tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36345485045027368392024-03-05T05:28:46.069+01:00La Ferme de Sourrou .:. Permaculture in FranceHardworkinghippy and Fabrice and their off grid, home built house and smallholding in Bourrou, FranceLa Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.comBlogger235125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-6453103378400426622011-01-24T00:39:00.004+01:002011-05-03T22:26:59.482+01:00How to tell a girl lamb from a boy lamb<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/5382664552/" title="Girl lambs pee sitting down"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5244/5382664552_b5c41b70e4.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /><span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/5382664552/">How to tell a girl sheep from a boy sheep</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment"> </p>Girl lambs pee sitting down !La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com36tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-74125302084331951502011-01-22T00:17:00.005+01:002011-01-22T01:11:38.406+01:00We've started lambing and there's a Basco Béarnaise !<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/5373390435/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5086/5373390435_a9c9bd828c.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /><span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/5373390435/">Sleeping lamb after her fiirst feed</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment"> </p>The days just seem to fly by at the moment. There's a lot of everyday things going on and like farmers all over France, we've loads of paperwork to do this month, then on exactly the date we predicted, the sheep started lambing.<br /><br />I like it when they lamb early in the year because we have them all inside in the warmth and out of danger. When we let them lamb outdoors there are often mishaps when, for example a new mother abandons her new-born lamb in the field or a fox or badger takes a lamb.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD4hjuR8YrRIJAdx7fk6zQg6zv-_IDmXlpbY42qn86WE3x66fRmaJKXKqQrJDfMoZbB3QcbgLwG4Jets8pkKvVczCReVrily53Xona-rRpB5CQGC1Afo5i9vsESf4I2zFVmfzI7V8kxeQ/s1600/5376368992_7335eb627a_z.jpg"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 255px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD4hjuR8YrRIJAdx7fk6zQg6zv-_IDmXlpbY42qn86WE3x66fRmaJKXKqQrJDfMoZbB3QcbgLwG4Jets8pkKvVczCReVrily53Xona-rRpB5CQGC1Afo5i9vsESf4I2zFVmfzI7V8kxeQ/s400/5376368992_7335eb627a_z.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5564756031529296546" border="0" /></a>There's not a lot to eat in the fields anyway and it's been bitterly cold and windy out there for the past few days.<br />We've some good hay, mineral and vitamin licks and a ration of cereal for each new mum and being closer to them at the moment makes them less scared of us and easier to manage if there are birthing or feeding problems.<br /><br />We have a lot more water harvested from the roof this year which the goats and sheep seem to prefer to tap water and we keep the storage close to the shed, in a warm area and so they're less likely to freeze, which cuts down a lot on the work of smashing ice and carrying kettles of hot water. The new mothers drink an amazing amount of water ! All in all it's easier and more comfortable for us and them and as we can hear what's going on in the shed from the house it's certainly more reassuring.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZSL6yo4nd5JIMmSB8S1T49qyRmEnYZj2oPULkVEec5YXCqp_ekeWqEpE-2yLXwOIBAn5H30jR37aYwe_SbZlTkqZH9XwADCx86MCDfib0dJqjdfYuVlitKd55yZUR8UDo6KpKmAjgi6E/s1600/5376368824_096a1ca65e.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 298px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZSL6yo4nd5JIMmSB8S1T49qyRmEnYZj2oPULkVEec5YXCqp_ekeWqEpE-2yLXwOIBAn5H30jR37aYwe_SbZlTkqZH9XwADCx86MCDfib0dJqjdfYuVlitKd55yZUR8UDo6KpKmAjgi6E/s400/5376368824_096a1ca65e.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5564774692762412018" border="0" /></a>I'm excited because we've had a lamb from one of our Basco Béarnaise ewes. He's a strapping lad and huge despite the size of his sire - a small but obviously very capable Cameroon ram.<br /><br />She's not a terribly good mother which is not a bad thing in some ways. It means we can feed the wee fella a bit ourselves and take some of her milk for tea and for making cheese and I'll feel a lot less guilty about the whole thing.<br /><br />We've one lamb in the kitchen who we needed to warm up and feed quickly because his mother totally rejected her. The poor wee thing chose the worst spot ever to curl up in and got chilled and when we tried to get her to suck the colostrum from the ewe she was already too weak. <br /><br />We milked off some colostrum and gave it to her gently in drops from a syringe and she licked and swallowed.<br /><br />She finally got a bit more strength after she was warmed up and with a bit of help from our Dachshund Bonnie who is a real star and licks lamb's bottoms to stimulate them to pee and feed just like the ewe does. Thanks to Bonnie, the lamb's sucking reflex started working and she's now taking tiny amounts from a baby's bottle and is slowly walking around the kitchen this evening.<br /><br />The little thing isn't completely OK yet but we're hoping she'll recover and make a strong wee lamb.La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-36705731000948652442010-12-21T17:13:00.001+01:002010-12-21T17:13:10.508+01:00Winter Solstice 2010<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/5280674572/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5004/5280674572_7dffd39b41.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/5280674572/">Winter Solstice 2010</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment"> </p>La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-77853719760462637122010-12-12T23:42:00.002+01:002010-12-19T01:11:00.386+01:00We've got too many chickens !<div class="flickr-frame"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/5254955864/" title="photo sharing"><span style="font-size:small;"><img alt="" class="flickr-photo" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5161/5254955864_943330a76a.jpg" /></span></a><br /><span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/5254955864/">That's the spirit !</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a><style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><br /><div class="flickr-frame"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjTC253na35AhpLT2S9dYZAT16RaDPwlFPVMfx5tXCxi0yOQXRpGPRNzxgvTsa7cqgCX4evxIGeBym-v4zlPmIsmggftH37isgh3vP3WUpEqc_kOkSJfp4uB6lhyphenhyphenDGtuQgfXtYZwHiPGUV/s1600/5198167950_8594f949f8_m.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br /></a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi32rb6-K97Yk3xQouEjpUb91RAE8nPRKjNi3Ftkh2oziz3H3DNbG61VaWS9fXcfo0oV9_EfhRJ7WdGthYo5gV4hcOGjzIKDe97YQqwkWB2Ngzo_Hia5LkFyThdh_W5QTajRrlL7DSLexQ/s1600/5254955556_b3857a87ea_m.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi32rb6-K97Yk3xQouEjpUb91RAE8nPRKjNi3Ftkh2oziz3H3DNbG61VaWS9fXcfo0oV9_EfhRJ7WdGthYo5gV4hcOGjzIKDe97YQqwkWB2Ngzo_Hia5LkFyThdh_W5QTajRrlL7DSLexQ/s1600/5254955556_b3857a87ea_m.jpg" border="0" /></a><span class="flickr-caption" style="font-size:small;">This boy got beaten up by a band of roaming youngsters that I call the red bunch and as he was walking away with his head down I started taking photographs of him and he suddenly perked up and strode along proudly as though to show me that he was non the worse for his humiliation.<br /><br />The culprits were a large group of young red cockerels who are now at sexual maturity and are a pain in the whotsit - not just because they're fighting with all the other young cocks but also they've started to gang up on the girls and the poor things have to walk the gauntlet before being allowed into the chicken shed to roost for the night.<br /><span class="flickr-caption" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span><span class="flickr-caption" style="font-size:small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjTC253na35AhpLT2S9dYZAT16RaDPwlFPVMfx5tXCxi0yOQXRpGPRNzxgvTsa7cqgCX4evxIGeBym-v4zlPmIsmggftH37isgh3vP3WUpEqc_kOkSJfp4uB6lhyphenhyphenDGtuQgfXtYZwHiPGUV/s1600/5198167950_8594f949f8_m.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjTC253na35AhpLT2S9dYZAT16RaDPwlFPVMfx5tXCxi0yOQXRpGPRNzxgvTsa7cqgCX4evxIGeBym-v4zlPmIsmggftH37isgh3vP3WUpEqc_kOkSJfp4uB6lhyphenhyphenDGtuQgfXtYZwHiPGUV/s1600/5198167950_8594f949f8_m.jpg" border="0" /></a></span>Anyone who has kept chickens will know what I mean - I almost feel like throwing something at them when they start their antics and the girls are becoming nervous and scatty and if this goes on any longer they'll go off the lay, their backs will lose their feathers and some of them may be tempted to sleep outside and risk an encounter with Mr Fox.