Friesland Farm

30/08/2026

Now the rain has been I decided it was a good time to broadcast some of this seed in the margins of the paddock.
While I was out there I thought I would take a look at what is already growing there and identify some of it. This is not something I have done since primary school 😂 I think I recall we would take a square out and find what ever was inside the square but I just wandered around 🤪
So we already have Timothy, Ryegrass, Cocksfoot, Fescue and either False-brome or oat grass I can’t determine which. The fact that most of it is dry makes it more difficult. I did try looking them up online but in the end resorted to an old book of the British Countryside which was a much nicer way to look things up 🥰
I also found plenty of ribwort plantain, birdsfoot trefoil and common knapweed (I think) Also orchids in the spring.
To add all of that I the seed I have sown is a mix of the sanfoin, burnet, tonic rib grass, sheep’s parsley, yarrow, borage, chicory, red and white clover, bladder campion, corn marigold and cornflower.
This is entirely an experiment to see what likes the conditions and if we can increase bio diversity and stabilise the system through different weather patterns.
I did see grass hoppers, meadow brown and holly blue (I think) butterfly’s as well as this very striking spider. I could not for the life of me get the camera to focus but identification says a wasp spider. There were also clusters of tiny dark eggs on some Cocksfoot grass, no idea what they might be but if anyone knows then do tell me.

What I found interesting and really quite unsettling was that while trying to research what some of these things might be online, nearly all information told me how to get rid of it or the negative side of it! Rather than how they fit into a beneficial, biodiverse system 🤷‍♀️

If anyone out there is more of an expert than I am (which would not be difficult) and fancies a wander with me to help identify then you would be more than welcome.

Due to the drought we have been unable to mow this paddock at all (stones catching metal blades = sparks!) and although I do have a scythe I am not proficient in using it to the extent of a whole paddock! But now it has rained the plan will be to cut the middle of it at some point and then not cut it again until next September.

We haven’t grazed the horses on this paddock for a few years now and hopefully won’t need to in the future so that it can become a great habitat for wildlife. That’s the plan anyway but you know how plans go 😬

29/08/2026

Busy doing a bit of processing today.
The slow roasted mix will go into the freezer until I want them. I left it textured because I can always blend it if that’s what I need for a meal. Write on the lids what it is (one frozen lump of stuff can look very much like another 😂) and a date so you know when to use it up by.

Pears were poached in a light syrup then bottled. I only poached them lightly because I know I will be using them in a pudding which will require more cooking and I don’t want them to be too soft.

The water bathing process is an easy way to get a year long shelf life from things like pears. As the jars cool down I check that a vacumn is made by using the straight edge on the back of a knife. If it has concaved then it’s air tight.

The nuts we gathered are now dry and ready to store. I did have to put them in a dehydrator only because I didn’t think about the basket which had a plastic lining and they began to sweat 🙄 Ordinarily you could just leave them in an open wove basket to dry and they would be fine. I still have some of last years hazels, I cracked one open today and the nut inside is still a good size, not shrivelled and not rancid so I will use those up first.

Pear and hazelnut are a great combination 😋

For water bathing you just need a pan deep enough for the boiling water to cover the jars, a trivet in the bottom so the jars don’t jangle about and potentially break and something to lift the jars out with (although you could wait until fully cool and use your hands) It’s a simple and effective food storage technique for high acid fruits, pears, apples, peaches, plums, apricots, cherries, berries (of all types) & rhubarb.

29/08/2026

Growing your own and have a glut? All of this was home grown, tomatoes, peppers, courgettes, onion & garlic but shop bought extras can turn your tomato glut into a great sauce base for multiple meals. Chop it all up, a bit of salt, pepper and oil and slow roast on 150c for an hour or so. Either smash it for a textured sauce or blend it for a smooth one and freeze. Uses: Soup base, bolognaise sauce, toss it into pasta or use it for risotto, as a side dish for fish (textured option) the list is endless 😊

27/08/2026

Long post warning 🤪
I feel I need to get something off my chest and I keep wanting to comment on other posts but in all honesty why bother when I have this page I can use 🙄
At the bottom of this post is a link to the relevant implementation report should you wish to read it.

I have seen many a post on this topic saying that the government is just scaremongering, that they are trying to boost supermarket sales etc etc etc. Don’t get me wrong, just like everyone else I wish the government (of any party) would get things right for everyone but the odds on that is a bigger number than I can even imagine 😂

So what am I talking about? In the near future this implementation will start to be rolled out slowly.
In my opinion (and I have spent over a decade keeping a watchful eye on things as they progress) it is not scaremongering, it is not about boosting supermarket profits, it is not some conspiracy theory. It is about facing the facts and that is something that I hope any responsible government would do.

The facts are that as an island our food security at the moment does not rank highly, we have no stockpiles and around the world various weather events are causing havoc with harvests of every kind. We rely heavily on imported food and countries like India hold back their exports if yields are down to protect the food stocks of their own citizens (quite rightly)

If you read this report you will see that the public will be asked to build a small stock of essential supplies, they will ask on a basic level ‘can you manage for a few days if no help is coming’ And honestly I don’t see anything wrong with that, we have become an ‘instant’ society fully dependant on the systems. If they go down because of the real threat of cut data cables or similar then everything goes down. Understand how everything is connected these days and you will see that it is not rocket science!

