Seasons
Bleatings!
October Wears an Amber Gown
When autumn's brightly patterned quilt
begins to fade and fray
and corn abandons shriveled stalks
and fields are flaxen hay
October stores her sunny clothes,
puts on an amber gown
and scatters chestnut-colored leaves
along the roads to town
she pauses by a peaceful pond
where children come to play,
but they're in school and fishes hide
in waters chilled and gray
Alone she hikes the woodland trails
through forest sere and still'
then slowly climbs in purple boots
up far November Hill.
John C Bonser
October is
absolutely my favorite month of the year! The weather and scenery is
spectacular and the breeding season is well underway. The fall clip is almost
all sheared (drat all this rain) and I have that urge again to
drag out all the knitting needles, re-warp the loom, and go back to spinning in
front of the wood stove. I'll be doing that as soon as I get home
from the first non-farm related vacation I have had in 25 years: Salem
Massachusetts here I come! Whoo Hoo! Blessing upon the daughter who
is staying at the farm to feed and referree.
Because outside, it is a three ring circus!
the classic lip curl..
you gotta love it!October is all about the
boys!
Borrowed from Little Valley Ranch is Macho (see above photo),
a registered Boer, who is taking care of our small meat
herd. On his other side he looks like a different
goat!
Macho, such a handsome
guy!Our new colored Bluefaced Leicester ram, Beechtree
Black Park, has finally arrived after showing at the Wisconsin and
Michigan Fiber Fests... taking GC Colored Ram at Michigan! "Parker" will
be our main herdsire this year. Danforth, our white Blueface Leicester is going
to try his luck with Shetlands this fall... it will be interesting to
see what the BFL does for Shetland wool !
Parker sweet talkin' one
of his girlfriendsAlso announcing the arrival of new herdsire: Enduring
Oaks Feanaro Taralom , a GC in his own right, and who will be covering
our registered white does. See more about Feanaro on the goat
news page. BTW, if you are stumped for goat names... try the
elvish name generator (also has hobbit names)! Do a search for Elvish Name
Generator. Its fun!
Feanaro (sheared)For the latest update on JuneBug... see the goat
page !
Our first Blueface Hybrids are now available
for sale! This beautiful ram below,
plus several others are available on our sheep
news page.
What is
a Hybrid? It is an F1 cross of Registered Blueface Leicester
with a Border Leicester. In that first generation you get a long
and FINE diameter wool which grows in perfect, lustrous, uniform locks...
the best qualites of both sheep. No waste. These fleeces
fly off the shelf... in fact every fleece I produced this year was sold within
10 days of shearing! I recommend them highly... they are the nicest sheep
I have ever produced.CAGBA Nationals come to Missouri in
2006
The MoNCWGA Heart of America Show honors
the Colored Angora Goat as their featured breed in 2006 and will be host to the
CAGBA Nationals! So keep your calendars open in June and come to
Sedalia, Mo to see some of the most spectacular Colored Angoras in the country
competing for top honors. I am on the Nationals committee and we are working
hard to make it a wonderful event with workshops, social mixers, demonstrations,
pen sales, vendors and of course the show. The Southwest Fiber
Goat Association will have a special display of Navajo Angoras as well.
Mohair fleeces:
I have been busy shearing, so there are more fall fleeces to choose from including
a special purchase that I made for those of you who are desperate for white
mohair (you know who you are!). It was the Best of Show Mohair fleece at the
World Sheep & Fibers Arts Festival at Bethel, MO! See the
fleece page for details and a photo. You will also find an
idea for a fleece drying rack
on this page!
Also in this issue, you will find a great deal on tattoo
ink and some good used books
for sale from my bookshelves on the Misc for Sale
page
French Angora
Rabbits
If you are interested in rabbits I have half a dozen male rabbits
available from the 2005 crop of bunnies. Contrary to what you might
expect, the male rabbit is far superior as a pet rabbit and will produce lots
of wonderful angora wool for you to spin ! I am offering them at a special
end-of-season price... so see the bunny page
for a complete listing with pictures.
THANKS to HMFF
customers: R.D. Heitman , Jen Shilling, Fran Stotler, Lorraine Hahn, Lisa
Lamm and many ebay customers for your purchases in September!
A Special Thanks
For those who where so helpful after my
surprise gall bladder surgery last month, I THANK YOU from the bottom
of my heart! It means so much to have friends and family who can take
you to the hospital and stay with you... others who fed and watched over the
farm... helped with chores after I got home... fed me...and watched over me like
a dutch uncle (you know who you are!).
Hope you enjoy the ramblings from the farm,
Kathy Barger-Harbert
Herbal Maid Fiber Farm
Rosebud, Missouri
Seasons Bleatings OCTOBER - main message
Seasons Bleatings - October - bunny salelist