Utterly buttery

Finally, we get to grips with butter making

With two goats in milk, the twice daily routine was taking much longer and was tough on the hands, so when we were given an ancient Alfa Laval milking machine (just like the one on Wartime Farm, if anybody is watching it), we were delighted.  It needed quite a bit of work to restore it to full working order but once it got going, it made our lives so much easier and the goats don’t mind it either.

We have been busy making cheese, ice cream and have finally after many false starts, managed to make butter.  In the past when we’ve tried, we’ve ended up with a solid cream instead of the butterfat separating from the buttermilk.  Therefore, it was an exciting moment when we ended up with our first dish of home made goat’s butter!

Rather than the usual yellow colour we are all familiar with, goat’s butter is pure white but with a sprinkling of salt, it tastes delicious.  It also makes great pastry, even though it’s a little difficult to handle (can’t imagine anyone on the Great British Bake Off using goat’s butter pastry) and of course the buttermilk is perfect in scones or soda bread.

It takes a while to make it.  Firstly the cream needs to be separated from the milk and this needs to be collected for about 3 days before there is enough for a decent amount of butter.  The cream then has to be beaten until it separates and when drained is shaped using the antique butter pats that we bought especially.

Perfect on home made rolls, muffins and crumpets.

Baling out

Disaster strikes when cutting the grass

The last few weeks have been a tense time, constantly watching the weather and being disappointed when day after day we had rain.  And not just a shower, but gallons of the stuff pouring from the clouds.

We got off to a bad start when the wheel broke off the tractor when we were cutting the grass.  A neighbour had to winch us out of a very boggy area.

Whenever there was a hint of sunshine we were out there turning the grass and making plans to bale. Time after time we were disappointed when the black clouds moved overhead.  We thought we would never get started and were worried that the grass laying in the field would be ruined.

There have only been a couple of days in the whole of this month when it has been possible to bale any hay and we took full advantage, working late into the night and bringing in the bales by moonlight.

Today we weren’t expecting rain until 4pm so we were working furiously to get the last of it done.  Typically the heavens opened up at 2pm and it was a race against time to get them all loaded onto the trailer and into the dry barn. We can only hope that they were dry enough to prevent rot and spontaneous combustion!

Despite the bad start we have 333 bales to feed the beasts over winter and the problem facing us now is where to put them.

It never rains but it pours

A new roof over our heads

Last year it was the porches, this year the project is the roof of our steading.  The L shaped building is filled to the rafters with “stuff” and since it has been leaking for a very long time we have had to carefully place things out of the way of the drips.  It’s incredible that it hasn’t collapsed before now, especially with the weight of snow we had last year.

Relatives and friends are here on a working “holiday” helping us remove the ancient slates and fit a not quite so beautiful box profile.  We would have loved to replace the slate but in the time we have available, it was just not possible.

As usual the weather is proving a challenge, not only for the roof but also for the hay.  We cut one field last week and almost immediately the rain came down.  We only need mention the word “hay” for black clouds to gather overhead.  A good crop is looking doubtful.

Belinda produced her kids on time and now has two lovely black and white girls – Betsy and Bethany.  They look tiny compared with Lily’s two who are huge now and very naughty.  Out of the two goats, Belinda’s milk is far superior and much creamier than Lily’s which is strange as they are mother and daughter.  As a result of our massive increase in milk production we are now eating vast quantities of homemade ice cream.  Shame we don’t have the weather to go with it!

Fencing is such a chore

Digging for victory

June was filled with fencing.  We had fences to mend, new gates to hang and a brand new length of stock fence to put up.

There were 30 posts that all needed to be banged in with a post punch.  Our neighbour had just finished his fencing and we had watched with envy as he bought in a post bashing machine for a day.  We didn’t have that luxury so, rather than a day, it took a couple of weeks to complete the work doing a few poles every day.

But, before that could be done, holes had to be dug for the huge posts that would act as strainers and take the weight of the new gate.  It was all going well until a foot or so down where all the rocks were hiding out.

Luckily the dogs were on hand to help out.

In other news, we are awaiting the second kidding.  Belinda is due at the end of the month and is looking very well rounded.  Lily’s kids are thriving and will be pleased to welcome new playmates.

Lily delivers

First time mum serves up her kids

According to the goat gestation calendar, Lily was due to kid on 4th May. In reality though, it could have been any time from 28th of April to 8th of May as these dates were 145-155 days from the time she met with the billy.  In fact she met with 2 billy goats, we were hedging our bets.

We moved her out of the pen away from the other goats, particularly Anastasia who is a bit of a thug, into her own personal birthing suite.  She seemed relieved and soon relaxed into her new domain.  We kept a close eye on her, counting down the days until the morning of the first of May when she was acting a little oddly.  By the afternoon we were certain she was in labour and at around 6pm she laid down on her deluxe straw bed, made a noise like someone throwing up and produced 2 tiny kids, easy as pie.

