The autumn is creeping up on us, the landscape is changing. The mellow colours of the summer months are being replaced with the vibrant bronze and golden autumn hues.Jars of pickled beetroot line the cupboards and the last pea pods have been plucked from the vegetable patch.
The happy farmer is away at the sheep sales hoping to purchase some more tups for the farm. I am left to feed the hens and the dogs and of course the children! The hens have settled well into their new enclosures, the speckled chicks from summer are now nearly full size and are happily weeding the new hedgerow by the burn and seem delighted with their ‘wigwam’ roosting box, the other ladies are getting along well in their ‘dog’ free enclosure and Hetty has accepted them all willingly. Charlie hen is happy roaming around the farmyard and venturing into the fields with the sheep first thing in the morning, her nest precariously close to the edge of the single track road, but hidden away in the long grass, she continues to provide our youngest with an egg a day for breakfast.Fudge our highland cow is heavily in calf, so we check her everyday. She appears to be making the most of her situation, teasing the happy farmer, as with her huge pregnant frame, she chooses to teeter on the very edge of the hill, just above a cliff face to get the very tastiest bit of grass.
The happy farmer was confronted with a couple of unexpected calves among our other small herd of Highland cows as he gathered in the sheep off the hill the other morning. It seems that two of his ‘flirty girls’ out the hill took it upon themselves to jump the electric fence and join Farmer T’s bull and his cows for some ‘outdoor sports’ before rejoining their playmates, so we now have two cross limousine highland calves much to Farmer T’s delight!
The lambs have been separated from the sheep and moved off the hillside and into the fields, ready for auction next month and so the farming cycle continues, as new tups arrive next week.
Until next time……
11 comments:
Ha! Did you have to pay your neighbour for the service of your cows - or hasn't he realised yet?
We went for a lovely autumn walk today in the chestnut woods around the Moulin du Clout, kicking chestnuts as we went. There are so many of them and the birds and squirrells (red) come and eat the squashed ones on the roads.
I love your header pic, is that your farmhouse? Great photos and the last one, is that a painting?
It's good to read your blogs again. All seems to be running well in the farmer's absence.
Rosie, Farmer T was highly entertained by the 'cross' breeding and also by the 'cross' happy farmer tee hee.
Cait that is the view from my kitchen window, the building is the pottery showroom, and the poppies are the flower beds I planted to replace the heap of old farm yard junk, I have a constant battle with the weeds, but just love flowers.
Posie x
Bonus calves!...now that's maximizing your resources!
I love the painting on the bottom of your post, and the one on the top of the previous post. Are they yours?
Pondside, the cows were actually in with a Highland bull, but preferred the limousin bull over the fence....so the calves were meant to be pure Highland!!
Yes, my paintings, really pleased you like them xx
I think Highland x Limousin sounds like good beef but it must have been annoying if you were expecting pedigrees. Naughty coos! Your photographs are just glorious.
Lovely to read about your busy life looking after so many animals and the new young ones.
Your paintings really capture your surroundings, look beautiful posted amongst the photographs.
millyx
Gosh do show us some pictures of those Limousine-Highland crosses. Whatever will they look like? You might have a new breed on your hands.
Do hope your hens will be happy through the winter and not mind the rain and the dark - though perhaps this is my imagination and it's not wet and dark at all (or no more than anywhere else).
Do love your pictures - particularly that first one of the autumn sky - the colours are wonderful.
Mags, it isn't going to be too much a problem thankfully. It was quite entertaining that they chose to leave their bull behind and jump the fence to visit the neighbouring bull instead....poor Pringle (the Highland bull).
Milly I am glad you like my paintings, thank you so much.
Fennie, it does seem very dark and cold just now, I always worry about the hens in the winter months, but they seem to survive.
Many thanks for your kind welcome to the world of blogging, Posy. No doubt I shall find my way around before too long.
Hi Posie
I love your news about the flirty girls - what do they say - the grass is always greener.... your paintings are brill - we have been away to the Scillies last week - the colours and light were a painters paradise - so peaceful and tranquil x
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