<br /><br />It's been a real joy all summer to see this year's chicks grow up. A high proportion of them are bright orange with a few blacks and a couple of pure whites. The garden has been brought alive by the flashing past of dozens of orange chicks running when they hear the feeder being filled up. But I counted the chickens this morning and there are fifty and an awful lot of them are young males. I'll try to find homes for the best cockerels - normally my neighbours are interested if they need to change their stock - but sadly, it's not worth feeding them all winter and the time has come to cull them and get them into the freezer.<span class="flickr-caption" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></div></span></div>La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-89497923529245979762010-10-25T17:30:00.010+01:002010-11-03T00:14:27.980+01:00We've finally got a new worktop in the kitchen !<div class="flickr-frame"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/5108138736/" title="photo sharing"><img alt="" class="flickr-photo" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1166/5108138736_18a81cb126.jpg" /></a><br />
<span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/5108138736/">The worktop's finished and I cleaned the cooker to celebrate</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div>Now I know for some people this is no big deal but for me it's one the most exciting things that's happened for ages. (Apart from the roof but I'll talk about that another time.)<br />
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Anyone's who's ever visited here will have noticed that there's never ever anywhere to put things in our kitchen. Everything that arrives gets dumped on the table and before we eat, we've taken to simply pushing the mess over a bit to make the space to put a few plates. In the summer, space isn't a problem because we have three huge tables outside on the terrace but in the winter everything has to come inside.<br />
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I've been meaning to make a work top and somewhere to store pots and pans for ages but I've always got something else more important to do. Well-meaning friends try to persuade me to go out and bu something but I just can't do that. It's not even the money, we'd just never dream of just buying something - unless it's for the computers or something that neither Fabrice nor I can make ourselves.<br />
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</div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwwnDhP26LphRYjJMFzn7AKhqyjHcrd59dl4fHstrrsXcpwv3GwC3lR1AVCB8G02IEe2IIWyB9khlln0kToC4thK0eLq_c0fXehjZOuGy2LH8vvlHGNDDGODiVx5tvatRxA52K_InpjQI/s1600/3614991160_d227ac27d3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwwnDhP26LphRYjJMFzn7AKhqyjHcrd59dl4fHstrrsXcpwv3GwC3lR1AVCB8G02IEe2IIWyB9khlln0kToC4thK0eLq_c0fXehjZOuGy2LH8vvlHGNDDGODiVx5tvatRxA52K_InpjQI/s320/3614991160_d227ac27d3.jpg" width="320" /></a>I really do prefer things that have been home-made from recycled materials and we're fortunate to live in a rural area where people share our frugal ethics. Since we started building the house our neighbours have been wonderful - helping us to source materials and bringing anything they've got or they can get that they think we might be able to use.<br />
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Our tribal dumping ground in the photo here is an area where we stock materials. It now looks pretty organised but when we first started building it was piled high with masses of reclaimed materials which have now found pride of place in the house. Now we're looking for fittings for finishing the extension and this summer has been absolutely frenetic with 'phone calls and lorries arriving with old baths, wood, tiles, bottles, windows, sinks, stone, chicken-wire and anything else you can imagine. Some of it gets passed on to other people who we know are looking for things but a lot of it gets arranged in lots to be used for building or for making things for the garden.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwlE469yunv65JxRwbS5HakQUU0-ffDRkGRbaxJ9d0WrQE54C3INcWdD8h5UIbimOjfjwXVqsCHkls7PJ482iwTK_CfrRCUhMx0FUjuPCWMqqj49SSDVPxjxR9hw8frjavhsiKqFRcpko/s1600/4385593803_678f5bf4c2_m.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwlE469yunv65JxRwbS5HakQUU0-ffDRkGRbaxJ9d0WrQE54C3INcWdD8h5UIbimOjfjwXVqsCHkls7PJ482iwTK_CfrRCUhMx0FUjuPCWMqqj49SSDVPxjxR9hw8frjavhsiKqFRcpko/s1600/4385593803_678f5bf4c2_m.jpg" /></a>We ask people to try not to bring polystyrene or plastic or broken bottles and over the years they're getting better at knowing what we need and what we might find useful and it's incredible how they often go out of their way to help us.<br />
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The conversations go something like this. "My son knows a place where they're pulling out a load of double glazed windows, there's nothing wrong with them, it's just that the electric shutters don't work any more. The guy said they'd be skipped on Friday, if we get there fast he'll let us have the lot for a fiver each." The logistics of how to get there fast with a van or someone's borrowed trailer are sorted out and off we go to collect the windows.(Merci Guy !)<br />
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To be honest if it weren't for all the things that people give us, our house would have been a lot more expensive to build and we'd have spent an awful lot of time in DIY shops - not to mention the fact that it would be boring to have to choose what we wanted all the time instead of just doing what we can with what we've got. Sometimes things do look a bit weird to begin with but the finished result is quirky and interesting and totally unique. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii8t2-AKPf-7_qzeI1mbuUSDKJ8D68AsIfKqtNSGDfpk4qnT14_rT5wS_bRTGOK_F2ItDIVK08w_tVaMJZOkRdpoK2fn1vJEYb-DeeE6OVUcEjrzEaIVOGBCDkdTsdGgjXm217oR_CP14/s1600/421016949_4147496de0_m.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii8t2-AKPf-7_qzeI1mbuUSDKJ8D68AsIfKqtNSGDfpk4qnT14_rT5wS_bRTGOK_F2ItDIVK08w_tVaMJZOkRdpoK2fn1vJEYb-DeeE6OVUcEjrzEaIVOGBCDkdTsdGgjXm217oR_CP14/s200/421016949_4147496de0_m.jpg" width="200" /></a>We've use almost all our old windows now for covering firewood, making cold frames, covering straw bales as temporary shelter for tender plants and we've used them for making our greenhouse and even as windows when they're good enough.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdMuL9ACAoShyVVrejKx_I3W8caqy7EDD1B-q14iDnl7fj6jOHMpkVEqow2ezJaTHOL2L94PnuZEH5_50EtvZ4VZcBYlzyJHBJxqDjTvABv2tywxXBrzCCN8L7VjepfKEL48bPjOHnj10/s1600/5103452054_7d7f23d7be_m.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdMuL9ACAoShyVVrejKx_I3W8caqy7EDD1B-q14iDnl7fj6jOHMpkVEqow2ezJaTHOL2L94PnuZEH5_50EtvZ4VZcBYlzyJHBJxqDjTvABv2tywxXBrzCCN8L7VjepfKEL48bPjOHnj10/s1600/5103452054_7d7f23d7be_m.jpg" /></a>The new veranda is just second-hand windows we've been given and wood Fabrice cut from our land, topped by incredibly expensive hail-stone proof double layer plastic. We've got seven second-hand double-glazed PVC French windows which we'll use at the back of the house just to the right of these windows and on the east side of the extension. I don't really like plastic or PVC but we get a lot of storms here and I don't intend replacing anything in my lifetime. We'll paint the windows or do something to make them look OK and the fact that everything is recycled assuages my green conscience. <br />
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We've used all the stone that was easily accessible on our land, (Peak stone !) so we've asked neighbours to help us find more. They have come up trumps and sometimes even deliver it to us (Merci Christophe !) or we go and get it ourselves.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsjauRrmgdCTmdgnpW2uRKTYomNEqR60vTl7O8bZud2lz6a6LXen0V4iXgUqnDtDYBJRxKX086v3AUJFQeTHq2QrJMf5UZzpzcIuNQYRvcTyGhb5kwVyPn21K9d9kqj5B0SN6wxNYr7Tg/s1600/4607039861_87cbe55a96_m.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsjauRrmgdCTmdgnpW2uRKTYomNEqR60vTl7O8bZud2lz6a6LXen0V4iXgUqnDtDYBJRxKX086v3AUJFQeTHq2QrJMf5UZzpzcIuNQYRvcTyGhb5kwVyPn21K9d9kqj5B0SN6wxNYr7Tg/s200/4607039861_87cbe55a96_m.jpg" width="200" /></a>We dump all the stones and rubble in front of the house and when we've taken the best bits out of it, (Including some roots and bulbs which have become beautiful plants !) what's left makes a solid base for the roads we've been making for the past few years.<br />
