So far in 2012 we have taken some tome out to do several local walks, mostly on the nearby Black Mountains which are the border between Wales and England and also Offa's Dyke path.
On New Years Day we did a wet and windy walk from the Cat's Back car park over to the Hay Bluff car park. It was a good bracing walk and we were glad of the exercise after the feasts of Christmas time!
We have also walked up the Skirrid Mountain with several members of the family from the oldest to the youngest, which we completed in much better weather conditions. There were great views of the Sugar Loaf [next on our list of walks!] and of Abergavenny at dusk.
This is a more recent photograph of the Cat's Back in late February.
We are fortunate to live in an area of such outstanding natural beauty and have decided to enjoy the walking on a regular basis.
Last week we were very busy with tree felling in the dingles (wooded stream banks) at Holt Farm. We have cut down about two hundred trees adjacent to the water course which will let in the light so that grass can be established on the stream bank. This will help prevent soil erosion. The felling has been selective and we have retained mature oak, ash and holly trees. A Felling License was required to complete these activities.
After we have cleaned up all the tree branches and sawn out the fire wood we will embark on a fencing programme to stop farm animals having access to the freshly cleared areas.
The weather has been ideal providing us with safe working conditions. The land has been dry enough to travel across without causing much surface damage or compaction. Timing of this activity is important as we needed to complete the work before the birds begin their nest building.
We have taken some time out too, for a few local walks in the beautiful Black Mountains near Holt Farm, see our next blog........
We have been looking at ways to reduce our dependency of fossil fuels.
For various reasons we think that solar panels generating electricity suit our requirements at Holt Farm quite well. The perfect installation site appears to be the Wain House roof [in the foreground of this picture of Holt Farm ] creating enough energy for all four cottages.
At the moment we are gathering together the final bits of information before submitting the listed building consent forms. We were under the impression that this type of panel in a domestic situation was allowed under "permitted developments" from a planning point of view. How wrong we were, we definitely require listed building consent and some of the planners are quite insistent that we need to submit a full planning application.
Since we made our initial enquiries some months ago the Feed In Tariffs have been considerably reduced which reduces the financial rewards. As the panel market experiences a decline in demand it seems likely that the initial cost of the panels will be subject to a considerable reduction. It would seem that high oil prices are here to stay and if the last fifteen months are any guideline the cost of electricity will keep increasing too. So it's still all go on this project.
[Pictures from D Cosford 5dEnergy]
We have also investigated a more substantial investment on Rhydunnog farm where our son Jon runs a three phase cold store using a diesel powered generator. The biggest stumbling block in that case is the cost of bringing in a three phase power supply with lines of adequate size to export any power generated and not required on the farm. The quote from Western Power Distribution was about fifty per cent greater than my expectations!
In time we will report on any progress but that will not be very soon!
Driving up the track to Holt Farm holiday cottages we see lots of young rabbits and grey squirrels at the moment. Also we have had another visitor and we thank our guests who took the photograph.
The fox is not yet fully grown and seems to have little fear of human beings. She seems to enjoy basking in the sunlight.
This year we had very late hatches of swallows in our farm buildings at Rhydunnog and the young birds only left the nest at the end of September. They will need to grow strong quickly for their migratory flight.
In west Herefordshire we have had several months of low rainfall. Some of the local farmers are struggling for water for their households and their animals. Springs that have never failed previously are now dry. The spring at Holt Farm is very good so we have no concerns about water supply for the holiday cottages or the livestock, like these beautiful Hereford heifers.
We have organic potatoes growing at Holt Farm. The lifting equipment has all been serviced and any worn parts replaced and the first order for potatoes has been loaded off the farm. Take a look at the harvester in action with the holiday cottages in the background. Another short clip is taken from the tractor cab so a much closer view.
At Holt Farm we have been busy with guests arriving and leaving the cottages. It is our privilege to welcome visitors from all over the UK, and recently we have had folks from France Belgium and Australia. Many of the visitors come to walk the really good local footpaths here in the Welsh Borders and some do such long walks that I feel tired listening as they recount their journey. Some climb the Black Mountains near by whilst others head off to the Brecon Beacons for more demanding hikes. [See www.herefordholidays.co.uk/activities.php for downloadable local walks]
Some folk enjoy looking at the local castles, cathedrals and historic churches. Many visitors enjoy the peace and tranquility of the Escley valley, sitting out in the sun drinking coffee and reading the paper. All of our visitors enjoy a trip to Hay on Wye with it's old castle and numerous book shops. It also has a good selection of cafes and pubs. We are very fortunate to live in such an area and talking to our visitors reminds us that we should be more grateful for the place we call home.
Earlier this week our son Jon took advantage of the weather and made some small bale hay. As he is an agricultural contractor he has modern well maintained machinery and the bales are collected in the field, lifted onto large trailers,and unloaded in the barn without being man handled. The harvested fields were down by the brook at Rhydunnog Farm.
This is a very civilised way of doing things and a big advance on the way we made hay in the years after baling hay became popular in the nineteen fifties. Some people will regret the loss of friendship and banter that was involved with the old system alongside the hard graft. As farmers we have to adapt to new technology and make sure that our business is competitive in a changing world. One of the advantages of hay making as compared to silage is that no plastic wrapping is required. The plastic is expensive and we have to pay disposal costs. The plastic is an evironmental nightmare, as it finds its way into streams and rivers. The big blessing of silage making is that it has made harvesting grass possible when the weather has not been dry and sunny enough to make hay.
Here on the Welsh border extremities of Herefordshire many of the farms and even the field names are of Welsh origins. Often the Welsh spelling has been lost over the centuries and the pronunciation is probably inaccurate too.
We have been working on a small old orchard called Cu Bunt which is part of Rockfield, near the Escley brook. The horse flies have been very active the last few days, and even though they are not speedy insects they always seem to bite when both hands are busy with the fencing tools!
We have now nearly completed fencing off the stream with steep sides (locally known as a dingle).
The recent rain has made the job of putting in the fence stakes easier, but the steep slopes make for physically demanding days.
I have taken a few photographs to show the areas of bare soil caused by shading from the large trees, and the effects of sheep constantly roaming the areas with no grass. By coppicing the trees and fencing out the livestock we should get grass growth on the bare areas and this will reduce soil particle loss into the streams.
Hopefully we will have photographs in a few months to prove that all the work has been worthwhile.
Soon we will move up to the small orchard at Holt Farm to do some fencing there. Again the land will be undulating but we may see some visitors on the footpath or at the cottages to create "rest periods".
