Month: August 2020

Posted on

Shoes

This pair of Ecco shoes were so very comfortable after years of use, they’ve walked many miles and as they looked so tatty have lately been the preferred option when painting, gardening and poo picking. The stitches have disintegrated and the soles have very thin patches – spiky bits of straw find their way in to my socks, so it’s time to recycle them, have saved the laces for tying up plants as the ends won’t fray. The replacement footware is the black Wrangler boots, more appropriate I guess. A surprisingly hot day with light winds, picked Ribston Pippin apples, Conference pears, runner beans, courgettes, runner beans and tomatoes.

Posted on

Music Festival

At Mill Farm near Sherborne, a relaxing afternoon and evening spent listening to live bands in a lovely setting on the banks of the river Yeo. The raffle was an interesting mix of prizes including a session in their recording studio, a singing lesson and a couple of hours walking with llamas. Winnie and Digby came from Mill Farm so it was good to report on their progress and see the rest of the flock in the distance. Took a couple of loads of garden rubbish to the lower paddock ready for a bonfire, the pile is big enough already and there’s more to add. A calm day compared to the thunderstorms of yesterday, no watering required.

Millfarmdorset.com
Posted on

Oak Tree

The large oak tree behind the stable is over a hundred years old so it needed a balancing prune and it’s lower branches lifted. The view is even more spectacular, and the branches will still provide shade in the summer although the pile of woodchip is much smaller than expected so may have to get more delivered for the seating area. The sad news is that a visual survey of the centre of the main trunk revealed significant cavities in each of the three large limbs, the biggest is more than two meters deep and full of loose fibrous material, the other two are smaller but taken together there’s a risk of the tree being felled in a gale either tomorrow or in a few years time, it’s difficult to predict. One option is to have it felled; decided not to do that as it’s such a joy to look at and a significant landmark, I hope it lasts another hundred years!

Before
After
Posted on

Thunderstorm

Moved the Ouessants into the square paddock for a change of scenery and greener grass, it was fine until it started raining and then they all ran under the sheep shelter, it’s smaller than the one in their usual paddock so a couple of them moved outside and were dripped on. Before the storm arrived the donkeys moved alongside the shelter and then they all got very wet. Tucked them up for the night during the thunder and lightening downpour and then half an hour later the rain stopped! Picked courgettes, runner beans, blueberries, windfall bramleys and sloes.

Posted on

Sloes

There are lots in the hedgerows, and the trees that adjoin the paddock are laden, too many are not good for the animals so access has to be restricted, these will go in the freezer for use later. Swallows are still flying in and out of the tack room, no noise from the nest so not sure what’s going on. The bags of donkey poo outside the front gate are still there, the new ‘free’ notice must be attracting attention… ? Widened part of the driveway as it becomes a bit of a mud patch in the winter. Weather much calmer today with light winds and some sunshine, watered the runner and beans and the greenhouse veg.

dav
Posted on

Storm Francis

Rushed in overnight and stayed all day which meant poo picking and sweeping out in the rain. It was too warm to wear the wet gear so it was back to shorts and a polo shirt. The wind has been at gale force all day, buffeting the hedgerow and trees and the wisteria is bashing against the window and losing the last of its blossom. Sheep don’t mind the wind but it makes the donkeys skittish. The good news is that there’ll be more windfall apples for crumble. Had lunch at a pub which had put it’s marquee out of bounds so had to eat inside, hope it’s calmer tomorrow for the tree works.

dav
Posted on

Cycle Ride

To Sturminster Newton and back along the trailway, started in a rain shower and ended in sunshine with coffee and a sausage roll at the cafe. Pulled a few more of the Mediterranean Mix carrots from the raised bed, the yellow variety have produced the largest carrots, the small orange dumpy ones need the least preparation for cooking with hardly any gritty creases. Set up the electric fence so that when acorns fall they won’t be within reach of the donkeys; if they eat them the Gallic Acid and Tannic Acid toxins stays in their body and eventually cause liver and kidney failure. The tape ended up in a real tangle so must invest in a winding reel. Over 3000 acorns were removed from under this oak tree last year, it’ll be interesting to see how many fall this year.

Posted on

Pond

Poppy likes fishing so the net has to be a permanent feature unless there’s time to watch what she’s up to, the fish are always hungry and thrash around when they see you or feel the vibration of your footsteps. The black fish gradually turn orange with age and the older orange fish become paler and their tails seem to lengthen. The water lillies have done well this year and the oxygenating weed is flourishing so there’s lots of shade and places for the fish to hide. The blanket weed is disappearing as the temperature starts to drop but the filter and pump should be cleaned before the water gets too cold. A cloudy sunny day with no rain, picked runner beans, carrots and cucumbers.

