Around the croft.

It is a while since I have had a post about all the crofty goings on.  So here is a quick roundup for you.
The three little pigs are - well - getting bigger.  They are now too big to get through the fences, so the electric wire has been turned off and they have the run of the whole garden again.  Still lots of fun, but they are a bit boisterous - especially when you brave the pig pen with a bucket of food or water.

They are making a grand job of ploughing up the future veg patch though.  Confining them to a smaller area at first has been a good plan.  They just race around doing piggy things all day - going for nice long naps now and then. We are enjoying them so much right now.

There was another sheep fank today - this one was to bring the ewes in for tupping.  A tup is a ram, in case you are unfamiliar with sheep terminology.  We now have 5 ewes - all of whom will be visited by the tup next week.  Can you see Maddie Mor - there with her new yellow ear tag?  Both Maddies are looking wonderfully well after their time on the hill.  After their honeymoon, they will all go back up to a different part of the grazings, until nearer lambing time.  Soo, look out for spring lamb posts sometime in April!!!

And talking about honeymoons - well, I am afraid that Baby has had hers postponed.  We were all set to walk her up to see the bull last week, but discovered just in time, that he had been moved to the other end of the village.  Delia, her mother, was going to accompany her on her walk, but was to go into the field next door, to be with some of the other local cows.  Mother and daughter have never been separated and we certainly did not want either to be distressed.   After much discussion and consultation with more cattle savvy crofters, we decided to hold back. Our worry - and that of two of our mentors, was that Baby's calf, if we were lucky, would be due around the end of August - and it may take a couple of cycles for her to conceive.  So - the calf would be born as we approached Winter, and would miss the good grass, and have to face bad weather when it was still young. Far better to wait and try for a Spring calf.  Others feel that she should really be going to the bull to get started and we could catch up with the seasons later on, and we could always bring the calf inside.  What to do? Everyone seems so convincing.  We are still pondering the question -  I am sure that an answer will come.  Wonder what Joel would do?

On to simpler matters then. The fencing has begun - lots of posts and wire arrived on site last week, and our local fencing contractor has started already!

It looks beautiful running all the way down the bottom field there - so orderly.

  Check out the new drain too!

The garlic has been planted in the growing shed.  Once again I have gone for seed from The Really Garlicky Company, who grow in North East Scotland. I have always had good harvests of decent size bulbs with 4 or 5 nice fat cloves from this source.  That seaweed/manure compost is just so rich and good looking - this has been such a good bed - it has enabled me to do more growing this year than I'd thought.

I have planted out some of my winter greens in between the rows of garlic - catch cropping - Prickly seeded spinach,various lettuces, salad leaves and spring onions.  I have one chard plant left, celeriac and fennel are at the top of the picture, and a row of calendula at the front of the bed.  Further down, there is some dwarf green kale, parsley and other salads - but there isn't a photo - sorry.

And a little experiment to end with - a very overexposed shot of my witloof chicory roots that I am going to force into lovely little chicons.  Just enough for a nice starter for two!  ♥

It is always nice to take a wee walk around the croft - hope you enjoyed it too. xx