July 2002

I have found myself using the term, "work in progress" about myself and much of what goes on on the farm, I guess this is true of everything in life... but it's something I'm particularly aware of right now.

This month has been about opening doors and finding new ways forward. Living a dream is one thing, paying the bills is another. I have always believed that if each person did what truly makes their heart sing, everything and everyone on the planet would be taken care of. Perhaps that's naive but what it calls me to is a continual evaluation of what I'm doing and how I'm being. According to our financial situation at present, the feedback is that I/we're way off course and that's distressing and more than a little confusing when so much else in our lives is delightful, nurturing, uplifting and inspiring. So, we continue to look at ways to invite financial abundance and contribution and if you feel moved to support for our work here, especially in the form of hard currency we are open to receive - click here for details.

349 bales of silage, 6 at a time, that's quite a lot of journeys on a tractor and that's how Mark spent several days early this month. After the silage was cut and baled the rain came down and the land got a bit wet to drive around on, so it stayed there. It's best to gather it in as soon as possible because the rooks love to sit on it and peck their way through the plastic covering which breaks the airtight seal and can affect the quality of the bale when it's opened... Our trusty old tractor and little trailer chugged up and down the drive for several hours each day with Mark at the helm. Although it was a long job, it is very satisfying to see once again, our yard filled with lovely round black bales of good stuff for our cows to eat this winter.

We were not quite so lucky with our hay, although blessed to have the opportunity to meet a man dedicated to the quality of his work above financial gain. We decided to make a few acres of small bale hay this year, mainly because we have so much left from last year and the small bales are handy for taking with us to clinics and such like for the horses. The "man wot does" for the lady "next door" agreed to come and do ours as he was in the area. As it was cut the weather looked set fair for a few days. Ideally, hay needs to be left on the ground in the sun and turned for a couple of days to dry out, then baled. It was at the end of a particularly busy helping hands weekend when Mark had spent most of the time round with our neighbours helping seal their silage clamp (a heavy and tiring job involving lifting, carrying and throwing lots of heavy tyres around) that Kevin came with his baler as the clouds rolled in.

Mark and I were actually ready for vegging out for the evening, but small bales left on the ground in the rain do not do very well, especially when the hay is a bit green in the first place. So we hitched up the tractor to the trailer and off we went. 93 heavy bales and a lot of huffing and puffing later, the bales were loosely stacked in the hay barn to dry out and we collapsed in a heap inside the back door!

Kevin was concerned about the quality of the hay. We are watching it. He's asked us £20 so far to cover his contractor costs. If the hay turns out alright, we'll pay him the agreed price. Either way, he can be pretty sure of getting our business next year.

We finally got around to erecting the turkey house in the newly formed home paddock and they're VERY happy scratching in the grass, jumping for the bugs and basking in the sun. Turkeys are funny creatures. If you haven't had chance to meet them yet, do come and visit, they are delightful. Like little harrier jump jets they hop and flap along the field and here's the real bonus - THEY LOVE DOCKS!!!! We're considering a year round flock just to keep the weeds down, and indeed, in permaculture they have something called a chicken tractor, which is essentially a mobile chicken house and pen which they move around the fields so the fields get cleaned and fertilised in rotation. Wonderful stuff and no diesel!

This month also saw the arrival and launch of our new mobile chiller unit and trailer for selling our beef at the Farmers Markets, although the enthusiasm was somewhat dampened by a rather distressing mishap. The beef from one of our cows went off. We can't say why, did the vacuum packaging fail, or perhaps there was a problem with the cold storage... suffice it to say that Lorraine did a Farmers Market in Swindon, new chiller and all, and sold some. The first we knew of it was when we had calls from some unhappy customers. This was a sickening experience, not only because some people were dissatisfied but also because of the waste of this animal's life. We are talking with the butcher to find the weak link in the system on this occasion and hope that with the refunds we have given and goodwill we do our best to engender, these customers will not be deterred from trying us again.

And finally, our friends at The Big Green Gathering sent us some tickets. Emily took some friends and camped there all week, Jules and I made it down there for a day and enjoyed a really refreshing and enlivening day basking in an atmosphere of peace, community and environmental responsibility. We plan to return next year and are looking for a tipi to borrow for the occasion - just in case you have one sitting in your garage doing nothing!!!

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