The Accidental Smallholder Forum

Community => Introduce yourself => Topic started by: MikeM on July 25, 2011, 09:03:47 am

Title: Hello All, 'nother new member
Post by: MikeM on July 25, 2011, 09:03:47 am

Hello all, thought I'd better pop in and say hello before disappearing into the archives (golly, this is an active forum). Was told about this place by a friend from another forum (hello Katie :wave:), not quite sure how I've not heard of it before, it's not exactly low profile, is it!!! ;D
We've just (well, 8 months ago) moved from south herts/north london, where we had a 2 up 2 down, a postage stamp of a garden and an allotment to NW Devon, where we have a house that's too big and just shy of an acre of land/gardens. The land hasn't been worked as a smallholding for at least 30 years, and probably more, but we were chatting the other day with tha lady who used to live here 50 odd years ago, and it was worked in her day, and so it shall be again. At the moment it is half suburan back garden and half poorly managed grassland. My 1st task was to turn some of the area of grass into a vege patch, I have 5 5*20 beds dug and planted, with plans for at least 5 more in the autumn.
We've just started our livestock enterprise by aquiring 4 calder ranger hens, who live in the orchard (an area about 200 m2). We're looking to increase the number of laying hens to about 8 (give or take).
The next phase is to enclose the rest of the paddock for either table birds or pigs, probably table birds as there are some access challenges to the paddock. This area will be about 1/4 acre or so.
We're also on the lookout for some more land as closeby as we can get it, for even bigger plans.

Guess that'll do for the while, I'm off to read some of the old posts.

Mike

Title: Re: Hello All, 'nother new member
Post by: faith0504 on July 25, 2011, 10:09:02 am

hi and welcome from moray   :wave:

Title: Re: Hello All, 'nother new member
Post by: melodrama on July 25, 2011, 10:23:32 am

Hello from cloudy Forfar  :wave:

Title: Re: Hello All, 'nother new member
Post by: Emma D on July 25, 2011, 02:00:39 pm

Hello hellow! I'm Emma and I'm new to this forumn and the sheep breeding business!!

We bought two suffoklk ewes in lamb last year and they had twins each!! Now the lambs are 7 months and we're thinking about showing!  :sheep:

Title: Re: Hello All, 'nother new member
Post by: melodrama on July 25, 2011, 02:37:16 pm

Hello to you too Emma  :wave:

Title: Re: Hello All, 'nother new member
Post by: Stresshead71 on July 25, 2011, 04:30:11 pm

Hi and welcome !!!

Paul.

Title: Re: Hello All, 'nother new member
Post by: JulieS on July 25, 2011, 04:47:13 pm

Hello and welcome from NW Devon too.  Whereabouts are you?

Title: Re: Hello All, 'nother new member
Post by: katie on July 25, 2011, 04:48:10 pm

Hi, Mike. Glad you made it through the space/time continuum (or whatever!) ;D

Title: Re: Hello All, 'nother new member
Post by: MikeM on July 25, 2011, 06:10:51 pm

Quote from: JulieS on July 25, 2011, 04:47:13 pm

Hello and welcome from NW Devon too.  Whereabouts are you?

about 5 miles from holsworthy, between hatherleigh and holsworthy.

Title: Re: Hello All, 'nother new member
Post by: JulieS on July 25, 2011, 06:15:23 pm

I'm near Woolsery.  You're welcome to pop over if you would like to see what life is like nearly 2 1/2 years along.

 :)

www.fordmillfarm.co.uk (http://www.fordmillfarm.co.uk)

Title: Re: Hello All, 'nother new member
Post by: Rosemary on July 25, 2011, 10:14:14 pm

Hi and welcome from Carnoustie  :wave:

See another thread looking for folk in Devon.

Title: Re: Hello All, 'nother new member
Post by: EdayOrkney on July 27, 2011, 12:52:15 pm

Greeting from sunny Orkney!

Title: Re: Hello All, 'nother new member
Post by: Maggie on July 28, 2011, 08:55:21 pm

 :wave: Hi Mike from Maggie

Nice nice area!  We rented in Hatherleigh, right beside the monument overlooking the moor, before we bought our wee farm in Burrington, North Devon. 

Title: Re: Hello All, 'nother new member
Post by: Sandy on July 29, 2011, 11:21:10 pm

 :wave: Hello from Clackmannan!!

Title: Re: Hello All, 'nother new member
Post by: SallyintNorth on August 01, 2011, 09:59:46 pm

Hi Mike and congratulations on getting started.  I was in north Devon for a long time (Braunton then near Lynton)before I came up here to north Cumbria. 

If you aren't in it already, I'm sure the other Devonians will tell you to get in touch with DASH (Devon Association of Smallholders) - a friendlier bunch of people you simply won't find.^*  And a really useful monthly mag with classified free-to-non-trade-members.  Give them my love - I miss them still!  (Tho' TAS certainly helps  ;D)

Best of luck, look forward to hearing your adventures.

Sally


^*Oh!  Except here on TAS!   ;D 


 

Title: Re: Hello All, 'nother new member
Post by: little blue on August 04, 2011, 09:24:58 pm

hello and welcome :wave: