Well, I moved my sheep yesterday morning and took the opportunity to walk around to see the extent of the flooding. I spotted the usual little egrets and herons and then noticed a whitish brown bird in the mist perched on a fence post, it then took off and it was clearly a Barn Owl quartering across...

Heavy rain here in Somerset today, roads are flooded and my Hamlet is cut off. Royal Mail sent me an email saying that they can't get through to deliver my medicine I ordered. I hope the roads improve tomorrow when it should not be raining. Fields are badly flooded and I should have moved my sheep t...

Let's hope you can find a solution Westie. I went for a walk across the marches to the river this morning and it was windy and cold. I was pleased to see dozens of little egrets, 4 grey herons, 2 snipe, green sandpipers, flocks of swans, skylarks and starlings as well as sightings of several small g...

Sharp frost this morning whilst I was out checking my sheep with my collie and then I saw my first Fieldfare this autumn busily eating hawthorn berries whilst chasing off the blackbirds. There appears to be a plentiful supply of hawthorn berries this year so they should help keep the birds happy. I ...

I hate it when you lose an old fruit tree, such a shame. Still no broad bean sowing then, Barney…. Unfortunately not yet Oldherbaceous, weather was bright and sunny for most of the day with just a couple of rain showers. I spent most of the day still cutting up the apple tree and when carrying some...

Lost another of my old apple trees in the recent storm and spent today cutting most of it up. Unfortunately not a lot of fire wood from it since as with old apple trees it was completely hollow in the trunk and main limbs, but the sheep loved the leaves. My Hamlet was cut off due to the floods and y...

Thanks Primrose for your comments, yes he is a feisty and intelligent dog, as all Border Collies are. Regarding geese, I'm not a shooting man but understand you can shoot geese from September until the end of January inland and up to 20 February at the high water marks of ordinary spring tides. Barney

Woken yesterday morning at 6.00am by a phone call from Environment Agency warning about flood risk along Somerset coast- Put in action your flood risk plan, move livestock from flood risk areas etc etc. No doubt the Bristol Channel tides were high but little sign of any flooding. Load of geese flyin...

I picked in some Annie Elizabeth apples today, I rate them as the best cooker and keeping apple of all. I haven't bothered with the Bramleys but my sheep have enjoyed them. There are still several traditional orchards scattered around me with all the fruit going to waste but at least the Fieldfares ...

That is a good point Primrose, sometimes a recently re-introduced species can become too successful and upset the previous balance. I do often see Red Kites when I go to the Brecon Beacons in Wales where they were also re-introduced. They however, still are a rarish sight in Somerset but I do occasi...

Pleased to see a Red Kite flying over the Mendip Hills to-day, always a pleasing site that they are now spreading out across the country.

Barney

Yes Primrose, it is the heavy work that does for me now, not that I was ever very strong.

Barney

Well Westi your suggestion regarding the raised beds is a good one that I will need to consider. I have now come to a stage when I can no longer physically do what I used to enjoy doing and will have to scale back since I'm not managing to do all the work.

Barney

Managed to lift some more potatoes to-day, lucky I'm on a very sandy loam so soil was not too wet. Noticed plenty of slug damage though, I should have lifted them earlier. They are Arran Pilot which I'm quite pleased with and have not grown for over fifty years. I still have to lift my Maris Bard an...

Very heavy rain here in Somerset; quickly nipped out to harvest some courgettes and noticed my squashes were still producing fruit. I still have several rows of potatoes to lift so I wish it would dry up soon.

Barney