[Skinnyminny]

Loooooong time lurker (since 2015) but I am finally in a place where I have something to contribute!

My lovely lovely neighbour is selling me 4acres of flat level pastureland approx half a mile from my house, just off the main road.

It’s agricultural land so while I will be putting my ponies on it (3 small natives) I will also have space for something ‘else’ and probably need to do something more properly agricultural to stop someone claiming its equestrian use.

I already have chickens at home but thinking about turkeys for Christmas and/or goats, as well as a veg garden and small orchard (fenced off well from my fat ponies!).

I do work full time though and I don’t want to piss off the planners (we live in a National Park), so to start with it will be ponies only and plenty of hedge gap filling, maybe take some hay from it this summer.

Just going through conveyancing now 

Looking forward to learning and sharing 

[arobwk]

Welcome [member=141406]Skinnyminny[/member] and wishing you good luck with your new acres.

[Steph Hen]

You must be thrilled! Congratulations 

[SallyintNorth]

Congratulations  

National Park?  Which one?  4 acres of pastureland might not be as much as it seems depending on the type of ground, so don't get too carried away!  And if it's pastureland, not meadow, it may not be suitable for making hay.  Ask the seller and / or local contractor before you shut it up for hay!

[bj_cardiff]

congratulations on getting your own land!

I'd add a word of caution about making hay, others have also had the same idea in the past and its almost impossible to get anyone to cut and bale when the weather is suitable as they are all fully booked doing much larger acrages!

Goats are great fun, but they will need shelter and if you put up anything I imagine it will irritate your neighbours and be a planning nightmare! I think I would look at buying some store lambs. Weaned lambs that need the grass to fatten up to be sold for meat later in the year.

[Skinnyminny]

Thank you all for responses & sorry for the delay I didn't realise I had replies, doh!

It's ex-arable land that has been down as pasture for a while and there have been hay crops taken off it previously. I'm lucky enough to have many neighbours who do contracting and have done smaller areas than mine for others in the village so cross fingers I'll be able to find someone willing to do me some bales.

It's North York Moors, we are right on the edge and it's well draining stony arable land round here, very much in demand and I can't quite believe my neighbour said I could have some, I obviously caught him on a good day!

I'm hoping that with careful tree and hedge planting I can put up a couple of shelters without anyone minding, plenty of others on the same area have done so. Very lucky to be in an area with nice neighbours, we all seem to be united against the planners who are definitely not so nice.

First up, getting through conveyancing, fixing up the fences and installing small fat ponies. Then we'll see how we go for other additions

Thank you for all your kind words!

[Rosemary]

Enjoy!