Our Allotments.

[HillBill]

With recent talk about allotments, i thought i would show ours.

We only took these on last spring, we share them with the guy who's had them for years. They are private allotments and we have 7 of them.

Kinda lucky to get them really. Paul has been struggling with the work load and wanted some help, a neighbour put us onto him and it all fell into place from there.

These are the veg plots, just started digging them over today. They face directly south on a south facing slope, can't ask for much better.



This is the "bird" area. We have geese, about 20 chickens, 2 cocks (bantam and normal) 9 ducks, and some quail in here.



Lovely bird.


This is the pig run, we have a landraker boar... he's a big boy, 7 to 8' long, and weighing between 500 and 600 lbs. We also have a land raker sow, and 2 saddleback sows. One of which literally gave birth this morning.It was her first breeding with the boar, she didn't fair too well from that initial contact... 12" gash down her flank from the boars tusks.

We have 3 piglets (10 week old) left from the landraker sow too.






Other small areas we have for the livestock... we also have a breeding pair of goats, and a sheep.




Still loads of work to do to get it how we want it. Rome wasn't built in a day.

 

[Clouston98]

Great stuff mate! Bet your loving it!

 

[weekender]

Blimey that's not an allotment it's a small holding😉 Looks great.

 

[scottpix]

Well done what a great find, that`s what I would like to do one day.

Scott

 

[Mesquite]

Blimey that's not an allotment it's a small holding Looks great.

I was just thinking the same

How do you find the time for that lot as well as making your knives Mark?

 

[British Red]

What a fantastic setup - and how great to share with an experienced guy. I'm very impressed Mark

 

[HillBill]

With us sharing them with Paul, we have an arrangement. I let the birds out and feed them on a morning, only takes half hour tops. He sees to the other animals and puts the birds away when he finishes work, takes him an hour.

The veg plots can be worked slowly atm. Dug one patch over today for onion sets going in in a couple of weeks, will hoe it next weekend, plant the week after.

Not as time-consuming as you may think atm.

 

[HillBill]

Yeah, we were lucky. The place is rough around the edges, but all the essentials are there, got loads of structures on there for the livestock etc. The whole border of ours are planted with elder aswell, so loads of elderflowers for wine/cordial.. love that stuff. It's comical watching the chickens first thing on a morning during the summer/autumn when they all charge out of their shed in a mad rush for elderberries fallen during the night..

What a fantastic setup - and how great to share with an experienced guy. I'm very impressed Mark

 

[treadlightly]

Superb set up. Enjoy it.

 

[British Red]

Yeah, we were lucky.

I often find that the harder people work, the luckier they become

 

[Macaroon]

I often find that the harder people work, the luckier they become

Never a truer word spoken.....

 

[HillBill]

Thats similar to my sig,

I often find that the harder people work, the luckier they become

 

[Dreadhead]

superb thanks for sharing Mark!

 

[woodstock]

Great setup mark and I don't think luck comes into it, its being in the place you need to be for thing to happen, you must have been like a pig in Sh*t when you got offered that.

 

[ozzy1977]

Great setup, and a great view to boot.

 

[HillBill]

superb thanks for sharing Mark!

No worries Hamish

Great setup mark and I don't think luck comes into it, its being in the place you need to be for thing to happen, you must have been like a pig in Sh*t when you got offered that.

Aye, was well happy.

Great setup, and a great view to boot.

It is that.

 

[FGYT]

Cant Beat home reared Pork Products Will be getting another 4 weaners this year and will have to do a lot more sausages they go fast and the bacon is supurb

 

[Melonfish]

Practically a smallholding that! talk about luck, i could dig and mend all day round there
south facing plots on a south facing slope to boot, you do still own your soul don't you?
Pete

 

[georann]

Nice farm you got there Puts our 1 1/2 plots to shame! Home-reared sausages though corrr!

 

[HillBill]

Cant Beat home reared Pork Products Will be getting another 4 weaners this year and will have to do a lot more sausages they go fast and the bacon is supurb

We didn't do bacon or sausages last year, the 3 we slaughtered were just cut up into joints by paul at work (slaughterman) Ended up with over 100kg of pork from my half of the 3. Didn't like the way he butchered them though. So this time i'm getting the meat as half pigs. My dads a professional butcher, has been since he was 17, so the plan is to get him to teach me how to properly butcher a pig. Buying a sausage maker this year too, and another couple of chest freezers

Practically a smallholding that! talk about luck, i could dig and mend all day round there
south facing plots on a south facing slope to boot, you do still own your soul don't you?
Pete

Just about

Nice farm you got there Puts our 1 1/2 plots to shame! Home-reared sausages though corrr!

Aye it is more like a small farm than anything...more than we ever expected.