around the farm...

Autumn is such a beautiful time of year here on the farm. The vine leaves are turning a magnificent burgundy, the grass is green again & the days are lovely & mild.
Samson & Dougall have settled in well & have grown accustomed to their surrounds. They come up to the fence for a pat & a scratch & once a week or so they get an all over with the comb. Their winter coats are starting to thicken & turn into dreadlocks when it rains. So a good pull the comb gets all the knots out & gives them a scratch at the same time.

Photo courtesy of Samuel (he requested I credit him)
Our little ducklings have all grown up into lovely big girls. We also acquired two indian runners to add to the flock. The runners are named after saxophonists , as that is exactly what they sound like. The black one is Coltrane & the silver is Gillespie. When the pekins were small, we named one Bagpipe & another Scruff... but now they all look the same, we don't know which is which. I've collectively named them "those who cannot be named", as if they are like the mafia or voldemort. I think it's quite funny, whether it is or not is another story. Oh well, one must appreciate ones own humour, I guess. The ducks spend their days foraging in the orchard, they seem pretty happy. I'm happy too. The pooey water from their pool is bringing life to my lemon trees & the straw bedding gets new life as mulch around the other fruit trees. Waste not, want not.

Another good thing about autumn... is the harvest. I've just finished picking the pears off our two trees & we finished up with a grand total of 15 kilos! Caw crikey! What to do with them all? Some have been handed over to friends, others eaten fresh, some shall be poached & preserved & there's a pear loaf in the oven as I type. Mmmm, 30 minutes to go.
We also have a chestnut tree, which is on the turn. I've been busy scouring the internet for recipes. If anyone has a great recipe for chestnuts, please share. Sweet or savoury... I'll try anything.

I hope I didn't sound bitchy in my last post. A full two days was just a bit too much to handle. I like to keep it to a few hours at the most. It's very overwhelming.
Happy holidays to you all. Don't gorge yourselves on too much chocolate.