From rotavating the vegetable patch to sawing up firewood and hauling water to livestock — there is a plethora of machinery that can help to make those job you love to hate so much easier.
Smallholdings vary in size, with some bigger than others, but whatever a farm’s size, an eco-friendly quad never fails to come in handy, as Somerset smallholder Ian Jones explains.
“Like many smallholders, I live this life to manage how we produce our food, knowing what goes in it, and also pursuing greener ways to live and to work the land,” he says. “In my case, that includes rainwater harvesting, installing a PV solar array, and investing in a secondhand all-electric Eco-Charger Dominator 2WD quad.”
Ian has 14 acres to manage and uses his quad for towing trailers, dragging a chain harrow and roller around, and towing bulk bags of hedge clippings across fields to burn.
“Like most eco choices, it is more expensive than the fossil fuel alternative, but I know that I am contributing to its electricity consumption from my own PVs — keeping emissions to an absolute minimum,” he says. “It is also very quiet, allowing me to work alongside my neighbour’s house without disturbing sleeping children. When stopped, there is no engine idling noise, nor any fumes.”
Not only does Ian use his Dominator quad to tow, but, when finishing off jobs in the dark, it acts as a lighting unit.
“Yes, it does run out of charge, especially when dragging chain harrows with all the resistance they offer. I do about half of a three-acre field and then charge again, but this has never been a problem,” he notes. “I then roll the entire field with only a partial charge used.”
Denne historien er fra June 2020-utgaven av Country Smallholding.
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Denne historien er fra June 2020-utgaven av Country Smallholding.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
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
