Mild October

Yet another warm, dry and sunny day. The weather has been exceptionally mild this month and with it comes advantages and disadvantages. Everything in the garden is still growing. On Tuesday I cut the grass, including the hens run, I thought the previous cut was the last. Of course the fact the grass is still growing is good for the geese and sheep and having to cut the 'lawn' is only mildly inconvenient. The newly sown grass seeds are shooting nicely and as long as we don't get a frost too soon should be fine through the winter.
On Tuesday I also pulled up the runner beans, they would have probably gone on a bit longer but to be honest we are all 'beaned out', we have cooked, frozen and pickled so many that we can no longer face them.
The flower garden has gone a little haywire, with flowers blooming out of season. The spirea is flowering for the second time, the lemon verbena which failed to flower throughout the summer is now in bloom, the small blue iris have been flowering for a couple of weeks and there are also new flowers on the strawberry plants.
The bees are still as busy as they were in the summer collecting pollen for their winter stores.
Unfortunately the warm, mild weather is perfect for flystrike and I do worry about my ewes, as the friend whose holding they are on isn't quite as vigiliant as I feel necessary.
The hens are enjoying the warm days. The pullets are gradually coming into lay one by one, increasing the egg number. Both Dorkings are laying daily but the Cream Legbars are in moult and have stopped completely. The turkeys are growing fine, if a little too quickly and as for the pigs, well they are enjoying their last few days in the sun.