I cut down five or six burdock plants that were growing in the pasture. They were just starting to sprout their velcro-like buds, the ones that get stuck in the sheep’s wool and torture me when it come time to skirt their fleeces. I’m sure there’s more out there, I know I’ll never get them all. I pulled some beggar ticks from Fanny’s mane too. These are tiny, conical seeds not as difficult to remove as burdock, but still a nuisance. Right now, the sheep’s wool is pretty clean, but I know as the end of summer comes, so do all the sticky seeds. We might close up the back pasture, where most of the brambles are if I start to see a lot of seeds in their coats. I don’t want to repeat last fall shearing where I spent many more hours than usual separating seeds from wool, getting it ready for the mill.
Your yarn is always beautiful.
You used to put those coats on the sheep to keep the fleeces clean. Why aren’t you doing that anymore? Do they not work or is it a pain to keep the covers on the sheet? Or maybe the covers are too hot. Just wondering.
The jackets were hard to work with, Dee. They needed to be adjusted as the sheep grew and a few times the sheep got tangled in them when they tried to take them off. Zelda wouldn’t keep her’s on. And I really love seeing the sheep in their wool in the pasture instead of seeing them in jackets.