Jake

Jake, from New York (seen here transplanting onions into our seventh permanent raised bed), left this morning after volunteering with us for two weeks. Thanks Jake for your help, and enjoy yourself in Bath!

Moving chicken sheds

We like to move our three chicken sheds into a fresh field every two years as part of our crop rotation - this time it took three years because last year we were so busy - but yesterday we took the plunge. In June we will plough up the field where they have spent the last three years, and plant and sow crops into it for the autumn and winter - we are still digging potatoes out of the field they have just moved into!

The first shed looping-the-loop to get the correct trajectory.

Navigating the second and third gateways.

The first shed clear of all the gateways and heading up to the top of their new field.

Shed 3 squeezing through - excellent expert driving from Kieron.

Will wheelbarrowing fencing and other equipment to the new locations.

Andy collecting eggs once the chickens had been released.

Our three sheds in their new field.

Arin

Arin, a wwoofer from the USA, has moved on from the farm this morning to continue her tour of the UK. We'd like to thank Arin for her help over the past two weeks (and special thanks for the interesting book she left for us), and wish her all the best in her onward travels.

Arin (on the left) picking outdoor salad with Lotte, Andy and Andy.

Arin (again on the left) about to pick sprouting kale tips, with Andy.

Plants for sale

We have a wide range of plants for sale outside our farmshop, price £1 each, including tomatoes, chillies, herbs, and bee-friendly wildflowers. The shop is open daily from 11am till 6pm.

Our plant stall outside the farmshop - plants grown by Ian, potted up by Ann and Ben, and the mobile stand built by Andy.

Ian has also cleared the cattle trough above the farmyard and filled it with some of the plants he's grown, to create a pollinator-friendly mini-garden.

All grown from seed on the farm using peat-free potting compost.

Veg boxes 4th May

We are now in the midst of the "hungry gap", which is always a struggle (even with 6 polytunnels), but we still managed to fill thirty veg boxes last Friday.

Small veg box (£6) - Ambo potatoes, parsley, Chinese leaves, purple sprouting broccoli, red cabbage, and a "marvel of four seasons" lettuce.

Standard veg box (£10) - Ambo potatoes, parsley, Chinese leaves, purple sprouting broccoli, red cabbage, "marvel of four seasons" lettuce, rhubarb, mixed salad leaves, and giant red mustard leaves.

All the plastic bags used in our veg boxes are biodegradable.

Planting tomatoes, chillies, and aubergines

135 "Long black" aubergine plants ready to into the ground in Valentine polytunnel.

65 chilli plants (jalapeno, habanero, and ring-of-fire) being planted in the Mothership polytunnel.

Nigel polytunnel full of 294 tomato vines of many varieties.

Valentine polytunnel planted with tomatoes, aubergines, lettuces, and radishes.

Valentin and Gabriella

Two other wwoof volunteers who left the farm recently are Valentin, from Switzerland, who stayed with us for 4 weeks, and Gabriella, from Germany, who helped for one week. We wish them well in their further endeavours.

Valentin planting chillies in the Mothership polytunnel.

Hitomi

Hitomi, from Japan, who volunteered with us as a wwoofer, left recently after two weeks at the farm. Many thanks Hitomi for your help during your stay.

Hitomi collecting compost from our bays, to prepare beds for planting tomatoes.