The Farmer’s Life | Fiona Palmer

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Dec 2011

More Flood Pics

By Fiona

Here is just a few more photo’s I took while driving around. It’s just amazing to see so much water.

Silvie, the boarder collie, checks out the water.

This picture is of the driveway to my uncles farm, which we call Kate’s.

All the water makes for some nice pitures.

On Burngup Road, you can see the fence on the left which has been swept over the road.

This is what is left after the water drains away. This is just one section of washed out railway.

I went walking this morning with my mum down past Bakers to Byass’s where the water has ripped up all the bitumen across the road, swept all the fences on both sides of the road away and turned the wheat crop to mud. I wanted to go see how the wheat looked up close but it was still soaking in water and I was worried i’d get my feet bogged. I guess a few weeks and we’ll know whats left of the crops.

Most of the water has all run away, following the gully’s and filling up all our dry salt lakes. So soon I will have some lake pictures for you. In my next book The Road Home, the characters go skiing on a lake just out of Kulin.

Category: Events, News, Only in the country, The Farmer's Life Tags: floods, harvest rain One Comment

May 2011

Day Job

By Fiona

Two days a week I work at the local shop, Pingaring Agsolutions. We have everything a small town may need, groceries, alcohol, hardware, post, chemical, etc etc… And if i’m lucky i get to deliver chemical around seeding time, which means getting out an about.

On Thursday I headed out to some local farmers, my mate Rach’s family, to drop off chemical they needed to keep spraying with. Rach was behind my inspiration for Izzy in my first book and is as much a farmer as any other bloke.

Dropping off the drums. (and also a plug for my boss’s business…pay rise??? I wish lol)

I then headed next door where the rest of the gang was. Rach was calculating something…its maths so I wasn’t interested, but i’m guessing chemical rates for their worker to spray out. Her dad and brother were re-calabrating the big red fancy seeding machine, while I got to chat to Isla (mum). A real working family.

So I loved my drive, getting to see the country side and it was a glorious day. Most farmers our way are waiting for a decent rain before they start their seeding program. If you’ve got rain, blow it our way. Cheers. x

Isn’t this cute. Gidget our 13yr old Kelpie and Sally our beagle/collie/lab/bitsa everything 9month old pup snuggling together. Gidget likes to pretend she dosn’t like the energetic younger dog, but this just goes to show that they still love each other…either that or its just so darn cold they had to snuggle for warmth. Cute. (and yes, my house is blue…you can just see it)

Category: Everyday Life, Only in the country, The Farmer's Life Tags: bush, farm life, seeding 4 Comments

Nov 2010

Weekend

By Fiona

On the weekend the kids and I went for another ride in the truck. This time out to Mr Mitchell’s. I love riding in the truck with my dad, as it ends up being around an hour I get to spend with him. Yes, I’m a daddy’s girl. And the kids love being with their pop too.

Moments like these are very special. Dad was showing the kids how a header works by grinding the wheat heads in his hand and blowing the chaff away to leave the wheat. Then we ate some. Blake was chewing on it and asked could he swollow it or did he have to spit it out. Kids are cute! As we sit in the truck, waiting for it to fill up with grain, is a great time to spend with the kids. We sang songs and played games. You can see the overcast day we had. Weird warm day with the occasional rain drop.

As the field bins were in another paddock to the header, dad had to pull up along the fence so Mr Mitchell could top up the load. The crops are really bad this year and it takes a lot of harvesting before you can get enough grain for a load.

It’s hot, dusty and itchy in the truck and around headers but we were rewarded with a swim in our friends pool afterwards. It has a great view also. Just missing the cocktails!!!

Category: Only in the country, The Farmer's Life 3 Comments

Nov 2010

Harvest

By Fiona

This Saturday the kids were bored so we jumped in Pop’s truck and headed out the road to pick up Mr Varone’s load of wheat. He’d stopped for the day as most area’s had a harvest ban on. You’d be mad to harvest when its stinking hot and the wind is blowing. If a fire started, which is easy in this heat, the wind could take it anywhere. While we were there I got to check out the new flash header.

Heading back into Pingaring bin with a full load. Yes, dads truck is old but it has aircon… do you think i could tell? NO! You can also see my Blundy boots, which have been sitting dormant for a while. I had to check for spiders!

Driving up to the sampling hut and beyond that is the weighbridge.

Our lovely local girls Julia and Shana are the bin samplers. Its a lean year so it dosn’t get too busy (especially with the harvest ban). We have 7 farmers finishing next week!!! Normally its not until after christmas. See those lovely curtains…I made them years ago as the sun would belt through those windows. I think that was the last time I used my sewing machine! LOL

My dad unloading the truck, talking with my hubby and another local farmer. I live right across from this. Good – as Hubby is close to work and bad - because the bin blocks out the setting sun.

Hope you liked my tour into the bin! (I wrote about this bin in The Family Farm)

Category: Only in the country, The Farmer's Life Leave a Comment

Nov 2010

Crops

By Fiona

Its that time of year again…harvest. Though to look at this picture you’d think it was okay, but for our area in WA it’s quite grim. There was hardly any rain this year to help finish the crops. I think I heard it said that it’s the third worst year ever recorded…I may be wrong but it’s not bloody far off. I’m not a farmer, but my friends are and my dad is a local contractor who carts their grain. He’s not going to have much work this year. Normally he puts on a worker to drive his other truck, but this year he can cover it easily by himself…and he’s picked up extra farmers this year as other contractors head to better areas chasing more work.

