Move Home, Please! The Kroger can never beat the fresh air and wide open space of the country. Even though the vegetables are easier to get, they aren't better.
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