Welcome to the Ranch!

My dad always says that you can tell a real rancher from dime-store cowboys.  The latter are always dressed to the nines.  New boots, expensive hats, and big shiny belt buckles.  Whereas the former wear whatever they want.  They have nothing to prove. 

If that is true, then Joel Salatin is the real deal.  Just look at his hat.  If you are interested in learning about running a grass fed operation, reading or listening to Joel Salatin is a must.  He is a pioneer, if you will, in the industry.  Michael Pollan showcased Mr. Salatin in Omnivore’s Dilemna. 

In this video, Joel Salatin is explaining how he raises “salad bar beef” a.k.a. grass fed beef.  His talk is informative and funny.  It is definitely worth watching. 

He discusses briefly the importance of electric fencing in a grass fed operation.  He fails to mention the importance of training your cattle to the electric fencing.  You don’t want to do all the hard work of setting it up to have them trample right over it.  They have to learn to respect the fence.  In another article, I will explain our process for training cattle to electric fencing.

Today, just watch and learn as much as you can from Joel Salatin.  Whether you are interested in simply eating grass fed beef or raising it yourself, this video will help explain the grass fed beef operation.

Rain, glorious rain!  It started raining last night and I believe I heard it still raining early into the morning.  At about 8 o’clock this morning it began again.  We are so excited here at Cross Creek Cattle Company.

It is the perfect rain, too.  It is not accompanied with a storm system.  We were not under a tornado watch.  We did not lose our electricity due to high winds.  We were not kept awake with thunder and lightning.  It is a steady rain.

Not only is this rain steady, but it is a soaking rain.  The water is doing exactly what we need it to do; the water is seeping into the soil nourishing the roots of our plants and grass.  It is not running off our pastures into creeks that eventually flow into the Gulf of Mexico.  It is not flooding our pastures and putting our herd in peril.  As I said before, we consider ourselves blessed with this perfect rain.

As you would expect rain plays an important role on a grass fed ranch.  Grass has to have sufficient rainfall to thrive.  I know that our cattle and grass fed operation did well despite a drought last summer, but two back to back droughts would have been tough to pull through without many problems, which is why this rain is absolutely glorious.

I have a more selfish need for the rain that goes beyond the pasture conditions.  I have a big, organic vegetable garden that badly needs the rain, too.  Despite my seemingly constant watering, the plants are turning yellow.  The soil is never muddy; the soil has been soaking up all the water.  For some reason, watering with a sprinkler is not as good as rain falling from the sky for your garden.

I don’t know the reason, but I have made this observation countless times.  The garden always seems refreshed after a rain like this, but not when I water it myself.  Maybe it has something to do with the rain bringing cooler temperatures and overcast skies.  Whereas when I water, the skies are clear and the sun is still baking the plants.  Evaporation of the water might be a key issue as well.  Regardless of the reason, I am celebrating the fact that my garden is being refreshed and soaked by rain.

We want the rain to stay, but obviously we don’t want it to rain forever.  That would be unhealthy for our grass fed operation and my garden.  We want the rain to continue treating us with its blessings throughout the summer.  We definitely don’t want to endure another drought.  This great rainfall is a good sign that we will not.