E... when the landscape is white and frozen, there’s work to be d... on the farm.
De..... days of snow, ice, sleet and near-record low temperatures this year, farmers have been on the job delivering and selling hay at England Acres in Mount Airy — a gr..., hay and livestock farm.
Animals must be k...hydrated year-round, owner Jeff England said, and doing so when the water supply freezes is an ad... responsibility.
“Even if it m.... delivering jugs of hot water, you got to h... it on the truck, get it to them and keep their water bowls thawed out,” England said.
When s..... rolls around at Scenic View Orchard in Sabillasville, fruit and vegetable farmer Richard Calimer will be ready to p.... tomatoes in greenhouses March 15. By April 1, he will begin planting cabbage, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, kale, Swiss chard and spinach. Sweet corn also will be planted under plastic.
In ad...... to ensuring his cows are taken care .., Jefferson dairy farmer Ron Holter said he spends a lot of time in winter repairing farm e........ and maintaining old buildings. He had no major repair or maintenance is.... this year.
“But by the .... spring rolls around, it gets pretty wild out here,” Holter said, referring ..the calving season.
Holterholm Farms expects 130 to 135 calves in the spring, Holter said. He'll keep about 60 and sell the r....
'Every year is different'
It's a misconception that work slows down cons........ on the farm in winter, Calimer said.
“A......., farmers work as hard in the winter as the summer, just shorter days,” England said.
Animals must be protected f... wind, but they are more adaptable and resilient than people give them credit ..., England said.
A lot of preparation for spring is done after h...... in the fall, but winter brings its own farm ch...., he said. By January, most farmers already have their spring plan in place for crop r....... and planting schedules.
But farmers also must revisit lease agreements and finalize deals with suppliers, attend agronomy and supplier meetings, and keep .. to date on schooling, England said.
“Winter time is not about going to Florida and waiting for May,” Calimer said. “There’s stuff to be done all year, and when the weather is b....... cold, you make sure the animals are sheltered and bedded.”
In mid-January, Calimer and his crew were working on farm equipment, sorting apples and potatoes for wholesale, and ordering plants and seeds to get his vegetables started .. schedule in the spring. Also on the workers’ to-do l... was trimming fruit trees, and Calimer was fin....... plans to att... the Mid Atlantic Fruit and Vegetable Convention in Hershey, Pa.
Calimer was one of about 2,200 people at the convention designed to help fruit, vegetable and berry growers, as well as direct marketers, stay .. the cutting edge of their industries, he said.
“Every year is different,” Calimer said, referring .. unpredictable weather and the potential onslaught of p.... and disease. “You learn stuff every year, you try to make it better every year.
"Some days it works. Other days, it doesn’t work. It’s a continuous l....... process.”
