Author | Lightnews

Smallholderific

@smallholderific.bsky.social

300 followers 120 following 950 posts

Our cottage smallholding. Fruit and veg, orchard, chickens & Buff Orpington ducks, beekeeping, cats, foraging, home brewing, wine, cider and juice making, preserving & cooking. Plan: + geese/pigs.

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Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 1d

Mmm, nice dilute cider. 😉 (But seriously, hope forecast improves)

Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 1d

Fingers crossed for you.

Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 1d

Good progress. All veg plots & tunnel cleared. Windfalls tidied, sorted and stashed, last apples picked (🎆🤸🏻 etc). Orchard grass & areas near house cut. Gardening hat off and chefs hat on tomorrow. 🧑🏻‍🍳

Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 1d

Kicking off the 2026 growing season with Germidour garlic and some elephant garlic cloves.

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Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 1d

Pleased that will have finished autumn clear-down of veg plot and polytunnel before tomorrow's storm, even if the compost order was nowhere near enough to mulch everything.

Hope to get remaining apples in today too, and maybe have a day of Bramley prep and cooking while it's raining tomorrow.

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Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 3d

Got 1.5 tons shifted. Need to do some clearing before moving the rest, but that is a tomorrow job.

My arms and back are telling me that too. 😵‍💫

Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 3d

Timbers in place, retaining pegs thwokked in and 1 ton of mushroom compost shifted, with no injuries or obvious hernia so far. 😬 Cup of tea, then hopefully will be able to shift most of the second ton too. 🤞🧑🏻‍🌾

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Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 3d

Ducks are having a lovely time today. Chickens and cats less so. In the next gap in downpours, hoping to finish today's terracing of one of the veg beds, using some treated timber a neighbour didn't want and a few small and slim UC4 posts.

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Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 3d

Downside: having to wheelbarrow a couple of tons of the good stuff /to/ the veg beds.

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Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 3d

Also, a couple of tons of the good stuff have just arrived for the veg beds.

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Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 3d

Soggy Monday here, but currently feeling a little smug watching the raindrops bead and bounce off the flank of the shed I repainted a few days ago.

Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 3d

Not a bad result though: had to look up Michaelmas Red, not one of Tydeman's creations I've seen before. At least you didn't discover that you had a whole row of Bramleys! 😂

Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 4d

Nice. Any exciting finds among your veterans?

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Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 6d

Bright yellow chilli sauce, hopefully!

Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 6d

More like 4ft² akshully...

Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 6d

Smallholding and allotmenting does not deal in sensible amounts. Today's problem is 3 square foot of Aji Limon chillies now spread out inside to maximise light and hopefully ripen. Internet is divided on whether ethylene helps, so hedging bets by chucking a couple of Bramleys on too.

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Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 7d

Also a fan. (I'd also be getting one of those pears you posted a few days ago involved in that salad. 😋)

Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 7d

Hopefully said bramble cuttings are good and dead, so you won't have regrowth to deal with. 🤞 Amazing space, looking forward to seeing what you do with it.

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Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 9d

Look forward to trying ours. Suppose our best was Crown Prince this year, as one of the plants managed a couple of fruit rather than 1!

Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 9d

Not been a bumper crop of squash this year, but 6 plants managed 7 fruit despite being planted late, in a drought, and given the amount of food in even a medium-sized squash, that will keep us going for a bit.

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Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 9d

Autumn has settled in earnestly here at Casa Smallholderific, with a week of coolish misty grey drizzle ahead. Mushroom compost order arriving next week, so the remains of summer need removing from the veg beds ready for that. Then broadies (sown last week in modules) and garlic can go in.

Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 13d

This bodes well for the 15l which went into bottles for longer term storage...

Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 13d

Impatience led to me bottling last autumn's 30 litres of Bullace wine a little early, so it has ended up with a touch of haze (easy to do with plums). However, by now, the firm tannins are starting to soften a little, and chilled from the fridge polypin, it's tasting good.

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Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 13d

Have been doing tidy up on summer veg here too. Almost all remaining tomatoes, some green peppers, last of courgettes, some onions and basil roasted up with garlic, balsamic, aubergines and generous olive oil for some freezer ratatouille. 😋

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Smallholderific @smallholderific.bsky.social · 13d

Looks delicious!