Stalls in my stable are now equipped with innovative mat flooring systems that provide more supportive and even surfaces for my horses.
I share my Bedford, New York farm with four Friesians, five Sicilian donkeys, and one Fell pony. All of my equines reside happily in my large stable. My stable manager, Helen Peparo, and I are always on the lookout for sensible, easy-to-use products and supplies that keep my horses in good health. Recently, we decided to improve the comfort of the stalls by adding thick wall-to-wall waterproof mat systems by StableComfort™. These easy-to-install padded mats offer cushioning and insulation, save on the use of wood shavings, and are easy to clean.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
The stalls in my stable are walled in beautiful mahogany and outfitted with durable, safe gates, and feeders. The concrete floors, however, only had one layer of rubber matting and my oldest horse, Rinze, and two others needed a bit more cushioning for their legs and joints.
These are StableComfort™ mattresses – part of a flooring system specifically developed for horse stalls. The systems decrease leg fatique, reduce chances of possible tissue fluid accumulation, and provide a good barrier from the cold, damp floors.
The premium pads provide another layer. All the elements of these flooring systems are environmentally friendly and made from recycled materials.
After the stalls were completely emptied and cleaned, Pete measures the space.
And then he measures the mattresses. These mattresses are made, so they can be molded to fit perfectly in the stall.
Once the mattresses are inside, the individual cells can be cut to release the crumb filling and fit the dimensions of the space.
More crumb filling is emptied on top of the mattresses to fill the grooves of the mattress cells – nothing is wasted.
The crumbs are made from recycled tires. Everything is waterproof.
Using a broom, Pete carefully spreads the crumb filling into all the grooves.
Next, sheets of premium pad are put down on top of the mattresses.
Here, one can see the thickness of these padded sheets. Each of my Friesians is about 1500-pounds and need good, thick padding. These new flooring systems will be much more comfortable.
Here is a look at the layers on the stall floor – the mattress, the crumb filling, and the pads create about a four to six inch cushion. This is on top of the rubber mat that was already in place.
Next, Pete and Doug trim the existing mat, so everything is even.
Then a piece of mahogany wood is installed in the threshold of the stall to prevent any of the mats from moving.
The same is done at the rear entrance of the stall.
Any excess pad is trimmed carefully with a utility knife.
The top layer is a waterproof cover. This is a single piece of latex sheeting that is placed over the entire floor system. Once in the stall, it is pulled tight over the floor so it is flat and level.
Here, Doug secures mahogany trim over the edge of the flooring material. Mahogany wood has a straight grain, good density, extreme durability, and is resistant to rot. It is excellent material for horse stalls.
Trim is pushed down snug and installed all around the room over the top cover, so it remains taut.
Any excess top cover is then also cut.
And here is the finished edge. It looks so neat and tidy, but also so much more comfortable for my dear horses.
Here is the other side. This surface raises the floor, but is just as easy to keep clean.
And it should decrease the amount of wood shavings needed. Plus, the mattress pads allow for longer resting time when the horses are lying down.
Bond and Rinze will both be very happy on their new stall floors – maybe almost as comfortable inside as it is outside in their pastures.
Whether you're preparing a holiday dish or rushing to make a quick weekday meal, fresh herbs make any recipe stand out.
Herbs are one of my favorite things to grow in the garden. Every year, I grow lots of parsley, cilantro, thyme, rosemary, dill, basil, oregano, sage, chervil, and more. They're easy to grow and they're prolific - almost every herb is a cut-and-come-again variety, meaning one can harvest from the same plant more than once. Herbs can also be grown in raised beds or in containers, from seed or by transplanting. And, many herbs last until the first hard frost. Here at my Bedford, New York farm, we were still picking various herbs from the garden just last week.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
I am so pleased with my new raised bed garden. We had such a wonderful summer – so many delicious and nutritious vegetables and herbs grew here this year.
If you follow my blog regularly, you may have seen how I designed and planned this half-acre garden. It is located closer to my home just south of the stable in a pasture that was once used by my donkeys.
Our summer crops are done, but the weather was still quite mild last week, so many of the herbs were still doing well. These cuttings are parsley, cilantro, sage, chervil, rosemary, oregano, thyme, and fennel.
Here is sage. Salvia officinalis, the common sage or sage, is a perennial, evergreen subshrub, with woody stems, grayish leaves, and blue to purplish flowers. It is a member of the mint family Lamiaceae and native to the Mediterranean region. It is popular in fall and winter cooking and baking.
This year, I planted herbs at both ends of each bed in my garden. Here is the sage growing at the end of one of our center beds, where we also grew beans, cucumbers, and sunflowers. Sage should be planted in well-draining soil and in full sun.
Oregano is also an herb from the mint, or Lamiaceae family. Oregano is strongly aromatic and has a slightly bitter, pungent flavor.
Oregano leaves are generally oval, dark green, and positioned in opposite pairs along the stems. Some varieties have fuzzy leaves.
I always grow parsley – I use it in my daily green juice. Parsley, or garden parsley, is a species of flowering plant in the family Apiaceae. It’s great in sauces, soups, and stews. It may be finely minced and rubbed on meats before cooking. It is often added to pesto and salads and it is commonly used as a garnish.
This is curly parsley. It is a bit more bitter than flat parsley, and has a light fragrance.
Over the summer, our curly parsley grew so well. Everyone who visited the gardens admired our crop of curly parsley.
Thyme, Thymus vulgaris, is an herb rich in vitamins A and C. The flowers, leaves, and oil are commonly used to flavor foods.
Here is our thyme growing in the bed. The flowers are tiny, tubular, and colors vary from white, pink, and purple. The flowers of thyme are rich in nectar and attractive to bees and butterflies.