Posted on

Oak Trees

Fixed new boarding to the bottom of the fence below the oak tree behind the stable, thinning the branches this week will provide lots of woodchip for a new shaded seating area and there may be enough for the emerging shrub borders to be mulched. The fallen oak will be removed from the ditch and it’s branches cut off or shortened to make sure it won’t become unstable and roll over at some future date. It’s been a feature of the bottom paddock since last winter and it’s made an interesting feature for the donkeys to walk round and have a scratch, William doesn’t seem very interested in Toby’s subsequent roll-over. The logs will give out lots of heat on the woodburner over the winter. A sunny cloudy day, no rain, strong winds.

sdr
Posted on

Windy Day

The runner beans have nearly fallen over, the supports have been strengthened with more canes and bailer twine – it will have to be a metal frame next year, it’s become difficult to pick the beans in-between the rows because of all the foliage dropping down. The greenhouse has been shut up all day but it’s still warm enough for the autovents to open. There are lots of windfall bramleys to pick up and prepare for the freezer. The donkeys don’t like strong winds so they’ve been unsettled for most of the the day. No rain, this shower passed us by with a colourful rainbow and differing shades of grey on either side.

Posted on

Bottom Paddock

The donkeys were let into a different paddock today and chased each other round and round the perimeter before settling under the willow tree and feasting on the branches. Looks as if William has lost weight, not sure about Toby. The Texels happily walked down the lane to join the rest of their flock, we’ll have some of them back in December after tupping to keep the grass down. Mended the gate into the meadow strip as it was impossible to open, not sure about any more adjustment if the posts relax any further. Fixed plastic sheeting to the back of the sheep shelter to stop the rain driving inside. A windy and sunny day, no watering.

Posted on

Crab Spider

The Sweet Peas outside the back door have been flowering for weeks and attracted this bright yellow spider. Crab spiders don’t build webs to trap their prey they just wait for an insect to land and make a grab for it. Some change colour to camouflage themselves but this one wasn’t blending in at all so I guess it will have moved on to a different flower. A stormy day with strong winds and horizontal rain, made it easier to clean the hard standing outside the stable as there was more than enough water available. Good news for the hedges and trees, no watering required.

Posted on

Ellingham Show

The donkeys didn’t win any prizes in the Virtual Donkey Show but they have been given special rosettes! William and Toby weren’t too disappointed at the result and seem happy enough wearing their new decorations. A lovely walk from Spread Eagle Hill towards Fontmell Magna started in a heavy rain shower and ended in bright sunshine, followed by lunch at Compton Abbas Airfield. Took down the electric fence and moved the Texels for the last time as they leave to join the rest of their flock tomorrow, the Ouessants will miss talking with them. Promise of a day’s rain tomorrow.

Posted on

Blueberries

Planted six new plants in the freshly weeded border, I hope they do as well as the one in the pot, will need to feed them with an ericaceous mulch, the daisies have been trimmed so there’s enough space for them to stretch. The runner beans are still doing well despite being buffeted by the strong winds, it’s difficult to walk between the rows as the frame has developed a bit of a lean. The all shapes and sizes mediterranean carrots are tasty, they’re being overrun by the courgettes in the adjacent bed but I don’t think it’ll make any difference. The trees in the lane are starting to lose their leaves, the hot weather combined with not enough rain has dried out the tops. A cloudy day with a few showers and late sunshine.

Posted on

King of the Castle

Pixie is on the top of the woodpile with Walter and Digby waiting for their turn, Digby soon got bored and left to inspect the new addition to the sheep shelter – a side panel to help keep out the rain. Moved the lemon trees to the other end of the terrace out of the wind, the wren has been hopping about in the branches, I hope she’s eating the bugs. The donkeys were let out later in the day and browsed the hedgerow picking out the beech leaves. The day started with rain and light winds and ended with no wind and lifting temperatures, the mist in the valley may develop into fog in the morning. Jupiter, Saturn and The Plough were clearly visible tonight together with a few criss-crossing satellites.

Posted on

Scratching Post

The donkeys have turned part of their scratching post on it’s side, thinking they’re beavers! A lot of debris so maybe they’re sharpening their hedgerow eating teeth. There’s not a lot of grass in the paddocks; they are returning to their stable for straw mid afternoon and it’s also an opportunity to use the salt lick. Tried to remove a few dock plants from the square paddock, the soil is wet for the first inch but dry beyond that, it’s surprising considering the deluge we had yesterday, we definitely need more rain. A drizzly day with mist in the valley and over the hills but nothing significant in terms of rain, watered the vegetables and picked runner beans and tomatoes. Ate one of the four plums on the tree, delicious.

