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Fuel prices affected your lifestyle or ranch management?

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Well whitewing we have done more changes in our farming practices then in our ranching practices.
we still farm in strips and summer fallow instead of block farming and chem fallow.
Biggest difference we have done was after the first big jump in fuel prices, instead of going over stubble 4-5 times to make a good seed bed we are now only going over it 3 times.
We are now speading the manure from our corrals over stubble strips and working that in. We have noticed a big difference and need less fertilizer on those strips.

As for trips I try to go into to town once a week and make it count. Get everything I need then and if I forget something too bad gotta wait til either the next week or for hubby to go in for a parts run.
 
It would be interesting to see fuel prices for each posting on this thread. Locally (between Pierre and Rapid City, SD) it is, or last week was, $3.89 or more or less, no real reason for differences apparent. Yesterday in RC, I paid $3.50, and the place was doing a brisk business!!! Other 'low' prices noticed were $3.65. I didn't notice local prices driving home.

Just about forever, most of our trips to 'the city', either Pirre or RC, were for a specific reason not often being recreation, but business or medical. Then we take care of as much other stuff as possible, whether shopping for clothes, groceries, ranch needs, etc., or visiting family or friends, often staying overnight when going to RC because we have family to stay with, and don't see them often enough........is it possible to see young grandkids 'often enough'???

We have always been pretty concerned about the bottom line, and fuel is a big item in that we trailer horses to distant pastures (26 miles to the corrals), when necessary, when trading work with neighbors, etc. If time is money, then fuel is time saved when hauling horses to the job site.

Putting up some hay is our other fuel use, and we don't use a huge amount, planning on cows grazing all winter, when possible. Calves are weaned and held in the feedlot on growing ration of hay and grain. It seems not to be practical to buy all the hay we need, though.

Re. driving slower to save fuel, I'm not sure that is always practical. I try to do it, even on the I-90, especially coming home, but it does take considerably longer. All the road construction has speed limited to 45 to 65 on quite a bit of that 120 miles. It gets pretty sleep inducing, too!!!

mrj
 
Northern Rancher said:
RSL anybody I know that has one sure likes them-those ones on tracks would be pretty sweet to fence with.
Click to expand...
Plus I think it may have large ad and promo value. Certainly will draw the eye... :lol:
 
Actually catching me working tends to bring out the cameras lol. We have a fair amount to do in the swamp back home-we usually have to wait for a few inches of frost to get around some places.
 
I guess so far 2011 hasn't been worse than 2008. It's when it gets worse is when it will get interesting.

Early this year I was hearing predictions of doom and gloom $4 and $5 gas and I did contract most of my 2011 fuel needs whereas I probably wouldn't have thought to otherwise.
 

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