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Anyway, getting back to the kitchen worktop. A few weeks ago I bit the bullet and bought a worktop in a shop. (I bought three because I'll need two more for the extension.) They've sat inside the front door doing nothing because we've been so busy.<br />
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We had a visitor here and after a week or so, he started to appreciate why we never had time to do anything about storage space in the kitchen, so he offered to make us something. On his next visit, he brought with him a couple of beautiful pieces of boxwood <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buxus_sempervirens" title="Buxus sempervirens">Buxus sempervirens </a></i>which he used for the front legs of the table and of course, the rest of the bits he needed came from the dumping ground !<br />
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After he spent the day making it he had to go back to work at L'Ecocentre du Périgord, so I finished sanding it down and over the past week I've given it five coats of varnish and it's now dry and ready for use. Thanks Yohan, you really are a star !La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-81464703351016501002010-10-22T09:14:00.072+01:002010-10-23T10:53:19.213+01:00What an amazing sky !<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/5103451598/" title="photo sharing"><img alt="" class="flickr-photo" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4087/5103451598_844a7f4591.jpg" /></a></span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><style type="text/css">
.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }
</style></div><div class="flickr-frame"><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span class="flickr-caption" style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/5103451598/">What a sky on a cold October evening</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Pyke dragged me out this evening. He ran around the house, teasing and showing off and insisted that I go out with him. I was a bit busy but stopped what I was doing because when he does that there's usually something worth seeing, so I let him lead me to the end of the drive, then he stood there watching the sky.</span><span style="font-size: small;"> He's a funny dog. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;">He's a Border Collie from good working stock and we got him to work with the goats and sheep and he does help a bit but gets bored easily then runs off to chase swallows and butterflies. We've given up trying to get him to work properly. </span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB4o4Yer8jQHpQLaIJQUBCBG1mn0_r7cHtuQagbXPaxNeRNpquJ2m2wwYo-q1ocvc0yxyQdfrcPFDFW7scx4rE63UjNrqO64sskbHUIaES5-nNpAQpvAjUhDAix_K-NYx_9-UrHRmyCec/s1600/3762910435_ec2b62948f_z.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB4o4Yer8jQHpQLaIJQUBCBG1mn0_r7cHtuQagbXPaxNeRNpquJ2m2wwYo-q1ocvc0yxyQdfrcPFDFW7scx4rE63UjNrqO64sskbHUIaES5-nNpAQpvAjUhDAix_K-NYx_9-UrHRmyCec/s200/3762910435_ec2b62948f_z.jpg" width="156" /></a>In the village they call him "The poet".</span><br />
<br />
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;"><i> Le poète est celui qui voit autrement, qui porte un regard neuf, émerveillé </i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><i> sur ce qui est souvent ignoré par les autres hommes...</i></span></div><span style="font-size: small;">In English that means, "The poet is someone who sees things differently, in a new light,<span style="background-color: white;"> amazed at things which are often ignored by other people."</span></span><span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="en" style="background-color: white; color: black; font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: #e6ecf9;" title=""></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I've never known a dog before who walks around sniffing flowers. The interesting thing is that his likes and dislikes are so similar to mine. Sweet smelling roses, Jasmine and Honeysuckle have a really positive effect on him and when he sniffs a flower he likes, he looks up at me, smiles and wags his tail.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd5Ajj3npvP6HvZvKpPLgxtxJJO8xLmqwR_daRwA7C33Rfd77pBOIEgiNyoUIn3jv4yk80IQo-1eiqt1ngAVzGdkuhmFQ6vw4tFm89ko3z7W9dFQ5AxjgiisxqzYqpgkp3yIbSOi4aM4s/s1600/5102931403_08598ba574_b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="307" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd5Ajj3npvP6HvZvKpPLgxtxJJO8xLmqwR_daRwA7C33Rfd77pBOIEgiNyoUIn3jv4yk80IQo-1eiqt1ngAVzGdkuhmFQ6vw4tFm89ko3z7W9dFQ5AxjgiisxqzYqpgkp3yIbSOi4aM4s/s400/5102931403_08598ba574_b.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">We sat looking at the sky with the clouds moving slowly towards the west and as the sun crept over towards the horizon and the sky darkened we turned and walked towards the east where the wind was pushing and dividing the clouds into puffy balls and as it got stronger the little wind turbines suddenly started chugging into life. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">The wind got stronger and stronger and my little cardi suddenly felt very inadequate so I looked at Pyke and he looked at me then we went inside to the warm. </span></div><br />
</div>La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-58809227950996693432010-10-17T20:54:00.000+01:002010-10-17T20:54:06.329+01:00Autumn colours<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_68Sq4SR2gXhyAdXm0xLsKtiQcLYquxyAN-8cvwOa8upIFPpHy34ngqgr1kKYy8mgbpxsWBLdUz0nn8ib9ZPU0KqMXYRQRbwctCHw1fCl6xIeAQVgEyFj6nMAQM6ZRQ6fxlJhl2RKRj8/s1600/5054075170_e97bfe11e3_z.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="The path down to the chicken shed" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_68Sq4SR2gXhyAdXm0xLsKtiQcLYquxyAN-8cvwOa8upIFPpHy34ngqgr1kKYy8mgbpxsWBLdUz0nn8ib9ZPU0KqMXYRQRbwctCHw1fCl6xIeAQVgEyFj6nMAQM6ZRQ6fxlJhl2RKRj8/s400/5054075170_e97bfe11e3_z.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 400px; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; width: 324px;" /></a>I walk down this little path every day to open the chickens then through the vegetable garden and back up towards the house to open the geese and check the goats. Then I have a cup of tea.<br />
<br />
I'll probably walk down this path four of five times in an average day but the morning stroll is the important one and starting the tour by this path has become a morning ritual. The path is crunchy underfoot with years of discarded mussel and oyster shells and in autumn it rustles with the sound of fallen sweet chestnut and oak leaves.<br />
<br />
I've lingered a bit more than usual this week on the path - the colours are stunning and it's interesting to see the shape of the tree trunks emerging from the fallen greenery and the new growth of biennials like the Foxglove, Mullen and Evening primrose. Autumn is a lovely time of the year, especially when you're ready for winter.La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-72618564372758139982010-10-05T23:43:00.007+01:002010-10-06T00:15:05.280+01:00Getting ready for winter<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/5045403444/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4105/5045403444_2d0f99854a.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/5045403444/">Emptying the corn dryer before it rains</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment"> <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmLd3RsqG7riDQVCuXdGcWb0mZiKF0PZll7mPeLXQXDCxIFhvX_5s__BHSqNwwVen5tG8VkN3XOIhKtQm-I_m7idcjkkDYEJYC3iICy5K065FDhWa587bXOJ9MojG27loU_rOLjMVwL8Y/s1600/5043766069_29ce8bb12a.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmLd3RsqG7riDQVCuXdGcWb0mZiKF0PZll7mPeLXQXDCxIFhvX_5s__BHSqNwwVen5tG8VkN3XOIhKtQm-I_m7idcjkkDYEJYC3iICy5K065FDhWa587bXOJ9MojG27loU_rOLjMVwL8Y/s400/5043766069_29ce8bb12a.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5523743992371145090" /></a>The man with the corn picker is coming to the village soon so we had to get a move on and get last year's corn out of the crib to fill it up again with freshly harvested cobs. <br /><br />We kept some of the old cobs for the pigs and goats then grained the rest of it with our neighbour Guy's ancient machine and put the grain into all the containers we could find and stored it in the extension. It's the first year we've had to rush like this - normally we don't have any left at the start of autumn but last year's crop was exceptional. <br />The weather's been really dry here since the end of May, so this year's crop won't be so good.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFaLrdruJgdVsdnguSwsE9xJ86nbXTS5riLt4EiF9T0ch-g9J_HtBhL7GqW4M37CcGpWB1PKVXdsqs2BZWTGuGRwLfFanQU4ZU9RaWYGqKc_1B9YhMLvQDXNSvQNdfcv0VtPnbchWUZkM/s1600/5043766255_2d95ae8487_m.