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April 2025
Posted Tuesday 1st April, 2025
The start of April brings an end to a busy month here on the farm. We’ve finished lambing and can report that we were very happy with how it went. We ended up seeing the birth of over 180 lambs during our lambing season. It was a month of early mornings, late finishes and very mixed weather! We’ve seen the sun (very briefly), had torrential downpours and even had hail as big as golf balls! it’s nothing we haven’t seen before though. We made sure that mother and newborns were well bonded, mother was providing plentiful milk, and all was going to plan before letting them loose on the Fordhall pastures.
Each mother and her lambs were given a number sprayed on their sides so that should be need to reunite out in the fields we know who’s baby is who’s! The sheep will be being booked in for the yearly shear as soon as we’re confident winter conditions won’t be returning!
The sheep and cattle will be making the most of the pasture growth now that spring has finally sprung and life on the farm bursts into action. The first taste of spring brings much needed green to the farm. The clover rich grasslands are usually the first to show signs that spring is on the way as deep-rooted clover can quickly burst into life once the temperature starts to increase.
Spring not only brings a new lease of life for the four-legged animals on the farm but also the bees we have here at Fordhall. Andrew the bee-keeper will soon see a flurry of activity as the hives across the farm start to awaken from a winter hibernation. The flowers and will be alerting the bees to start their foraging and collection of pollen for the summer season.
We’ve had 2 litters of Gloucester Old Spot piglets born in March; one a lovely litter of 8 and the other only a litter of 2 (it’s the price of rearing native breed, free range pigs!) Did you know that the gestation period for a pig is 3 months, 3 weeks and 3 days and 95% of the time this is to the day!
Pregnant pigs (sows) are put into their own paddock with a straw bedded sty, away from the other sows and the boar a week or so before their expected due date. Sows will naturally want to create a nest to welcome their piglets. This also helps keep them apart from the rest of the herd, avoiding any rivalry for food or territory. It also allows for the sow to keep calm and relaxed to welcome in their new arrivals.
