CATEGORIES

Vet advice from an experienced poultry vet

The birds are out but Avian Flu is still here - how to help your hens be safe

Growing Up & Independence

Fiona & Hugh Osborne steer you through how broody hens raise chicks for you until they become independent young birds

Runner ducks are all the rage - but they aren't the ideal garden duck

Chris Ashton looks into their needs and natural behaviour

Coastline and castles in Wales's Pembrokeshire National Park

Welcome to our regular column all about the best places to buy a country smallholding

Preserving food through dehydration

Fiona and Hugh Osborne preserve fruit, vegetables, spices and even meat by drying, an ancient technique with increasing modern relevance

Why you should consider abortion vaccination for your sheep

Kath Dun, Galedin Vets (Kelso) explains how planning now prevents problems later

RBST Watchlist 2023: Concern Deepens For UK's Native Pig Breeds

But rare poultry breeds also impacted by recent events

On Guard The dilemmas of grazing in Orchards

Having your own orchard is wonderful, the beautiful blossom, tending to your trees and then fresh home grown fruit, What could be better? But as someone who advises on orchards many owners or prospective planters of orchards are surprised when one of my first questions I ask is “What are you going to do with the grass?”

Starting with alpacasA Beginner's guide to purchasing

Roger Clarke of Amberly Alpacas explains what to expect

Prepare your pigs for the warmer weather

Supporting Farmgate Feeds as Pig Technical & Commercial Advisor, Sam Bradley shares her tips and advice on how to reduce heat stress with pigs and the signs to look out for this summer.

Caring for Elderly Goats

Tamsin Cooper highlights the changes needed to housing and healthcare

The sustainable Shetland cow that combines beauty and usefulness

Helen Babbs meets the small Scottish cow that's perfect for smallholders

Finding our Homestead in the Highlands

Rachel Alvey-Anderson and her family make their dream come true

First locations for The Wildlife Trusts' Atlantic rainforest recovery programme announced

Isle of Man and North Wales are first to benefit from £38million Aviva fund

South West farmers banned from owning animals following two successful APHA prosecutions

Two separate investigations by APHA into animal welfare cases concluded in the sentencing of two farmers in Cornwall and Devon.

How much control do we have of the food we eat?

In the first article of this series, Jack Smellie explored the smallholder relationship with meat: the pride, the sadness and all things in between. This month, she takes a more in-depth look at the ethics of smallholder grown food meat and veg/fruit) and the smallholder relationship with food in general.

The Swiss Army Knife of tool carrying attachments for a Tractor

Introducing the BigToolRack and its inventor

Machinery Matters

In this month’s issue Jane Brooks looks at the venerable Ferguson tractor, still a popular tool on many smallholdings, but beware it takes a little getting used to.

It's ime to plan your patch

Kim Stoddart explains how to maximise produce growing opportunities this year...

Fear and stress in chickens

All animals show fear and stress and as their keepers, it should alert us to their needs. This month Paul Donovan investigates its role in poultry and how to reduce it.

Rearing chickens, ducks and geese to eat

Experienced smallholder Lorraine Turnbull discusses how to get the best return from your meat birds.

Growing Stages

Grant Brereton looks forward to getting excited about growing stock...

Get off that nest!

Janice Houghton-Wallace looks at what to do when you don't want a broody hen to hatch eggs When it comes to hatching fertilised eggs a broody hen is best at the art of incubation. Broodiness normally occurs in a chicken once she has laid a clutch of eggs that she will be able to cover and incubate effectively. The number of eggs in a clutch varies between breeds but an average ideal number is between 10 - 12. But what happens if you don't want her to be broody?

Hatching and beyond

Fiona Hugh Osborne guide you through the hatching process and how to handle common problems.

Beautiful bantams are ideal for the smaller garden

Lisa Mancell, National Sales Co-ordinator at Farmgate Feeds gives her top tips on caring for bantams.

All about Alpacas

Introducing Camelidynamics - learn how to work with the natural behaviour of alpacas for calm handling

Are you ready for the responsibility of livestock?

Without sufficient knowledge, new livestock owners can find themselves stumbling along says Catriona Benson. But help is at hand

Breed Focus: Black Welsh Mountain Sheep

Helen Babbs meets this attractive and thrifty breed from Wales

Meet the therapists!

We look at how Grace Olson discovered the healing power of sheep

Help your pet to ditch that itch

If your dog is scratching excessively it’s uncomfortable for them and frustrating for you. Here, vet Julie Lawrence offers some sound advice to help identify skin problems and considers the treatment and management options available