Pigs

I never got around to writing the blog last night. I looked after my friend's children after school for a couple of hours, cooked a meal and then watch Jamie Olivers's programme on pigs and relaxed (maybe a little too much) with a bottle of wine.

As we sat and watched the programme we couldn't but help think we really are on the right track.

Since we started using the land again we have reared two batches of pigs. We aim to rear a batch a year, buying them in at approx.8 weeks taking two up to pork weight and two onto bacon weight.

So far it has worked really well. I have worked with pigs before, which helped, but they are so easy to look after .They like their warmth and comfort, an ark full of straw is ideal, they like a routine as far as meals are concerned and will let you know if you are late ! treats are always acceptable, plenty of water is essential, as is shade and a wallow in the summer.Other than that plenty of land to race around and to root about in, something to rub against and they are happy.Company and a good scratch is always welcome.

They repay you with hours of amusement, land freshly turned ready, after a bit of work, for reseeding ( another of our reasons for getting them ) and at the end pork like you've never tasted before.

Planning ahead

I have decided some of the geese are going....it will be sad but practical. I have mentioned them on a forum and will advertise them in the local ag. merchants on Saturday.It does make sense to cut back.My son is going to fence off an area of the paddock for a couple of bee hives and I really do want to breed turkeys and hopefully some poultry and we don't have alot of space...only an acre.

When I describe the land, I refer to it as the paddock, orchard and fowl run....it all sounds very grand.( it isn't !! ) The land we own is attached to my husband's family home and builder's yard.It has been in the family for about 100 years (and changed very little).It is only a small end terrace house and the land is known generally as the platt.It has always had animals and poultry of some description on it. The area referred to as the fowl run is actually mentioned on the deeds as such.The paddock is a small fenced off area and the orchard closest to the house only has an old apple tree and two old plum trees in it....but I like it.There is so much that needs doing to get it looking how I would really like( removing all the old fencing for a start ) but that's part of the 'fun'. For various reason the land was left unused for about ten years and we have only just started to make full use of it again but I do have plans.

Geese

It's time I made a decision on my geese! Some have to go. At present I have seven, the two original pairs and three goslings from a May/June 2008 hatch.They are kept in two groups, the older pair with their female gosling in the orchard and the younger pair with the two unrelated male goslings in the paddock.

I only really want to keep one pair, so that I can move them around to rest each area and also to give me more flexibility with the other livestock.I do want to keep one pair as they are very good at ' tidying up' after the sheep, their eggs are gorgeous and they are fun to have around, all with very different characters....so who do I keep?

The older pair, I like and they are my husband's favourite.Henry the old gander is at least 25 years old or so we are told, he stands tall and stately and for most of the year friendly, just a little protective in the breeding season.He is a big white Embden/Toulouse type, his partner is a smaller grey and white pretty little thing about 6 years old.She lays really well and last year went broody twice.She has been a lovely mum, very gentle and caring.Her male gosling took after his father tall and grand, the female like her mother but with a little bit more of her father's spirit.

The second pair I love, they are so gentle and quiet.The gander makes me laugh, he's so full of bravado, during the breeding season, he'll coming running towards you head down, stops several yards from you and then turns back towards his partner declaring he has seen you off.We have nicknamed him after an acquaintance of ours Bernard the bulls****er.
The goose is so gentle, she has a damaged wing, that doesn't lay flat.She got the injury not long after we had her.We had it x-rayed but there was no break and it doesn't seem to affect her at all.She is such a good reliable layer, an egg every other day for the whole of the season.They are both about six years old and are smaller and stockier than the other pair.

The two male goslings were meant for eating but with so much else going on in our lives in December we just didn't get around to doing them.Apparently they are fine up to the age of 10 months for eating without being tough, so I could sell them for that purpose or I could pair the unrelated male with the female gosling and sell them together.I wouldn't mind if either of the older pair went FTGH it's just deciding who.But I really do need to make the decision soon.

A frustrating day

It's been a frustrating day, today. I have been cold and unable to get warm all day.Outside is grey and miserable and there is little work I can get done on my own.The ground is too wet to garden and besides it is a little too early in the year to do much.The greenhouse staging has been bleached and scrubbed and the seed trays washed, I was hoping to paint the metal frame for the staging but couldn't find the right paint.

The blood test results for my sheep came back as normal....no trace element deficiencies ...so now we assume fluke may be the cause of her lack of condition.Hopefully the injection has done it's job but we will take a dung sample to be tested to make sure and then I guess it's just a case of extra TLC.

Housework, by no means could I be considered as houseproud....but when the dog walks muddy footprints right through the 'just cleaned ' house and is intent on covering every last patch !!!

The day did get better just after lunch.The two books I ordered from Amazon arrived,so rather lazily I have spent the last couple of hours reading ( researching !! ) up on turkey breeding.

Beautiful day

Today has been absolutely beautiful,warm and sunny with very little wind. After seeing to the livestock and doing the usual weekend thorough clean of the houses we spent the day in the garden. It was too wet underfoot to do a great deal but I managed to tidy up the flower border, the bit by the steps and the herb garden and bank along the path. It does look better for it, you can now see the snowdrops and other bulbs poking through as well as new shoots on some of the earlier perennials.