Posted on

Texels

The six sheep borrowed to keep the grass cut in the paddocks will be going to rejoin the rest of their flock in a few days, they all need to get to know each other again before meeting the rams in September, and they need to be fattened up a little, the donkeys will miss them. Tupping will carry on for six or eight weeks before the rams are separated from the ewes for the rest of the year. All the sheep have been talking with the flock that’s moved into the cornfield across the lane; the sound of bleating carries a long way. A much cooler day with persistent mist and the threat of rain, not much watering to be done.

Posted on

Rain

A lot of it, the thunderstorms arrived in the afternoon and filled up the water butts, very noisy on the stable roof and the gutters overflowed so the hardstanding has been swept clean. The sheep all preferred to stay in the dry whenever possible and shook themselves like dogs when they did get wet. The donkeys stayed out until their usual time, not bothered about the rain, although Toby would have stuck his head under a shelter if there had been one available. No watering required except in the greenhouse, hope the deluge has helped the hedge. Picked cucumbers, tomatoes and runner beans.

Posted on

Hedgerow

Eaten first by the sheep and now by the donkeys, not as neat a finish as a hedge trimmer but much more interesting and satisfying for them. There’s a big difference in the grass, a month ago it was much greener. Found two tiny swallows on the tack room floor, they must have fallen or been pushed out of the nest, hope there’s more in there, the swallows are still flying in and out regularly. A stiflingly hot day with none of the promised thunderstorms, the new hedge is going brown and curling at the edges despite being watered every couple of days and the sheep have stayed in their shelter all day. The Texels are running out of grass so gave them a few apples as a supplement, hoping for rain tomorrow.

August 12th
July 6th
Posted on

Blueberries

Should have taken a photo before I picked today’s crop, this bush will be full of berries for another month at least if kept watered, probably 30 every day so enough for a fresh topping to deserts and breakfast cereal. The runner beans are also cropping well, lots more flowers, need to keep them well watered. Cucumbers and tomatoes are suffering in the greenhouse and need watering several times a day. The donkeys enjoyed an apple lolly, they made short work of the frozen disc. A very hot day with a few drops of rain at dusk.

dav
Posted on

Cat Mint

Poppy, in common with two thirds of household cats, likes chewing the leaves, it’s both a relaxant and a sedative so she has to sleep it off under a bush. Fortunately, deer don’t like it much and it needs very little water to survive. Photos of the donkeys have been entered in the Ellingham Virtual Donkey Show, there were 13 classes, William and Toby were entered in 3 of them – Portrait, Ears and Boys over 4 years. I’ll be checking ellinghamshow.co.uk for the results and will look forward to next years show when we may enter a couple of the Ouessants. A cloudy start to the day with low cloud and a warm wind, too hot for the sheep who stayed in their shelter. More watering, may get a thunderstorm tomorrow.

Posted on

Ellisons Orange

I thought there were very few apples left on the tree after the frosts earlier in the year but I picked over fifty apples, crisp and juicy they may or may not develop an aniseed flavour. Topped up the hedgehog water tray, haven’t seen any poo on the grass recently so she may have moved on. The ouessant lambs are becoming more confident, Walter is the first to want a scratch and Pixie is eating out of my hand occasionally, Digby is licking the feed bucket so won’t be far behind. A very hot day, the flies are annoying the donkeys, may have thunderstorms tomorrow, the waterbutts are nearly empty.

Posted on

Herbaceous Border

Weeded for the first time in over a year, not sure what’s happened to the vibrant colours of last year, could be the deer. The edge looks very neat and the visible ground elder has been removed, it should be weed free for a few weeks before it re-emerges with new robust shoots. Had a squidgy surprise when I put my crocs on today, a slug had crawled in and made its home where my big toe would normally be – not an experience I want to repeat! A misty start to a very hot dry day, watered the hedge and the vegetables, picked cucumber, tomatoes, courgettes and runner beans.

dav
Posted on

Apple Picking

The Beauty of Bath apples are ripe enough for eating with lovely red and green skin, some were blown off in the strong winds and provide free forage food for the deer; there’s still enough to pick from the tree. The Donkeys and Texels like them, will try slicing them even smaller for the Ouessants, they’ll make a good alternative to the treat mix. I’m pruning the Bramley and giving the long lush leafy growth to the donkeys, there are a few windfalls and it looks like there’ll be a good harvest. A misty drizzly start to the day, the sun came out later and the temperature rose quickly, a very hot end to the day with light winds. Watered.

