There is always something that could be done on a farm. A stall could be swept. A fence could be checked. Weeds could be pulled. Something could probably use fixing. Looking at all those possibilities, it would be easy to think we spend every waking hour doing daily farm chores.
We don’t.
One of the biggest things we have learned at The Tart Farm is that having responsibilities does not mean every minute of the day has to be filled with work.

Daily Farm Chores Have a Routine

Most of our regular animal care happens during predictable parts of the day. Morning means milking when the does are in milk, feeding everyone, checking water, opening the chickens, and looking over the animals. Evening brings another round of feeding and water checks. The chickens are closed safely for the night, and the goats are milked again when needed.

Because we do these jobs every day, we have worked hard to make them efficient. Feed is stored where we need it. Supplies stay close to where they are used. The four-wheeler carries feed, hay, water, and equipment up and down our hills. Good systems don’t remove responsibility. They make responsibility easier to manage.

Bigger Farm Jobs Are Planned

Of course, not every day looks the same. Processing chickens, repairing fencing, working on the barn, preparing for winter, or tackling a large garden harvest can take much longer than normal chores. Whenever possible, we plan those jobs for weekends. That is when everyone is home and we have more hands available. A Saturday spent building something or processing chickens may be a busy farm day. That doesn’t mean every Tuesday looks like Saturday. Planning the bigger jobs for the right time helps keep our normal days predictable.

There are mornings when the four-wheeler looks less like farm equipment and more like the supply cart for a very demanding zoo exhibit.

The front rack carries jugs of water. Meanwhile, the back basket might hold hay, buckets, the milk cooler, feed, and freshly chopped zucchini for the goats and chickens. Somehow, everyone at The Tart Farm has a breakfast order.
However, the four-wheeler represents more than convenience. It has become an important part of making our homestead sustainable as we get older.

When the Wheelbarrow Did All the Work

Two years ago, I didn’t have a four-wheeler. Everything that needed to reach the goat barn and chicken coop went down our steeply sloped driveway in a wheelbarrow. That included feed, hay, water, tools, and anything else needed for morning or evening chores. Going downhill with a loaded wheelbarrow requires plenty of control. Of course, whatever goes down also means another trip back up. At the time, I simply did it because that was how the chores got done.
Still, homesteading has a wonderful way of teaching you where you need better systems.

Working Smarter Around the Farm

Eventually, the four-wheeler changed the entire routine. Instead of balancing multiple loads in a wheelbarrow, I can load everything at once and drive it down. Now we are taking another step forward.

When my sister and brother-in-law visited recently, my brother-in-law installed gutters on the goat barn. They will help direct rainwater away from the barn and improve drainage around an area that can become very wet. My sister has since bought me a rain barrel, and Rick is getting ready to finish the system by connecting it to those gutters.

The barrel will do double duty. In addition to helping manage rainwater, it will give me a water source right beside the goat barn. We also plan to add a heater so the water won’t freeze during the winter. That means fewer jugs of water loaded onto the four-wheeler and fewer trips from the house, even when the temperature drops.

Building a Farm We Can Keep Enjoying

We are getting closer to our sixties, and I think about that when we plan projects now. The goal isn’t to eliminate physical work. Farm life will always involve lifting, carrying, walking, cleaning, fixing, and occasionally chasing something that has absolutely no intention of being caught. Instead, making our homestead sustainable means looking at repetitive jobs and asking, “How can we make this easier on our bodies five or ten years from now?”

A four-wheeler helped.
The gutters and rain barrel will help.
And I suspect our farm will keep evolving one practical little improvement at a time.

Preferably before the goats add anything else to their breakfast order.