Orchard creation

Posted in Farm on Monday 7th May 2012 at 12:40pm

Under our Higher Level Stewardship on the farm we have planted a small new section of orchard which includes cider apple, plum and cherry trees. Our newly planted orchard is just showing signs that the trees have rooted in well with the cherry trees are already producing small leaves. The young apple trees have just been pruned to encourage them to bush out rather than shoot up, the stoned fruit trees will be pruned in the summer. All are now protected from our wild deer with suitable fencing around each tree, this also means we can graze the field around the new trees with our cattle and Dartmoor heritage ponies without worrying that the trees will be eaten!

Turbines fully open

Posted in Hydro on Wednesday 25th April 2012 at 5:18pm

We often loose out on one enterprise only to gain on another. The cows may still be in their winter housing but our hydro electric production has steadily risen to full power as the rain has continued to fall with surplus water tumbling over the weir and spillway at the intake. At the forebay I watch the screener being triggered regularly by the debris being carried in the storm water, and, as I sit at my computer writing this I spy the heron visiting in case he has the opportunity to take a fish or two. He leaves after a few minutes without his tea (our protection is obviously working) then I look up and see a majestic buzzard circling overhead. What an office to work from!

Contented mother and daughter

Posted in Farm on Wednesday 25th April 2012 at 5:16pm

Evidence of one of the pleasures of farming – seeing a new born calf, just 12 hours old, safely cuddled up to its mum. We are still calving our cows inside due to the ferocious weather we have had over the last few days. The older calves born in the early part of the month are now going out by day into a lush grass field to “kick up their heels”; their mum’s are enjoying the sweet new season’s grass too.

Hedgerows at Old Walls

Posted in General on Wednesday 11th April 2012 at 11:12am

Farming at 1000ft (300m) our season is shorter than our lowland friends and while we still have a wonderful display of daffodils with more still to bloom, “down the hill” they are seeing these delightful flowers die back. Our hedgerows are just the same with the delicate blackthorn flowers on their bare branches only now showing their best against the vivid green of the hawthorn leaves. The remainder of the hedgerow is looking much as it has all winter.

Rain at last

Posted in Hydro on Tuesday 10th April 2012 at 4:15pm

With our “hydro” hats on we were very pleased to see the rains come over the Easter weekend. The West Webburn was running at a low summer flow level until yesterday. Although most of the rain has been taken up by the very dry soils (good for our farming!) there was some surplus that made its way to the rivers. For about 12 hours the river was running at normal winter flows rates. However, it has settled back now and is producing electricity at about 18% production, still way below where we would expect it to be but better than before Monday’s rain. It also brought another wave of smolts down stream and we again left our fish pipe open all night. This morning they have all moved on beyond us on their journey to the sea.

New life on the farm

Posted in Farm on Tuesday 10th April 2012 at 4:03pm

Despite the glorious weather we had through March we are still feeding our suckler cow’s winter rations. The grass has been slow to grow from lack of rain and warmth – although our days have been warm the nights have produced heavy frosts and have kept the soil temperature down. The cows have travelled back to the barns at Old Walls to be closer to home as they are due to calve through April and May. To date we have 4 new calves, all arrived without assistance and are doing well. With the change in the weather over the Easter weekend all the cattle were glad of some shelter from the howling winds and lashing rain.

Smolt migration

Posted in Hydro on Monday 26th March 2012 at 11:12am

Yet more evidence that the weather is behaving in a very unseasonable way – the smolts are running. Over the weekend we noticed salmon smolts in our leat and by Sunday morning they were in the forebay. This is the earliest we have seen them “run to the sea” since we built the hydro scheme. Maybe the migration is due to the warm weather or perhaps the summer river levels? Whatever the reason we had the fish pipe open for 24 hours and they have all successfully continued their journey past us. Let’s hope in 2 or more years time they will be back in the rivers to spawn and start the species life cycle again.

Spring has sprung!

Posted in General on Thursday 22nd March 2012 at 10:20am

Signs of spring are showing themselves everywhere but one of the plants I eagerly look for each year is the Early Purple Orchid with its distinctive spotted leaves. They are appearing along the leat side now.

The trees are slowly showing signs of the coming season too with buds just forming and catkins in abundance.

The dawn chorus is loud enough to be our alarm call at this time of year, the owls let us know they are busy too during the night and the wood pecker is very actively drilling into trees during the day - no doubt to find food or a suitable tree for nesting in.

January 2012 - New website launched

Posted in General on Monday 23rd January 2012 at 8:47am

We are pleased to announce the launch of our new website for 2012 and hope you like it. Please feel free to send us comments using our new enquiry form.

The new page about our farms contains information about Old Walls and Lowertown Farms and how they are run.

We also have an interactive map so you can zoom in and see exactly where we are and also get directions from your location.

The information about our site, free guided walks and talks and presentations has also been updated and expanded.