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Yarnauwi Farm

~ Fleurieu Peninsula, South Australia

Yarnauwi Farm

Tag Archives: hack

Farm hack: Making a sheep working race

11 Saturday Jul 2015

Posted by nopalito in diy, livestock

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building, design, farm, fencing, hack, livestock, Plastic-free July, recycling, reuse, sheep, southwestern Fleurieu, waste, winter

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One of our hoggets, sizing up the new facilities.

We’re great fans of temporary. Not aiming for permanence tends to mean that ideas can be trialled inexpensively, can be easily changed and that learning from failure can be quick and low-impact. In that spirit, as we develop the sheep enterprise of the farm, we’ve tried to keep things low-key. For yards, we use locally-made portable panels, but when working closely with sheep, we found the mesh sides problematic due to the ease with which horns or feet can become entangled. In more established circumstances, yards would have a working race for such a purpose, but the cost of a manufactured race can be steep. It was time to get out the tools and make our own.

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The ‘new’ working race in position, with sheep, also in position. As a further refinement, we need to attach bracing to the far end to help it stand up to the inevitable knocks and bumps.

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A moveable sheep shelter: the sequel

05 Monday Jan 2015

Posted by nopalito in diy, livestock, trees

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Tags

building, farm, hack, livestock, recycling, reuse, sheep, southwestern Fleurieu, summer, waste

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With recent temperatures climbing into the 40s (about 107 degrees Fahrenheit), and tree-induced shade still a few years away, we’ve constructed another moveable sheep shelter to ensure our sheep and alpacas have a cooler place to recline on the most hostile of days.

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Employing the off-grid carpentry prowess of Jeremy and Pete, we knocked up the second shelter to the same rough plan as the original: salvaged hardwood for a sled base, allowing it to be dragged from pasture to pasture, fallen redgum for uprights, and tin reclaimed from the gullies for the roof. The previous life of the tin means that a hole is already cut for the installation of a pot-belly stove, should the sheep find one that fits their budget. This sheep shelter also includes a perch, should passing birds need a break while searching for a tree. Continue reading →

Farm hack: stock trough hose outlet

23 Sunday Nov 2014

Posted by nopalito in diy

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Tags

farm, hack, livestock, reuse, seasons, southwestern Fleurieu, trees, water

IMG_5325Every week or so we empty our stock troughs, sometimes for cleaning, sometimes to shift it into a new paddock or location to prevent the soil getting bared out. As dry springs like this one remind us, water is precious. The dam fills in winter, we pump up to the tanks, then try to gravity feed the stock troughs from spring until the rains come again. When it came to empty the troughs, we tried some judicious bucketing onto nearby seedlings, but that’s long and arduous when you have 450 litres to decant.  Continue reading →

A moveable sheep shelter

22 Monday Sep 2014

Posted by nopalito in diy, livestock, planning, trees

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

building, design, farm, fencing, hack, livestock, recycling, reuse, sheep, southwestern Fleurieu, summer, trees

The moveable sheep shelter in fresh pasture.

The moveable sheep shelter in fresh pasture.

While the name Trees, Bees and Cheese might suggest otherwise, one thing we’re short on is trees. So with the arrival of sheep, and now lambs, we’ve tried to get in before summer with a sheep shade-shelter. With our soon-to-be-complete subdivision of the property into smaller paddocks, we thought we’d build a moveable shelter that would allow us to rotate it from paddock to paddock with the flock, rather than building seven or eight smaller structures. Continue reading →

Restoration Man: Resurrecting Junk

31 Sunday Aug 2014

Posted by nopalito in diy

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farm, hack, picnics, recycling, reuse, waste

Restored!

Restored!

We’ve written a fair bit about our relationship with the decades of farm junk strewn across the property, including our page of curated finds. A couple of months ago, when clearing another trailerload of scrap metal from the gullies, Sophie’s cousin Andrew spotted some treasure amid the trash. It was corroded, missing legs and other bits, but still identifiably a spirit-burning, post-World War II camp stove. Continue reading →

Fleurieu Stile

09 Wednesday Jul 2014

Posted by nopalito in diy

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building, design, farm, fencing, hack, reuse, southwestern Fleurieu, stiles, zones

Stile Design #1, the crossed tread option.