My husband glazed the greenhouse, so I am very near having my first greenhouse!! I know it sounds daft but I love greenhouses. Each one is so personal to whoever owns it.

When I was younger my father used to keep a deckchair in his and very often at a weekend you could find him in there asleep with his newspaper on his lap and a pint of beer on the floor.....his retreat from 4 teenage daughters!!
Now whenever I visit he proudly shows me around, he loves trying new and different varieties of tomatoes, peppers, chillies etc.In fact its become a bit of a family tradition that every father's day I try and buy him a couple of packets of unusual seeds.

I remember, as a child, visiting my uncle's greenhouse, he used to grow cacti and alpines, the flowers were beautiful. My aunt's is always a muddle yet her house is spotless. A friend of mine works as gamekeeper and gardener for the local 'big house', there they have the most wonderful Victorian greenhouses with all the old hot water pipes for heating running through them.

The one I have inherited came from my parents in law. It was used very traditionally, seeds for bedding plants first, then tomatoes and in the winter houseplants...not sure I'll continue with that tradition but will certainly use it for propagating and.. yes tomatoes but hopefully will follow in my father's footsteps and try a variety of plants.

A very good day , I ache now though !!!

One week on

I have been writing daily for a week now and have actually enjoyed it..I wasn't sure if I would.I know I have a reputation for talking alot but I thought writing may be different.... no I can ramble on (even if it is to myself, but then I talk to myself !) as easily in the written word as in the spoken.

This week has been OK, the weather hasn't been great so not many 'extra' jobs got done.The evenings are definitely getting lighter.The hens have moved their bedtime from 4.30pm to after 5.00pm and were still happily scratching around just now when I went to shut them in ...I mustn't forget I haven't done them.I haven't noticed the mornings getting any lighter.

The freezer is full of pork, gammon, bacon, sausages, lamb, a whole turkey and a jointed one.The hens are just keeping us in eggs ..a few more would be nice.So I think we have the meat side pretty much covered. Just need the vegetables and fruit now !

Pottering and planning

It is amazing how quickly a morning can slip by when pottering and planning, my mother would call it day dreaming. I like to look upon it as a more positive activity !
I have been standing at different points in the garden trying to visualise what can go where and making plans.The back garden is being totally reorganised this year, we have extra land for the 'egg laying' flock and as I no longer childmind so have no need for a lawn/play area the grass is going.It has been replaced by a large, self built ( actually husband and son built) shed, a greenhouse and vegetable patch - all still in the process of being finished, but still there all the same.

My ideas keep changing, the 'pretty' flower area is getting smaller as my dream ( maybe mum was right) of providing as much home grown fruit and veg. is growing.

I have also been trying to work out how to get the best use of the land for the livestock, who to move where when and who can mix with who.

It's simple really I need a few more acres of land.

Frosty morning, wet afternoon

We woke this morning to yet another hard frost, but as it had been raining during the night everywhere was like an ice rink.The car windscreen was iced up inside and out as were the doors. Outside taps were frozen, so were the ponds, drinking buckets etc.
No sooner had the ice melted the freezing rain started, so today has been spent catching up on washing, ironing and general housework with just the essential livestock duties being done.Not my idea of a good day. I did spend some time on the computer looking further into liver fluke and trace element deficiencies in sheep.It appears we have covered everything we can i.e. injections for fluke and mineral licks it's just a case now of waiting to see if the blood test results show anything different.

As I have spent most of today indoors I lit the second wood burner.We have two, one in the dining room and one in the living room.The dining room one we tend to keep in once it has been lit at the start of the winter.Normally this is the only one we need as it seems to heat the whole of the house.The sitting room one we use more as an 'open fire' only lighting it late afternoon or evenings on the gloomiest of days - I decided today was one of those days.
Wood burners are great.We get all the wood for free, either scrap wood etc. from my husband's work ( he's a builder ) or from the hedging, pruning etc. that needs to be done. Very rarely do we turn the heating on and then it is only to take the chill off the bathroom and bedrooms ( mostly for guests ) .

Hopefully spring is just around the corner, with lighter mornings and evenings.

Sheep

I have spent today helping a friend out with her sheep on her smallholding.We first met when her eldest child was just a few weeks old and I minded him while she worked, often odd hours, as a vet.15 years and 3 more children later we remain good friends and have established a very useful share of skills system.

I still care for her children on odd occasions, deal with any computer work for her, provide her with a pig a year - although her partner fancies giving pig rearing ago himself this year- so I guess it will now be a Christmas turkey and pig advice, but best of all I get to help her with her sheep. She sees it as a huge favour, I see as a great opportunity to gain experience, ask loads of questions and just have a day doing what I love. In return I get all the veterinary advice I could ask for, use of her land for my 2 sheep ( I would love at least 3 - more of a flock then ) whenever I run short of grass or need to wean the lambs and run my ewes with hers at tupping time.She also cares for my dog if I need to go away.So all in all it works really well.