For the last decade or more I have advocated for buying locally produced food, the local economy, growing your own food, learning how to prepare and store the food you have so it is not wasted. I have practised what I preach and I am always willing to learn more, improve my skill set so that I am as self reliant as possible. I see it as an insurance policy of my own making so that in difficult or lean times I am not worrying.

I was a child in ‘76’ and remember standpipes well, I was a teen during the Cold War and understood the threat especially living next door to one of the biggest military bases and I was a new homeowner in the 80’s when interest rates were 15% and people were losing their homes and jobs.
All of those play a part in my ‘what if’ thinking and the threats are not any greater these days but they are different. The integration of every system that is reliant on the data cables, the ruined harvests worldwide, the long droughts we are experiencing year on year and the extreme flooding that follows.

All you are going to be asked to do is have a stock of the basics to keep you going in the event of a situation that would take a few days to sort out. To be more resilient as a society, other European countries do this without people throwing their arms in the air and yelling or panicking, they just see it as the sensible thing to do.

You take out insurances in your car, your holiday, your house etc that you might never use. You take out a coat or an umbrella ‘just in case’ this is exactly the same thing, not scaremongering, not conspiracy theory just solid sound advice.

If you want to comment on this then please feel free, it is important to have this discussion openly and to look at different angles and points of view because singular agendas coming from those that are making money from it are not where you should be getting your information from entirely. That is a ‘tribe’ mentality and a whole different subject 🤣

I have just focused on household resilience the report goes further than this into hospitals, schools, public amenities etc and so it should because the world is changing and to stand still and do nothing is foolish.

So when, eventually (and there appears to be no urgency in this) you see this information being rolled out you will know why, you won’t be panicking or thinking there is a imminent threat, you will know the facts and understand that it is your insurance policy for a ‘just in case scenario’ and that a whole society that has built in resilience is stronger than one that doesn’t. Simples 🥰

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-uk-government-resilience-action-plan-2026-implementation-report/the-uk-government-resilience-action-plan-2026-implementation-report-html?fbclid=IwcGRvZgNleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA80Mzc2MjYzMTY5NzM3ODgAAR7ajYh8mzdX4LGcfGx6H1_zzwGo0-55Bnnhwd9v2ryYt4FPTX1EYiQoOP6wxw_aem_wSM1mfXMK-7EZlyvW2jNCA

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24/08/2026

Mmmmm 😋

18/08/2026

Pears 🥰 I picked our pears today, I did leave plenty of deformed ones on the trees for the wildlife (they have had a tough season too)
The lack of rain and high temperatures caused the deformities I think 🤔 I did see a couple of wasps tucking in so I knew it was time. Some of these will be for eating fresh but mostly I like to bottle them in a light syrup. In the winter last year it was a real treat to open a jar, make a sponge mix for the top and have it for pudding. It was so refreshing that I think most of my pears will end up this way 😂

18/08/2026

The elderberries are ready 😊 A lot of the bushes are looking ropey due to the lack of rain but one or two seem to have done ok here. If you are gathering then make sure you 100% know what you are picking. If you are not sure pop in and I will show you 🥰
Immune supporting and a good source of Vitamin C, antioxidants & fibre. But never eat them raw they must be cooked first. I use them mixed into crumbles and pies, make an elderberry syrup for a winter tonic. You can use them for savoury dishes, sticky sauce for coating meat or veg, added to stuffing, make a warm salad dressing. The possibilities are endless and the benefits are huge.

15/08/2026

Early morning nut collecting 🥰

14/08/2026

Slightly ‘off piste’ this one but do you know your olive oils?

I came across an article that made me look into it a bit further.

I always buy cold pressed extra virgin olive oil. Many years ago on a visit (I forget where) we went to an olive estate and bought some. Whatever the guide told us must has stuck because I have always bought cold pressed.

The shocking thing is that if you are buying ‘pure, classic or just olive oil’ it has had chemicals used at some point. Sodium Hydroxide (caustic soda) is used to neutralise free fatty acids in low quality lampante oil. Bleaching clays are used to strip out pigments and impurities and then high heat 230°c is used to boil off bad smells destroying the antioxidants and poly phenols.

Extra Virgin is cold pressed, natural colour and no chemicals or additives are used. It is not heat treated and so retains the antioxidants and polyphenols. ✅

Refined olive oil has had sodium hydroxide, bleaching clays and had heat treatment. ❌

Pure olive oil is refined (as above) and then had a small amount of virgin oil added to give it colour. ❌

AND ‘light’ olive oil does not mean less calories, it means it’s more refined 🙄 ❌

Yes cold pressed extra virgin (and it can have both phrases or just extra virgin) is more expensive but it is the one that still has the antioxidants and polyphenols, it’s the real deal!