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Our pig saga continues. Having replaced our very rare boar that perhaps had not done as he should with an older, proven close relative of his [his Uncle], we now discover that perhaps he had actually been alright after all.
A few more weeks should hopefully produce the evidence we desperately need. In the meantime his immediate death sentence has been lifted and he is now amusing himself in the empty cattle shed digging for tasty treats of old barley that had fallen behind the troughs where the cattle couldn’t reach.
The cattle were turned out this week too and we had a major rodeo as we let over fifty cattle out on to the lush spring grass. Every year is reassuringly the same – the cattle trumpet their joy at being let out as they run down the road kicking their heels in the air. It never fails to lifts one’s heart especially as the task of feeding them twice daily with home grown cereals and homegrown hay or silage is lifted. One old farmer friend used to state: ” The day of bondage is ended for another year”, until November when it all starts again with the next batch of calves to be weaned.
While examining the sows who are very quiet and really quite tame for pigs I made the terrible mistake of stepping over one very friendly girl to try to read her ear tattoo. I had one leg on each side of this chattering supine pig [who always chunters away as if she is having a full conversation] this proved to be a major error. Even with my glasses on I struggled to read the number and she got a bit fed up with me turning her ear inside out and peering at her. So she stood up. As a full grown sow this meant I was now completely astride the pig, with no way for my feet to reach the ground. “Uh oh” I thought “this could be painful”.. and with my hands I pushed down on her back to try to ease myself off her. This extra pressure to her to her meant “go” and she shot off across the orchard to join her friends with me on her back. “What are you doing?” came the cry from across the pens.. “Trying to get off” said I. Shock turned to laughter, both from those on the ground and from me on top of the pig, which made it worse as I couldn’t laugh and get off at the same time.
The sow decided she’d had enough - and gave a sharp turn to the left and humped her back firmly depositing me onto my knees on the hard ground. My pride took the greatest fall, although more than a week on I still bear the bruises, and I definitely won’t being doing that again..
We’ve just had a bird survey done by a RSPB volunteer. It is very interesting to read the results however as it is done at a specific time over a 3+ hour period it can only be a snapshot of the birdlife here at Prosperous Farm.
The list includes: Blackbird, Blackcap, Black headed gull, Blue tit, Carrion crow, Chaffinch, Chiffchaff, Collared dove, Dunnock, Goldfinch, Great tit, Green woodpecker, Greenfinch, Grey partridge, House sparrow, Jackdaw, Lapwing, Linnet, Long tailed tit, Mallard, Meadow pipit, Moorhen, pheasant, Red-legged partridge, Robin, Rook, Skylark, Swallow, Whitethroat, Wood pigeon, Wren, and Yellow hammer.
In the same week that this survey was done we saw both Buzzards and Red kites, heard the Cuckoo and the Little owl call as well as the Song thrush sing in the garden. Several Canada geese also visited the pond, we heard them long before we actually saw them, and there have been so many Magpies around that the imminent arrival of the next generation in the family has worked out first to be a girl and then a boy.
It is rewarding to know that the conservation work we are doing is helping to maintain and increase the flora and fauna. We now have a whole meadow of Cowslips and have recently shut the gate to keep the livestock stock out. We will only open it for grazing later in the season in order to preserve these delightful spring plants.
I hope when it is my time to leave this earth it is peaceful and quick, and not right in the middle of a public footpath.
Sheep are notorious for their ease of dying, and today one very pregnant ewe died suddenly, in the middle of the footpath, in full glare of the warm spring sun. It must have been quick, she had not struggled as the ground was not on this occasion torn up by thrashing limbs, and there were no obvious clues as to her demise, plus she looked perfectly alright yesterday.
However the warm sun shining on her once active body attracted flies by the multitude and the usually pleasant [if you like animals] warm sheep smell resonant of lanolin and grass is soon replaced by something very distinct that cloys in the nose and throat, and is best avoided.
