How we Make Grain
In the winter months, when the cattle can’t graze, we feed hay,
supplemented by grain. We feed them crushed oats, and crushed barley.
The additional nutrition helps them cope with the winter. Grain in their
diets also makes for better tasting, more marbled beef. We have learned
that the cattle are healthier when they spend the winter outdoors. When
needed, they can take shelter under the trees, rather than being confined
to a barn where waste and germs abound
These first two photos show immature grain fields. The grain is planted
in May, and harvested in late September.
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These pictures show the grain beginning to ripen...
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In September the oats and barley are ripe and ready to combine...
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The combine cuts the grain. Through a complicated series of belts and
fans, the grain is removed from the stalk. The remaining stalk or chaff,
is discharged on the ground in windrows. It will be baled later, and used
as straw.
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The grain is discharged from a holding bin on the combine into trailers
for transport to the silos.
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Once the grain has been harvested, and the straw is baled and stored,
the geese and bears are happy to clean up what is left.
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In the cold days of the winter, the cattle appreciate the taste of the
crushed oats and barley, and the energy that it provides them
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