Pasture reclamation is going better than I had hoped. Unless you’ve lived in an area of prolonged freezing during winter months you cannot properly enjoy the phenomenon known as “break-up” nor appreciate what an utter mess it can be. The first weeks of warm weather the solid ground starts to soften and break-apart into muddy gelatinous goo atop the subsurface ice that prevents the melted snow (aka water) from sinking into the ground. This results in mud bogs of epic proportion absolutely everywhere.

Add to that, two extra large draft horses sauntering hither and yon, through the “grass” that is so super saturated ever step sinks down a good 2 inches or more. Now multiply that joy by 3 acres.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad I was able to have the big girls here with me, I still love drafts and I would definitely do it again if given a chance. But part of surviving break-up is reclamation of any and all pasture space occupied by animals because no matter how careful, how well thought out, mud is inevitable. Every footstep made by human or hoof dries into an ankle breaking divot.

Slogging through the mud every day last month, I was sure that the pasture was going to have to be partitioned off, bladed and then rolled flat, reseeded and nurtured before I could let the sheep out on it. But I decided to try my luck with my handy dandy tined dethatcher attachment and I’m pleased with the results. It was a long day in the sun driving in circles but at the end of the day I’m kinda impressed with how well it worked. The grass is starting to come back, all the clods and horse piles are broken up and spread out, and I think the rain forecast for later this week will be just what the gardener ordered!

In other news, the little lambs are growing like weeds, Matilda still hasn’t spilled her beans, and Al and Mia are handling babies like pros.