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Winter 2001 at Beer Mill Farm |
Above: Ewe lambs in the early morning frost on November 15th 2001 November 1st. After one of the mildest and driest Autumns in Somerset in recent years and following a wonderful summer which partially made up for the stresses and worry of the Foot and Mouth disease outbreak. The 'Bramble' flock is in excellent condition for the Winter ahead. At the end of the autumn we said goodbye
to Bramble Victor who went to a new home in Surrey.
Bramble Elgee, a splendid ram who we would have loved to
taken to shows in the summer had it been a normal year,
went up to Tewkesbury with Bramble Finale and some ewe We always feel that the start of the shepherds year is when the rams are put in with the ewes. The main flock is due to lamb in early March so the ram went in on October 27th. Two things are slightly different this
year. Four ewes were put in lamb in the summer and are
due to lamb in early January and rather than using
several rams as in the past we have decided to use only
one this year. The ram we are using is Bramble Benjamin
born in April 2000, he is a very special ram who we have
very high hopes for. Whether the gamble of only using one
ram will November 17th Ben left
the ladies (hopefully job done) and he and all the other
rams were housed in the barn. This can be a dangerous
time as there is sometimes a little 'ill feeling' to put
it mildly, when everyone comes back together. There is
always a lot of sparring between the adult rams and we
always pack everyone tightly into a pen as soon as they
come in so that they cannot take a run at each other.
Some years we have had to keep them in a pen for several
days before things calm down because there is a real risk
of serious injury. I think the record was about five November 25th Still
remarkably dry. We hope to start more hedge laying this
week. A very satisfying job, if slow. Around here they
use the 'Somerset Method' which involves thinning out the
hedge then part cutting and tying the material down to
ground level with binder twine. However we always use the
'Midlands Method' which involves weaving the hedge
between hazel stakes. It takes longer but we like it December 3rd Four lambs off to the abbatoir today. All sold to local people in the village. Average dead weight was just over 18kg. Spot on commercial weights. Pretty good for rare breeds of this type. It just shows you can get the weights with Portlands without extra feed if good grazing is available. The difference is the time it takes. About 35 weeks instead of 12 to 14 for a commercial lamb. But it is the extra time that produces a much better product. Our main crop of lambs goes off in late Spring. Over a year old but heavier weights and a flavour that people who have tried them, say is quite exceptional. Anyone reading this and not used to keeping stock might well say 'how can you possibly kill and eat the lambs you struggle to keep alive?' Well it is it not something we do lightly. Disregarding any economic factors, it is not possible to keep on increasing the sheep population. The land will only support a certain number of animals and any surplus has to be eaten or sold. As simple as that. Obviously there is the choice of not having any lambs and just keeping the sheep to keep the grass down. This is not the simple solution it seems. Our experience is that sheep have a natural cycle and lambing is part of that cycle. Sheep that do not lamb never seem to do well and to be honest from our point of view, despite all the sleepless nights and occasional dramas, lambing is the high point of the year. With all the effort involved there has to be a point to it all and lambing is a great part of it.
Hedge laying is going well. The weather is still perfect, dry cold and clear. Winter this year will be about three months shorter. In 2000 it started in early October with constant rain and by now we had suffered three months of the most miserable conditions imaginable. The ditch alongside the hedge we are working on in the picture to the left is completely dry. Last year it was full of water. December 28th 2001 Winter January 4th 2002 - An unexpected arrival! We have five ewes who
are lambing earlier than the main flock. Normally all the
flock lamb together around Easter time each year but due
to unforseen circumstances not of our choosing these five
were put The first ewe to lamb was due early January but Hilary thought that looking at her it would probably not be for another week. After getting up slightly later than usual following a late Christmas party in the village. we found Bramble Truffle standing proudly beside a very nice little ram lamb. Both mother and son were looking very well. January 29th After more than three weeks of no action, another ewe, Bramble Goldie, decided to produce a lamb. A very civilized time in the middle of the afternoon when we were both here. Unfortunately only the head of the lamb appeared and so it was out with the lambing kit! After Hilary had found a front leg and eased it out, she helped Goldie produce a nice little ewe lamb. Usually Hilary goes with just one leg and a head in this situation as it can be very difficult sometimes to get both legs out.
