We are passionate about preserving rare breeds and promoting their great flavour and quality by traditional grassland farming

Haymaking

We had been closely watching the weather and eventually decided on a day to mow which looked as if it would have several dry days following it, giving us time to turn the hay for a few days and bale it when it was dry enough. It was a tight window and the forecast was changeable but we decided to go for it. Hay making is always a nerve wracking time and this year was no exception, the day we were due to mow the mower broke! By the next day we were all set to go again with a different mower and this time the tractor broke! After much head scratching, tinkering about and five litres of oil we were finally mowing, thank goodness. Time was against us as we had lost a day but the hay was coming on well and was ready to bale just before rain was due. Fortunately the weather held despite looking very grey and stormy and we spent an exhausting four hours getting 360 bales in to the shed without it getting wet. Then it was time for a well earned cider and a sit down! All over for another year.