Oh Dang Farm Projects
As on most farms, there are always projects in stages of incomplete. Good ideas have a way of beginning, but, rarely are completed to the end as they looked when they were dreamed. Rarely does a good idea start with a purchase at the lumberyard or hardware store. We like to recycle items that may have been ready for the landfill after its original use. So, anything sitting around long without a purpose may be reused in part or whole in a new way.
Projects that reach a state of completion are often changed, of course, because there is always room for greater efficiency on a farm. And, ideas or projects are discarded from time to time when the reality of its usefulness sets in! If a completed project results in more energy expended from us and more time to actually use it, then, the animals must benefit in some way.
Here are a few good ideas... at least we thought they were when we thunk'em.
Click on those with links for more details and pictures.
Creep Feeder for Lambs and Kids.
This is one of those things during our first season of lambing that we didn't think to prepare. Momma ewes will not stand back to let their babies eat feed. So, a creep feeder was necessary asap and a small 4'Wx4'Hx6'L dog pen was close by doing nothing along with a large solid sided pallet.
For more details click on this link..... Creep Feeder for Lambs and Kids
Finally, a Garden not Eaten!
Over the years, enough trees were cleared for sun exposure on our hill and a small garden of tomatoes, cucumbers, etc., was planted year after year.
They grew ok if we remembered to water. But, over and over, if the heat of the summer didn't wilt and dry the plants to a crispy brown before harvest, the farm animals (mostly those clever Pygmy goats) would eventually eat whatever green was left in garden when we were distracted while they browsed.
To find out how we are now able to have our Garden and Eat it, too, click on this link..... Finally, a Garden not Eaten
Reclaiming the Land for the Future...
When my parents purchased this land that we farm on now in the mid-sixties, about fifty percent of it was what was left over from strip mining for coal. In recent years, at little cost to the landowner (except for the inconvenience of heavy equipment and dust), 
the strip-mined land in Oklahoma is being reclaimed in populated areas because of risks due to steep walls and deep water. The land is then usable by the landowner after a few years. On the left you see land reclaimed in the mid-nineties.
To see some before and after pictures of the current reclamation project that includes a small portion of our land, click on this link... Reclaiming the Land for the Future
Projects Still in Thought....
Small Shelter and Hay Feeder from Large Container with Metal Cage
We got a couple of these containers on pallets with a cage surround for nothing, but, I have seen them on listing services for a few dollars. We are in the process of coming up with the best plan of adapting the cage for a hay feeder, but, have already cut the very large plastic containers to use for easily moved shelters in temporary pens. They have come in handy for making small birthing pens.