Stile Design #1, the crossed tread option.

Fences are amazing things. They totally reshape the way you think about a landscape by cutting it into smaller, yet still expansive, rooms. They alter the movement patterns of humans and other animals and we’ve very quickly discovered the bits where, far from any gate, we’re regularly having to launch ourselves between strands of high-tensile barbed wire. With a bit of research, we came up with a couple of simple designs for stiles allowing easy pedestrian access at high-traffic points. Continue reading →

Farm Hack: Nursery tables

23 Monday Jun 2014

Posted by nopalito in diy, tools

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

design, farm, hack, nursery, propagation, recycling, reuse, revegetation, trees

nurserytableOur passion for growing trees has in many ways outstripped our capacity to grow them, and so our growing space has become overrun with foam containers balancing precariously on the edges of hard rubbish chairs, bricks and scraps of wood. Some months ago, we claimed some old school tables from a local school’s throw-out pile, and thought they might be good for more growing space. Predictably, the manufactured timber tops very quickly fattened in the moisture, buckled and then started getting slimy.

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Beekeeping Barbie?! I don't know how I feel about this!
Got a bit hot in the shed this week. #summer #melt #candlelight #farm #southaustralia #heatwave @kispirits #ginspiration #gin #fleurieucoast #fleurieupeninsula #candle #offgrid
Curated junk rides again! It's been a while since we've shared some of the treasures unearthed on the farm, but cleaning up in the aftermath of our recent fire has revealed some wonders, waiting patiently on the roadside: 1. Extra tangy Solo can (1980s?) 2. Pre-loved cap, small amount of road metal fused with the brim 3. Safety glasses, can no longer vouch for protective qualities 4. Random melted lump of plastic 5. Vintage cola bottle, lightly soiled More farmy trash is on our website, under "Curated Junk", link in bio! #extratangy #curatedjunk #waste #rubbish #fire #junk #solo #safety #coke #vintage #treasure #farm #fleurieupeninsula #fleurieucoast #summer #bushfire #thirstcrusher #youcantbeatthefeeling
Not if, but when... Unfortunately a few nights ago a grass fire started at the road and spread through a couple of hectares of our farm. We're very grateful to the quick response from our fantastic neighbours, the CFS and SA Police that managed to promptly contain the blaze. Thankfully not much damage beyond scorched fenceposts, melted tree guards and the loss of some saplings. A good reminder for us to revisit our plans and think carefully for how we design for fire. #cfs #fleurieupeninsula #fire #summer #farm #notifbutwhen @sa_countryfireservice @sapolicenews
December means it's time for Fidel and Ernesto's annual manscaping and catch-up with other alpacas in the neighbourhood. Ernesto is especially fascinated by the experience and closely inspects the shearing of his pals. Their wool will be used in house insulation. #fleurieucoast #fleurieupeninsula #alpacas #alpacasofinstagram #alpaca #shearing #alpacino #2pac #summer #farm #yarnauwi
Delighted to discover this photo of Joel's grandma Lil picnicking among the yakkas and stringybarks near Cape Jervis in 1936. That's her on the left, and twin sister Pearl on the right. #fleurieupeninsula #fleurieucoast #fleurieucoastmadebynature #fleurieuliving #picnic #stringybark #xanthorrhoea #history #southaustralia #sahistory @fleurieucoastmadebynature #capejervis
First of the season. #shingleback #stumpytail #tiliquarugosa #bluetongue #kalta #fleurieucoast #fleurieupeninsula #madebynature #fleurieucoastmadebynature #farm #lizard #yarnauwi
It's amazing to see how even a modest melaleuca bush is a universe of its own. Now entering their sixth summer at #yarnauwi these plants are now abuzz with pollinators, including honeybees, ants and these native bees. We think they might be a resin bee (Megachile sp.), A furrow bee (Lasioglossum lanarium) and an inchneumon wasp (Netelia sp.), but welcome any corrections! #bee #australiannativebees #nativebees #sugarbag #bees #melaleuca #reveg #revegetation #fleurieupeninsula #fleurieucoast #melaleucadecussata
6 years ago this little corner of Yarnauwi was replete with a car body, dozens of tyres and other junk, so happy with the transformation!

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