Drover’s Way Farm was ice locked. The tracks down the driveway led to roads that were ‘shear ice,’ as it is called in Eastern Ontario, where the author lives.
Storms come in many forms on a farm. Often, we think of weather storms of snow, rain, wind, and hail. There can also be storms of disease and storms of circumstance. One doesn’t need to live on a farm to realize that the proverbial ‘perfect storm’ can happen when, seemingly, all difficult sues that could happen occur at the same time. The difference, perhaps, on a farm is that there is a responsibility for many lives, including humans, animals and vegetation. To make matters more complicated, climate change is creating environmental conditions with unprecedented, severe storms. As farmers, we can’t control or manage what the weather or conditions throw at us, but, like all aspects of farming, it is important to create a sustainable and survivable approach to adverse weather conditions. Living on a farm in our northern climate, I have become acutely aware of the blast and fury of the seasons. With hundreds of animals under my care, as well as the resident wildlife that we encourage on our land, it is a huge responsibility to keep everyone safe and healthy in these storm conditions.
I used to think that mustering all the animals into barns and corrals would give them some level of protection in severe conditions. Sometimes that is true; however, after experiencing many storms, I have realized that it is better to look at how nature manages, how the animals respond and how the land can recover.
Animals have a strong instinct for self-preservation if given options for shelter and food, which may or may not include human-made structures. In horrible weather, given a choice between a barn and a hedgerow or a cedar grove, sheep will usually scorn the barn.
The effects of storms tend to be very localized. Even within several fields on one farm, the conditions
