Busy as a Beaver

Memory filled day. Back in 1995/6 my then agricultural godfather, Sepp (Josef) Ort and his boss & wife Heidi were faced with a big decision: whether to invest massively in the cow stables to modernise and increase size, a long term investment. Unsure if any of their three still very young children would want to take on the business/debts later, the increasing EU rules, instability of milk price, environmental issues .......

As many farmers, he also had some forest, traditionally a farmers "bank", a long term investment from one generation to the next and the source of cash when a capital spend was planned. Also a source of winter time work. So while he had a few of the basic bits of equipment and experience, the massive storms of the late '80s had caused wood prices to fall, so this business area was also risky. However he sensed there was soething to be done in forestry services.

In the end the decision fell on the wood side. I was lucky enough to learn much of the work involved on the cow side before they gave it up and also some of the early days of the wood business.

This happened at exactly the time they had to replace their house central heating and being "environmentaly" aware,they went for a wood chip system, in those days considered quirky. My diary shows on 1st April 1996, a wood chipper demonstration but I can't find the dates when I helped convert a garage for the system or when Sepp and I drove a few hundered kilometers to buy a machine.

Those early days had their problems, the concerns of whether they could earn a living without the monthly milk cheque, the teething technical problems with the heating system as well as the sceptics who pronounced there was no future for such ideas. With lots of hard work, the two have built a very succesful business.

Today Sepp's successor as my agricultural godfather, Franz, was clearing away some of the damage caused by storm Gonzalo a few weeks ago. Franz replaced his old oil central heating to wood chips a few years ago. Milk remains the main business but Franz & family are also faced with the same questions Sepp had 20 years ago.

For the moment Franz does not own a chipper but like most rents one from the local cooperative. The model such as in the Blip, an Eschelböck Biber 7 (Biber=Beaver) and coincidentally the same model Sepp first bought, costs as much as a very good new Mercedes Benz. Can deal with wood up to 35cm diameter.

Franz was hoping to have an hour in the afternoon to come over and deal with our hedge. So I took the dogs for a walk over to where they were working in the morning. Became clear that despite Franz & Marcus being helped by a neighbouring Farmer, they were going to be pushed for time, having to pass on the chipper to the next renter at 16:00. And indeed they were kept busy until the deadline and then had to get changed and in to the cow stables for the evening feeding and milking.

Shame but never mind. Knowing Franz he will do his best to sort something out but I may well hire a smaller, car pullable, version and do it myself. Still a lovely warm day, Marcus in the photo in short sleeves!

Now some will ask why I haven't done another of my "Monday Saint Blips". Well I couldn't get out and about in case Franz did find time but at least I can claim to have Bliped in photo (Franz=Francis) and in word (Sepp=Josef), two for me important "patron" persons who I owe much too. In Bavaria the double barrelled forename "Franz-Josef" used to be very popular. Munich's airport is named "Franz-Josef Strauss", hardly a holy person but credited for putting Bavaria on the modern day map.