[OhLaLa]

I thought if us smallholders write down what smallholding chores we are undertaking it might remind/inform/give ideas to others and help us build up a smallholding calandar?

So - what tasks are you undertaking this month?
(Check the date of each posting, tasks will change month by month).

- - -

Sheep
Stock fencing, new shelters.

[doganjo]

Ducks and hens - cleaning out old water containers now they are unfrozen.  Clearing up runs now the excrement has dropped to the ground after the snow melt.

[egglady]

[u]January tasks:[/u]

• pruning fruit trees and bushes;
  seed sowing - leeks; onions; broad beans; cauliflower; spring onions; salad leaves; some toms/chillis/peppers;
  starting new muck heap so old one can break down
  putting up new fences (when ground defrosts enough!);
  tree felling;
  lambs to abbatoir;
  chicken dispatching;
  

that's all i can think of at the moment!

[doganjo]

pruning fruit trees and bushes;
seed sowing -

Goodness, where are you, South of France?  I wouldn't put seeds in yet awhile, and we have hard frost yesterday and today so daren't do any pruning.  Do you have a micro climate up there?

[egglady]

pruning fruit trees and bushes;
seed sowing -

Goodness, where are you, South of France?  I wouldn't put seeds in yet awhile, and we have hard frost yesterday and today so daren't do any pruning.  Do you have a micro climate up there?

LOL!  Well we do a bit but not South of France!  I do have a warm conservatory, an electric propogator and a greenhouse though! Oh and a teeny weeny pretend PT!

[loosey]

Horses have moved onto the long grass as not much goodness in it right now. Pigs rotate every January, May and September.

We've just been doing general clear ups. Trimming dead brambles in hedges. Replacing gates and making sure our contractors will be here in the spring for harrowing, rolling etc! Anything which isn;t affected by ice! 

[scattybiker1972]

bookwork that ive been putting off....[and still am i suppose]   

[princesspiggy]

same here - books and tax returns, and its so nice outside today!!

[faith0504]

i bit the bullet and did my tax return last week, so glad i did as a couple of days after my back went and sciatica started again, been drugged up since, god knows how my tax return would have turned out!!!!!!!!!!!!

[dyedinthewool]

Did my tax return -

Trimming out brambles from 'some' of our hedges

Limed all the paddocks eventually - had to corall the ewe lambs for a week while the lime melted into the ground - which meant I then had to cleanout their shed...

The 'potentially' in lamb girls moved to another paddock while their field was done - then did that one.

Trimmed all their feet.

Cleared up the hay dropped by the sheep in the fields.

Started to build a new muck heap - which the chooks imeddiately scratch all over the place.

Knocked all the mole hills flat - got some moletraps ordered (getting a molecatcher in was too expensive)

Did wonder wether I could prune the new apple and pear trees put in last Autum but can't find my pruning book

[benkt]

Just finished tax return aswell - apparently they're going to repay me £200 that I overpaid which was a very pleasant surprise!
Building some new field access and doing an awful lot of fencing.

[scattybiker1972]

hee hee .the nice man at hmrc owes me £400   

[faith0504]

were taking fencing down getting the field ready for a new drainage system in, tidying up all the old hay piles round the field, cutting some logs up, getting veg plot ready for action, i have got all my seed packets out, 

[ellied]

Felling rotten/half fallen trees, chopping and stacking logs (well man with chainsaw did most but I'm stacker!)
Waiting for decent bonfire weather to burn the branches and other garden rubbish
Got the deep litter out from the barn and up to new area of muckheap - 2 scoops from the oldest heap brought back down to the veg beds, working my way through the first one of those while there is one bed still growing brassicas and 2 covered ready to work when I get there
Pruning fruit trees started
Buying seeds and planning veg bed layouts
Ready to plant indoor starters where label says Feb eg tomatoes, cauli, salad leaves
Planning to prune hawthorns etc back from paddock elec fence if need be, but want a dry day
Got a pony started under saddle yesterday, planning other backing and sales ads
Farrier visit for 8/16 ponies, will do worming for encysted redworm while at it, looking at egg counts for the rest
General tidying up - windblown straw, leaves, pruning, hedges, driveway..
Dealing with drainage problems in one field
Getting quotes for repairs I can't do myself eg barn roof
Taking rubbish to the council tip and clearing garage storage area
A few plumbing things I'm trying to work out how to do myself - eg burst outdoor pipes

still looking for somewhere to move to so not sure how far to go but tidy and ready is always good

and I sound busy but the weather is so appalling I'm having to pick away at things I can do depending on each day

[ambriel]

Work on the drainage - clearing ditches and digging new ones.
Build a new (larger) ark for the piggies.
Build a new (larger) henhouse - so we can expand our flock.
Decide on a site for the polytunnel.