Leo / Calves / Veg garden
Posted: Monday 26 November, 2018
Monday 19th November
Grey and overcast – looks like winter might really be coming, although it’s not really cold.
Spent some long overdue time in the veg garden – manured bed 2 and covered it and weeded most of bed 1. Sowed sweet peas in the greenhouse and cleaned out one henhouse.
Finally baked the Christmas cake I started last week – the longer soaking won’t have done any harm – and started the Christmas puddings.
Dan was off to visit Andrew Whitley at “Scotland the Bread”.
No green bums
The calves are doing well. Another month and we'll be weaning them.
Annie and Ruaridh.
Rosie and Rocky.
Tuesday 20 November
Winter has finally landed – cold and grey today. Took Penfold to the vet for his dental appointment – scale, polish and one extraction. To be fair, he’s cost us nothing in the last seven years.
Pretty much finished the Festival paperwork; costings done, banking almost complete and invoice away to the Scottish Government.
Sent off the required invoice for our Small Farm Grant claim. Hope it’s approved soon – cash is flowing out but not in.
Wednesday 21 November
Wild overnight – I even put a rug on Smokey. Did a wee poultry course for a lady who wants to keep hens – very enjoyable.
Thursday 22 November
School visit this morning – went well. It was for secondary pupils, which is unusual.
Picked up a tonne of mixed grains for the hens; ordered a spring balance for weighing feed. I’ll need a tonne of layer pellets and one of beet pulp pellets soon too. Cash is flowing out.
One green bum this morning – No2
Found a friend for Smokey. He’s called Leo – he’s a five year old grey Connemara gelding. He’s very pretty and very sweet. He belongs to the local riding stables, who bought him six weeks ago but he’s been lame (he has a leg injury but was sound when they bought him). They don’t have much turnout, so he’s free-ranging here. He looks sound to me – but we’ll see. He arrived at 4pm this afternoon – there was lots of posturing and squealing but they seem to have settled down.
Leo.
Friday 23 November
Grey and overcast. Urquhart is lame in his near fore.
Dan went for two bales of hay – cows are going through a bale every five days; the steers, every eight / nine days. The ewes are getting some hay in a feeder now and are eating it.
Smokey and Leo seem to be getting along - but not enough to feed them loose. I think Leo is the boss of Smokey.
Breakfast.
Saturday 24 November
Gave Urquhart’s sore foot the “treatment” – soak in warm water and Milton, trim and blue spray. Hope it works – can do without vet bills.
Managed to get another hour in the veg garden, and have been looking at weed fabric.
Andy was here, so he and Dan finished pressing apples. They’re discussing work collaborations including a bakery. Much planning to be done over the winter.
Sunday 25 November
Cold wind this morning, but dry and some sunshine. Smokey and Leo have settled down.
Leo and Smokey.
I’ve been planning my Christmas baking and making a shopping list. We’re trying to be frugal but not mean.
Rocky has finally sussed the bucket.
Rocky has sussed the bucket. At last.
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