When I bought the first Bedlam Farm, I assumed that our lush green pastures would grow all the grass we needed year after year. I didn’t realize for a couple of years that what really happens is that the animals – the donkeys, sheep, and for a few  years, a hungry pony – would eat the grass down, and stomp it down, and that the grass would stop growing and the soil would be  depleted.

I kept putting off having lime spread on the pasture, and also fertilizer to restore the grass and replenish the pasture. One year there was no money for it, another I kept missing one of the very few people up here who lime pastures.

This year, I was alarmed at how little grass was growing in two of our pastures, and I took some time to track down Doug Jessemen, of a company called A & K Agriservices, he is one of those good and big men in trucks who know about pastures and soil (no small dog in the truck).

He came today with a very big truck and six tons of lime. He spread the lime – this opens up the access to the grass and  restores it – over all three of out pastures, he truck gave off huge white clouds of lime. It took him about 15 minutes and it cost $300 (when I saw the truck, I trembled to think about the cost.)

Doug is one of those honest and good people I write about it, he is patient with dodos like me and gave me a surprising lecture on soil and how it grows. He suggested coming back to spread manure over the three pastures sometime in the next few weeks.

I don’t want to emotionalize life in the country, but people like Doug are so important to me and to many others. Life for us would not be possible without them, and they simply project trust and knowledge and decency. They know that life on farms is hard in many ways, and that farms are expensive.

I appreciate Doug taking the time to teach me about the pastures that are right under my nose, but about which I have learned little.

I am very glad to add Doug to my list of good people – Kelly (the Bog), Robin (Jean’s), Jay (carpentry, emergencies), Ray (odd jobs), Greg (firewood), Matthew (farrier), Sandy and Brian (hay), Nicole (farm sitting) – who enrich and support our lives and make them possible.

If I can be judged by the people we work with her, I’m doing okay.

The fertilizer will cost another $500 (I can bill you, he said, you’ll have 30 days to pay, which I appreciated.) I highly recommend it, he said, your pastures need it. Those are the magic words for me. The farm is my Mother in many ways, I need to take care of her.

Our pastures are so important to us, from May to October, we let the animals graze, but we see that the grazing grass is not growing or coming up well. Maria balked a bit about spending the money, but I persuaded her it was just something we owed it to the pastures to do. They are not replaceable.

So Doug is coming back with the manure, and I signed up for lime mixed with manure every year. Please put me on the list, I said. It’s less expensive when the manure is mixed with the lime.

I’d rather not spend the money at the moment, but if you have a farm, you need to love the farm, the barns, the fences,  the water and especially the grass, so essential to the animals and their health. If you take care of the farm, it will love you back.

In the broader sense, it also reminds me that our real Mother, the earth, needs this kind of care and attention as well. We are all part of it, the farm also reminds me of that.

I’ve neglected our pastures, from now on I’ll give them the love and healing they deserve. I’ve learned so much from the farm, and take it’s care very seriously.