Dorset lifestyle
Walter nibbling Digby with Elton standing by, there’s usually a bit of stray hay hanging around on their fleece so a bit of grooming helps keep things neat and tidy. Did more work on the sheep shelter, discovered some useful cladding planks at the bottom of the log pile, the flock came over to watch, not bothered by all the hammering. A frosty start to the day, a layer of ice stayed on the drinking troughs all day despite the occasional sunny spell. Dry, cloudy and breezy.
Tolerant of windy sites this tree has been blown over a couple of times and is now supported by a couple of fence posts. The blackbirds love to eat the berries when the ground is frosted and there’s not much else around. Mowed the square paddock to remove the last of the seed heads, created another compost heap next to the existing one so that can be emptied, the top layer going into the fresh grass cuttings. A cold day with a bright orange sunset.
William and Toby taking the opportunity to eat willow, they stayed as far up the slope as they could so the branch had to be pulled down for them. William’s coat is thick and fluffy, Toby’s hasn’t changed much. Thankfully, no damage from the continuing high winds, a dumpy bag ended up half way down the meadow strip and the wheelbarrows were turned over but the trees all stayed intact. A cold day with sleet and snows showers.
Waiting to be let through the gate into Willow paddock, Walter, Elton and Digby are at the front with Jago just behind and Pixie and Bianca standing to the side. Pixie is turning into a barrel-shaped sheep with a fat tummy and a thick fleece, they all had a run round before settling down for the night. Dodged the showers when mucking out, cut more apple tops and lunch at The Baker Arms. A cold, cloudy, day with strengthening winds.
Dry paddocks, so the donkeys are still going out in the afternoons, walked them down and round Laneside for a taste of the willow and then groomed them. Did more work on the sheep shelter, a sunny day with light winds, so attached the tarpaulin and nailed down some of the roofing planks, half of it should be waterproof. A bright orange sunset to end the day, rain promised for tomorrow.
A branch from the lane for the donkeys, there aren’t many leaves left, and they’re always eaten first, the sheep had a branch of field maple to chew. Mowed the bottom of Laneside to pick up the leaves from the oak tree, not many acorns about, the compost heap is very full, opened an entrance from the top end so that it can start to be emptied into the raised beds. A sunny, cool day with no frost.
Looking to see if there’s anything edible in the wheelbarrow, building sheep shelter Mk 5 is underway and all the sheep are very curious. Elton and Jago picked up bailer twine, nails and cable ties for a taste and then stood in the nail tin, fortunately without knocking it over. Had to shut the hurdle entrance to keep them out of the way as hammering didn’t scare them away. Most of the sidewalls are in place, need to think about the roof assembly. A bright, sunny, frosty, start to a cloudy day.
A magnificent reindeer in Bournemouth gardens, certainly the star of the show. Walked through the Christmas trees to the beach and ate a Yorkshire Pudding wrap. Dark when we moved the sheep back to their arcs for the night, the donkeys came up from the paddock for their vitamins. A frosty start to a cold, breezy, day.
Sitting in the long grass behind the stable, just waiting for something interesting to move, she gave up after half an hour or so, and moved on to somewhere else. The new branches on the oak tree haven’t covered the box yet, I can hear the barn owl calling most nights so hopefully it’ll move in next year. A misty start to a cloudy cool day with a moderate wind, much colder than recent days. Brought the lemon trees in from the terrace, they’ll spend the winter in the boot room and go out again in the Spring.
In full flower on a north-east facing wall, with very little soil, occasionally watered and fed with a mulch of compost, hopefully it will flower until the Spring. Herded the sheep and called the donkeys in from the paddock in the dark, Toby was ready for his vitamins and brayed as he walked onto the yard. Poo picking will have to wait until tomorrow. A misty start to a drizzly mild day.
Has had her head in the salt lick or she’s turning ginger on top! It’s very noticeable against the rest of her creamy – coloured fleece. The sheep spent the day in Willow before returning to their arcs in Fallen Oak for the night, a bucketful of hay was available but they didn’t seem that hungry, it’s warm enough for the grass to still be growing. The leaves of the Hazel hedge have turned orange and most of the Beech leaves have fallen, could be time for more hedge laying. A cloudy mild day with light winds.
William and Toby having fun before being let out into the paddock. Biting a back leg results makes the recipient sit down so both of them try this, Toby succeeding more often than William. The sun stayed low in the sky, breaking through the mist and cloud for a few hours and setting before five o’clock, so lights needed at the stable to fluff up the straw bed and give them their vitamin mix. A mild day with light winds.
Collecting pollen from the Rhodedendron flowers in early morning sunshine, the Choisya is in full bloom, and it’s just about mild enough to leave the Lemon trees outside on the terrace. The Bramley is keeping it’s green leaves which is good news for the donkeys and the sheep, all keen to eat the leaves and nibble at the bark, the donkeys will eat what the sheep leave. The ground is drying out, it hasn’t rained for a week or more. A mild sunny day with light winds.
None of last year’s concoction is left and there will be more than a few months wait for this brew. The jar on the right is freshly made and contains frozen sloes and neat gin, the latest recipes advise adding the sugar after the sloes have given up their juice as then the sweetness can be well balanced. Hope it works! Peeled the last of the Bramley’s and stewed ready for freezing, not as many apples as last year but still a few pounds. A sunny mild day with light winds.
Toby pulling the branch away from William so that he gets first chew, the leaves are eaten first and then the small twiggy bits, the thicker branches will have their bark nibbled off over the next week or two. Favourite branches are taken into the stable overnight. The sheep are wandering about in various paddocks, seeking out the sweetest grass and herbs. A sunny day with early morning mist and late cloud.