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 229px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFaLrdruJgdVsdnguSwsE9xJ86nbXTS5riLt4EiF9T0ch-g9J_HtBhL7GqW4M37CcGpWB1PKVXdsqs2BZWTGuGRwLfFanQU4ZU9RaWYGqKc_1B9YhMLvQDXNSvQNdfcv0VtPnbchWUZkM/s400/5043766255_2d95ae8487_m.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524093663841069458" /></a>This is the ancient corn picker which has been doing the rounds in this village (and several others) for quite a few years. When I see it I always think of Mad Max - a film set in a future where law and order has broken down at the end of the 'Oil Age' and baddies use weird and wonderful machines like this for just cruising around doing wicked things. <br />I suppose using a machine like this is wicked. I hate to think how much diesel this thing uses when it's chugging through the maize and what sort of damage it's doing to the earth below. We ought to be sowing and harvesting our grain by hand but a few years ago, thirty of us harvested a small field of corn for a neighbour and it took us several hours. This machine does the job for the whole village in just two days. <br /><br />I'm sorry I haven't been blogging for a long time but we've been under a lot of pressure from forces beyond our control and I haven't felt like sharing what's been going on. I'll get back on that straight and narrow road soon.La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-49369566822408023792010-06-24T20:27:00.009+01:002010-06-25T09:00:02.106+01:00DC pump powered by solar panel for solar water heating<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4730326810/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1334/4730326810_5b883988a5.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4730326810/">DC pump powered by solar panel for solar water heating</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment"> </p>It seems like ages ago that we started to put up the new vacuum solar tubes. The rain and the corn planting and hay cutting have stopped us getting on with the installation but today we finished it !<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiDERXNl7rra90FQXAUSOkPK3rulzeev-aSzuanHRTqHNSjYgMPfXZM6uXa22G1g6dChc_C8l9e8CqYbwO-0Ovr6jje9hrm0vfa9FoFZys_b2kDjY39VD3P_iqMzPea8pFGl6nHhdf4mk/s1600/4730323824_8af4a656c6.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 232px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiDERXNl7rra90FQXAUSOkPK3rulzeev-aSzuanHRTqHNSjYgMPfXZM6uXa22G1g6dChc_C8l9e8CqYbwO-0Ovr6jje9hrm0vfa9FoFZys_b2kDjY39VD3P_iqMzPea8pFGl6nHhdf4mk/s320/4730323824_8af4a656c6.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5486417012848848338" /></a>I've used a photo of a pump as an introduction to today's blog post because DC pumps like these are really difficult to find - at least in France. <br />Someone searching the 'net for a solar powered pump (As I've done so often !) will get the information here that they need to find the right pump. The installation and operation manual of our pump is available on the 'net in the <a href="http://www.laing.de/eng/downloads/">Laing website</a><br /><br />Our old flat plate solar collectors worked by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermosiphon">thermosiphon</a> - that is the hot water rose and circulated without the need for a pump. (Note the English and the American spellings differ) I prefer that system as there's nothing to go wrong but as I wanted to put our new panels on the back roof of the conservatory where they wouldn't be seen which is higher that our hot water cylinder, we couldn't use thermosyphon and have to pump the hot water around the circuit. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZV6Esqf8tWv7D-ycvr07zPOcxuqj8aW-4-OVnMhCLC0gqp-5pNr5MG2Xtn8Kl9-5A-ERk3YYNOq9FDwwEEvchQXuBOkUL5KgSAamrIg_yjS5vAtrPoXTRnu-0r3KuNdRwsApoyacecmU/s1600/4730326924_c1fcbd47e8.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 174px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZV6Esqf8tWv7D-ycvr07zPOcxuqj8aW-4-OVnMhCLC0gqp-5pNr5MG2Xtn8Kl9-5A-ERk3YYNOq9FDwwEEvchQXuBOkUL5KgSAamrIg_yjS5vAtrPoXTRnu-0r3KuNdRwsApoyacecmU/s320/4730326924_c1fcbd47e8.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5486414591228080770" /></a>This little pump is powered by a little 20 watt photovoltaic panel which of course only works when the sun shines and the water is being heated - so it's perfect for a solar water heating system !<br /><br />The photo above shows Fabrice fitting the last of the 16 vacuum tubes which each heat a little copper bar at the top of them. They fit into a manifold where they heat the water. That was the last step in the fitting process after we'd tested the pump and bled the hot water system.<br /><br />I haven't lagged the pipes or insulated the water cylinder yet just in case there's a leak, so the system isn't as efficient as it will be when it's insulated but so far everything is working as planned and the water is warming up nicely.La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-29483848863930023702010-06-01T22:58:00.009+01:002010-06-01T23:23:43.438+01:00Hens, hatching eggs, chicks and dustbaths<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4658725297/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4032/4658725297_d699870608.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4658725297/">Dustbath before bedtime for the hen and her chicks</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment"> </p>Our hens lay their eggs (mostly!) in empty gunpowder containers in the chicken house. Once a hen goes broody, she'll stay put on the eggs and when you approach her she has a very aggressive stare and pecks you when you put your hand near her. You can be almost sure then that she wants to be left in peace to hatch her eggs. I say "her" eggs but the chicken doesn't really mind whose eggs she sits on ! <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4urbccmLxnoVPLSry9RxsJmQ9BH3_iV7iCzYqjpUPyCNXpzQcQYhlTjcBaMO7kmoG73lsaMs8GR9_DDzakvQumKkmDymKDbQJlWcrcUb-YnVu4RIGCncj1L2cA5cOmBwtvdoC8NvK7pQ/s1600/95840377_4ee5d9cb1e_m.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4urbccmLxnoVPLSry9RxsJmQ9BH3_iV7iCzYqjpUPyCNXpzQcQYhlTjcBaMO7kmoG73lsaMs8GR9_DDzakvQumKkmDymKDbQJlWcrcUb-YnVu4RIGCncj1L2cA5cOmBwtvdoC8NvK7pQ/s320/95840377_4ee5d9cb1e_m.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477907442797462482" /></a>We often swop the eggs our hens have chosen to sit on, replacing them with our "best" eggs or with eggs from friends. Our huge red cockerel - the biggest I've ever seen - was a gift of an egg from a friend who said we'd be delighted with him and we are !<br /><br />When the hen is settled on her eggs, we lift the barrel and its contents gently to our "inner sanctum" - a big cage inside our chicken shed where the hens can sit undisturbed by other hens who want to lay their eggs in the same barrel. By moving the hens we ensure that there's no fighting, no eggs get broken and the eggs all hatch at the same time. That gives each chick the best possible chance of survival.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX6vpQTDJNLyYu2_PHIBooVq6QluLrm0TWWY6Fa71oXJJYF9Xg6pLlIDPDG3K4FMWFDRfsjdwhECn85fjO2MChg1DhiTy8hWKJI7DdnkoVr5hp9TkdkmRirqKzMQysKR7DusaX-e6VsJc/s1600/2848642439_f0d010bac4_b.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 354px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX6vpQTDJNLyYu2_PHIBooVq6QluLrm0TWWY6Fa71oXJJYF9Xg6pLlIDPDG3K4FMWFDRfsjdwhECn85fjO2MChg1DhiTy8hWKJI7DdnkoVr5hp9TkdkmRirqKzMQysKR7DusaX-e6VsJc/s400/2848642439_f0d010bac4_b.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477907909641865906" /></a>Once the chicks are hatched we keep them inside the cage for about a week to make sure they're well fed and they learn to respond the their mother's calls to feed and hide under her wings when told to do so. We sometimes have to move them out once the next batch of chicks are hatched to prevent fighting either into a covered chicken tractor or into the big wide world - a very dangerous place for a little chick. <br /><br />As well as the dangers from stoats, snakes and the obstacles on the terrain itself, birds of prey take chicks and it's heartbreaking to walk down to the chicken shed and find several writhing on the ground having been dropped by the birds. Keeping them inside or outside under a cage helps reduce the inevitable losses.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibO3mKYjcJpR1xeaYClEvovJ9WicJ9WTNBSVOY1QklQ2-f4UhKS714MrF6cQ97zRgIJBv4lBzOLxFlRVfCrff0bK4Uj-8Yn7xJXyNTYNQZ2SGnIpV8vL_4gslhKn1VcOIQ3FOIkg72ybM/s1600/4659349112_e470b77347_m.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 205px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibO3mKYjcJpR1xeaYClEvovJ9WicJ9WTNBSVOY1QklQ2-f4UhKS714MrF6cQ97zRgIJBv4lBzOLxFlRVfCrff0bK4Uj-8Yn7xJXyNTYNQZ2SGnIpV8vL_4gslhKn1VcOIQ3FOIkg72ybM/s320/4659349112_e470b77347_m.