We had just spent weeks ewe watching, seeing them pacing, panting and groaning, thinking any minute they were about to give birth, then spending the night checking them every two hours, only for them to finally lamb at 9am the following morning.  The quick and stress-free birth of the kids was like a breath of fresh air.  We didn’t even need the rubber gloves!

Although very small, they seemed healthy and lively and she was keen to clean them up, which meant hopefully, that she would be a good mother.  Since this was her first time we had no idea how she would take to it.

Strangely, the female kid was black with distinct white markings and pricked ears, the image of one of the beaus that Lily had met with, but the male kid was golden brown with floppy ears and looked eerily like the other billy she had a liaison with on the same day.  Neither took after their pure white mother.  We wondered if it was possible that there could be two different fathers.  I guess we will never know unless they do DNA tests for goats!

8 lambs a leaping

The lambs first day out

It was an exhausting month with lambing drawn out over several weeks.  We ended up with  a total of 8 lambs which was a little disappointing.  Four girls who we will keep as breeding stock and 4 boys who will go to the mart later in the year.  Due to the appalling wet weather, we kept them inside for longer than usual but when a beautiful sunny day presented itself on Saturday, we finally turfed them outside.

One of our favourite moments is when they all get their first taste of freedom and meet the other lambs face to face.  There is always mass confusion with the ewes rushing forward with the smell of spring grass in the nostrils, completely forgetting about their babies.  They rush to the field and with their mouths full baa loudly for the lambs.

The lambs, meanwhile haven’t got a clue what’s going on and are running round in circles looking for mummy and shouting.  When they catch up and get to the field they are suddenly confronted with a whole load of sheep and have to find their mother.  It’s pandemonium.

Eventually it all gets sorted out and then the leaping starts.  It’s amazing how high they can jump.

Now that lambing is done we start kidding, and that’s no joke.  Check back next month for a goat story.

It’s lambing time

After many a sleepless night, the lambs finally arrive

After a month of disturbed nights, checking the ewes to make sure they weren’t giving birth, we finally welcomed our first lambs on Friday afternoon.  Despite the fact that we were on high alert, the first lambing didn’t happen without a hitch.  Agnes, started early by expelling the water bag but by lunchtime nothing else had appeared.  She wasn’t distressed but we were.

Eventually the rubber gloves were deployed and we discovered that the lamb on it’s way out had too many legs.  It was quickly clear to us that two were trying to emerge together.  After some skilful manipulation and untangling of small bodies, one of the lambs was pushed back whilst the other was pulled out.  The first, thank goodness, was alive and well.  The second one came out backwards with more than a little assistance.  We weren’t sure if it was all over and since she had been so huge, we ventured back in and pulled a third out.

All were boys and all appear healthy and are feeding well.  We may have to supplement them with goat’s milk if Agnes can’t produce enough to sustain all three but we will keep a close eye on them and monitor their progress.

Well that’s one down, only another 5 to go until we can once again sleep peacefully at night.

Birthday boy

Celebrating with Archie

The middle of February was our boy Archie’s first birthday.  He has grown into a beautiful dog and has the sweetest nature.  His favourite trick is a high five, although sometimes he’s a little too enthusiastic and smacks you in the face with his heavy paw.  He loves his life on the croft and can’t wait to get started in the mornings, always managing to wake just before our alarm and starting a noisy game with Daisy.

This month we have been preparing ourselves for lambing.  There was a slim possibility that our ewes could  have given birth from 26th but it seems that the first tup we put in with them, wasn’t quite up to the job.  We are now expecting deliveries at the end of next month.

In the meantime we have had the girls inside for a bit of TLC to make sure they are in tip top condition.  Read about their sojourn at the sheep health spa.

A freshly made bed

Preparing the polytunnel

The polytunnel is such a valuable resource allowing us to grow crops all year round but for the last couple of years we have lacked enthusiasm and motivation.  Recently we came across a new book – The Polytunnel Book by Joyce Russell – which is filled with ideas and advice for each month of the year.  We are not natural gardeners and although we have experimented, this book should help us get on the right track and stay there.

Last year we had deep snow for what seemed like months and planting was the last thing on our minds.  We grew little else apart from potatoes, tomatoes and a few lettuce leaves.

This year we are raring to go.  We have cleaned out all the rubbish, gotten rid of the raised beds and rotovated in tonnes of muck from the dung heap.

Already we have first early potatoes snuggled under a layer of weed suppressant membrane.  Thanks to advice from the book we have also planted garlic, carrots, lettuces, broad beans, mange tout and aubergines, although the aubergines are on the kitchen windowsill.

Here’s hoping for a bumper crop.