Notes from the Farm…Well, I hate to admit when someone else is more right than me, so I must admit defeat in our challenge to bale wet hay. Those two guys at the red and yellow equipment dealership were both right.  

We did have someone lined up to wrap the bales so that was the first thing we needed. Things got off to a slow start that Friday and I was late getting to the field. The first few bales turned out decent but by the time bale No. 11 rolled out of the baler, the hay was already too dry.  

Too dry for wet baling and too wet for dry baling. So now we wait for the alfalfa to dry. We raked the alfalfa and of course it rained just enough Saturday morning of June 8 to a kibosh on baling dry hay again.  

The other hay we cut, more of a grassy mix dried nicely and that was raked two rows into one. I tried baling the alfalfa again Saturday night, but it was still too tough. It seemed that we were half a day off on those first fields of alfalfa. Sunday and most of Monday was spent in the baler and I still did not get the alfalfa baled. Tuesday afternoon, I was finally able to get it baled. Two of those nights I was in the field until 10 and 11 p.m.  

As of press time, we have over 360 bales on the ground, which is a great starting point. It may be safe to say that I am already sick of riding in the tractor, and we have 3 times as much more to cut and bale. We have 160 or so bales hauled and stacked at the farm already with many more to come. We are using one skid steer to load the bales in the field and one at the farm to unload. That saves a bunch of time, so we don’t have to shuttle a skid steer back and forth. We do use 9 or 10 hay racks and can average over 100 loaded bales in one round trip. We use the old-fashioned hay racks instead of gooseneck trailers because we only have a few miles at the most to haul hay. 

The grass hay was all dried nicely to standards, but the alfalfa is a bit more touchy so we will let that cure in the field for several days, in case it was baled with a little too much moisture. The alfalfa will be stacked under a cover as it is a little more valuable than the grass-alfalfa mix.

It will be time to switch the sickles in the haybines soon, one set made it through all of last year and all of this year so far. Time to go spend some money at the local dealership, I guess. Have a nice week!

Friday, June 7

8:06 a.m. Traffic stop for speeding.

11:14 a.m. Officer talked with a couple of vehicles parked in the driving lane on Lake St N.  

1:57 p.m. Disturbance on Main Ave W.

6:04 p.m. Juvenile boy on a bicycle was on his cell phone and drove through a stop sign immediately in front of an officer. Officer talked with the boy and his mother and informed her of the situation.

Saturday, June 8

12:41 p.m. Assist DLPD with looking for a runaway.

2:17 p.m. Vehicles again parked in the driving lane of Lake St N for a rummage sale. Vehicles were moved.

4:46 p.m. Report of a suicidal male. Male was transported to ER.

7:40 p.m. Motorcycle illegally parked on Lake St N. Vehicle was moved.

9:43 p.m. Male party threatening to burn female’s property.

10:17 p.m. Female reporting that her son had been kidnapped by a friend of the kid’s father.  Dad had given permission for the boy to be with the friend.

10:47 p.m. Suicidal male again, threatening to burn the house down after soaking the house in gasoline. Male was transported to the ER for an evaluation.

Sunday, June 9

12:16 a.m. Female reporting that she was threatened by her ex-boyfriend.

5:32 p.m. Driving complaint on US 10.

7:38 p.m. Female reporting that neighbor kids are saying inappropriate things to her grandkids.

9:01 p.m. Officer talked with a juvenile boy’s mother about the boy being seen on the roof of a local business.

Monday, June 10

1:01 a.m. Suspicious vehicle at the Dollar General. Occupants were dropping clothes off in the donation bin.

10:19 a.m. Assist gas station with a gas drive off.

12:44 p.m. Vehicle unlock on Balsam Ave.

1:24 p.m. 911 hang-up on Rivercrest Drive. Nothing out of the ordinary.

1:52 p.m. Parking complaint on a vehicle that hasn’t moved in a couple days.

1:56 p.m. Traffic stop warning for stop sign violation.

2:28 p.m. Two properties documented for yard not being mowed.

2:36 p.m. Female reporting her adult daughter stole some items.

2:54 p.m. Assist with a medical alarm button push.

3:13 p.m. Disturbance on Main Ave W with ongoing issues between parties.

3:14 p.m. Male claiming that his ex-wife came to the residence to get some items and she had left some property on the ground in a mess. Officer gave advice on the civil issue as well as an abandoned vehicle on the property.

3:35 p.m. Assist Motley PD with custody exchange as they had located two juvenile females who hopped the train from Fargo. Fargo group home was there to take custody of the girls.

3:48 p.m. Resident from the Care Center calling about being held against his will.  Officer talked with the gentleman and helped him understand that this was the best place for him for the time being.

4:56 p.m. Report of a theft of goods from the grocery store. Under investigation, female suspect has been identified.

7:22 p.m. Party reporting a 26” mountain bike along a fence in their yard, Bike taken to PD for safe keeping.

9:16 p.m. While on patrol, officer saw two dogs leave their property, cross the street and were acting very aggressively toward a family with small children. Dog owner was warned for leash law.

10:41 p.m. Business owner saw two young males trying to climb the business by means of the gas line. Kids were identified.

Tuesday, June 11

3:04 p.m. Business reporting a suspicious male. Male left before the officer could visit with him.

6:18 p.m. Party reporting an aggressive dog coming from the neighbors house.

8:19 p.m. Report of an intoxicated male party mostly naked near his house. Officer helped the male inside.

10:42 p.m. Several juveniles and an adult served trespass notices for damaging and stealing from a business.

10:54 p.m. Assist with a medical.

11:37 p.m. Assist with locating male party who was possibly involved in a motorcycle crash in Wadena County. Male party was not located at the address given.

Wednesday, June 12

9:07 a.m. Assist with a medical button accidental push.

10:05 a.m. 911 hang-up on Ash Ave W. Child had the phone.

1:20 p.m. Officer served trespass notices on juveniles from previous incidents.

4:49 p.m. Resident reporting suspicious activity, possible drug activity across the street from his house. Officer patrolled the area but suspects were gone.

8:55 p.m. Door propped open at the high school. No one was in the building.

9:34 p.m. Officer talked with people at the swimming beach and reminded them that fishing was not allowed from the swimming dock.

Thursday, June 13

9:39 a.m. Traffic stop with warning for speed.

2:06 p.m. Vehicle unlock on Ash Ave E.

4:21 p.m. Landlord reporting suspicious activity from a couple days prior.

6:56 p.m. Report of a possibly suicidal juvenile. Officer did not make contact with juvenile or parent. Investigation ongoing.

8:13 p.m. Traffic complaint in town, unable to locate.

10:49 p.m. Report of juveniles trespassing at a business. Charges pending for those already trespassed.