The old shed taking on a new lease of life as a shelter in the Square paddock, the height was reduced to remove the rotten frame round the base, and the ground slopes so the back corner had to be raised on four concrete slabs to keep everything level, hope the roof goes back on OK. The working party was rewarded with lasagne and garlic bread for lunch. A mild cloudy day with light winds.
Making contact through the gate to the Avenue, the sheep had spent the morning wandering round from the square paddock. Their hooves are pushing the sand down into the mud mats, so scattered more gravel to fill the holes, will add sand later to form the top layer. Moved the sheep arcs into Fallen Oak and let the donkeys into the Square. The woodpecker spent a few minutes pecking at the lawn. A mild, cloudy day with light winds.
He’s growing a beard as well as longer horns. The paving slab had warmed in the sun, it didn’t seem to matter that it wasn’t as comfortable to sit on as the softer ground of the paddock. Overnight rain has made the Avenue puddly, so the donkeys coats have a covering of mud. The mud mat steps are holding up well, need a few more to finish the job. A showery breezy day with late sunshine.
Looking across the sand towards the Church when the tide was in, all the lamp posts were lit from top to bottom and there was no wind, so it was very calm with nothing to ripple the water, not even the dog walkers were out and about. Walked to the war memorial and bought a poppy earlier in the day, the sun bounced off the cliffs in the distance, further along the coast at West Bay another cliff fall has cut the beach in half. A sunny cloudy dry mild day.
Sitting in the morning sun, it was a misty start to the day with no frost, and the sheep were up and about early. Fieldfares landed in the paddock and stayed for a while before flying west. The crows are noisy, sitting in the tops of the ash trees and calling to each other; the rookery is in the field across the lane near the pond and late afternoon they swoop and fly in a noisy murmaration. The donkeys spent the day in Laneside, grazing the hedge. A warm and sunny Autumn day with light winds
Led the donkeys into the paddock for a walk and stopped at the willow for a tasty treat, the ground is drier and the spring has stopped running, although there’s a boggy patch at the bottom of the Avenue. Collected four golden straw bales, they’ve eaten the last of the beech branches so must cut some more. Piled more broken paving slabs at the edges of the mudmats and filled the gaps with gravel. A sunny warm day with light winds and lots of butterflies flying around.
A lovely up and down circuit on gravel tracks round the New Forest with a stop at the old railway station, so half an hour spent chatting and drinking coffee. Bicycle is now in for repair as the front wheel rolled away when I lifted it onto the rack to drive home, I don’t know how long I’d been riding with a loose front wheel, lucky not to come off. Needs a new cassette as well and a general service so that will all be done. A sunny, cool, day with light winds.
All sitting in the morning sun chewing the cud, there’s still lots of grass for them to eat so when the hay bucket comes out they don’t all rush forward, the young ones keener than the matriarchs, Winnie and Ivy. Picked the last of the Bramley’s, there aren’t as many as last year, and a couple of bags of apple tops to dry for winter forage. Still need to pick the Darcy Spice and the Sloes. Lunch at The Baker Arms followed by several rounds of Mahjong. A sunny warm day with a cool breeze.
A few days of bright cold mornings, the Ash trees have lost their leaves but the Oaks and Rowan still have theirs. The end of the paddock is fenced off to stop the animals eating the acorns, although last year was a mast year with a bumper crop so there should be fewer acorns this year. Cut beech branches from the ditch for the donkeys, gave them a piece of blackthorn as well but they preferred the beech. Sawed wood and disturbed a sleepy wasp that still had its sting. A cool, sunny, day with light winds.
Dozing in warm sunshine, the first hard frost of the Autumn had already melted away but the water bucket had a thin layer of ice that needed breaking. William has grown his winter coat in the last week or two, with long tufts sticking out along his back by his tail, Toby’s coat seems much the same, just covered in mud from roll-overs. Visited Christchurch Priory to remember flute – playing Anneyce, and chatted with friends afterwards in her local pub. A sunny warm day after a cold start.
Starting at Furzehill a lovely ride round a twenty mile circuit towards Holt and Cannon Hill before returning via Newtown. The section around Remedy Oak proved more challenging than expected with several large trees blocking the bridleway, a way could be cleared under a couple of them but this one was just too big to move, the only solution was to haul the bikes up onto a steep bank and clear a path at the top. A lot of trees came down in the gales and will take time to clear. A sunny showery day with light winds.
Light until 5pm, the sun drops quickly over the horizon. Collected three straw bales for the donkeys and a hay bale for the sheep, there’s still grass in the paddocks but with the first frosts it’ll stop growing and have much less sugar content. The gap in the hedge has been widened to give a better view of the stable from the garden so filled the car with the branches and went to the tip. The donkeys had a few apple twigs, the trees are starting to lose their leaves. A sunny cool day with light winds.
The sheep are curious when the first part of the dismantled shed arrives in their paddock, their new shelter has plastic roof panels which will make poo picking easier. As the other panels and various power tools arrived the sheep were shut in a smaller enclosure until the donkeys wandered up from Laneside late afternoon, and then they were let in there for a couple of hours until dark. A frosty start to a gloriously sunny day.
The donkeys are confined to their straw area until the paddock dries out, and because it’s been raining so hard they’ve been spending more time in their stable at night and eating more straw. A hazel branch or thistles every day makes their diet more interesting. The sheep grazed Laneside before returning to the Square paddock at dusk. A cloudy cool day with light winds.
Jago getting the lions share of hugs with Walter, Digby and Elton waiting their turn. They’re all a bit tubby after a summer spent eating grass, and their fleeces feel thick already, shearing is in late May or early June so they’re going to feel a bit hot by then. More torrential rain overnight has flooded the fields in the vale and the newly installed gates have closed the road to Hammoon. Water is pouring out of the pipe at the bottom of the paddock and into the ditch. A sunny windy day with hail showers