Left: Two minutes old and wondering what its all about! February 2nd Bramble Morag was the last sheep due to lamb in this batch. After waiting until Hilary had to go up to Surrey for the day she decided to get going. After looking uncomfortable all day she had a few strains, suddenly produced a water bag and after another few minutes out popped a very nice ram lamb. Absolutely no effort at all. The main batch of ewes is due to start in the middle of March but in the meantime it is nice to see a few lambs about. February 17th We are now starting to seriously think about the stock for the coming year. With Spring approaching we are looking at last years lambs and deciding which to keep, which to sell and sadly, for those not quite up to the mark, which will go in the freezer. We use a twelve point asessment system when we look at each animal, with a seperate form for each one. We do this three or four times from when they are born, gradually whittling them down. Things like mouth, horn shape, fleece, feet and markings are all checked together with one important factor, 'style.' Nothing you can pin down exactly, just an overall sharpness that 'look at me' factor. Some sheep have it, many don't. February 26th Some of the flock are leaving us this week. Bramble Goldie and her lamb and Bramble Ginger a three year old ewe are going up to a new home at Gloucester City Farm. Four of the shearling ewes have also found a new home in Warwickshire but are staying with us until May. For those not familiar with the paperwork involved in farming today, the journey of Goldie and the others to Gloucester is a classic illustration. The new owners are coming from Gloucester to us, picking up the sheep then going to Dorset for some more and finally to Salisbury for a few more then back to Gloucester. Firstly we have to get a licence to move our sheep. We go to Trading Standards in Taunton to get the licence, first problem. Because there are other pickups on the trip we are classed as a Multipickup Point. This means a seperate licence before we can get our Sheep Movement Licence. DEFRA is contacted and they then arrange for our vet to come to us and certify we meet all the criteria for a Multi Pickup Point. Including drawing a plan as to how the sheep will be loaded etc. Vet comes out gives the all clear and the next day the papers giving us clearance as a Multi Pickup Point arrive, six pages in all. We then have to get the sheep movement licence from Trading Standards. They agree to fax the licence as time is running short. Sixteen pages of forms and conditions arrive and we have the required papers. Twenty two feet of paper to move three sheep! Ours was a relatively smooth operation as everybody involved: Trading Standards, vet and DEFRA all tried very hard and did exactly what they promised. This had to be repeated on all the other pickup points on the trip. Obviously all this is necessary to ensure any chance of spreading disease is eliminated but it does make a simple transaction very complicated. On a modern farm everything requires paperwork and vast amounts of time are involved. February 14th Ginger, Goldie and her lamb made the trip up to Gloucester safely and are now living at Gloucester City Farm. They have named the lamb Hilary! They should do well there. Goldie in particular is a very greedy sheep and will eat out of anybody's hand so she should be quite a hit with visitors. March 8th 2002 Two more of the shearling ewes are going to a new home near Frome shortly so numbers are decreasing gradually. Just in time for the new arrivals hopefully. This section will end here as we start to prepare for our main lambing. This has been our best winter since we came to Somerset. Dry and very mild compared to last year. The sheep are all looking well and last year's lambs are now really well grown. Sadly it does not look as though there will be any sheep shows this year. A real shame as we have come through the winter with some absolutely outstanding stock. Still perhaps next year..... The grass is starting to really get going and Spring is definitely in the air. Around 22nd of March we start lambing A new section of the web site has been started so click on Lambing 2002 for more news. |
lambs. Also some
older ewes had to go 'down the road' before the cold
weather set in. This was particularly hard as some were
ewes who formed part of our foundation flock years ago.
pay off we will only find out when we see
the quality of the lambs next March.
days, several years ago. However
this year there was remarkably little squabbling and
after 'a night in the cells' we decided to turn them all
out in the main barn. So far all is sweetness and light.
Amazing, you just can't tell what rams are going to do.
and it was always
the method used when we lived in Surrey.
December 23rd 2001
arrived today
with a rare snow fall. Not much, only an inch or so but
the picture on the right shows the less idyllic side of
country life, getting up before dawn to feed the sheep in
the snow.
into
lamb earlier than the others. 