Hi, just joined here as I've been running a part time smallholding and stud on a very haphazard basis for years but am finally leaving the day job next week and need the land to be a little more sustaining than a weekend hobby now so will be looking for lots of information on how to do better!
Luckily I have a mature orchard overflowing with plums and apples, and I have built up 4 veg beds in there over the past 5-6 years so have a load of beans of various types, herbs, salad leaves etc quite reliably and have tried onions, leeks, beetroot, brassicas and various other things at different points, tho I'm not terribly good with brassicas..
This year I have grown sweetcorn for the first time and there are cobs which I am amazed at, but I'm not sure entirely when/how to harvest so am planning to pick one and have a look before I wreck my unexpected success!
I have a cupboard full of plum jam, chutney and pickled cabbage from previous years and a freezer and a half full of rhubarb and soup and such, all the easy things, but I'm hoping to get some ideas of things to do with them that won't tax my brain too much but give me a little variety.
I'm vegetarian so would love chickens for egg production but am amazed at the price of hen houses as they make "free" eggs pretty expensive as far as I can see! And I'd like a few sheep (I love coloured breeds particularly Shetlands but am beside a main road so don't want a wandering breed, just very easy to do docile pet types to keep the grass tidy after the ponies).
Well that's me, I look forward to all the wisdom of experienced smallholders on here.