An (un)Well well

by | Feb 6, 2013 | the farm, volunteering

Something I have a particular aversion to is wells. There’s just something about looking down a narrow shaft into dark water, not knowing where the bottom might be. Hence I didn’t particularly relish the task of climbing down a ladder into the depths, to...

Winter Wwoofing

by | Feb 4, 2013 | smallholding, the farm, volunteering

Our intrepid winter (technically spring but you wouldn’t know it) Wwoofers (worldwide worksers on organic farms) are here: Marie-Josephine and Jean-Baptiste, who have performed amazing path building feats on their first proper day here at Lackan Cottage Farm....
Demolition time again

Demolition time again

by | Jan 17, 2013 | buildings, smallholding, the farm

Usually we take great pride in our ability to dig, shift, lift and cart large amounts of stuff using only human power, and it’s very satisfying. However, the mess that was our old extension contained lumps of concrete so large that it was time to resort to...

Coming out of hibernation

by | Jan 15, 2013 | climate, smallholding, the farm

Following the midwinter break, we’ve emerged from a brief hibernation to begin the process of preparing the ground for growing our veg, fruit, trees and flowers. Although the hens are helping enthusiastically by scratching over and fertilising various bits of...

Happy New Year

by | Dec 31, 2012 | smallholding

Well – what a year. So much has happened, and is all here in our blog, but looking back you wonder how it all fitted in. A year ago we were all set to move to Wales, hadn’t even seen Lackan Cottage Farm, and of course there were only two of us. 2012 began...

Yet more compost toilet stuff

by | Dec 30, 2012 | low impact living, permaculture

Composting toilets can be expensive things if you choose to buy the fancy all-in-one devices. Most aren’t much more than a seperator seat to keep the pee and solids apart, with some sort of fan to dry the solids a bit, and keep any smells to a minimum. Usually...

Midwinter celebrations

by | Dec 22, 2012 | low impact living, smallholding

At last midwinter is here, and we marked the solstice with a fire, shared with friends. The seemingly relentless rain stopped falling just long enough for us to enjoy the night and reflect on the turning of the seasons, of which we are more acutely aware, living the...

Our new facebook page

by | Dec 15, 2012 | the farm

We love to share our goings on with others, so as well as this blog, we now have a proper Lackan Cottage Farm facebook page too.  Making connections and exchanging ideas is something we love to do, so now there are even more opportunities to do so. These reindeer...

Brr…

by | Dec 12, 2012 | environment, low impact living, permaculture, smallholding

The last couple of weeks have also been a bit on the chilly side, with sharp night time frosts, and early  fog. Outside pipes and taps have frozen, and digging the ground has become a challenge. It looks lovely though.. We had some amazing frost patterns on the...

Big shoes to fill

by | Dec 12, 2012 | smallholding, volunteering

Well, after nearly three weeks, our first proper experience as Wwoofing hosts is over, and our volunteer (and now extended family member) Bettina has left to begin her journey home to Austria. Hers will be hard boots to fill, as we have achieved much in her time here,...