Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Fence damage - See previous blog

Big Tree - Lots of work

This is one of our century oaks damaged in the storm on April 27.
Seeing a tree so profoundly damaged is quite painful to me. There is
no doubt in my mind that it was here when Native Americans were taking
care of this land.

This image also represents about 20+ hours of hard labor to come.
This tree fell on our fence and will have to be removed, largely by
hand and chain saw. It is lying across an interior fence, not a fence
we share with a neighbor, so at least we can take our time in clearing
it.

Needless to say, no monetary bonuses are paid for this extra work.   I prefer to think of my bonus as paid in advance -- the years of inspiration, awe and pleasure I got from experiencing life with this tree.  However, this may also be an example of the exceedingly hard work sometimes demanded by country living, and why some folks head for the city at first chance.

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Moving Chickens to Fresh Pasture

Joseph and his business partner Nathan, are raising some pullets.
They should have eggs for sale in a few months. These chickens are
allowed to roam on pasture within a protective electric net fence.
They get fresh pasture every few days.

Beef Available

Beef  Cuts Available!

Early April 2009 ago we had a side of beef processed for a new customer.  The customer was unable to complete the purchase and Joseph has some steaks and about 15 pounds of ground beef in one pound packages.  We will be glad to consume this beef ourselves, but if anyone wants information about purchasing individual cuts, please 

Much of our beef continues to go to The Cove restaurant.  If you need a grass-fed burger, The Cove is the place to go, over near San Antonio Community College.

We will have some beef available this summer for purchase as a side or a quarter.

New Blog for our website

LT Beef has been in operation for about two years now.  Our website has directed a lot of traffic to us and my only regret has been that it is static -- I do not have the know-how and software to update it as I would like.

I am hoping this blog will keep anyone visiting the site up to date on where we stand regarding beef availability and our progress in general with ranching and providing a healthy alternative to conventionally raised beef.

I may digress as well, not unusual for me, to other things I am pursuing ranch-wise and livestock-wise.  For instance, I am curious about "organic brush control."  I don't think huisach and mesquite are easy to control, organically or otherwise.  We have a minimum use of herbicide, Remedy and Diesel, used one plant at a time, to try and manage the brush.  Joseph, my son, would like to get organic status for our place and this is about the only thing that would keep us from being organic.  

We don't use other herbicides and we don't use non-organic fertilizer on our pastures and hay.  But that dang huisache and mesquite!  So, I am looking into goats -- all we are saying, is give goats a chance!