Farm "El Rancho", a moment to share

Some time ago, I was invited to the farm to give a talk on earthworm breeding and compost preparation. This invitation came from the Fishing School of Cumaná, Sucre State, where we would visit the farm, accompanied by professors and students of the school. I was invited because I am a specialist in the area, my wife works at the school and the farm belongs to an uncle of one of the teachers who accompanied us. The students were taking the environmental education course and it was the right time for a field day.

We took a public bus together with the teachers and students, the kids were very excited, some of them had never left the city of Cumaná. Our trip lasted approximately 2 hours, we traveled east to the town of Cariaco, then we continued towards the road to Casanay, the farm is approximately 5 kilometers before arriving to Casanay.

We arrived at noon, we were introduced to Mr. Antonio, owner of the farm, while the girls were preparing lunch we went to help pick up the fallen leaves and arrange the place where the tents would be set up for the students to spend the night. Some were encouraged to take a swim in the pool, while I visited the animals and took pictures of the place.

I was very impressed by the goat made with metal remains, Mr. Antonio told us about the history of the goat, which was made by a local farmer. I was impressed by the detail, all made in welding, a masterpiece.

I was contemplating the landscape as the afternoon was falling, it was an impressive sight, the colors of the sky that were constantly changing, as it went from a light blue to a reddish yellow and then darken completely. And the coconut trees were changing their greenness for totally black shadows until they could not be seen in the darkness.

While I was enjoying the scenery, the kids were setting up the tents, they came to pick me up and it was time for coffee, we were entertained talking with the owners about various topics, mainly about animal production, until nightfall. After that we had a conversation with the students about vermiculture and how to prepare compost.

The house where we arrived is very comfortable, very large windows where the air passes without problems, as I really like hammocks, I slept in the corridor.

The next morning I noticed that my shoes had disappeared, we were looking everywhere and they did not appear, well it turns out that there is a dog that loves to break shoes and Mr. Antonio imagined who had been but did not say anything, until someone appeared with the shoes that were in a shed, well if it was the dog that used them as a pillow but they were saved, it did not do anything to them.

After an excellent breakfast, we went to visit the corrals to continue with the conversation and collect sheep manure to continue with the preparation of compost and worm farming in the school, this manure would be transported by one of the teachers who brought his vehicle.

Then I made a tour with Mr. Antonio to take other pictures, we were talking about sheep production, he told me that there are very few people who have this breeding, he has been interested in increasing production in the area, he also has animals for sale, this breed is Persian black head, the flock is small because the farm has only 4 hectares, although it is very nice and well maintained, the area is not enough to have 3 cattle. I would like to inform you that according to the climatic conditions, soil, pasture and type of cattle to be raised, the number of animals per hectare that can be kept is calculated. For example for a bovine you need 1 animal per hectare of land, for sheep are 4 animals per hectare, this is because 1 hectare of pasture per month, is what 1 bovine or 4 sheep can eat approximately, now if you complement the nutrition with concentrated feed you can increase the number of animals per hectare, you have to make other calculations.

He also has Guineas, which are like chickens but less friendly, they always run wild in groups. We were talking about raising quail and other birds, he showed me an incubator that he has not been able to put to work, I noticed that it was missing some components, but I have not been able to pay him another visit.

We liked that place very much, I had always dreamed of something like that, a little smaller, because when you work it is not the same as when you go for a walk. Animal husbandry is a very big responsibility, they don't have vacations and there is always something to do unlike the 3 month crops, they are days of intense work, but after the sale you can rest a little and depending on how the harvest went, you can take a vacation. The next picture is of a newborn calf, we almost arrived at the birth.

On the way back, we had to go to the Casanay terminal to take the bus back to Cumaná, hoping that we can return and enjoy another pleasant days.

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