Rubbish / Piglets / Roo
Posted: Monday 4 March, 2019
Monday 25th February
Cool and misty this morning but the sun was out by 9am, with a lovely day to follow.
Dan harrowed the last of the seven paddocks for the first time. I spent the day in the office.
Here's Roo.
Roo and her sister.
Tuesday 26th February
Up at 4am with pesky dogs – very frosty then, but the sun was out by breakfast time. Lovely weather but it won’t last. False Spring.
Ordered grass seed for overseeding bare bits; that’ll come next week and I’ll get started on the poultry pens.
Sowed some seeds – early peas and dwarf French beans to go in the polytunnel, some coriander, rocket and salad leaves, plus Rudbekia and Cosmos.
Dan pressed on with the hedge trimming to get it finished before the end of the month. It’s hard on the arms – at least he won’t develop bingo wings.
Gwenna's loving this sheep feeding nonsense. Spot the corgi!!!
Gwenna.
I tidied out the shed where we keep spare bottles, jars and equipment. Inevitably, stuff gets dumped in there and it needs a periodic sort through. Also checked through my milking stuff and packed it away; ordered coloured clothes, detergent and oil for the machine, so I’m ready to go when Rosie calves. I had a look in the byre – it’ll need sorted through before lambing because I’ll have to put some ewes in there. It’s mainly bee stuff so Dan will need to help because I don’t know what’s good to keep and what’s not.
Wednesday 27th February
Dan picked and I packed the last orders for comfrey root, for the time being. Dan had a massage booked in Forfar, so combined that with a visit to the bank, Harbro (for lambing box stuff) and the monthly shop. We do try to use the car as little as possible and as effectively as possible.
I think Bryn was feeling the pace today. Any bed would do.
Bryn's bed.
I had a quick clean in the freezer room and a stock-take – we’re going to have a sausage sale soon. Spent the rest of the afternoon on Festival stuff.
Thursday 28th February
The weather is more typically February today – grey, drizzly and cold. Moved the sheep this morning to get the motorhome out, and then moved them back. Now that the motorhome is being sold, we’ll have more flexibility in laying out the area between the apiary and barn. Now that we don’t need to put an access gate for the motorhome in the new fence, it’s a less onerous job.
Popped down to East Pitkerro to check the steers; spent a bit of time talking to them and got some steer kisses I could have done without. If the weather stays half decent, we should get them out mid-March. They have stayed remarkably clean.
Moved the hens to fresh paddocks and replaced the wooden pallets their feeders sat on with plastic ones. My, these plastic pallets are great! Dan straightened up a tree that was blown over last year – hopefully, it will be fine as it’s a beauty. All the bags of mulch arenow in the orchard.
Orchard
Got our first bookings for farm tours in April.
Friday 1st March
In Stirling for a SALSA meeting with folk from the James Hutton Institute. Took the train, so was able to do some work on the way down and have a nap on the way back.
Saturday 2nd March
A raw day – the day was dismal and so was I. Just couldn't get going.
Baked a traybake – cherry and almond - in practice for farm walks but prefer the mini-loaf tin. It was OK, but I pefer the mini-loaf tin.
Booked our piglets, courtesy of Dusty (and Martin)
Dusty's piglets.
Dan started pruning apple trees. I’m planning to start mulching them when the grass seed arrives – hoping to do two paddocks a month for three months, as the hens vacate them - that gives two months for the seed to take before the hens go back in.
Watched “Wreck-it Ralph 2: Ralph breaks the Internet”. Not a patch on the first one, sadly.
Sunday 3rd March
Very windy overnight – some rain, I think, but the gales had dried any puddles up by morning. Sunny by breakfast time, but still really windy. Didn’t give the ponies any hay, as it would just have blown away.
Dan pruned a few more trees then we hitched up the flat trailer and lifted the rubbish in Laing’s Field. Honestly, folk seem to think it’s OK just to chuck stuff over the wall into the field – they wouldn’t chuck it into someone’s garden. There were several lobster creels, a child’s football goal, a Black and Decker workmate, a big, plastic barrel (which might be useful), car parts, paint tins, bike pedals plus dozens of plastic drinks bottles. We’ll take it to the skip tomorrow if it’s less windy.
Some of our "finds".
The complete collection.
Kit, one of the Shetland gimmers, was lame this morning, but it was just a stone in her foot. She’s very tame and a real character. Bambi is much shyer but has taken herself over the fence and in with the Ryelands. She's not in the least intimidated by being the only skinny one there.
