Slowly we are starting to see the start of the lighter mornings and the slightly longer evenings and of course the first hints of spring with snowdrops appearing. On the farm, we are busy preparing for the first show of the season in mid March which is the National Shire Horse Show held at Newark Showground. We have been practising handling some of the youngsters and of course had the blacksmith to make sure the feet are in good condition.
We’ve also started preparations for the lambing season which is due to start at the end of March -thankfully just when the kids will be breaking up from school so they can help! Dad and I know that lambing will be a lot harder this year without Steve, but we have reduced the numbers and had lots of offers of help, so I’m sure we will cope! Sadly we also had to say goodbye to Nero our thirty year old much loved grey pony. Unfortunately his health had been in decline for some time and despite the best efforts from our expert vet team, he sadly passed quietly away this month, with me by his side.
Farming is changing so much over the next few years and the Government are introducing lots of new schemes to support the move towards protecting the environment and more sustainable farming, so Dad and I went along to a meeting last week to learn all about it and to work out what is right for us, so watch this space over the next year as we share our transformation journey.
In the shop, we are busy finalising our seasonal offers for Mothers Day and Easter, so look out for details of the new afternoon teas and seasonal ranges which will be announced very soon. Our Head Chef Kelvin was also delighted recently when after a wait of about six months, a brand new oven turned up for the kitchen. Kelvin is planning on doing Sunday lunch again very soon..hopefully in time for Mothering Sunday.
Finally we’ve started work on giving the play area a much needed face lift for the Spring. Work on replacing the fencing has already started and new picnic tables and play equipment are ordered as well and will hopefully all be completed in May.
Best wishes Kay