Shropshire smallholder Sam Gray takes her sow and piglets to a festival
Relief! For the fifth year in a row, my family planning has worked. Not for me personally, of course, but my growing stock of sows. Exactly three-and-a half weeks before the recent Shrewsbury Food Festival, Betty gave birth to her first litter, an incredible 12 piglets born to an incredible new mum who took the whole thing in her stride. Even with four cottage guests watching over her in amazement, she went about giving birth like she’d done it a million times before. Little did she know that she’d be showing them all off at one of the county’s best festivals only a few weeks later.
The timing was perfect. DEFRA welfare regulations stipulate that it is illegal to transport piglets below the age of three weeks. These standards (although different for each type of animal) protect them from being transported too young as they are considered to be at risk and unfit to travel. After a gestation period of three months, three weeks and three days, I think the three week rule for piglets is very fitting and, thanks to Betty, this year they were all healthy and old enough to travel.
Loading
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der September 2017-Ausgabe von Country Smallholding.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent ? Anmelden
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der September 2017-Ausgabe von Country Smallholding.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent? Anmelden
The Secret World Of The Honey Bee
Who knew that honey bees are the best builders? Nicola Bradbear from Bees for Development reveals how they build their parallel wax combs with extraordinary accuracy
Tip the light fantastic
The latest offering from Ifor Williams Trailers is the Single Axle Tipper, which is simply perfect for small-scale farmers
The legacy of The Good Life
The Good Life captured the public’s imagination when it first aired in 1975. On Country Smallholding’s 45th birthday, Jeremy Hobson looks at this and other programmes with a self-sufficiency slant that have captivated urban and rural dwellers alike over nearly half a century
‘The hens took shelter under the pig trailer in the paddock'
A tree Armageddon frightens poultry diarist Julian Hammer’s flock and leaves him with a mammoth clear-up job
Tools of the trade
In the second part of his mini-series on tools that are useful around the holding, Kevin Alviti takes an in-depth look at the iconic scythe, a thistle paddle and forks that were once virtually indispensable to small-scale farmers
The nightclub bouncer of the sheep world
Adam Henson waxes lyrical about the Texel, which boasts such a stocky body that it resembles a box of muscle on four legs
Buying on a tight budget
As demand for smallholdings increases and prices continue to rise, is there a way to achieve your dream without forking out a fortune? In the first part of a new mini-series, Liz Shankland explores the possibilities
Crazy for crafts
In an ordinary back garden and single paddock near Kidderminster, Kay Dalloway has created both a thriving smallholding and a successful fibre business — all while working full time for the NHS. Helen Babbs drops by to find out about her ventures
Game on
A little preparation in the autumn months will help to make the transition into winter smoother and put your garden and tools on a better footing come the spring, says Stephanie Bateman
1975 And All That
Country Smallholding is 45 this month. To celebrate, Jeremy Hobson takes a look at some of the changes — both good and bad — to small-scale farming over that near half-century