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477909056005413842" /></a>Chickens love to take dust baths, they are essential to the well being of your chickens to help rid then of external parasites and dead skin. If, like ours, you hens free range leave them a few corners of the garden but protect your plants and seedlings otherwise they'll break your heart !<br /><br />Dust baths are especially appreciated after a hen has spent three weeks sitting on eggs and the first thing she'll do with her new chicks is to look for somewhere to take a dust bath. If you don't have room in your garden, a paddling pool filled with dry, riddled soil will do the job. The substance used must be fine enough to clog the breathing pores of the chicken's parasites. <br /><br />I've tried using Diatomaceous earth but noticed that my chickens' eyes were being irritated by the powder, so I've stopped using it and I don't use sand for the same reason.<br /><br />You'll have to replace the soil regularly because the chickens wriggle their way in to the the dust and cover themselves with as much as possible then shake out an impressive amount of dust all over the place.La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-47026499245420023002010-05-24T08:54:00.008+01:002010-05-24T09:31:54.659+01:00A bit of motivation to get on with things<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4572682322/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3373/4572682322_f4510c2b9b.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4572682322/">My birthday garden is two weeks late !</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment"> </p>There's nothing better for getting over anger and sadness than getting on with things. Around us there's the sound of birds, frogs, toads, lambs and chicks - all celebrating their existence. The endless optimism of the singing birds in the trees lifts our spirits and encourages us to get on with making our space more welcoming and attractive. I find physical work profoundly energising and the exercise helps us get rid of stress and prepares us to live as warriors and not as victims.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/120338509/" title="March 2006 This rose should cover the whole top half of the slope in about four years by hardworkinghippy, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/56/120338509_fb96a20370.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="March 2006 This rose should cover the whole top half of the slope in about four years" /></a><br />When I need a bit of encouragement to get on and do things, I have a look at some of the old photographs I've taken of the garden and wander around taking shots of the same views now. This one is a good example of the back of our house about a year after I planted the rose in the photo. It's now more than six metres high, winding into the young oak tree which shades the back of the terrace and it's covered in little yellow flowers around the time of my birthday in April. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5Z7SGBwpZ2I/S_o0vC-5iWI/AAAAAAAAEIQ/8VkgWKglXVQ/s1600/4634417679_55bb0186ce.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 399px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5Z7SGBwpZ2I/S_o0vC-5iWI/AAAAAAAAEIQ/8VkgWKglXVQ/s400/4634417679_55bb0186ce.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474746279881443682" /></a>People often give me plants for my birthday and I plant them in this spot which has become my "Birthday Garden". It's starting to look good and does a great job of keeping our cellar cool in the summer.<br /><br />The brambles and ferns are still present but I've left them for the time being to provide shade and I've cleared and mulched a space for a few more birthday shrubs planted this year which should eventually grow to about a metre.<br /><br />Unless you have an unlimited budget, filling a space with plants takes time. I like the gradual process of using sentimental plants which you can nurture to maturity. They give an enormous amount of pleasure, not just to me but also to the person who gave them to me.La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-59743492095005400152010-05-14T23:26:00.000+01:002010-05-14T23:27:38.065+01:00Bisous Bourrou and thanks to all my friends<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4607651620/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1190/4607651620_7a8eb414a8.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4607651620/">Bisous Bourrou</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment"> </p>La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-77109352620377657452010-05-07T13:27:00.003+01:002010-05-07T13:35:47.668+01:00Au revoir Judy - Bourrou May 2010<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4585937705/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4062/4585937705_cbba65e8f2.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4585937705/">Judy never had a chance - we buried her today</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment"> Our little wire-haired Dachsund Judy was in perfect health on Monday. <br /><br />In the early evening we found her in a coma behind the house. Her gums were white and her limbs in spasm and I rushed her to the nearest vet. He said that she'd eaten rat poison. Neither us nor our neighbours use rat poison. She died without regaining consciousness.<br /><br />We are devastated.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Notre petit Teckel Judy était en parfaite santé lundi midi. <br /><br />En début de soirée nous l'avons trouvée dans un état comateux derrière la maison. Ses gencives étaient blanches et ses membres dans le spasme et je lui amenais en tout hâte vers la vétérinaire la plus proche. Il a dit qu'elle avait mangé du raticide. Ni nous, ni nos voisins utilisent le poison pour les rats. <br /><br />Nous sommes dévastés.</p></span>La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com31tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-37356216151877049152010-04-30T10:13:00.001+01:002010-04-30T10:13:48.937+01:00Amazing April light just before the rain<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4563362001/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3343/4563362001_7203aa5417.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4563362001/">Amazing April light just before the rain</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment"> It's been hot and dry for a couple of weeks and we really need a bit of rain to soak everything I've planted over the past month or so. Yesterday evening the sky became dark and with a beautiful light and the wind stopped for just a few minutes before the drops started to fall. <br /><br />I've just checked the water butts and they've been topped up overnight. Perfect timing !</p>La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-25153054105484287612010-04-26T22:16:00.002+01:002010-04-26T22:17:52.791+01:00Stevia rises from the dead - yippee !<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4552094822/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3190/4552094822_0b12bc0078.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4552094822/">Stevia rises from the dead - yippee !</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment"> This is the second year this Stevia plant has overwintered. <br /><br />The leaves started dying a few weeks ago and I tried watering then not watering and eventually gave up; thinking that the plant was dead. <br /><br />I had a look yesterday and there's new growth from the base of the plant which means; with a bit of luck, that I don't have to look for new Stevia plants this year.</p>La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-7186050458049329012010-04-26T00:28:00.012+01:002010-04-26T01:09:46.204+01:00Latest lamb - small but perfectly formed<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4551453611/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1226/4551453611_07433c8582.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4551453611/">Latest lamb - small but perfectly formed</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment"> We have a few young ewes due to lamb soon so we're keeping our eyes peeled regularly on the field in front of the house since the flock have gone outside on to the new grass. <br /><style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4552961784/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3083/4552961784_9723f5c400.