Well, after all the work and changes going on around here, I have finally got round to updating the website! Somewhat later than anticipated but here is the latest news.
Alpacas
We now have 4 boys, Murphy, Zac, Prince and Marcus. Prince remains our stud boy. Marcus is a Suri alpaca, they have a different type of fibre from the huacayas. Then we have the girls, Pearl, Jamshid, Molly, Agatha, Amber, Easter, Caprice and Nutella. Caprice and Nutella were born last year. Easter is Marcus's mum so is also a Suri. Sadly, over the last year we have lost Annabel and Cocoa. These, with Pearl were our very first alpacas, so a very sad loss. Nutella was brought in to add colour as losing Annabel and Cocoa meant I had predominently white alpacas. I still have mainly white alpacas, so we are due to pick up four more brown girls this Spring! We hope to mate Nutella next year to Prince and with any luck may even get a grey as she has grey in her genes. It's a long shot but would be nice. We may have some babies on the way again this Summer but we will have to wait and see.
Miniature donkeys
We decided last year to concentrate on rearing alpacas and felt that we just didn't have the time needed to devote to the donkeys, so they went off to South Wales to be with loads of other donkeys, where I am sure they will be spoilt! We miss their wake up call in the morning and cuddles but we don't miss their frequent break-ins, into the barn eating everything in sight! We tried everything to stop them but they were determined little donkeys.
The orchard
This year, we are going to have to be ruthless and start thinning out the trees as they are now growing into each other in places. It not only makes it difficult to mow but it's not good for the trees and disease can easily spread if there is no room. We had a bumper crop last year which caught us out as they cropped much earlier than usual. Unfortunately, the Summer apples were never picked. We did manage to juice quite a few in October and are still drinking it now. It doesn't seem five minutes since last years blossom appeared and here we are In April with this years blossom starting to show. I love this time of year in the orchard as it starts to look really pretty.
Sheep
Yes – Sheep! We took the plunge and decided we needed some lawn mowers for the orchard, so researched what was best. We came across a breed of sheep called Ouessant. They are one of the smallest breeds and good in orchards apparently. So, we now have Jack the ram, Maggie the ewe and Jake and Elwood the wethers. They have settled in nicely but have yet to experience the orchard. We are still deciding on the best way of doing this. We have invested in some electric fencing, so will be testing this out over the next few months. Not sure the sheep will appreciate it though.
House extension
The extension to the house is more or less complete, well the structure is almost complete, all but one room so, it's now all in need of decorating. A daunting task and one in which we seem to find lots of other things to do first! The completion of kitchen is on hold for the time being.
Craft and produce
These have also been delayed due to work being done on the house and studio. I am now able to offer a small selection of fibres and accessories in the studio. I am also anticipating making chutney to sell this year along with apple sauce and cider vinegar. All from our own apples. These will be available towards the end of the year. Apples will also be available to buy from September onwards.(subject to availability) I am also gathering a small selection of plants for sale, most of which have been grown here. These are available now and throughout the Summer. I am in the process of making a plant list and prices.
Blog
I have been very bad at doing a blog and have now completely forgotten how to do it! I am determined to relearn and keep it going once a month – maybe!
Website design by David Blackwell
Site last updated 12/4/2021