Good News and Bad News!

The good news is we have got Millie home. She is remarkable and it is so hard to believe that she has been so poorly. She is full of mischief and wants to play and getting terribly spoilt at the moment as we never thought she would pull through. As the day progresses her appetite is improving. The bad news is that Tess is two days behind where Millie was and very poorly and still at the Vet's. We are hoping that tomorrow will bring more positive news. Millie is really missing her, our two Jack Russell terriers are very unsure of her and keeping away from her.



This morning began with a sharp frost which was followed by a beautiful sunny day. This meant conditions were ideal for us to check the bees and see how well they have survived this winter. Last Autumn we had six colonies. Four of them very strong. Unfortunately the winter has taken its toll and we have lost two colonies. One other colony looks quite weak also. The rest are looking good. We put the queen excluders in and checked they had got food. They will be moved to Redlands later in the year and be housed in the Orchard. We don't want to move them yet as there is a field of rape planted in the field behind us so we are hoping for some good rape honey.



Alistair has taken some sheep to Redlands today. It is great to see animals in the fields again. So far we have pigs and sheep over there. Once the water is sorted out then he will take some cattle over. He has four lovely heifers which he is hoping to show. Yesterday he attempted to begin halter training them. This wasn't as easy as he thought it would be, trying to get close to their heads and put an halter on was quite challenging. Eventually he succeeded with one of them but no chance of getting it to walk alongside him. I suspect this will take several months of hard work and dedication.