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4552961784/">Some of the older lambs at the end of a greedy day</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment">The sheep turn their noses up at hay now and we've almost stopped feeding supplements as both the ewes and the lambs are looking pretty chunky but the yearlings who are pregnant still need a bit extra so we're getting pretty good at slipping some corn and lucerne nuts in front of them and they've started to become used to a discreet treat. <br /><br />This teeny weeny little lamb was born yesterday. She's the smallest lamb I've ever seen and when we saw her at first we thought she might be premature. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJiaC0-zSC2K3nWLWE6PK0c5KiUL5S9H9cQDK4DC1K5jNP_v-EAbR2iBINH31fR0QADoWa9KMEXhoCDrZbPx2L4nipFRZAtFvx-hNiHbCy-OOxkbQzhGmixqnq5cAExJNiFgX1AcnfmWOc/s1600/4552917730_827895e940.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 219px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJiaC0-zSC2K3nWLWE6PK0c5KiUL5S9H9cQDK4DC1K5jNP_v-EAbR2iBINH31fR0QADoWa9KMEXhoCDrZbPx2L4nipFRZAtFvx-hNiHbCy-OOxkbQzhGmixqnq5cAExJNiFgX1AcnfmWOc/s400/4552917730_827895e940.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464226344461889762" /></a>On closer inspection, we saw her little feet are hard and you can feel her teeth and today she's running after her mum and screams her head off when she's lost. She's pretty normal for a day old lamb really.<br /><br />We're almost at the end of our terrible footrot problem. Seven of our goats still have a slight limp and I still have a slightly sore back but we're getting there.La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-66128279689347581802010-04-18T21:40:00.002+01:002010-04-24T19:40:02.829+01:00April anticipation. The weather has changed; it's getting warmer...<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4531862663/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4026/4531862663_8bd675998f.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4531862663/">April anticipation</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4531862303/" title="A young Wisteria comes into its own by hardworkinghippy, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4059/4531862303_3b2eea3f7b.jpg" width="342" height="500" alt="A young Wisteria comes into its own" /></a></p>La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-16955642847295970912010-04-08T01:43:00.002+01:002010-04-17T10:27:07.824+01:00There's mud everywhere and the tarpaulin has blown off the hay !<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4501423584/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4042/4501423584_070c4bd5b8.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4501423584/">There's mud everywhere and the tarpaulin has blown off the hay</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment"> </p>La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-56741925516909478962010-04-05T00:14:00.014+01:002016-04-01T22:53:26.743+01:00The self-seeded lettuce is ready to eat and the no-dig seed bed is ready to plant !<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4491142918/" title="photo sharing"><img alt="Self seeded lettuce ready to pick" class="flickr-photo" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4068/4491142918_ddbcb4b604.jpg" /></a><br />
<span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4491142918/">The self-seeded lettuce is ready to eat</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div>
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Our neighbour Robert gave me these lettuces and told me to let some self seed and I'd have early lettuce. The commercial winter varieties I planted just haven't grown at all but these ones been through frost, snow, hailstones and torrential rain and they've come up smiling and taste wonderful! <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8SVf9escBlroAhzkLf7R8eQxLETU3duntsmLIoqt0QJGnoYyZaUCY4lbbiQpxxiPa9LrPrz8irkjKk-LoNPhY_UQeRTZXN_RNDiHlL4plChcFDFWgOE8IWLyuRilYMmhJjOcnECibXEM/s1600/4490501745_cff69434f2_m.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456418457192530066" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8SVf9escBlroAhzkLf7R8eQxLETU3duntsmLIoqt0QJGnoYyZaUCY4lbbiQpxxiPa9LrPrz8irkjKk-LoNPhY_UQeRTZXN_RNDiHlL4plChcFDFWgOE8IWLyuRilYMmhJjOcnECibXEM/s400/4490501745_cff69434f2_m.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 190px; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 240px;" /></a>Alongside them is some Italian Parsley which is coming on well, and there was Coriander but it's disappeared after a morning frost on Saturday. Behind, is my replacement patch of wild strawberries which has always grown there and I use it to re-plant where I think the strawberries will grow well or just to give away to friends.<br />
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Next to that bed is another cage that Fabrice put up for me yesterday. I normally just cover newly planted seeds with wire tents to protect them from the chickens but this little area was just asking to be cordoned off so he's driven four or five posts in and put a chicken wire round and made me a little gate.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVlubnn3PGRqcz8H3nd70lp8WkA5_XI_IsW8-LlCOwvaqLlkx2ILR4Vf5WRyZEuSxMowGiOcHlL2S7lgJc2B3_cUPgq3N16d46h9Yli_DJ__pCmgr2PsfaVENAwg3gdsvuK_rK9IP_O7s/s1600/4490502293_a8803c9b18.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456420046336951474" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVlubnn3PGRqcz8H3nd70lp8WkA5_XI_IsW8-LlCOwvaqLlkx2ILR4Vf5WRyZEuSxMowGiOcHlL2S7lgJc2B3_cUPgq3N16d46h9Yli_DJ__pCmgr2PsfaVENAwg3gdsvuK_rK9IP_O7s/s320/4490502293_a8803c9b18.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: right; height: 320px; margin: 0 0 10px 10px; width: 286px;" /></a>The ground in this little spot was used for pumpkins last year and was really well mulched - once when the pumpkins were planted and again just before the winter really started. The mulch has rotted down and the resulting earth is just beautiful, dark and crumbly and totally weed free thanks to the chickens. <br />
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I can't wait to finish off the top of the new cage and start sowing seeds in that patch of earth but after our terrible experience of foot rot which spread through our flock of sheep and goats like wildfire I've had a very bad back. <br />
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After a visit to a chiropractor who seems to have cracked me all back into place, I have been ordered to do nothing for a while - which is very easy at the moment because I can hardly move ! I should be very careful over the next week or so as my back heals, so I'll have time to devote to this rather neglected blog. La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-75861933534330578442010-03-26T09:30:00.002+01:002010-03-26T09:33:58.499+01:00Freak hailstorm in Bourrou !<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4462069423/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2755/4462069423_436b7c863b.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4462069423/">Hailstones in March</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment">Yesterday we had a hailstorm which only lasted for about ten minutes but made a terrific racket on the plastic (hail storm proof) roof of the terrace. The hailstones we get here are huge and come down with an amazing force, bouncing off the ground like golf balls and they can do a lot of damage. Our little old van a has a few more dents but one of our neighbours borrowed our truck to pull his trailer when he went to get some building materials and as luck would have it he left just before the storm started and came back after it had finished. Where he went they didn't have a storm, so the Nissan was undamaged. The solar panels have been through this sort of thing before with no problems.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTgvu3xDgcX2HWL-pNp5mc9FLFCRm7_iJVFUiF6SNpPNVKX4JGIKVSQkl0HLA53OXrPzSxS3V3ZRiOb9gOaXgPvtLVgJ_EGqn9vL_hDdnKTgGz4g51ENJhubzwU4h7kat0rBJeDazwsH0/s1600/4462069547_344a40528c_m.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTgvu3xDgcX2HWL-pNp5mc9FLFCRm7_iJVFUiF6SNpPNVKX4JGIKVSQkl0HLA53OXrPzSxS3V3ZRiOb9gOaXgPvtLVgJ_EGqn9vL_hDdnKTgGz4g51ENJhubzwU4h7kat0rBJeDazwsH0/s320/4462069547_344a40528c_m.jpg" border="0" alt="Hailstones the size of golf balls"id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5452847691646984754" /></a>The plants don't seem to have suffered much - I haven't started to fill the garden up with seedlings and the perennials are almost all covered with protection to stop the chickens eating them - so that probably helped stop them being damaged.