Smallholding
Birthdays / Champagne / Newburgh
Monday 30 June, 2025
Monday 23rd June
Dogs got me up at 5.30am. Overcast and breezy, mainly, with some sun.
Baked ginger nuts and mincemeat cookies, the latter for the event at the hub tomorrow evening.
The roofer came to measure up for new gutters on the house. The existing ones are the originals and have come to the end of their life. It would be great to replace with cast iron, but it’s prohibitively expensive and needs too much maintenance.
Alistair dropped off three ewes, to join the nine here. One was at the Highland Show and was here until last week, the other two he bought in-lamb; they lambed later than the rest of the flock, so have just been weaned. So they’re now in Home and up to their bellies in grass.
Highland Show / Solstice / Beret
Monday 23 June, 2025
Monday 16th June
Mild, overcast, light breeze. Big week in prospect, with Thursday and Friday at the Highland Show – RBST on Thursday, Scottish Smallholder Festival on Friday – then SNP National Council on Saturday. Dan has jury duty Tuesday definitely and probably Wednesday, but hopefully that will be it.
Sheep moved into Sheepfold this morning. It might do them two weeks, being twice the size of the other paddocks, although the grass isn’t as good.
Pullets / Strimming / Kitten gym
Monday 16 June, 2025
Week ending 15th June
Very short diary entry this week, as nothing much happened. The weather was lovely until Saturday, when we had biblical rain. But that was fine as the ground really needed it.
Tractor work is pretty much suspended until I get more red diesel. If it runs out of diesel, it’s a real faff to get it going again. The weather is set fair for the next week though, so it will be fine to get topping and harrowing then.
Sheep came into Near Ditch to share with the ponies, who have started going out overnight. It’s a wee bit of a faff because the sheep have a licky bucket that the ponies would love but that would do them no good at all, so gates are opened and closed morning and evening.
Sweet peas / Embroidery / Pullets
Monday 9 June, 2025
Saturday 7th June
Oops, I did it again and forgot to write up my diary daily.
Not a very busy week Dalmore-wise. The leeks have finally sprouted. The runners, sweetcorn and the remaining courgette look poor. I made muck tea, so am feeding them.
Move the sheep to Far Ditch on Monday after Alistair came and weaned the lambs and took them home; he brought another two ewes, making ten. Not a squeak out of them. I guess the joys of motherhood had palled.
Lorna and I took our usual constitutional along Arbroath seafront on Tuesday. The wind was strong and the sea grey and choppy, but it wasn’t cold.
Smokey / Brassicas / Weeds
Sunday 1 June, 2025
Monday 26th May
Rain overnight again, sunny daytime but very, very windy.
Moved the sheep to Far Top; the ewes grazed and the lambs bolted off to explore the fence line. There’s still a lot of grass in Near Top (and Home), so the ponies can use Near Top for a week or so, while we harrow Near Ditch (then top and harrow Home and Near Top).
Smokey seems better today. He’s certainly moving fine and is much happier in himself. He ate his doctored food (which I topped with some black treacle), so fingers crossed for a full recovery.
Shearing / Show / Smokey
Monday 26 May, 2025
Monday 19th May
Cool this morning, and overcast; the sun got out by lunchtime but a very brisk breeze kept the temperature down.
The polytunnel strawberries are doing well but will need repotted in the autumn.
Polytunnel strawberries.
I moved the sheep into Near Top; my plan is to move them every Monday. Didn’t do much outside, but got beds changed and washed.
Anniversary / Birthdays / Openings
Sunday 18 May, 2025
Monday 12th May
Cooler this morning, and overcast first thing, but the sun got out. It's warmth was somewhat tempered by the continuing easterly breeze.
It’s Smokey’s 28th birthday, so he and Mickey shared three cans of Guinness. We don’t know when Mickey’s birthday is, although we guess he’s of similar vintage to Smokey, so they’re going to share May 12th.
I didn’t get into the garden, except to water the new baby plants but Dan finished weeding the heather bed. The little conifer that came out of a pot after many years, has been destroyed by “something”.
Sunshine / Vegetables / Cooper
Monday 12 May, 2025
Monday 5th May to Sunday 11th May
Can’t do a daily diary unless I do it daily, so this is a weekly one. The weather has remained warm, sunny and dry. Mainly warm, definitely dry; we’ve been putting the sprinklers on in the vegetable garden and front garden alternate nights. The lawn grass is crispy, but the fields look well.
Sprinkler on.
Peas / Lavender / Sheep
Monday 5 May, 2025
Phew, how did it get to be “Star Wars Day”? May the fourth be with you!
Last diary entry was 20th April; from 28th April to 1st May, my daughter and I were taking a short break, but what happened in the preceding week is anyone’s guess.
So let’s focus on the first weekend in May. The last fortnight has been mostly dry, mostly sunny and sometimes warm. And sometimes not. The main feature has been the lack of rain; we’ve been using the sprinklers in both front and back gardens.
Seeds / Sheep / A hole
Sunday 20 April, 2025
Monday 14th April
Fatality in the cheeps this morning. Nothing obvious, just dead; I noticed one wasn’t moving well yesterday, so hopefully that’s the one. The rest all look grand but they’re so vulnerable at that age and size.
Dan was off harrowing before breakfast, as planned. At 8am, it felt warmer than the forecast 6C. 70% chance of rain. Fingers crossed. And we have rain; it’s been falling lightly most of the day. We can almost see plants growing.