Rosemary, Rosmarinus officinalis L. is an evergreen bushy shrub which grows along the Mediterranean Sea, and sub-Himalayan areas. It is widely used as a spice when cooking, especially in Mediterranean dishes.
Here is our rosemary planted around the asparagus bed. Everything was so prolific.
We also grew dill. Dill, Anethum graveolens, is an annual herb in the celery family Apiaceae. It is native to North Africa, Iran, and the Arabian Peninsula. Dill has a distinctive taste which is likened to fennel and celery. Closely related to parsley, its fresh aroma is popularly used with fish and seafood dishes.
The leaves of fennel are almost identical to those of dill. Fennel plants, which are native to the Mediterranean basin, have a bulbous base that can be eaten like a vegetable, feathery fronds that are used as an herb, and seeds that can be dried for a spice.
And then there is cilantro. Some love it and some hate it. Of course some of this dislike may be preference, but for those whom the plant tastes like soap, the issue is genetic. Some individuals have a variation in a group of olfactory-receptor genes that allows them to strongly perceive the soapy-flavored aldehydes in cilantro leaves. I love cilantro and often call it coriander. Cilantro is the name for the leaves and stems of the coriander plant. When the plant flowers and turns to seed, the seeds are called coriander.
Another popular herb in my garden is basil. Basil is an herb in the mint family that is in season primarily June through September. It adds flavor to meals, and its nutrients are said to have some health benefits, such as reducing stress and supporting the cardiovascular system. Sweet basil plays a role in many Mediterranean, and particularly Italian, cuisines.
Basil is a tender plant that can be sown outdoors once temperatures warm up in early summer.
Now, the garden is nearly all cleaned up for the season. We’ve already started planting our crops in the vegetable greenhouse. But come spring, we’ll be out here again, tending the beds for another year of delicious, natural foods.
Here at my Bedford, New York farm, my peafowl love to get out and explore.
Peafowl are very social birds - they usually travel in groups, enjoy foraging, and often play together. They are also very loyal and tend to stay where they are well-fed and well-protected. I currently have 16 of these magnificent birds. They live in a very safe and comfortable pen near my stable, where they get lots of attention from visitors. Yesterday, I let them out for a short while to roam the property - they walked around the stable, through the gardens, and even perched high on the rooftops. And then after a few hours, they were led back to their familiar enclosure, where I know they are safe and sound.
Enjoy these photos.
I keep all my birds in large, protected enclosures because of the predators that sometime wander through the property, such as coyotes. On this day, I decided to give the peafowl a little freedom to explore. Here is one male walking past the long boxwood allée.
And here is an all-white male following closely behind.
These birds are going in the opposite direction, but where one goes, others are sure to follow.
Peafowl are smart, docile and adaptable birds. They are also quite clever. It is not unusual for peafowl to come running when the food appears.
This group is headed toward my new raised bed vegetable garden, checking out the ginkgo tree and all its fallen leaves on the way.
Peafowl are ground feeders. They do most of their foraging in the early morning and evening. As omnivores, they eat insects, plants, grains, and small creatures.
In all I have 16 peafowl – juveniles and adults. Within a year, peacocks are almost completely mature. Two year olds resemble adult males, but their tails are still short and need time to develop. They become sexually active around the age of three. Peahens develop faster than peacocks and can mate as early as one.
Here are two in front of my stable office exploring every nook. Peafowl are happiest when living in small groups. They often walk around following each other.
As beautiful as peafowl are, they don’t make very melodious sounds. Peafowl have 11 different calls, with most of the vocalizing made by the peacocks. And, with their sharp eyesight, peafowl are quick to see predators and call out alarms. Oftentimes, I can hear them from across the farm.
Like many birds, peafowl enjoy roosting at higher levels. In the wild, this keeps them safe from predators at night. Here is one peacock up on the stable office roof just watching all the activities.
Peafowl also have acute hearing, but can be poor at discerning from what direction certain sounds originate.
After a few hours, it was time to lead the ostentation back to its pen. Peafowl are members of the pheasant family. There are two Asiatic species – the blue or Indian peafowl native to India and Sri Lanka, and the green peafowl originally from Java and Burma, and one African species, the Congo peafowl from African rain forests. Here is one of my blue peacocks – it is no longer breeding season, so his tail is short. It will grow full feathers again next spring when mating season starts.
Here is a curious female – coming up to see the camera. Female peafowl are more dull brown in color.
Both male and female peafowl have a fan-shaped crest on their heads called a corona. It may take up to one year for a corona to reach full size.
And look at its feet. A peafowl’s legs are very strong. They have three toes on each foot facing forward, and one facing backwards. They also have sharp, powerful metatarsal spurs that are used for defense. Also, as they develop, males will tend to have longer legs than females.
Here is a female perched on the other side of the yard. I always call out to them whenever I drive by… and oftentimes, they answer.
Many had also gone into the coop to perch. Peafowl will look at you in the eye; however, if you stare at them or seem aggressive in your body movements, these birds will feel threatened. Talking softly and keeping eyes averted tells them you are not a predator.
They are put indoors every night – to keep them extra safe.
This white peacock is roosting on the rafters inside the coop. The white peacocks are so beautiful. White peacocks are the result of leucism or albinism. While leucistic white peacocks are far more common than albino peacocks, both types are rare.
And remember, only the males are peacocks. The females are peahens, and both are called peafowl. Babies are peachicks. A family of peafowl is called a bevy. And a group is called an “ostentation” or a “muster.” I am very happy my ostentation of peafowl is thriving here at Cantitoe Corners.
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