 Christmas is looming and things are going on apace. A rare visit by the postman delivered a very large, heavy envelope from Rural Payments. The opening paragraph basically said 'read, learn and inwardly digest' - oh, and reply within 20 days.
The upside is that I have been offered the chance to extend our stewardship agreement for another five years. Basically, a stewardship is for the enhancement of the countryside by maintaining hedges, verges and other areas that allow flora and fauna to flourish. Other areas are protected by not using pesticides or fertilisers all of which help to preserve the countryside as our 'green and pleasant land'. Avian Flu is still prevalent and unfortunately the Huxley family who have supplied us with turkeys for years have lost their crop to the disease. Fortunately, however, we have managed to find another source and we will be able to fulfil our orders. Hopefully a vaccine will be found soon as it was with Covid and Bird Flu will be a thing of the past. A vaccine for poultry is normally administered in drinking water, so there's no need to catch and inject individual birds. On the farm front, all our crops are looking well, helped by the rainfall and mild weather. We still need more water to ensure a supply for next year, but hopefully not in deluges. The wet weather has brought about foot-rot in some of the sheep, so we are treating them by walking them through a footbath regularly. Christmas is nearly here, so our thoughts are mainly turning to the festive season. Let's make the best of it. Best wishes David  I'm pleased to report that we have completed a successful harvest and that the sowing of our new crops is well underway.
The new crop of Oilseed Rape has been sown using a reduced cultivation which saves on fuel and CO2. We have also sown fewer seeds to create larger plants that will be healthier and require less in the way of pesticides. The living mulch we are creating is now sown, too, and the rainfall of late has helped germination, so the plant populations are looking good. Winter Barley has been sown on the fields where the wheat was chopped and spread. We have also applied farmyard manure to encourage the breakdown of the straw to provide nutrients. What is known as a 'break crop' - brassicas in this case - have been sown on two fields to provide winter feed for the sheep, but this also helps prevent the leaching of nitrogen and carbon. In the spring, these two fields will be sown with beans to provide protein for the livestock. On the shop side, I am very pleased to welcome on board a very competent and experienced butcher. The nights are drawing in and Christmas is looming. The continuing threat of Avian Flu may have a profound effect this year. Sadly, I have to report that our supplier of Barbary ducks has been unable to source ducklings. So far, turkeys and geese seem safe (fingers crossed!). And finally, the August Bank holiday saw a record crowd at the steam rally in the park. Hopefully, normality is returning. Stay safe, David
 One of the four big trees brought down by Storm Arwen Happy new year to you all, and best wishes for 2022.
Things have been rather manic since I last wrote. There was Storm Arwen, which left its course of damage: Four large trees in the park were brought down along with several branches. There was also some structural damage to roofs. Christmas brought its usual amount of chaos and hard work, but thanks to a very good team here, all went smoothly. Everything is getting back to normal, but it's never that simple. We are all feeling the effect of the increase in oil prices. In farming this has caused the more than doubling of fertiliser prices, which I'm afraid will force up the prices of many food items. On the other hand, I'm pleased to report that we scanned the sheep yesterday and Spring should see lambs aplenty. The results were: 32 sets of triplets; 124 twins; and 45 with single lambs. Hopefully, the weather will be kind to us and the grass will grow. Covid is still rearing its ugly head and we appear to be learning to live with it. Let's hope that we can stay safe, as it's not really possible to run a shop and a café working from home. That's all for now. David
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AuthorDavid Clarke has been farming at Churncote for many years. He and wife Sue started selling the produce from the farm in 2003, which gives him long-standing insight into the reality of the farm to fork process. David will be sharing his experience regularly here. Archives
December 2022
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