<br /><br />I can't use our greenhouse which was badly damaged in the storm last year but I'm breathing a sigh of relief, because I almost repaired the roof. The corrugated plastic sheeting which I'd have used isn't hailstone proof and it would have been full of holes. Sometimes laziness pays !La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-17971361513049739552010-03-17T11:49:00.013+01:002010-04-26T21:59:02.589+01:00Protecting the vegetable plot from free range chickens<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4435907279/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4042/4435907279_048fa2b821.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4435907279/">Chestnut whips used to protect the Rhubarb from the chickens</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment"> </p>The weather's getting better and we've had quite a few sunny, warm days. It may be because we've had more chickens than usual this winter or because there's been very little growth of grass and weeds around the house<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPqoYsoqsqR1XoUN2czc1-26-HBi40TmW2Z-3_InL1OXpVWLNnbotcWbts7BYU-QGvhYGlPlmOvcbCoiDLoCFyqGyWfRFdreEsV6yNN-OpDjB0R71DFXJ4Ok6JD0VNE61cfOVIrG2Knmk/s1600-h/523171827_2f27ddd2f1_m.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPqoYsoqsqR1XoUN2czc1-26-HBi40TmW2Z-3_InL1OXpVWLNnbotcWbts7BYU-QGvhYGlPlmOvcbCoiDLoCFyqGyWfRFdreEsV6yNN-OpDjB0R71DFXJ4Ok6JD0VNE61cfOVIrG2Knmk/s400/523171827_2f27ddd2f1_m.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5449540573675028034" /></a>but the chickens have really pecked down every single thing that they can find to eat and the vegetable garden looks like the aftermath of an atomic attack !<br /><br />If I don't do something to protect the perennial vegetables and self seeded Parsley and Coriander coming through they'll be destroyed, so covering everything has been the priority for the past few days. I can normally just lay a few sticks across the seedlings but the chickens aren't finding much to eat elsewhere so they're particularly determined and a light hand just won't work.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWlZt852qXehsRoyIRvXlg5Ek0dQ0xsss4w4wF907BlXwQwMGlDJ_1wcO2tVf93RCcgSMEspOy1e2A7SxZoIe1qYK_gl_rLaNmzngkQF4U_NRjtW51Pnvdm9xOIPE-bLNNfvanQ56AAdg/s1600-h/369730747_355a4d6378_m.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWlZt852qXehsRoyIRvXlg5Ek0dQ0xsss4w4wF907BlXwQwMGlDJ_1wcO2tVf93RCcgSMEspOy1e2A7SxZoIe1qYK_gl_rLaNmzngkQF4U_NRjtW51Pnvdm9xOIPE-bLNNfvanQ56AAdg/s320/369730747_355a4d6378_m.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5449542971505158290" /></a>To protect larger plants like Rhubarb and Artichokes I normally use old fruit boxes or make bamboo criss-cross frames but last year we cut down a lot of trees suffering from <a href="http://www.forestresearch.gov.uk/fr/infd-6kybgv">Horse Chestnut Canker</a> and so this year we've loads of Chestnut whips growing from the stools. I decided to use them to make lots of plant supports and for weaving around raised beds and they're perfect for making cages for protecting the new growth and certainly more aesthetically pleasing than old wooden boxes.<br /><br />Our friend and lodger, Laetitia has started her new job just a few kilometres from here at Montagnac la Crempse just next to Villamblard. She's hoping to start learning how to make chestnut furniture and garden supports with the association <a href="http://www.assobeleyme.org/">"Les Enfants du Pays de Beleyme"</a> so she got a bit of practice at the weekend and gave me a hand into the bargain.<br /><br /><style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4441927558/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2489/4441927558_a45743ee8e.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4441927558/">Chestnut protection against free-range hens for the Globe Artichokes</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment"> <br /><br />Update two weeks later....<br /><br /><style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4473048625/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4030/4473048625_df0e36c4e7.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4473048625/">Rhubarb coming through untouched by chickens</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment">La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-65615726954089459502010-03-11T22:07:00.002+01:002010-04-05T11:09:55.498+01:00Waiting for planting to begin - the only time my earth is bare<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/2382629865/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2164/2382629865_c3f4191a21.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/2382629865/">Waiting for planting to begin - the only time my earth is bare</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment"> We're very busy at the moment building a new drive at the front of the house and planting fruit bushes and trees before spring comes. <br /><br />The lambs are growing fast. We've a problem with the dreaded foot rot unfortunately, which is also taking up a lot of time.</p>La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-13490088545113158862010-03-01T16:35:00.012+01:002010-03-01T17:20:36.298+01:00Clearing up after the storm and almost the end of lambing<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4395119042/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4005/4395119042_270f3209c5.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4395119042/">Hen looks at new lamb arrivals</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment"> We had a really bad storm in Europe this week and although the Dordogne wasn't too badly hit, it's given us a lot more work to do and the animals are stressed and jittery. There wasn't any damage to our buildings but a few trees have fallen on the fences and in the veg garden and we've been collecting debris, cutting up trees and mending fences for the past two days. <br /><br />Some people in Bourrou still don't have electricity and of course we've had a lot of visits from people who need to borrow lighting, 'phone EDF or contact family and friends in other parts of France which are suffered badly after the high winds and flooding. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8ICa5zYym1xmD7bounM5jZnPRanCXLDbnqvbmcyRq4EX3i-w44VlLqGdjPK-dxQW-GsID6L_EPesdSefN2OKKnULsj6_AqPP4sstRalAiX8-lqM96sN44jsWbToY4TlDaOgKRPskYUo0/s1600-h/4348595274_44447089fd_m.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 206px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8ICa5zYym1xmD7bounM5jZnPRanCXLDbnqvbmcyRq4EX3i-w44VlLqGdjPK-dxQW-GsID6L_EPesdSefN2OKKnULsj6_AqPP4sstRalAiX8-lqM96sN44jsWbToY4TlDaOgKRPskYUo0/s400/4348595274_44447089fd_m.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5443682739836136674" /></a>The weather has made working outside difficult for us some weeks now, first the bitter cold and winds then snow. Now we have rain almost every day. In the morning we put the sheep out in warm sunshine then it starts raining and we have to go and get them back in again. <br /><br />The changeable weather doesn't matter too much when the sheep don't have lambs, they're hardy enough to decide for themselves whether or not they want to come in but I don't like to think of the little ones outside on the damp grass because it's still quite chilly here and lambs can go downhill quickly if they get too cold. That's one of the reasons we like to keep our sheep inside for lambing but they do get bored and there's a risk of footrot if the bedding gets damp from constant use and of course there's a higher incidence of external parasites.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJdfnncQYdorSa1Su9GROd4pD1lBDkbGV3jjNKKiUSF1pGKwGU4lXovhCaWYW9BcP7YEwDb0LS_A44d8Vbv5iPACv664n50NjsNwwv9XJ4lOImrD7P-13DyfrTkabsrDG-pzLhtHKIPu4/s1600-h/4365188470_85fefbdd00_m.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 131px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJdfnncQYdorSa1Su9GROd4pD1lBDkbGV3jjNKKiUSF1pGKwGU4lXovhCaWYW9BcP7YEwDb0LS_A44d8Vbv5iPACv664n50NjsNwwv9XJ4lOImrD7P-13DyfrTkabsrDG-pzLhtHKIPu4/s320/4365188470_85fefbdd00_m.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5443682167803945298" /></a>Thankfully, all the births this year have been trouble-free and the lambs are up on their feet and looking for food within minutes. We've had no problems at all with new mothers and every lamb has a ewe and plenty to eat, so they're growing fast. Although it's nice bottle feeding lambs the powdered milk is expensive and not as good as the ewe's milk and after having done it for a few years, early in the morning and late into the night, the novelty soon wears off ! <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifsFEc7FbHhAGrv3hryFuxZN441XGsJhUS8Nx40ArSFoYmk12mNHYzpPYNd29FGPqXnjmc1ihjfg4HjshlzBQg5NZQY24u_YiSErcDAtA61A8TrYSspJL1hN0-0I7TGPtBm3szL9D3Siw/s1600-h/4394343371_92dc42cc14_m.