Smallholding
Buttons / Beans / Apples
Monday 8 June, 2020
Monday 1st June
Nice and cool at 5.30 am then hot and sunny – rain forecast for tomorrow though. Spent most of the day in the vegetable garden, planting out replacement peas and weeding. I’ve ordered more seeds – not a single carrot germinated from the ones I sowed. That’s poor, even for me.
Moved the cattle to Near Top and Home – plenty long stuff for them to graze off. I didn’t intend to let them into Home, which is where the sheep are supposed to be, but a rail was down on the dividing fence and somehow a lamb always ends up on the wrong side form its mammy. So it was easier (and quieter) to open the gate. Dan’s fixed the rail now.
Milk / Cheese / Sweetpeas
Wednesday 3 June, 2020
Monday 25th May
No rats in the trap this morning. Not sure if I’m disappointed or relieved – bit of both. Took the ponies across the golf course. Dan made a soft cheese and added garlic and herbs to half. The other half is for a cheesecake.
Ace and Blizzard shared the hay today.
Blizzard and Ace, sharing.
Rats / Waistcoat / Peas
Tuesday 26 May, 2020
Monday 18th May
We’ve had very welcome rain overnight and it’s a bit cooler. Dan carried on topping Laing’s Field. I started to plant out tomatoes in the polytunnel but didn’t get it finished. Then we sat in the sun and drank wine. Because it's Monday.
Tuesday 19th May
I have become “Envelope writer in chief”. Dan sells comfrey root and crowns via Dalmore Coft and my job is to address the envelopes, using my best handwriting. One customer, who phoned with a query, said how neat it was. I felt very pleased; it was like being six years old again.
Flies / Shearing / Decade
Tuesday 19 May, 2020
Monday 11th May
Sunny, cool in the wind. The cows have decided that Ace is part of the herd again – they brought the calves round to the field shelter, so I decided they were telling me something and let him out. He was far more interested in grass than girls.
Milked Rosie and Annie then tagged the calves. We planned to ring Albie but failed to find any balls so we’ll get the vet to do the job sometime, but before he gets too big. Bringing them in was a pantomime – the cows aren’t liking the surface of the Triangle and raceway to the barn so that’s a bit of coaxing – then the calves took off across two paddocks – tails in the air like warthogs. After their run, they trotted into the barn no bother – not so sure they’ll be as happy to come in tomorrow.
Calves / Potatoes / Milk
Monday 11 May, 2020
Monday 4th May
So, the cattle are out and very happy they are too. Blizzard is lame again but I can't do anything about it now: once Rosie and Annie have calved, I'll get the trimmer along to do their feet and hopefully the vet to see Blizzard's at the same time.
Dan made up his comfrey orders - it's quite a considerable task every week, but we're not complaining. He's also been germinating peas on damp kitchen roll - definitley the way to do it. I sowed some in pots and had rubbish germination - this way, you know before you plant. He's going to do the runners the same way, for the same reason.
Kit / Ponies / Cake
Monday 4 May, 2020
Monday 27th April
Euro was a bit lame this morning, but it was just a stone in his hoof. It’s one of the downsides of having the track resurfaced with type 1. The farrier was out to Smokey, so he had a quick look at Ave and Euro, but said they were fine. Smokey’s feet needed a good trim – never realised he had such tiny feet until I started picking out Euro’s dinner plates.
We had rain! This is good. Dan did his comfrey orders and I sorted out the tags and registration information for the ewe lambs. It needs to be done while we still know who belongs to whom. There’s only seven to register this year.
Grass / Potatoes / Rolling
Monday 27 April, 2020
Monday 20th April
More sunshine. Smokey’s sound, so as a treat, he got 10 minutes grazing in the vegetable garden. I paid bills and Dan dealt with his comfrey orders
Mr Comfrey.
Tuesday 21st April
Grass seed man is coming tomorrow, mid morning so the gate needs to be opened and the grass seed left out. Dan and I spent a couple of hours clearing up rushes that were topped harrowed and dumped over the fence onto the railway siding – they’re now in corner of field. Nothing worthwhile grew there anyway and the fences both on to the railway siding and to the corner house were pretty poor, so we’ll put a new line of fence across the corner before the cattle go out.
Cake / Cash / Lambs
Monday 20 April, 2020
Monday 13th April
Fox took all the meat chicks overnight. Dan and I feel utterly awful – him because he should have repaired the run properly and me because I should have kept them in the box until the repair was done. So cross with ourselves. Don’t know if we’re going to get more this year – but if we don’t we’ll not be eating chicken.
Cooler and overcast, so we did the housework – well, vacuuming and washing the kitchen floor. Dan did some knitting – my waistcoat is fairly coming on – then he went up to the orchard for an hour.
Niamh / Rushes / Pigs
Monday 13 April, 2020
Monday 6th April
Sunny but so windy again. Dan had office work this morning then got the chainsaw out to prep timber for splitting and cut kindling; then he was off harrowing Laing’s Field.
No7 had twin ewes about lunchtime. Only Niamh (12th) and Kit (28th) to go, so a few unbroken night’s sleep in prospect. Picked up hay and took two bales to East Pitkerro but the steers had plenty left, so left two bales in the shed; then picked up two bales for here.
Trifle / Topping / Turnout
Monday 6 April, 2020
Monday 30th March
Lovely spring day – mostly sunny and genuinely warm, with little wind. Turned out the steers at East PItkerro; one of the red steers made a huge leap out of the shed and spread-eagled on the concrete. He seems fine and has probably run off any problem but he’ll be sore when the adrenalin drops. The other red steer and Archie picked their way down on the grassy side and Charlie didn’t want to go out at all – but eventually he did and the four of them took off round the 16 acre field that will be their home for the summer. They did chase the tups but I think that’ll pass. Fingers crossed. They’ve got a bale of hay and a licky bucket to see them OK.
