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Devon Adventures

Jack Forster — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 07:17:18 GMT

For the last 8 or 10 years we haven’t lambed or calved at all because the butchery takes up so much time. We used to lamb about 300 sheep and calve about 70 cows, but with the decrease in stock prices and the time involved it made sense to just buy in stock to fatten. The tides have changed though, and with the prices of stock thriving at the moment, and also because I am back at home to provide an extra pair of hands, we have decided to tentatively get back into breeding!

Good investments

Jack Forster — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 20:46:18 GMT

In June we managed to get all of our silage and haylage in (over 800 bales) without getting a single trailer stuck! We get Wades, a contractor from Eccleston to do all of our mowing and baling as we wouldn’t have time ourselves, but we always cart them in. Regardless of how nice the weather is and how dry the fields are, you always manage to find that bit of land that is still holding onto the last bit of water, or get caught out by a freak torrential down pour on your last load!

A busy couple of months

Jack Forster — Mon, 23 May 2011 19:57:48 GMT

Firstly, apologies for my lack of blogging over the last few months, but I have had a lot to do and had quite a few changes. Unfortunately I have had to retire from rugby due to a neck injury that has troubled me for some time, so its back to the farm full time for me. I am lucky that I have something else to do other than rugby, but I will miss the day to day banter as well as the bumps and bruises to be fair! I may be able to return to playing at some point, but not for at least 12 months.

Field Work

Jack Forster — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 19:18:16 GMT

The sun is out a bit more at the minute, so hopefully the grass will be growing too, so its time to get some field work done. The main things we do too our pasture is roll it, harrow it, manure it, subsoil (if it needs it) and topping the thistles.

Soil Management

Jack Forster — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 14:28:52 GMT

Now as this is the Soil Association Blog, I though a blog about soil management might be quite good! Now before you skip to another blog at the prospect of reading about soil, there’s more to it than meets the eye.

New Ventures

Jack Forster — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 21:06:29 GMT

Our organic shop is attracting lots of local people from many different backgrounds, but all with a common passion for good quality, environmentally friendly food! All the beef and lamb that is sold buy us has been reared on the fields with the sun on its back and we believe that’s why people keep coming back.

Soil Association Inspection

Jack Forster — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 09:38:11 GMT

Monday 28th February was our annual Soil Association Inspection, and I am glad to say we passed with flying colours! The inspection is the worst part of being organic I think, because although you know you have done everything you can to comply, there is always that nagging feeling that something might go wrong! I must admit, I had very little to do with the inspection as I have been very busy with my rugby training, but my mum spent the weekend crossing the ‘t’s and dotting the ‘i’s with a little help from my fiancée.

Funding Available to British Farmers

Jack Forster — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 17:26:30 GMT

The RDPE is jointly funded by the European Agricultural Fund For Rural Development and the UK Government, and believe it or not there was about £74 million available for investment into rural businesses.

A Bit of History

Jack Forster — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 19:54:46 GMT

Hi everyone, thanks for taking the time to read my blog. I thought I would use this first entry to introduce myself, and give a bit of background to the farm, and our journey to becoming organic. I hope to use my blogs to give you an insight into what goes on at our family farm and a few updates on the rugby too!