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 167px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifsFEc7FbHhAGrv3hryFuxZN441XGsJhUS8Nx40ArSFoYmk12mNHYzpPYNd29FGPqXnjmc1ihjfg4HjshlzBQg5NZQY24u_YiSErcDAtA61A8TrYSspJL1hN0-0I7TGPtBm3szL9D3Siw/s400/4394343371_92dc42cc14_m.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5443684722100740242" /></a>To begin with we had just single births which seemed a bit strange but in the past few days we've had three sets of twins - two within an hour of each other. <br /><br />We had a problem with one lamb of the second set born yesterday who wouldn't stay with her mother and kept going over to another ewe when she called for her twins. We put her with her mother who then rejected her but we persisted and the problem seems to have been resolved. Yesterday evening the ewes had worked out which lamb belonged to which mother - as you can see in this video. <br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/He5AXPJucE0&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/He5AXPJucE0&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-70262561217560216882010-02-27T18:03:00.004+01:002010-02-27T20:10:41.299+01:00For everyone who knows us - Christiane has finally found a new dog !<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4390140071/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4011/4390140071_5906e82347.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4390140071/">Teckila is a Teckel (Dachshund) Spaniel cross</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment"> Fabrice's aunt Christiane is someone with special needs but she lives on her own and manages well with us close by to help her with her daily traumas.<br /><br />She'd had a lovely dog called Rhapsy for as long as I've know her but unfortunately, Rhapsy died recently at the ripe old age of nineteen. She still has her other dog Titino who is almost eighteen and completely blind and Christiane realises that one day he'll die too. Getting another dog for her has been a priority for us for the past month and we've been ringing round animal refuges, looking at ads in the local papers and on the internet and presenting her with canine options - none of which have been suitable. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUSXFz8mqbZyqx0GzFi7-3OvD2F-NKekm8HVQn9mm0iEDn4iyqA2ksbKkCtvHJs2EVgDjbP_FE7pC_tkeIMzDBRkFynPl6fZiXDXROSQQdIDjqTZtNdrzNlwKe4D2jpHQ_xkylRvmyNQk/s1600-h/Tck+1.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 162px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUSXFz8mqbZyqx0GzFi7-3OvD2F-NKekm8HVQn9mm0iEDn4iyqA2ksbKkCtvHJs2EVgDjbP_FE7pC_tkeIMzDBRkFynPl6fZiXDXROSQQdIDjqTZtNdrzNlwKe4D2jpHQ_xkylRvmyNQk/s320/Tck+1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5442695558705681858" /></a>Christiane loves our four Dachshunds and they are exactly the right kind of dog for her - small enough to be lifted up and cuddled, loyal, sociable and interesting and they tend not to wander off and don't need a tremendous amount of exercise. They are also good house dogs who prefer to live with someone who is around all day and they are good little watchdogs. For all of those reasons, Christiane decided that she wanted a Dachshund like ours.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSQ3cnBNHpFrgG5yx9efNvpSSLKpEIwp_qBYNLqkc1GvhBe3DrJwaqLUHV58QvDsZkwoHyH_ie1fK7mCCwL5rw40xzzmdJ4igKi3w1RQCdYUcnAq0gKefQwfYoXUlIWzP8hlOtDK75f1Y/s1600-h/4390909372_b4a396ca7e_m.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 190px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSQ3cnBNHpFrgG5yx9efNvpSSLKpEIwp_qBYNLqkc1GvhBe3DrJwaqLUHV58QvDsZkwoHyH_ie1fK7mCCwL5rw40xzzmdJ4igKi3w1RQCdYUcnAq0gKefQwfYoXUlIWzP8hlOtDK75f1Y/s400/4390909372_b4a396ca7e_m.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5442695855539182386" /></a><br />We intend one day to breed from one or two of our Dachshunds but the little ones are only a year old and they're still far too young to have pups so we had a look on the 'net and there were no pups available from any of the breeders. <br /><br />Christiane was becoming more and more impatient and just as we were beginning to despair, we were really lucky to find this little pup who's father is a Dachshund and her mother a small Spaniel. She looks very like a Dachshund and got a very warm welcome from our four when she was introduced to them yesterday !<br />She is a very lucky little dog to have Christiane to love her and I hope both of them have a wonderful long friendship together.La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634548504502736839.post-29112181739980063522010-02-12T11:36:00.010+01:002010-02-23T01:00:19.103+01:00Cameroon sheep cross lambing is in progress !<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4348595114/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4049/4348595114_1558f6580a.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardworkinghippy/4348595114/">lamb five beige and white</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/hardworkinghippy/">hardworkinghippy</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment"> I've taken a break from blogging for a while to concentrate on other things but I can't resist showing you some photos of some of our lambs born this month. They are from our sheep who are a mixed bunch of "normal" girls crossed with our Cameroon ram. We decided to try this cross because last year we had a surprise lamb who was a Cameroon cross and he grew fast and was extremely hardy - out in all weathers yet big boned and heavy like his mother. This might not be the most appropriate time to say this but the meat was wonderful !<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5Z7SGBwpZ2I/S3UxUCUIxhI/AAAAAAAADR0/GNjFsBmjFPI/s1600-h/chunky+lamb+last.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 168px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5Z7SGBwpZ2I/S3UxUCUIxhI/AAAAAAAADR0/GNjFsBmjFPI/s320/chunky+lamb+last.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437306345408218642" /></a>That's him in the middle of the photo at about five months. His sire is the brown strange looking horned ram top left. We inherited most of our sheep from Fabrice's family and we kept a small herd going of about thirty through a period of some very low lamb prices. We've chosen new rams to improve the conformation and increase the hardiness of the flock as the summer grass has been affected by the droughts we've been having for the past few years and winters seem to be getting colder. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTyZ2p7zCwHb27FWgq0Q6NacGIz9liKrZDaCtykKuprtM7X7RhSx9Chg-Bp5NhA621ARt02VjPPO-LhffMuBsqQSrQm11lWQ1V99Um_1OgV2yDccDnB8Vc3WTueTfj7w8uVTw85FcdP-I/s1600-h/no+millk.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 195px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTyZ2p7zCwHb27FWgq0Q6NacGIz9liKrZDaCtykKuprtM7X7RhSx9Chg-Bp5NhA621ARt02VjPPO-LhffMuBsqQSrQm11lWQ1V99Um_1OgV2yDccDnB8Vc3WTueTfj7w8uVTw85FcdP-I/s320/no+millk.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437298808228596530" /></a>Now our lamb is selling well locally and it's very nice when the work involved in keeping them is rewarded with a decent regular income. <br /><br />We've had the Cameroon sheep for a few years. They're easy to manage, out in all weathers and graze contentedly where there doesn't seem to be a lot for them to eat. We decided to leave the Cameroon ram with all the ewes.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2xRX71CoNKA1l_yfyWusjhEYHNvZzfJY-JU62pMJv6Q3bGp0M9NDVxAsKYGO8VQhd0Xb_yziGLOiH7g0jwtTvGdIHgSfbjyOCJRxSPqmxZ4yBteFkZkCDdSDKTWJ8AWqK7bVO8nlGBpc/s1600-h/4290432585_9c61d9cf7f_m.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 217px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2xRX71CoNKA1l_yfyWusjhEYHNvZzfJY-JU62pMJv6Q3bGp0M9NDVxAsKYGO8VQhd0Xb_yziGLOiH7g0jwtTvGdIHgSfbjyOCJRxSPqmxZ4yBteFkZkCDdSDKTWJ8AWqK7bVO8nlGBpc/s320/4290432585_9c61d9cf7f_m.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437299082828449906" /></a>Unfortunately, we have <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bluetongue_disease">Blue Tongue</a> disease in France and were obliged to have our sheep vaccinated early in their pregnancy. We've had a lot of miscarriages, so many of our ewes aren't going to have lambs at what is (for us) the best time of the year when they are inside on straw because of the weather and easy to keep an eye on.<br /><br />So far we've had six lambs, all easy births, all fine healthy lambs who fed easily and quickly as soon as they were on their feet but all singles - which is a bit of disappointment because we normally have a lot of twins and sometimes even triplets. Still, the lambs are beautiful chunky wee things and we should have some more later on in the season.La Ferme de Sourrouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17623373457081495056noreply@blogger.com11