ongoings down on the smallholding

Its been a busy week down on the smallholding. Picking fruit and watering plants. I have tomatoes, raspberries, blackcurrants, strawberries and today i had my first blackberry. I have a large amount of blackberries so will be making a range of blackberry related products for my market stall. I started with a summer fruit desert sauce today which i have to say went down really well.

Pigs well they are just being pigs the sheep are now scared of the pigs. Sheep are doing ok other than the little black sheep who seems to be stunned. She also keeps escaping from the rest of the sheep to my vegetable patch. However she doesnt seem to like the vegetables she is just eating the weeds. Clever Lamb. think she is going to end up a pet as she will never get to the right weight. so might have to have a lamb naming session.

Chickens and ducks. mr fox got in and has killed a few chickens grr!! Feathers everywhere!! The fox took the bodies away so must be feeding babies somewhere. Not pleasant to find missing chickens but thats life in nature.

Stardust still loving the great outdoors and is never in!! She does come home for a bit of affection and food and then she is off out again. Toffee isnt much better. Great to see two happy cats. Wont mention Trifle who is old and I am sure senile as she sleeps on the edge of the bath and falls off and never learns that its perhaps not the best idea to sleep on the side of the bath!

Anniversary of 'To Live the dream'

Well its been a year since I left the rat race and big smoke or little smoke of Accrington. Leaving my loving friends after being made redundant I headed off down to Cornwall and started my smallholding. Always loved animals and with a bit of experience of helping on farms and gardening experience the plan to grow my own food and raise my own animals and to become as self sufficient as possible.

A year on and what a year its been.

Cleared some land and landed in nettles

I have raised escapee pigs - certainly a different way to get to know your neighbours when your pigs go to visit them! I have eaten them and sold the meat raw and cooked not at the same time and now have my second lot of pigs

I have brought up 9 orphan lambs - bottle feeding and bruises spring to mind.

I have raised chickens and ducks and sold eggs! Got a cockeral and incubated the eggs to get my own Chicks

Kept bees and increased my colony

Picked fruit made jam and sold it. Grown veg and eaten it

The stardust has grown and now loves the great outdoors along with Toffee - claiming a whole field as hers. 

Done sea fishing and eaten what I have caught. Swimming in the sea, sang in a choir and been a tourist round cornwall. There has been ups and downs - animals have come and gone, some missing some died, some have been hunted. Pests to deal with mice, foxes and magpies. Financial pressures of starting a new business- will never be a millionaire - have a few jobs - a bit of this and a bit of that until my business can support me.  

Wildlife around me include herons, barn owls, badgers and deer, lovely views and remote. Lovely neighbours but not in your face.

I have missed friends and have loved friends and family that have visited and met some very lovely people on the way. I have had some kind help and support. 

If it was last July and I knew then what I knew now would I do it again?? absolutely. 

Despite the hard work, the highs and lows, the winter storms etc i have loved the year living the dream.

Do I continue living the dream? Absolutely - whilst i can pay the bills i will live the dream. 

  

lost sheep

The problem with having long grass and a wood at the end of your 3 and a half ache plot is lambs get lost very easy!! Not to mention losing cats.

Today when rattling the feed buckets no lambs. I had to go looking for sheep in the field to feed them! They cant need the extra feed if they are not waiting for it!!

Coming up to a year of the new life

Its 6 days away from me being here for a year! Its flown by. Time to reflect me thinks over the next few days and decide what i have learnt, what i will do better, where I am and the people I have met. Where do I go from here. I think I know the answer to the question would I do it all again!! The main question I will be asking is is it sustainable?? I will reveal my findings on the anniversary of the new life. :)

Down on the veg plot

Well my first crop of spuds are ready and also the raspberries and strawberries. I ate the strawberries before the photo!!

I must have a word with myself. I started off very good all rows labelled and everything on the veg plot and now its just got things where ever there is space. I say things as I cant remember what they are!! Oophs I will soon find out when they grow.

tough life in a field for animals

Well what can I say found the Chicken egg stealer - Magpies!! Found one nicking eggs from the duck house!!

Lambs - I have lost a lamb. The suspect is Mr Fox. Lamb just vanished in the night no signs of anything. Sorry Nicholas but it was whitety. I am missing whitety he was such a character!!

Barn Owl - has been using my field to hunt in great to watch must get the camera sorted. Lost battery charger for camera not good as limited to small camera at moment.

The there is the slugs - been collecting them in a bucket and giving them chickens. When you throw slugs into chicken coup its like british bulldog (remember that as kids!) chicken steals the slug for itself and runs as fast as it can!! if its fast it gets to eat the slug if its slow another chicken will steal it. Very entertaining!!

So tough life being an animal in a field

photos of the smallholding