Country Lifestyles
Crooked Fences
By Bryce Angell
Every year, each spring, my job was stretching up barbed wire. And every year I’d dream that we could put it up for hire.
I like to call it stretching wire but it’s really fixing fence. And we never bought new posts and wire. Wouldn’t meet the farm expense.
The worn, and rusty, coarse barbed wire would break with every bend. So, we stitched the wire right from the start until the very end.
One day I mustered courage. Said, “It’s time to buy new fence. It’s like patching up Methusala. It don’t make a lot of sense.”
My father always listened. He gave credence to what I’d say. But never did I dream he’d buy new fencing on that day.
So he drove our ‘69 Cornbinder, two-ton flatbed truck to Cal Ranch for new posts and wire, I guess to my good luck.
That night I dreamed of fixing fence with not an end in sight. When my sleep was interrupted barely 6 o’clock daylight.
My father hollered loud enough to soundly wake the dead. “It’s time to get a movin’ because people die in bed.”
I’d heard him yell a thousand times ‘bout people, death and bed. That was our morning ritual before we all got fed.
He said, “We’ve got some work to do up by the north-end gate. But I need to be away in town, so build the fences straight.”
My dad was kinda fussy ‘bout his fences straight in line. He said, “The fence that’s crooked sure ain’t no fence of mine.”
Back then we had no auger that would drill a fence post hole. You used a bar and shovel, kept your cussing in control.
That day I dug near 20 posts but held back all my brag. ‘Cuz looking down the fence my posts were planted in zig zag.
Well sure enough my father said, “Your posts have character. Were they drunk or did they suffer from a genuine hangover?”
His laughter was contagious and thank heaven he weren’t mad. He never showed his anger. He was that kind of Dad.
And then the 20 posts were pulled along with all my pride. But my father helped replant ‘em. He was right there by my side.
So then I wore new glasses. They were bound to be my fate. But they didn’t solve the problem ‘cuz my fence line still weren’t straight.
By: Martha Crump
Most cattle producers can tell you quite a lot about balancing cattle diets for energy, protein, vitamins, and minerals based on the specific needs for their herd and type of operation.
A key factor, and one that is often overlooked, is that how your animals perform is also directly affected by their water intake.
Now many of you may already be thinking “well of course water is necessary, anybody knows that!”
In many years, as September marches into October, we are beginning to experience some return of rainfall. But as many of us know, that is not always the case. Often we are still experiencing hot and dry weather, and water supplies are dwindling.
When we find ourselves experiencing those types of fall conditions, it is critical to not only understand the daily water requirements for cattle, but also the impact that the quality of water can have on herd health and development.
To read more, pick up a copy of the October edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By: Annette Bridges
A friend and I were recently talking about our husbands. She made a comment that I felt also perfectly described me and my hubby.
“He slows me and I hurry him. I’m sure that is why we do well together,” she said.
“Precisely!” I thought. Why?
Because when two different worlds collide, it can be magical.
No matter what those two different worlds are- a man and a woman with very different personalities, beliefs, or backgrounds, two partners with contrasting passions, strengths, or talents, or when a country boy marries a city girl.
To read more, pick up a copy of the October edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
Watauga, Texas, a suburb of Fort Worth, is known for its rich history as a railroad stop, but over the course of the last year, one teen girl has put it on the map for agriculture as well. Emma Harvey has lived in Tarrant County her entire life. Despite being highly involved in her local 4-H chapter, she still felt there was more she could do. In the spring of 2023, she stepped up to the plate to take over the title of Tarrant County Teen Miss Agriculture USA.
“It all started when I put in an application for the teen title here in Tarrant County,” explained Harvey.
The Miss Agriculture USA program is a national non-profit, age-inclusive pageant program that offers both competition and non-competition titles to women dedicated to the promotion of agriculture.
Read more in the October issue of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available online and in print. Subscribe to our newsletter to receive NTFR in your inbox each week.
Photo by Hannah Claxton.
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