nettles – Tyddyn Bryn

animals, Building work, Food and drink, Sustainability, Working the land

What’s doing??

June 3, 2020 Ellie

We have been busy as bees round the holding still, but since the start of lockdown in March we have not had any significant rainfall!!! 10 weeks!!

Things are tinder dry outside…. we are having to regularly water everywhere and currently just the other side of our nearest village there is a forestry and field fire that the forestry services and a helicopter have been battling since Sunday evening…

Thankfully there is some rain forecast tonight and for at least the morning tomorrow! The earth here will give a sigh of relief I expect when it starts to fall!!

In the meantime here a few snapshots of the past few weeks here! New fencing, shearing, turning out the horses, new chicks, new play stuff for the boys, elderflowers and a lot more!!

Food and drink, Fruit and vegetables, Garden, Life with a toddler, Livestock, News, Plans, Podcast, Wanderings, Wildlife, Woodland, Working the land

A few little videos

July 29, 2018 Ellie

I’ve added a few new videos to the YouTube Channel!!!

Some tours of the animals and I’m planning a weekly ish….. vlog about the happenings on the smallholding!!

Here is Episode one!!

Fruit and vegetables, Garden, Life with a toddler, Plans, Working the land

All around the holding….

May 27, 2018 Ellie

So….. deep breath and here goes…..

Back at the end of April…. the Polytunnel finally had its skin put on!!

We almost immediately started planting and moving some of the seed across that we had started in the house off into the tunnel….

Spring finally arrived after the seemingly relentless winter!!

The small boy found more vehicles to sit on and press all the buttons….

The fruit cage planting was finished and now it’s just a case of weeding, watering, mowing and mulching at regular intervals…

The chicks, born on the first of March, got new digs and moved in!!

With the advent of spring the endless grass and weed management begins!! We are fortunate in that we have been gifted a field and brush mower in previous years and that mower chimps through long grass, brambles, weeds etc like they are butter!! And then to get the lawn effect in certain areas I am using the little old electric mower from the old town house!! (I am going to start saving for a normal Petrol lawnmower just so I don’t have to run an extension lead out each time!

Look at the little faces!!! Grandad bought the boys a new toy!!! Look!!!! It’s a fabulous tractor!!!!

There is a plethora of blossom in our orchard!! So we are hoping for plenty of apples this year!!!

The one and only flower bed needs a darn good weeding and I need to start making more flower beds and tackling the weeds on the banks cutting them right back and digging out where I can so I can start designing and planting garden areas!! I harbour a small dream that one day our garden will become one of the yellow book gardens that open for the national gardens scheme!!

I have planted some more willow whips and have more rooting!! I am making a willow tunnel, a willow teepee and I plan to maybe try a few more willow structures around the place! I am using a combination of osier willow and basketry willow so eventually as well as winter colour the structures and other willows will become another saleable crop in both cut willow and baskets or willow creations!!

Can you spot them?! Clue- they are yellow basketry ones here!!

The Polytunnel has started to green up slowly!! We have a multitude of different vegetables starting to grow!!!

And James has been out practising using a topper attached to his tractor to cut the grass!! We have now also been out to see a topper for sale nearby and James’ offer was accepted… we have trailer to borrow and now are awaiting a collection date!!! Exciting!!!

Finally James has had opportunity to start the raised bed walls!! So we will have even more growing space for our vegetables!! (Lucky as we have loads in seed trays starting to need to be planted out!! And we have more seeds to sow for more autumnal and winter crops!!)

Phew!! Lots of work!! Lots of plans and always loads more to do!!!

Working the land

More weed wars!!

September 18, 2014September 14, 2014 Ellie

Last weekend we went back to the farm to make sure things were ok ready for work to start on the 16th!!!!!! Ahhhhhhhhh!!! I went out with hedge cutters, the strimmer and more weed death spray!!!! A bit more is cleared!

Slowly but surely….. We are getting there….

Working the land

Weed wars!

August 27, 2014August 15, 2014 Ellie

During our fortnight at the farm weed wars continued!!! Having gotten a handle on the nettles with cutting and spraying and the brambles too…. I moved onto GIANT HOGWEED!!!!! A vile plant that grows enormously and seeds and attracts flies and horseflies!!!!!! And it is also colonising our orchard field….. Sooo me a set of hedge cutters and a spray gun have attacked it!! First I cut it down in swathes with the hedge cutter then wait patiently….. Well as patiently as possible and when signs of regrowth start it gets a squirt of weed killer!!! I am being rather selective in my use of weed killer as I don’t want to over do it due to the cost of the stuff and also because of its effects on so much else that’s good out there in the orchard, but needs must when faced with a colony of hogweeds!!!

Hogweeds also when cut exude a nasty sap, which according to my googling is photo toxic, which means that if the sap gets onto you skin and then you are in the sun it can blister and burn!!! Ah ha said me finally the explanation for the weird purple marks on my skin!!! Propolis gel sorted those although it took ages!!! Now this means that I go out with visor, overalls, gloves, boots everything!!!! Am even contemplating goggles as the sap can cause blindness if it gets in your eyes. Luckily the hedge cutters are long heavy creations that mean I can cut them down a way away from me!!!

In other news it appears like nothing can kill our invasion of flag irises which look like they will need to be dug out and moved….

But the good news is the cutting spraying etc seems to be working on our banks of the slurry pit and I should be able to start planting strawberries and herbs etc in them soon!!!

But for the time being I shall keep attacking the hogweeds and continue the weed wars to reclaim our little patch of land!!

Working the land

The first battle in the war on nettles and brambles

May 29, 2014May 26, 2014 Ellie

Once the spraying and clearing in slurry pit was done I decided to venture into what will be our orchard with the strimmer and the hedge cutters to find the other side of the bank and the gate at the end of it that leads into the yard or will do once we clear it!!!