It is in the nature of farming and working with livestock which inevitably leads to coping with deadstock some of the time. We have a large on-farm incinerator which we are licensed to use for sheep and as I write this she is now a cloud of smoke in the previously clear April sky.
Unfortunately after the excitement of last week and the thought that perhaps I had at last found the right horse, it was just not meant to be.
A delightful ride out, unaccompanied, which made my heart sing while my head firmly told me that this delightful little horse was too green to be considered. If he had had another 6 months riding out then the result would probably be just what I am looking for.
I have also sadly discounted the other one who had up to now run a close second. My head told me she was good and steady but my heart wasn’t really interested in her.. funny how vitally important it is for the two to be in unison.
As I have said before finding a good horse is like finding a good husband or wife… very difficult but it can be done. Although unfortunately for many it is not always first time, and there is always the settling down period for all parties whether they have four legs or two.
Good sheepdogs fall into this same category and right now we are still looking for one of those as our good old girl has finally retired from the field, she is still very fit in body but her mind is not as it was. Her life span is not however guaranteed as she has taken to chasing vehicles and biting tyres in a big way and can no longer be easily stopped. The Manitou wheels are her favourite this week and just when she has a big chunk of tyre in her teeth, the machine often goes into reverse. We have tried everything we can to prevent her doing this but we do still allow her out in the yard when we are there to take her chance otherwise she’d be shut in all day and she’d hate that.
Anyway, I am not too downhearted over horses and am just off to ride another one today. What could be better than riding in the glorious sunshine? Even with over two hours to drive each way.
Like before, on the phone, this horse sounds good and could be what we are looking for, but I no longer read too much into what people tell me. I ride it and handle it before deciding what to do next.
Sleeping on a difficult decision is always useful too. When young I was particularly hopeless at this, but age has helped to temper my impetuous nature a little, and I am optimistic that there is a little horse out there somewhere with our name on it.
The lambs continue to arrive in a steady flow, helped along by the glorious weather, and Ruby is over her mastitis and providing us with milk once more.
POSTSCRIPT: this is my 100th Post! When I started to blog I had no idea how quickly 100 posts would come around. Time passes quickly in our busy lives and the words seem to flow from the fingers quickly too. Thank you to all my readers and particularly those who are kind enough to take the time to comment.
Another two calves and a lot more lambs have been born today. Lovely sunshine here but still a cold wind.
The plants in the greenhouse are doing really well. If we don’t get a move on in the actual veg garden they will be huge by the time we are able to plant them. Even the first 24 sweetcorn plants have popped up in their individual pots yesterday, it is wonderful to see new growth and new life all around and to be part of it.
However, before we can plant out my seedlings we must do something about some of the hens. A few of them laugh at the electric fence and spend all day in the veg garden. I tried to shut them in last night and planned take the scissors to their wings this morning and up the charge on the electric fence as well. We also need to find where two are laying because it is not in the snug nest box and I know I am short of eggs.
Mmmmm… my plans did not go very well. I’d cleaned out and disinfected one hen house yesterday using Jeyes fluid as we seem to have an outbreak of red mite and I have opened up the other hen house for them. I use these two houses in rotation with a major disinfection and long rest period in between each use.
At bed time I find four out of the five hens sitting on the disinfected hen house in a huddle. In the dark I manage to take three of them [one at a time] to the ’clean’ house. One hen was missing, not sure where she slept despite shining torches in all the trees, and the other naughty hen refused to be caught. But there were still five hens scavenging this morning and yes you’ve guessed it – two of them [ the two I can't catch] back in the veggie garden.. this led to the word “gun” being mentioned by Jethro at breakfast.. this usually comes out for pigeons and rabbits.
Almost a week has passed since I last blogged and it has been another really busy week. Lambing is now properly underway, and we have had another calf born safely. We’ve had three calves so far this spring and it is lovely to see them skipping in the sunshine.
Unusually, I have driven almost 1000 miles this week either viewing and riding horses to replace the previous horse who didn’t settle, or undertaking farm business. I am quite glad to be at home today for once even though I have been working flat out since 6am..
