Key events in our year
The farming year is always busy, with something different for you to see every day!
| Farms | Planting continues, dung spreading starts if the weather is dry enough. The dung from the animals fertilises the soil helping to grow more crops, harrowing and rolling continues. |
| Cattle | Milking, Calving, feeding and looking after all of the cattle as usual |
| Sheep | Lambing and looking after all the sheep inside and out in the fields |
| Conservation | Tree planting |
| Garden | Digging, Sowing and planting of onion, potatoes, peas, carrots, parsnips, salad, cabbage, purple sprouting broccoli, turnips, herbs, beetroot, spring onions , kale Sowing of tomatoes, chillies, peppers under glass Harvesting, leeks, parsnips, Purple sprouting broccoli |
| Kitchen | It’s still cold but there may be early salad leaves in the green house to make a change from winter vegetables |
| Farms | Harrowing, rolling and planting |
| Cattle | Feeding , some cattle are kept in and fattened ready to go for slaughter. Milking and calving goes on as usual for the dairy cattle as does clearing up the mess they leave. The calves live in straw pens and have lots of milk to drink. The female calves are kept to provide more milk when they are grown and the male calves are . |
| Sheep | Lambing continues, the sheep and lambs go back out to the fields when they are ready. The sheep in the fields have to be checked and looked after each day as they are every month |
| Conservation | Grass cutting and gardening |
| Garden | Digging, Sowing of carrots, salad, leeks, flowers Harvesting of Purple sprouting broccoli. |
| Kitchen | Celebrate spring with Easter chocolate and lots of purple sprouting broccoli for iron and vitamin C |
| Farms | Grass is cut this month to keep as silage to feed the animals in the winter. The cattle buildings are cleaned out now that they are empty |
| Cattle | The dairy cows love to go back out into the fields after a winter inside. |
| Sheep | The sheep have their feet trimmed and the dirty area around their tails trimmed and cleaned. All the animals outside need to be checked and cared for as usual |
| Conservation | Grass cutting and gardening |
| Garden | Plant French Beans, Runner Beans, carrots, courgette, squash, tomatoes, cucumbers, purple sprouting broccoli, turnips, swede, sweet corn, kale, sprouts, salad. Harvest strawberries, early salad and broad beans sown in November. Lots of weeding needs to be done |
| Kitchen | At last the good things of early summer to cook and eat, then tuck into strawberries and cream |
| Farms | Silage is made from the red clover and also hay for the sheep to eat. Some fields are spread with dung to fertilise them. Some re seeding is done. |
| Cattle | The dairy cows come in twice a day to be milked. Some of the beef cattle are calving. All animals spend their days in the fields except some who are being fattened up inside |
| Sheep | It is getting hot so it is time to shear the wool from the sheep. Some lambs go off to slaughter |
| Conservation | Grass cutting and gardening |
| Garden | Harvest strawberries, carrots, potatoes, salad leaves, broad beans, French beans, beetroot, turnips Weeding |
| Kitchen | Now there are so many good things from the garden – loads of baby carrots, new potatoes, and broad beans |
| Farms | More hay and white clover silage is made. Wheat is harvested as whole crop silage. This is the time to put aside as much food as possible for the animals in winter. |
| Cattle | Some calves are born |
| Sheep | Some lambs go to slaughter. The ewes are put into groups ready to be bred from. |
| Conservation | Grass cutting and gardening |
| Garden | Harvest carrots, potatoes, salad leaves, broad beans, French beans, beetroot, courgettes, cucumber, onions, garlic, turnips, strawberries, flowers Weeding |
| Kitchen | It is time to make jam for the winter ahead from the berries beginning to ripen. Beetroot can be pickled or made into chutney for Christmas time, garlic is left somewhere warm to dry and then strung and hung up to use for the rest of the year |
| Farms | There is still some silage to be made, some fields are re seeded, weeds are cut down. |
| Cattle | The dairy cows are being milked every day as usual. The beef animals are enjoying the summer in the fields. |
| Sheep | The selection of next year’s “mums” is made from the ewe lambs |
| Conservation | Grass cutting and gardening |
| Garden | Harvest carrots, salad leaves, red cabbage, white cabbage, purple sprouting broccoli, French beans, beetroot, carrots, courgettes, cucumber, turnips, herbs, flowers. Weeding |
