The Latest from Home Farm
Aug 14
Food, water, warm dry bed
On one of my first days at the Berkshire College of Agriculture we had a memorable pig lecture. The lecturer, Mr Ferguson, walked into the lecture theatre and wrote in large letters on the blackboard: food, water, warm dry bed. He said, 'That's all you need to know about looking after pigs. If you get these things right then the rest will take care of itself'...
Jul 31
Little Boar, Big Boar
The other day one of our young Tamworth boars (a male pig) thought he'd jump over a fence and get in with one of our older boars. Sadly the older boar, four years old, twice the size of the younger boar and with tusks, was not happy to receive an unexpected visitor.
Jul 23
Home Farm People - Catherine Pyne, Home Farm Box Scheme Manager
(Left to right: Catherine, Hannah, Ames, Emily)
My name is Catherine and I run the Organic Vegetable Box Scheme at Home Farm. We distribute about 250 boxes a week within a ten to twelve mile radius of Home Farm. People don't know what they're getting in the box so it's a surprise for them which they tell us they love!
Jul 22
Going On A Farm Walk
I do a few guided farm walks throughout the summer. Recently the Soil Association and a group which included people from different walks of life ranging from policy makers to food writers, authors and farmers joined me. I took them around the farm and we had some interesting discussions about the amount of energy used in the present food system.
Jul 11
No More Rain!
We've had a lot of rain in the last week which was needed, but now we've had enough! So far in July we've had three inches which is quite a lot for this time of year (but not last year which we prefer to forget!). Because of the rain we can't make hay which is annoying as we've still got another 60 acres to make.
Jul 9
Picnic By The Mustard Field
The other day Guy Tullberg and some members of his family and staff came and had a picnic on the edge of our mustard crop. Guy is the MD of Tracklements, the company which produces the Duchy Originals Wholegrain Mustard. Not surprisingly, they brought along a selection of their delicious mustards to accompany the cold snacks. It was rather nice to have a picnic all together and it's always interesting to taste some of Guy's new mustards. Tracklements are always coming up with some great tastes and it's nice as a farmer to see the end product.
Jul 7
Off To Mow The Meadow
Although we're not logging yet we are starting to get our two horses, Emperor and Duke, fit enough to mow. We're doing a little bit of mowing with them a few times a week to build their strength up.
Jul 4
Smells Like Manure
We try to muck spread just before or during the growing season so it can be utilised by the clover and grass. Why do we muck spread? Well, it feeds the soil, particularly the composted manure. In a nutshell, it's the law of return and forms part of the nutrient cycle.
Jul 2
Making Hay!
We've mown some grass and started tedding it (spreading it around to get the sun on it). Although the weather is not completely settled it's good enough to risk knocking some grass down. We mow it with the doors on the mower open which means the grass lies flat on the ground, then you give it a day or two and you turn it once or twice a day until you've got hay.
Jun 30
Content Milking Cows
This year, the cows are pretty content because the grass has grown well and it is our herdsman Mark's second year managing the herd which also helps. Organic standards mean we stock fewer animals on a given area compared to conventional farming - whether it is in a building in the winter or on a field in the summer. Our cows walk out to their grazing and we don't push them too hard for their milk.