I think I have found a suitable horse for riding around the farm and hope to return on Monday for one more ride on him before agreeing to one month’s trial. It has been very hard to choose between two particular horses [ and of course they were 200 miles apart] after looking at and riding many equines over the last few weeks.
Only two were not as described in their particulars, or by their owner [with one, I should have remembered to ask about feet before doing a 250 mile round trip], and we have seen a huge variety of types and breeds, but it has finally come down to a choice of two and after next week I hope to be able to write more about the experience.
I have however met some lovely people along the way. The trust that has been shown to us, to take horses out unaccompanied and alone by someone that they don’t really know [or have any idea if we can ride] has been amazing and a very important part of the process. One little horse was almost discounted as when rode her for the first time, in the company of other horses, she almost went to sleep. Taking her out on her own, a month later, was much better, however I think she will probably be the last losser… but I am trying to be very objective about the whole process and have also taken advice. If the two finalists could have merged together I believe we’d truly have the perfect steed, but I guess that only happens in dreams.
We have also had a farm walk this week with fifty visitors of all ages. These educational visits are brilliant for making us have a major tidy up around all the buildings. Perhaps it is time for visitors in the farmhouse too… but since the Dining room is already overflowing with educational material for OPEN FARM SUNDAY, perhaps it will have to wait. It is always very interesting to us to hear new questions from the public about what we do, and to see how they act when visiting a farm. There are always a few people who think they can go anywhere they like on the premises and others who make the day for us by being so polite, patient and so very interesting.
All the plants that were potted on last weekend have grown on well, and I still hope to plant the onion setts very soon but must be careful not to over do the bending.. all our backs are creaking right now and we are all queuing up for the chiropractor. The cauliflower seeds have come up in record time but I am slightly confused by the instructions in the gardening book and no longer sure if we are growing late summer ones or early winter ones.. so long as we can eat them in due course that is all that matters.
PS: Poor Ruby has mastitis again, and is back on the intramammary tubes. We had to rush out and buy milk for the house, and hope she will be better soon. She has been turned out with the bull by day and is back in her byre at night. We hope to be back on her milk by Wednesday as we always go over the reccommended withdrawal period for all medicines.
Happy Easter!
Once again the days seem to have have flown and I have a gap in my regular blogging. This is partly due to the workload here and also from a much needed few days away from the farm.
The grass and crops are growing well and the sheep start lambing this week. We’ve had 2 calves born so far, and more due very soon. The greenhouse and conservatory are very full of plants waiting for the milder weather to plant out. 500 onion setts await immediate planting [ they only arrived last week by post] but since it has rained all over the weekend I have caught up with transplanting tomato and cucumber seedlings and sowing the sweetcorn, courgette, pumpkin and squash seeds under cover of glass instead.
We are also deep into planning for Open Farm Sunday and LEAF have sent us many packets of seeds to distribute to the children when they visit the farm. These seed packets are provided by DEFRA and in our large batch seem to be predominantly red pepper seeds. There is also Rocket, Cress and Basil but as a seasoned gardener and grower of veg from seed I am very surprised by the choice of seeds since these packets are meant to encourage children to grow things. How many children actually like Rocket and how many will have the patience to try to grow peppers?
The day itself is not until 7th June, and that to my mind is late in the season for growing peppers. I have some grown from seed planted earlier this year that are ready to finally pot on now and I have planted the Defra pepper and basil seeds which arrived this week in the hope that we will at least have plants on display. Nearer the time I shall sow cress and rocket for the BIG DAY. I now have even more seed packets coming from another source, quick growing lettuce this time. If we don’t use them all I shall send them in to the local schools so they will be used up. I expect the numbers of visitors we will get on the day will depend almost entirely on the weather.
There is so much to think about for this big open day from First Aid cover to portaloos to catering and just what will interest our visitors and most worryingly will we have enough helpers? We will all be adding events management to our CV’s and do seem to be managing all this quite well without having a degree in the subject. Between us we just have several lifetimes of experience, an understanding of Health and Safety and buckets of common sense!
