Barn Animals after a Nor’Easter Winter Storm

A Nor'easter winter storm dumped around 20" (50cm) of snow on us. Temperatures chilled out to around freezing on these shortest days of the year. Though the landscape has changed dramatically in a short time, the barn animals seem to be getting by just fine.
I’m documenting the seasons and various weather events at this 200-acre educational campus in the Adirondacks, upstate New York.
No commentary, just the environment as best as my amateur video making abilities can capture it. This is the latest video in the [playlist (chronological order)]( • Goat Rock Forest Garden ) I’ve been making.
One of the primary functions of this forest garden is as a demonstration site for teaching people the value of perennial agriculture and gardening systems. Students and faculty get to experience the dynamic, semi-managed living system with over a hundred species and varieties of edible plants and fungi.
The garden blurs the line between cultivated and wild. It exists within the larger adirondack temperate/boreal forest ecosystem which is one of the last remaining intact systems of its kind. Despite that most of the old growth was cleared over a century ago, the native ecology still dominates. The ecosystem is still recovering from and adapting to these disturbances. However, things are changing much faster now as we head into the mid 21st century. We are seeing entire shifts in the ranges of many species and plant communities. Precipitation regimes are changing.
Part of our goal is to try to bring climate resiliency to the area by creating a hot spot of biodiversity. The ranges of ecosystems are in flux and evolution of life on earth is entering a period of rapid change. Some species will go extinct, at least locally, while others will move in and undergo speciation. Populations will become reproductively isolated, adapt to new environments, and some will radiate into many new species. On evolutionary timelines, “novel” ecosystems will form as new assemblages of life adapt to each other. It will become increasingly difficult to define species as native or non-native, let alone restore ecosystems of the past.
Anyway, hope you enjoy the video. I welcome any suggestions, criticisms, wishes, etc. What kinds of things do you want to see? There is so much going on here that can be documented and shared.
I used different audio recording equipment for this video so hopefully it's better. Headphones recommended.
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The Goat Rock Forest Garden project began in 2016. It’s a few acres in the middle of a ~200 acre educational farm/school/camp in the high peaks region of the Adirondacks, upstate New York (zone 4a). We experience very long and cold winters, which is our main challenge / constraint at this site. People of all ages and backgrounds share this space, so we’re seizing this opportunity to create a proper demonstration / educational space that teaches the ideas of permaculture, agroecology, regenerative ag, sustainable food production, etc.
We have lots of different edible perennial plants. The canopy layer consists of many varieties of apples, pears, plums, apricots, cherries, buartnuts, walnuts, chestnuts, black locust, oaks, serviceberries, and native support trees like aspens, various conifers, etc. The shrub layer consists of many varieties of blueberries, currants, raspberries, haskaps, seaberry, elderberry, hazelnuts, various native plants, and more. Groundcover consists of things like strawberries, comfrey, lowbush blueberries and cranberries, various herbs like mint, oregano, thyme, and lots more.
The purpose of this project is to establish a low-maintenance food production system that engages the community in sustainable & ethical land management. It is intended to provide food / medicine / materials as well as provide interdisciplinary educational opportunities for people of all ages & backgrounds.
This garden is is an example of so-called “alternative” or “non-conventional” agricultural practices. These include disciplines such as agroecology (agriculture that mimics natural ecological systems), permaculture (sustainable & self-sufficient design), regenerative agriculture (conservation approach that focuses on topsoil regeneration, biodiversity, improving water cycle, biosequestration, & mitigating climate change), agroforestry & silvopasture (integration of trees & shrubs with animals), organic agriculture (growing & processing food without the use of synthetic fertilizers & pesticides), and food sovereignty (the right to healthy & culturally appropriate food produced through ecologically sound & sustainable methods), among others.

[@herecomestheboi1285]

Such a peaceful scenery. everything is so blanketed in white, the horses almost look surreal with their colors.

[@AgroecologicalSystems]

Surreal is a good way to describe it. It’s amazing seeing how everything changes after just a few days.

[@DS-nv8bi]

the animals look so healthy and calm cat face cry baby is another story perhaps

[@AgroecologicalSystems]

Hehe yea, mercury was looking a little disheveled.