| Kitchen | It is time to enjoy new summer lamb studded with fresh garlic and served with lots of fresh vegetables from the garden. Start making some more chutney and pickles too |
| Farms | Preparing the buildings for housing cattle. Cereal crops are sown for next year. |
| Cattle | Some calves are born, milking goes on each day. |
| Sheep | Feet are trimmed and tail areas trimmed and cleaned, some year old lambs are sold to market, some may be bought. |
| Conservation | Grass cutting and gardening |
| Garden | Harvest carrots, leeks, salad, tomatoes, cucumber, red cabbage, white cabbage, French beans, runner beans, beetroot, courgettes, turnips, baby swede, sweet corn, herbs |
| Kitchen | This is the busiest month for making chutney and pickle to make sure there is enough to last all winter. Then have some fresh corn on the cob with butter |
| Farms | Farms Building work and maintenance continues to make sure the farm is prepared for winter. Fences are mended, more cereal crops are sown |
| Cattle | Milking twice every day for the dairy cattle to provide milk, cheese, butter, cream and yogurt for everyone |
| Sheep | The ewes are put with the ram to make next Spring’s lambs |
| Conservation | Grass cutting and gardening, collect apples to make cider |
| Garden | Harvest parsnips, carrots, leeks, salad, tomatoes, red cabbage, white cabbage, French beans, runner beans, beetroot, kale, swede, squash, |
| Kitchen | Hollow out squashes and pumpkins to make lanterns for Halloween – the flesh makes great pies and soups |
| Farms | As the days get shorter and colder it is most important to feed and check the animals in the fields. Fencing and fence maintenance is carried out |
| Cattle | Some beef cattle are fattened. The dairy cows keep providing us with milk. |
| Sheep | Some lambs go to slaughter. The sheep need checking each day as sheep are always getting into trouble! |
| Conservation | Hedge laying, pond maintenance, woodland maintenance, logging, foot path maintenance, conservation work to preserve habitat for bee orchids |
| Garden | Harvest parsnips, carrots, red cabbage, white cabbage, beetroot, kale, turnips,sprouts,swede Time to start preparing for next year by clearing and adding manure to the soil Broad beans can be sown along with onions and garlic |
| Kitchen | Make the Christmas cake and pudding and enjoy Bonfire night with hot dogs and winter coleslaw made with red cabbage, walnuts, dates, apple and mayonnaise |
| Farms | Most of the work this month is looking after the animals to keep them fed, clean and warm |
| Dairy Cows | The cows stay indoors so that they can be cared for more easily and the fields do not get damaged by their hooves. Some calves are born this month |
| Beef Cattle | These stay out on the hillside where the land drains better and does not get so badly damaged |
| Sheep | The sheep are still outside, they have thick coats to keep them warm |
| Conservation | Hedge-laying, tree planting |
| Garden | Harvest sprouts, leeks, parsnips, swede, kale, turnips, carrots, beetroot |
| Kitchen | Christmas – Time to cook for the family and enjoy all the pickles and jams from the summer |
| Farms | Most of the work this month is looking after the animals to keep them fed, clean and warm |
| Cattle | The cows stay indoors so that they can be cared for more easily and the fields do not get damaged by their hooves. Some calves are born this month. The beef cattle stay out on the hillside where the land drains better and does not get so badly damaged |
| Sheep | The sheep are still outside, they have thick coats to keep them warm |
| Conservation | Hedge Laying, footpaths and woodland maintenance, chopping logs for the fire and collecting mistletoe for Christmas |
| Garden | Nothing can be done when the soil is wet and cold Harvesting of leeks, cabbages, swede, parsnips |
| Kitchen | Time for soups and warming stews and curries – use up some of the dried chillies and herbs from the summer |
| Farms | Work starts on mending fencing which often gets broken or wears out, some spring crops can be planted ready for next winter. If it is dry harrowing and rolling can start which helps to flatten out the soil and makes planting easier |
| Cattle | Milking, the dairy cows are still indoors and calving continues – they need to have a calf each year to produce milk. For 60 days before they have a calf they have a rest from being milked |
| Sheep | The sheep are brought in to start lambing |
| Conservation | Hedge-laying, tree planting, placing and maintenance of bird nesting boxes |
| Garden | Planning for the year ahead and sowing of some seeds indoors Planting of broad beans if weather is dry enough Harvesting of leeks, cabbages, swede, parsnips |
| Kitchen | Pancake Day! |