Blackthorn winter

It is a country saying that spring has not really started unless there has been a blackthorn winter - hopefully this is it! It has been so cold today and although some of the sloe blossom (blackthorn) is out, the usually white boundary hedge along "34 acres" field is still hiding its blooms. The grass has not started to grow in quantity for the livestock either.

This view is looking through to the old chicken enclosure once full of hens and a cockerel and now full of docks. Mr Reynard is to thank for that when he murdered them a year or so ago. Our neighbour has just recently had hers stolen by rustlers along with the electric fence and cans of diesel. They went round by the back way through one of our fields avoiding the security light and dog. The building in the picture is the back of some cattle pens which were built where the original farmhouse one stood terraced with two cottages. I would have given my eye teeth to have done them up and lived there myself but this was in the 50's when farm workers wanted modern bungalows so the then landlord obliged.

Although we passed our TB test, the paperwork has been held up as one of the animals appears to be missing, the vet has gone on holiday and DEFRA closed our farm down yesterday but luckily today the gods were on our side and everything is now in order so we can continue to prepare all the passports to go with 17 animals to Frome market early tomorrow morning.

N had to drive to the vet's to get some electrolytes for a sick calf. This T administered by tube into the animal's stomach. Then N and T helped a neighbour to cut down some trees near the railway line with the chainsaw.