The heads in the above picture look alright but when you rub the grains out they are small and pinched/shrivelled. There are two tiny grains of wheat on the left side of my palm next to the chaff/white heads. When a sample is taken these grains end up becoming screening, and too much of them the farmer gets his load docked. This year they also have the problem of picking up stones and other crap in the header comb due to the crops being so low to the ground. One farmer said it was sad, trying to harvest a crop that wasn’t even as high as last years left over stubble. And if stones and sheep poo end up in a sample they will send a farmer home with his load.

I sampled for CBH for a few years and its hard to tell a farmer he’s being docked for screening or that his load is going feed. It’s their livelihood. My husband works for CBH, where all the grain is stored…but not much will make it to the bin this year as farmers will keep most of it on farm for seed and sheep feed. I hope a few of them get some extra, unexpected bags to give them hope.

My daughter is walking through a crop so you can see it…or lack of it.

Category: Only in the country, The Farmer's Life, Uncategorized 3 Comments

Nov 2010

Pets

By Fiona

We’ve had Sally for about a month now and she has fitted in so well. (yes that is grass hanging off her lip LOL) My 7yr old daughter plays mum and cradles her in her arms a lot. Sally will be one adjusted dog. Her little personality is really shining through. Our older dog Gidget, who is 13, is getting less grumpy and lets Sally play with her…when no one is looking. I spent ten minutes watching them play the other day…when I should have been writing. But they were too cute to resist.

As for our little chicks, we still have all 6 and they’re not so little anymore. I’ve lost a hen (it died…i’m not sure why) and we (as in my husband) got rid of our two roosters…they can now ‘cockadoodle doo’ to their hearts content. Hopefully now they are gone the hen’s will get their feathers back and will have some peace. I’m not letting them out at the moment as our fruit tree’s are loaded and they love the apricot trees. Little buggers stripped off all the leaves they could reach last time they were in there, not to mention the grape vine.

Last pic of Sally…who likes taking washing from the basket and cart it around the house!

Category: Family, The Farmer's Life Leave a Comment

Oct 2010

School holidays

By Fiona

Our school holidays started with the picnic up the rock ritual. We pack some goodies (lamingtons and cream – yes I packed cream)and while the kids climbed all over the rocks mum and dad lay, soaking up the warmth along with the lizards. It was beautiful … but the view was on the dry yellow side of green.

It was the same on our way to Hopetoun, the worst crops I’ve seen around our area and then two hundred kms down the road they turned into beautiful big green crops. Amazing what rain does. There is nothing that can save this harvest … if there even will be a harvest. Everyone is stretched to the hilt money wise and the banks will probably try to sell a few farms, only thing is no one will buy them!!! It’s hard to try and sell your farm to pay debts when no one can afford to buy them, so you’re left stuck…waiting.

I’m not a farmer, but I live in a farming community so it effects everyone, from shops to contractors etc. Lets hope next year is a bumper … everyone will need it.

Category: Family, Only in the country, The Farmer's Life Leave a Comment

Sep 2010

Spring

By Fiona

Love this time of year. All the wildflowers are coming out and most of my fruit trees are in full bloom.

This is my peach/nectarine tree. It’s only a few years old, but it’s growing so well …. I think it’s the water we pump out from our tanks to there. They are thriving in it! Rubbing my hands together thinking of the fruit we will have this summer. Most of my tree’s are early fruiting. I have just planted some watermelon and rockmelons around the trees too. As long as I can keep the chooks away from them all.

My kids are loving the new six chicks born over the last week. I’ve been waiting for the hens to get clucky so I can finally do away with my two roosters. Don’t get me wrong, they are beautiful roosters, but they have only one thing on their mind and they are making the hens look horrible with missing feathers on their heads etc. They have done their job well, now its time for them to go. I have plenty of chooks for eggs now and the new ones to replace the older girls. I will probably have new roosters anyway with these six chicks. The kids wanted to keep one inside as their pet …. but it only lasted an hour and they wanted to put him back with his family. A choice I was very happy with!!

Category: Family, The Farmer's Life 3 Comments

Jul 2010

Shearing

By Fiona

I went out to Burnside today (the Garard’s farm) as they were shearing. I needed a few pictures for the book trailer and for the website so people can see what I’m talking about when they read my next book. I found out today that there are three Burnside’s in WA (hence the PIN (for Pingaring) under the farm name on the bale). If your farm name is one of them, tell us where about in WA you are?

I was hoping to take photo’s of the hero of my book, a blond muscly 28 year old shearer…but alas…he was nowhere to be seen. (Maybe he was off sick!?!) Actually I think he’s left and gone to work on the mines!! Anywhoo I got plenty of other shots and was even in time for Di’s morning smoko! What a treat! Sitting on a bale with a cuppa made by my mate Dennis with a range of food fit for a king. It was nice to get out of the house (and away from the computer) and go visiting. I didn’t hang around as they had a spare drench gun and were looking for volunteers lol. This afternoon is set aside for book writing and setting up a few things for the website. Time to get cracking.

Category: Only in the country, The Farmer's Life, The Writer's Life 4 Comments

Jul 2010

Fog

By Fiona

Winter – oh the joys of frosty mornings. On this particular morning I was on my way to my friends house to pick up my kids and the fog was really thick AND it was 10.30am!! Yes, the farmers would have been twiddling their fingers waiting for it to lift so they could go spraying. I know my dad was at home waiting…probably enjoying the warmth before he went out into the cold to play with water.

This picture is of my friends house from their driveway and you can just make out it out. The camera never seems to pick up just how thick it is.

I nearly ran over the shire crew on my way there. They had two graders parked up on the road. They appeared out of nowhere in the fog. I bet they thought twice about standing on the road to talk in a fog, especially with me behind the wheel!! As i left near lunch time i could still see areas of fog. Well at least it wasn’t a frost. I’m hoping they stay away. Its been a bad enough start to the year, no one needs their crops wiped out from the frost as well.

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