The pasture is gradually coming to life after the winter period. I broadcast some winter rye grass last autumn. I wasn’t sure which variety to go with so experimented with two different lots. The more expensive seed won hands down. I’ll spread it again next year.
Unfortunately, grass is not the only thing growing. Weeds will soon pop up and when they do I’ll have them sprayed like last year. If I keep on top of them we can gradually use less and less chemicals. To help the grass grow strong the fertilizer company will truck in and spread about 5 tons of lime. It helps to neutralise the acidity in the soil. They will also deliver fertilizer to put down in a month or so.
In readiness, I’ve been spending time cleaning all the leaves from the pasture. It’s been a combination of rake and lawn tractor come giant vacuum cleaner. It’s dirty and dusty work. The alpacas will appreciate their clean pasture and I will appreciate the hard work done when I’m sorting their fiber in a few months time.
Mother nature is playing trick with the plants. Whilst we have had some very pleasant spring like days, we continue to have freezing temperatures over night. The Camilia seems to suffer a bit.
The chicken, on the other hand, have decided that spring really is on the way. They are back in full production. I collected 5 eggs yesterday and 6 today. You can’t beat farm fresh eggs!