Dorset lifestyle
William and Toby hoovering up a handful of hay that was destined for the sheep, a treat for them in addition to their branches and apple twigs. May let them out in the paddock in the next couple of days if it doesn’t rain, there’s always plenty for them to watch but they don’t get the chance to run around. The mowers were collected for their annual service, they get a lot of use so need to be reliable. A sunny, mild day after a sharp frost.
Eating the hay that’s been pulled out of the bucket and left on the ground by the rest of the sheep who are all heading off looking for richer pickings elsewhere. Cut half a dozen branches from Laneside hedge for the sheep, the donkeys will have them tomorrow after the catkins and smaller twigs have been eaten. Collected four bales of straw. A wet, cloudy, day with light winds.
Took more than a mouthful of hay and moved away from the rest of the flock, the younger ones like to stay with their heads in the bucket, only moving when pushed aside by one of the others. The grinding, chewing, chomping noise from nine sheep is nice to listen to for ten minutes or so. They all escaped into the small paddock when the gate snagged on a large tussock of grass, they spent an hour eating fresh grass before returning to their arcs for the night. A cloudy, mild, day with heavy showers and light winds.
All liking the hay, they ran up to the bucket and round the field, jumping and twisting when what was left was taken to the hay rack in their shelter, it’ll all be gone by the morning. Walter likes picking the bits off the others heads. This was a brief respite from the wind and rain, the paddocks are very wet so the donkeys had to stay up at the stable, a new branch kept them amused, their coats too wet to be groomed. A wet end to a wet day.
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.
Nola and Bianca chewing the cud, they like to lie close to each other and always up against a fence or one of their arcs. The sheep have been moving between Laneside and the Fallen Oak paddock, there’s still lots of grass in both. The sound of haymaking and cutting grass for silage has lessened, most of the harvest is cut and stored ready for winter and the remaining fields have cows grazing. A cool and cloudy day with late sunshine and a glorious sunset.
Mark IV, with one more shade-providing sides added, the tarpaulin roof withstood the last rains but developed a droop in places so will need supporting from inside to make sure the water drains away from the centre, it returned to normal after a few hot sunny days. Feeding the fish every couple of hours, they are very hungry, the water lilies are pushing up the heron proof netting, must donate some to another pond. The tractors are up and down the lane late into the night bringing in the hay. A hot, humid day with light winds.
Happening in fields all over the vale, a five day window of hot dry weather has allowed farmers to cut, waffle and bale their hay, so the race is on to get it all in the barns before the thunderstorms arrive. Cycle from Pamphill, twelve mile round trip to Badbury Rings and The Anchor for coffee, past fields of linseed in full flower, acres of deep blue replacing the familiar bright yellow rapeseed. A hot humid day with clear skies and a pale pink sunset.
Collected three bales of yellow wheat straw for the donkeys and one bale of soft green hay for the sheep, the grass is starting to grow in the paddocks so this may be the last bale of hay until the winter. Lovely dry cycle through Farnham and the Gussages with coffee and a sausage roll at Chettle with super views across newly ploughed fields, it started raining just as the bike was put on the car. Fed the fish, no sign of any toad spawn, perhaps there won’t be any this year. A wet end to a cloudy sunny day.
The sheep spread more hay on the ground than they eat because they take big mouthfuls and then drop most of it, so the donkeys benefit most mornings. A lovely walk from Pamphill fringing the River Stour to Walford Mill for coffee, the ground is drying out and the river has dropped to allow the swans to start nesting. Levelled more of the driveway, almost to the paddock gate, surprising how much is disappearing into the ground as it’s walked over. Watered the new trees which are starting to bud. A mild start to the day with cooling winds and cloud later.
William and Toby enjoying a handful of hay in warm midday sunshine, I had an ice-cream on the terrace. Collected oak leaves from the bottom paddock, there’s a boggy patch in the centre but the edges are ok, may let the sheep run there in a few days if it drains a little, the spring is running into the ditch and down the lane. Moved some wood from the pile behind the stable, ready for cutting, stacking and burning next year. A mild day with sunny spells and light winds, watched the owl fly across the field at dusk.
Looking better after a tidy up; the number of bales can be kept in single figures as there’s a year-round supplier of wheat straw and hay within five miles, so collecting four or six of what’s needed every couple of weeks shouldn’t be a problem. The hay is really soft and green and the sheep like it a lot, the wheat straw is golden and quiet tough so the donkeys prefer it to barley straw. Fitted bristle to the bottom of the doors to stop the rain driving underneath as the edges of the workshop are a bit damp, the donkeys noticed the new sweeping sounds. Heavy rain to start and end the day with fog and drizzle in between.
The hay bales are ready to fill a hungry gap if the grass stop growing in the paddocks and the sheep need a supplementary feedstuff. Grown locally they’re a grassy meadow mix that is softer than the hard dry grass which was cut in the last month. If kept dry the bales will last for five years and still be good to eat. Sitting on top is a bunch of apple tree shoots that were cut today, they’ll be hung in the roof of the workshop and, if still edible, fed to the donkeys as a treat when the paddocks are too wet to be used and they can’t browse the hedgerow. A breezy day with warm sunshine and no rain, watered the beans which are still flowering. Picked tomatoes and a water melon.
These may be the last blooms of the summer, I hope they’ll flower again before Christmas after a prune, the petals on the red rose are really thick and the sun dazzles around them. The grass in the paddocks has turned a bright shade of green since the thunderstorms and is growing well, a sprinkling of donkey and sheep poo must have helped; the rain came too late for the fields opposite, there’s not enough grass for the customary second cut as there are large bare patches, so no more hay this year although there may be a cut for silage in November. A low lying mist started the day which cleared quickly in the morning sun, watered the runner beans and the greenhouse before cycling.
In amongst the buttercups in the paddock and not trampled by the sheep, struggling a little because the buttercups are so tall. Hot again today, the hay in the field, which was cut five days ago, has been baled. Watered the veg, trees and hedge, saving the last full waterbutt to top up the pond so it’s tap water from now on until it rains. Saving as much water as possible from the kitchen, helps to water the plants outside the back door.
