The farm through the seasons – March

As we work our way out of winter and into Spring (all be it a bit slower than most on our hilltop farm!) the maintenance and upkeep around the farm continues. Steadily getting ready for the craziness that April will bring as lambing starts, and when Adam will be on the farm full time along with the farm team. All hands-on deck and ready to put in the hours to cover the night and day shifts. This year we’ll be lambing 1,600 ewes, with 300 of those inside, plenty to keep the team busy!

March was a particularly wet weather month, with the average rainfall days for our part of the Yorkshire Wolds being exceeded. The unexpected heavy snowfall that hit us for 48 hours, did not help either. Though the farm did look particularly beautiful with the snow-covered daffodils and snowdrops!

The wet weather means that the soil has been too wet and we struggle to carry out the jobs scheduled. This week we have taken advantage of the one good day for weather and planted spring beans. Spring barley will now be planted later than expected. As ever with farming, we are all too reliant on the great British weather.

Now that drilling has started and there’s a flurry of tractors and activity on the fields around the Wolds. Drilling is the sowing of seeds in rows at a specific depth, and then covering it over. It’s a job of precision and timing for the farm team, and it won’t feel like long until we see these fields green up as the crops begin to grow.

With the clocks changing and the warmer temperatures teasing us, March is the period of transition for us here as we head into Spring. Lighter nights mean more can be achieved during the day and there is an optimistic feeling across the countryside. So, here’s to the quiet before the storm when lambing commences, April update to follow!