Beauty of Bath
Bramley
Posted on

Ouessants

The ewes are feeding their lambs several times a day, the enthusiastic approach seems a bit harsh and could continue until the lambs are four months old. Pixie is almost the same size as Nola. Digby is the youngest at 8 weeks old and is called to feed by mum Winnie, his horns are fully grown and have lots of ridges. He lies down and sleeps in the paddock quite often and is only just licking the feed bucket, he doesn’t eat the treats like the others. The day started with low cloud and light winds, by the end of the day the wind was gale force and buffeting the runner beans. A pint at the local pub and fish and chips from the van was delicious.

Nola and Pixie
Winnie and Digby
Posted on

Muck Heap

After filling the raised beds and mulching the borders I needed somewhere to create an ideal place to grow next years courgettes and pumpkins where it won’t matter if they grow in all directions. This structure is the old sheep pen, now lined with dumpy bags and almost full with donkey poo and grass cuttings. It’s getting quite hot in the middle and already rotting down so I have to keep topping it up, fortunately there’s a constant supply of raw material, at least two full wheelbarrows every day. The Magpie moth was resting close to the water butts, they like living in the hedges especially if there are brambles, which there are! A cloudy start to the day, the view soon disappeared in thick fog followed by persistent light rain; good for the garden and the paddocks.

Posted on

Toby

The early mornings can be chilly so I keep a fleece handy, just a bit of a mistake to hang it on the rail as it’s the right height for Toby to grab it, shake it, drag it and tread on it! He likes to chew on beech and willow sticks and often rubs his collar on the ground, he picks it up and wants William to take hold of the other end and pull, William sometimes co-operates, but not always. I need to find something more durable for him to play with, a bike tyre, maybe? The blackbirds are sitting on the trellis taking the blueberries, I don’t think they did that last year so will have to pick them before they’re completely ripe; picked another bundle of runner beans. A sunny day with cool and strengthening winds which resulted in several Bramley apples landing on the grass. No rain so more watering, the waterbutts could do with a top-up, they’ll be empty in another few days.

Posted on

Cycle Ride

38km along Dorset lanes and up and down a few hills we crossed Ackling Dyke, the old roman road which stretched 22 miles from Badbury Rings to Old Sarum. The road provided a rapid transit route for the soldiers to cross Cranborne Chase in full view of the local population and when extended it joined the coast at Hamworthy with London. The White Nettle Leaf Mullein grows in the verge alongside the road, a tall perennial herb which has various benefits if correctly administered, it’s also an extreme irritant if the hairy leaves are handled in the wrong way. The day dawned with a thick bank of fog in the valley that gave way to warm winds and sunshine, watered the vegetables.

Posted on

Sloes and Frogs

Filling the hedgerows, Blackthorn spreads into the paddocks and veg patch and grows very quickly. The fruits look ripe but they become sweeter if picking is left until after the first frost which may be as early as September. Sheep like to eat the seedlings so the spread into the paddocks should be controlled. The little frog was in one of the water buckets, I moved him into the nearby shallow pond margin. The fish in the pond will eat frogspawn so I hope the frog will move to the wildlife pond. Lunch at the pub, a sunny cloudy day with rain later, watered the beans and the raised beds.

Posted on

Ouessants

The sheep are looking more like a flock, moving around the paddock as one when they’re grazing, Tatty Bianca likes talking with the Texels through the fence with Walter not far behind. Digby and Pixie definitely have round worms, they’re very obvious in their poo so the Vet gave them an injection. It’s likely they’re all going to get worms from grazing the same paddock even though we’re poo picking, so we’ll have to gather a representative sample for testing in a months time. Worming will probably become routine for them without bothering with the test. A warm sunny day with gentle winds, picked courgettes and runner beans.

Posted on

Vegetables

The yellow Tumbler tomatoes are growing in the same pot as the sunflower and a few red Outdoor Girl have ripened in the border, all different shapes and sizes. The sun and wind has been so hot today that some tomato plants have shriveled in the greenhouse, I hope they recover, will let a sideshoot develop if not. Picked more runner beans, they’ve been thrashed by the high winds so tied a few back to their poles. There’s been a real variety of weather conditions that the plants have to withstand – both varieties of courgettes are doing OK, the drop in the level of compost in the raised bed means they’re protected. A few drops of rain evaporated as soon as they touched the ground so more watering.