Seedlings / Shrubs / Cookies - The Accidental Smallholder

Posted: Tuesday 18 April, 2023

by Rosemary at 8:52am in Smallholding Comments closed

Week ending Sunday 16^th April

Jings, what happened this week?!

Well, Grey isn’t going on his expected Club 18-30 holiday, so we’ll manage him around the fresh-calved cows and calves – still, it means we don’t have o quarantine him for 28 days when he comes back. It also changes the timetable for health scheme blood testing, but the plan has been amended and I’m comfortable with it.  I’m starting to feel a bit keyed up about calving; based on service dates and a 283 day gestation period, they’re due over 28^th April to 2^nd May but they haven’t read the chart, so I’ll start night checks from Friday 22^nd. They’re all working on their udders, but Baby is most successful.

Baby.

Bronte.

We’ve got the milking machine cleaned, the rusty bits rubbed down and painted and new pipes on.

Milking Machine ready to go.

The weather has been good so all the paddocks have been harrowed twice.

The pears are in full blossom.

Pear blossom.

Seedlings are coming on. The peas should be good to go out next week. Dan put the staging up in the polytunnel so I’ve been able to get some seedlings moved out of the greenhouse.

Seedlings.

We finally planted out a dozen or so shrubs that have been sitting in pots for years, some of them. They’re in the area next to the pigpen and will be supplemented by native trees later in the year.

Dan planting shrubs.

The pen is ready for the meat chicks, that I’m picking up on Friday 21^st. And Dan built a nest box for the Princesses.

Meat chick pen.

We’ve had a bit of bad news regarding the Scottish Smallholder Festival – Forfar Mart, our venue for a number of years, is closing. Martin’s working furiously to try and secure a new venue but there aren’t many options. Fingers crossed.

And I baked this week – first time for ages. Tins are now filled with Ginger Nuts and Maple Pecan Cookies.

Maple Pecan Cookies.