The Accidental Smallholder Forum

Community => Introduce yourself => Topic started by: shropshire_blue on November 15, 2011, 12:34:42 pm

Title: Hello from Shropshire
Post by: shropshire_blue on November 15, 2011, 12:34:42 pm

Hello all,

I'm Neil.  My wife Lou and I rent a small farm near Market Drayton.  We run adventure holidays here for kids with disabilities, mainly brain injuries.  We tend to be quite quiet during term time, so I'm looking into doing something with the farm to keep me busy, to produce our own food for clients, and hopefully make a bit of money towards the rent out of it!

I'm lucky to be surrounded by very friendly dairy farmers and very knowledgable people, but sometimes as a beginner you need a (recent) beginner to explain things to you in simple terms.

We have about 4 acres at the moment, and a few barns.  There are another 6 acres set aside for us if we want them.  At the moment I'm thinking sheep, possibly lambing in december to hit easter markets.

Looking forward to picking all your brains...  ::)

Title: Re: Hello from Shropshire
Post by: Cinderhills on November 15, 2011, 01:20:25 pm

Hi and welcome from North Yorkshire.  :wave:  Good luck with whatever you decide to take on.

Title: Re: Hello from Shropshire
Post by: Rosemary on November 15, 2011, 01:34:37 pm

Hi and welcome from cold, grey Carnoustie  :thumbsup:

Sounds like a great thing you're doing. Our daughter has severe learning difficulties but went to an outdoor activity place in the Lake District with her former school. She had a ball and did things I'd NEVER have let her do  ::)

Sheep are good - and you could fit lambing into the school holidays then have lambs for the kids to see. If you've got adequate housing, you should be fine. I'd recommend Tim Tyne's Sheep book for Smallholders.

Title: Re: Hello from Shropshire
Post by: salopman on November 15, 2011, 03:56:22 pm

Hiya
I live in Telford - no smallholding yet (Till retirement) but help out with Lesleys Goats at the moment
Welcome its a great forum and website

Title: Re: Hello from Shropshire
Post by: shropshire_blue on November 15, 2011, 04:49:33 pm

Thanks very much guys!  :thumbsup:

Rosemary - I hate to say it but it was beautiful here today.  I was fencing with just a t-shirt.  Well, okay I had jeans and wells too...

Title: Re: Hello from Shropshire
Post by: Lesley Silvester on November 15, 2011, 10:48:40 pm

Hello from Shropshire to you too.  I'm in Telford and am the Lesley whose goats Salopman helps with.  If you want to visit goats to see if they would be suitable, you'd be very welcome.  What you're doing sounds great.  Speaking as a mum of one physically disabled son, one son with epilepsy, a husband who is blind, a brother in law who is both blind and has severe learning disabilities I think that the more than can be done, the better.  :goat:

Title: Re: Hello from Shropshire
Post by: wellies on November 22, 2011, 09:44:05 pm

Hi, I am also from shropshire just outside Shrewsbury. I have 6 Ryeland sheep, a couple of Kune Kunes, the horses and also the dogs & cats, we also raise a couple of pigs to go in the freezer each year. It sounds like a fabulous thing you do with the children. Myself and my colleagues do work with RDA and are just in the process of setting up an RDA centre and we also use horses at the centre to facilitate the learning of children and adults with learning difficulties and emotional disorders.  :wave:

Title: Re: Hello from Shropshire
Post by: themasterbutcher on November 24, 2011, 05:09:46 pm

Good luck with the farm. I am about to open a new butchery training centre and artisan meat products production at the Shropshire food enterprise centre Shrewsbury. If you have any surplus or need help or advice please just ask.

Title: Re: Hello from Shropshire
Post by: shropshire_blue on November 29, 2011, 06:40:37 pm

Thanks for the welcome :wave:

@ themasterbutcher - When will you have info about your butchery courses? I'd be very interested!

Title: Re: Hello from Shropshire
Post by: little blue on November 29, 2011, 08:47:35 pm

hello and welcome :wave:  be interested to hear what you decide to do :)

Title: Re: Hello from Shropshire
Post by: Remy on December 15, 2011, 10:59:12 pm

Hi, I've just joined and am also from Shropshire - about 10 miles NW of Shrewsbury near Baschurch.  I've been into sheep for the last 5 years and find them very rewarding  :sheep: :).  From knowing nothing about them I have now reared lambs for 4 years and try to be involved in all the maintenance (some of which can be a bit trying!).  I also have horses, ponies, pigs, dogs and cats  ;D

Title: Re: Hello from Shropshire
Post by: Lesley Silvester on December 16, 2011, 11:16:15 pm

 :wave: Hi Remy from Telford.

Title: Re: Hello from Shropshire
Post by: wellies on December 28, 2011, 12:07:29 am

Hi Remy, good to see you on here  :wave:

Title: Re: Hello from Shropshire
Post by: Miss Piggy on December 28, 2011, 10:39:50 am

Hi Shropshire Blue and Remy, welcome from a Sunny West Wales at the moment. ood luck and happiness in your future ventures.  :wave:

Title: Re: Hello from Shropshire
Post by: shropshire_blue on December 28, 2011, 01:26:08 pm

Hello all,

I have taken on the extra land, so we're now up to 10 acres with lots of buildings.  It looks like I'm going to team up with a neighbour to run a joint flock of about 150.  Lambing indoors here beginning of January, then once the lambs are weaned we send the ewes back to his farm for tupping during the summer while I'm working.  Put them on rented grazing next door to me after summer, then stick ewes and lambs out onto my land.

Can anyone see any obvious flaws to this plan?

Hope you all had a merry Christmas...

Title: Re: Hello from Shropshire
Post by: robert waddell on December 28, 2011, 05:07:21 pm

i would say overstocked   but depends on the total acerage that is available :farmer:

Title: Re: Hello from Shropshire
Post by: shropshire_blue on December 28, 2011, 07:17:07 pm

Quote from: robert waddell on December 28, 2011, 05:07:21 pm

i would say overstocked   but depends on the total acerage that is available :farmer:

Hi Robert, we'll have 30 acres total between the two of us, plus another 30 odd of rented grazing while the dairy cows are in for winter.  I was going off 5 ewes per acre, plus creep for the lambs.  Does that make it any better or do you think it's still a bit ambitious?

Cheers,
Neil

Title: Re: Hello from Shropshire
Post by: Bright Raven on December 31, 2011, 10:39:29 am

Hi from near Whitchurch. We almost have enough locals for a pub night!

Title: Re: Hello from Shropshire
Post by: wellies on December 31, 2011, 09:53:05 pm

sounds like a great plan  :thumbsup:

Title: Re: Hello from Shropshire
Post by: Lesley Silvester on December 31, 2011, 11:45:45 pm

I'm up for that.  I was planning on suggesting a meet up of Shropshire TASers.