Anyway back to the sheep. She runs 2 small flocks,1 of manx and 1 of zwartbles.Today we brought them in to primarily scan them for lambs but took the opportunity to worm them and check their feet.
A few are looking a bit poor so we also treated them for liver fluke, as they run on quite wet ground and took blood samples from four of the thinnest to test for any deficiencies.

On the way home we stopped by to inject my 2 for fluke, as they were running with hers until a week ago.We also took blood from one of them as she too is a little thin, especially compared to the other. It will be interesting to get the results.

Chickens

I have kept chickens before, but not since we moved here and I have missed them. In October I was lucky enough to see an advert for a hen house, four hens and accessories not far from us for a ridiculously cheap price.

They belonged to a dear old boy who was calling it a day on poultry keeping. Over the years he had kept many different breeds and types and they obviously meant a lot to him.

Early October they arrived, in full moult and looking a little worse for wear.Three light Sussex and one black rock all about 4 to 5 years old... so different to what I had in mind!!


After tidying up their back ends and treating them for red mite we let them loose in their new area ( 42 x 30 ft run) . We also put them on a seven day course of wormer and put probiotics into their drinking water to reduce stress and to counterbalance the effects of the wormer.

For the first week it poured down and the poor things looked very sorry for themselves, but a little bribery in the form of meal worms soon won them around.

I wasn't expecting them to come back into lay until later this spring ( if at all ! ) but bless them on December 4th we had our first egg and have had one pretty much on a daily basis.This weekend the black rock came back into lay - so now we have two laying !!

I think they have certainly earned themselves a reprieve, although with my practical head on I shall be investing in some point of lay in the next few weeks.





( The photo shows them on their first day, I must take another of them in their full glory ! )

A funny sort of day

It's been a funny, bitty sort of day today, but I think we did get a few things done.

We woke to a fairly calm day after last nights storm.Luckily no damage done, quite a few bits of branches scattered around the place and the odd bucket blown around, that's all.

Rather than start the hedge bordering the public footpath,which we like to finish in one go, we decided ( after seeing to the livestock) to tackle the old apple tree in the orchard.Like everything else it has been somewhat neglected.

Twenty minutes in the skies turned black,then a most beautiful rainbow and then a terrific hailstorm, enough to turn the grass white.After it stopped we tried to continue with the pruning, but by then we were a bit cold and wet and to be honest were making quite a mess of the grass, a precious commodity at this time of year, so we called it a day.

Instead we took the brambles etc to the tip and split and bagged enough logs for the coming week.

After lunch we went to the local garden centre to buy an automatic opening for the still unglazed greenhouse and some seeds and seed potatoes ,which have now been put to chit.

Tonight we will order the rest of seeds we need.

So I guess all in all not too bad a day.

The Infamous ' To do list '

At this time of the year most of the jobs on the ' to do list ' are confined to weekends and these are dependent on the weather and or forecast.

This weekend the plan was to glaze the newly erected (although secondhand) greenhouse. However the forecast for today was severe wind and rain from midday onwards. As we didn't think it was wise to start the job and not get it finished before the wind started to build up we changed our plans and did some hedging instead.

We are a little late this year, we usually try and get most of it completed during the Christmas break. Although nowhere near finished, today we have made a good start.The hedges have been somewhat neglected, so we are cutting out a third each year (the largest of the branches) in the hope that it will eventually thicken up.

The forecasters were right,the morning started off with beautiful weather and we did wonder if we had made the right choice,but the wind started to get stronger during the day and at 4 o' clock the rain started, luckily we had just begun to pack away.

A good day!

Is this normal behaviour ??

This morning, like many mornings this winter, I could be found just after 7 o clock standing in the middle of the paddock in the dark, rain pouring down filling a child's paddling pool. Surely this isn't normal behaviour for a middle aged woman!!

I keep geese - not many - 7 in fact and as I don't have a pond paddling pools are the next best thing.They can be emptied and moved on a daily basis, keeping the grass and water clean and the geese love them!! The other day I noticed 3, at a squash, can fit in at a time.They do prefer solo bathing most of the time,breeding season is the exception.

Here goes!!

My first tentative step into blogging.

Why am I doing this ? .... Well this year we are hoping to expand on a way of life that involves growing as much of our own food as possible and having read other blogs the idea of keeping a daily account to look back on appeals.

I guess I should start at the beginning. I live in Devon, am married and have three grown up children ( all still living at home !! ) A life time ago, before marriage I worked on a large dairy farm, in my spare time I bred pigs.My parents always grew their own veg. made chutney, jam etc. and at Christmas time bought a couple of chickens from the market to fatten up.My husband's family also grew their own vegetables and fruit and bred chickens, geese, pigs and rabbits for meat, so I guess the seeds were sown for a way of life that now is becoming more popular.

Christmas 2008 we managed to provide our own, turkey, gammon, bacon, sausages and eggs but none of the veg. Christmas 2009 will hopefully be different, having acquired additional land we are now starting a vegetable patch and have a greenhouse.This is where the blog comes in, a record of our achievements and I am sure many failures, photographs of the changes to the garden and tips and ideas received from others along the way.