This Monday marked the first day of the lambing season for us. Over the next 6 weeks we will have 300 sheep to lamb and take care of. We are hopeful that the weather will pick up so we can turn the sheep out quite quickly. However, with it being so wet and cold, the grass just hasn’t grown.
Happy New Year, I hope you all had a relaxing and enjoyable Christmas and this grey weather has not halted any New Year resolutions.
While agricultural land values soften, more versatile blocks continue to hold up well in Gloucestershire & Oxfordshire
As the hay is in and we embark on another harvest, I get to spend a lot of time on a tractor or combine, which as most people know is where I am happiest, and where I do a lot of my thinking.
It’s harvest time! We have had an incredibly dry spring and summer which has meant that the crops are really far forward. Some people are reporting that this is the earliest they have started harvesting in many years.
Our daffodils are in full bloom, daylight hours have increased and you can feel warmth in the sun – it must be spring! It makes a real difference having more daylight hours in the day. Not only can you get more jobs completed outside but it has a real effect on our laying hens.
Unlike every other year - this year I intend on keeping my resolution, so much so I have made a start and have to say I am nailing it!!
It’s been a very dry Autumn which we have been very thankful for. The cows are still out at grass and we will keep them out so long as the ground remains firm and they still have plenty to eat. Last week the tups (male sheep) went out to start mating with the ewes.
Isn’t it satisfying to cook a meal from scratch with ingredients you produced yourself? I decided that on a blustering evening I would make toad in the hole with mash potato and cauliflower to accompany along with some meaty gravy.
ISBN: 9781785780769 - Publisher: Icon Books - Paperback: 208 pages