Farm Update - June 2022

Open Farm Sunday 

This weekend we opened the farm gates to the public and hosted Open Farm Sunday. Just over 50 visitors came to the farm and enjoyed a 3 mile walk learning more about our farming methods, with particular focus on our move to Regenerative Agriculture. We petted some lambs, wandered amongst the cattle, admired our wild bird seed mixes and wild flower meadows, and were lucky enough to see the curlew who have been nesting in our meadows. It was so lovely to share our little corner of Oxfordshire with our customers and neighbours. Thank you to those who came.  

Cattle

You may remember that in the last newsletter we mentioned that we were doing a ‘bull swap’ with another farm - they had one of our bulls, and we had one of theirs to keep our genetics fresh. Well after a fairly lengthy trip down to Somerset with our young bull Victor, we returned with the lovely Sundance. The uphill climb out of Bath was somewhat a challenge in our battered old farm truck, but we made it! He's a huge majestic creature but with a lovely docile temperament and has settled in so well already. Our only slight issue is that we're just not convinced on the name, it doesn't sound very ‘bully’ to us … maybe we'll refer to him as Butch? All of the cattle are now enjoying being outside with the sun on their backs and grass at their feet. If you're walking by the Thames in Northmoor you might spot them grazing in the meadows. 

Sheep 

The ewes and lambs are also enjoying the gorgeous summer sun. The bottle fed lambs are now fully weaned and are thriving well on fresh grass with some lamb nuts to supplement their nutritional intake. The rest of the lambs remain with their mothers, and will soon be receiving their second ‘heptavac’ vaccine to ensure they stay fit and well. Over the coming weeks our friends from the neighbouring village will be coming to help us shear the ewes. This is increasingly important as the weather gets warmer. Not only to aid the sheep with temperature control, but also to reduce the chance of them getting maggots - this happens when flies lay their eggs in the sheep's fleece. When hatched, the maggots then bury themselves in the sheep's wool feeding off their flesh. This is obviously incredibly nasty for the sheep so something we keep a close eye on. 

Environmental work 

As we've mentioned a couple of times now, we are lucky enough to have a pair of Curlew nesting in the river meadows this year. I've not known of nesting curlew on the farm in my lifetime (and I am not the spring chicken I once was!), so we are really excited!!! We are being supported by a team of volunteers from a local nature reserve to monitor their progress and ensure they have the best chance of survival. The team have now erected an electric fence around the nest site to provide protection from predators. A standard clutch of curlew eggs is 4, but our pair only ever laid 3. Sadly there are now only 2 in the nest, so we assume one has been taken by a crow, but we are keeping everything crossed for the other 2. They are due to hatch any time next week so we will keep you posted with progress.

The wild flowers around the farm are now coming in to their own, with many of our floristically enhanced field margins not only looking beautiful, but providing an incredible habitat and wildlife corridor for a host of bees, bugs, butterflies and other creatures. We will be planting our wild bird seed mixtures over coming weeks which will provide a food source and ground cover for farmland birds over the winter months. 

In other news … 

One batch of grass silage has now been made ready to feed the cattle over winter, and the second load has been cut and is now drying slightly before baling. Hay will be made in our river meadows in mid July leaving plenty of time for ground nesting birds to fledge their young before we cut the grass. The arable crops are looking mixed - partly because of new planting methods we are trialling (not always particularly successfully!), and partly because of (yes you've guessed it!) weather. The barley is now in ear and should be ready for harvesting in mid August. 

You will all know that Fi is now taking a more active roll in the business, and you may have noticed slightly improved efficiency in our admin, comms and invoicing! Well her influence is spreading and we are now trying to have a big yard and workshop tidy up. I am not the tidiest of souls, but Alex who works with us and Fi are getting me sorted. Before you know it we might actually be able to get in to the workshop!

School visits continue and we have loved welcoming a varied range of students to the farm. Last week a group of 3 and 4 year olds from a local school enjoyed reading about ‘Yucky Worms’ and then went on a tractor and trailer ride to find their own. Watering cans, worm dances, and worm songs later and the children had bug pots full of all sorts of creatures. Next week we welcome 10 and 11 year olds from a central Oxford school, working in partnership with a fantastic organisation called the Country Trust. They will be thinking about the field to fork journey and will enjoy grinding wheat in to flour and making their own dough. 

It's amazing just how quickly the weeks fly by! Have a fantastic couple of weeks, and don't forget to get in those Father's Day orders. 

James & Fi