March has been a strange month. We seem to have gone from bright sunny warm days, to plunging temperatures of -4 in a blink of an eye. The rain has also been never ending! However, the clocks are about to change, and spring is certainly on the way. Everywhere we look on the farm, there are fresh buds, and the daffodils, crocuses and tulips are starting to bloom. This is always such a lovely time of year, so full of hope, and new life.
Speaking of new life, we have lambs! Judith has recently purchased an additional 20 Suffolk ewes in lamb, and these are just starting to give birth. These are all first time mums to be, and the majority have been scanned in lamb to have one or two, but we are expecting one set of triplets! The remainder of the flock are due to lamb next month, so there are still a few more sleepless nights for Judith ahead whilst she remains on lambing duty.
The tractors have been out in force this month spreading fertiliser on our crops, and chicken manure onto our oilseed rape, which has caused quite a stink at times (Sorry!). We often receive complaints at this time of year, however our crops need to be fed to grow, and chicken manure is a nutrient rich brilliant fertiliser plus it is sustainable! Richard has also been out with the crop sprayer, and we are in the process of getting ready to do some more ploughing and seed drilling with spring barley almost ready to go in!
Similar to January and February, March is a month for repairs and maintenance. The lads have been busy carrying out maintenance work to our Kuhn straw chopper, and also taking one of our old ploughs apart to salvage parts, and re use some of the metal on other projects.
March is also the month for spring cleaning, with shed roofs being cleaned and moss removed, a job no one likes, but sadly if not done, can cause the gutters to become blocked. We are also deep cleaning the grain dryer, and hay, straw and grain sheds, in anticipation of harvest! I think the boys are all counting down to silage time, so they can take of their marigolds and get back out in their tractors!!!
Lastly, we still have a handful of turkeys left for sale at a reduced price, should you wish to purchase one for Easter. These are still the same wonderful KellyBronze turkeys we sell at Christmas; however they will come to you frozen. We will be doing collections from the farm on Thursday 6th April between 9am and 4pm, to allow birds to defrost in time for Easter weekend. Please contact Tanza if you wish to order.
Wishing everyone all the best,
Martin, Judith, Richard, Tanza & George