About our place
My husband, Tim, and I started our small holding near Bantry/West Cork in 2004.
At first, we were kept busy building stables and paddock for the horses, temporary accomodation in the barn for ourselves, and then our new home, a timber-framed grass-roofed house.
We now produce firewood, vegetables, fruit, milk, cheese and eggs and some of the animal feed for our horses, pigs, hens, ducks and sheep on our seven acres of land.
|
Tim is a commercial bee-keeper. He has about 20 of overall 100 hives on our land. He maintains a number of apiaries around West Cork and produces the most delicious wild flower honey.
If you are interested in bees, you can find out more by looking at his website: www.rosebeehives.com |
 |
Our two horses are involved as much as possible in the tasks which need doing throughout the year. They do a fantastic job hauling things around on the sled and cart like stones, wood, fence posts and manure, they plough and harrow the field in spring, make trenches for planting potatoes, earth up the potatoes throughout the summer, hoe and scuffle between vegetable rows and harvest the potatoes in early autumn, and haul any timber from trees that are felled or come down in storms throughout winter.
And of course, they provide us with a lot of manure, which is returned to the land as fertiliser.
And of course, they provide us with a lot of manure, which is returned to the land as fertiliser.
We produce a lot of what we eat on our land, although we are not aiming to become self-sufficient, as this would be a different matter in itself again.
We just want everything on our land to work well together and increase bio-diversity and soil fertility. It is important to us to live well within the natural environment and not just from it.
Working with our horses on our land makes a lot of sense to us in this context.
Of course, we meet limitations in how much of the food for the animals we can produce on our land without having to bring in machinery or chemical fertilisers.
But we are continuously working on improving the way we grow things and the way we keep animals here, aiming for a low-impact and sustainable way of life.
We just want everything on our land to work well together and increase bio-diversity and soil fertility. It is important to us to live well within the natural environment and not just from it.
Working with our horses on our land makes a lot of sense to us in this context.
Of course, we meet limitations in how much of the food for the animals we can produce on our land without having to bring in machinery or chemical fertilisers.
But we are continuously working on improving the way we grow things and the way we keep animals here, aiming for a low-impact and sustainable way of life.
About our horses
It all started sometime over 25 years ago when I still
was quite small. Something I wanted to do as long as I could remember
was to be with horses! The first 12 years or so of my career as a horse person I spent as a devoted
helper in various stables grooming, feeding, mucking out and exercising
other people's horses. I also took riding lessons in dressage and
jumping and passed two exams leading to certificates in riding and
horsemanship with the German Riding Association (FN).
Luckily, I was able to keep riding up all throughout school, college and jobs, holding on tight to my dream of my own horses...one day.
By then, I had a growing interest in "doing more" with horses other than riding. That's how I began to find out more about working with horses in harness through books, magazines and talking to work horse people.
Some more time passed until I was finally able to rent a piece of land and buy my own first horse - Zottel, a loyal, honest and easy-going black Irish Cob gelding. That was in 2003, and he was our first plough horse who helped us turn some of our field into a potato patch.
At that stage, Tim - who had not had much contact with horses since he got thrown off his friend's pony in full galopp when he was 12 and ended up with a bad concussion - was drawn into my "doing more" with horses. With me on the reins and Tim on the plough, we approached our first task...
Luckily, I was able to keep riding up all throughout school, college and jobs, holding on tight to my dream of my own horses...one day.
By then, I had a growing interest in "doing more" with horses other than riding. That's how I began to find out more about working with horses in harness through books, magazines and talking to work horse people.
Some more time passed until I was finally able to rent a piece of land and buy my own first horse - Zottel, a loyal, honest and easy-going black Irish Cob gelding. That was in 2003, and he was our first plough horse who helped us turn some of our field into a potato patch.
At that stage, Tim - who had not had much contact with horses since he got thrown off his friend's pony in full galopp when he was 12 and ended up with a bad concussion - was drawn into my "doing more" with horses. With me on the reins and Tim on the plough, we approached our first task...
How exciting to be ploughing for the first time!
And what a struggle! It was very hard going as we turned well established grassland, and we made a mess of the field at first. But the patch got ploughed eventually, and we had climbed a very steep learning curve, as far as ploughing was concerned. Now we were able to plant our first potatoes on our land!
And Zottel was just brilliant - patient, co-operative and ever so forgiving with us newcomers!
In the picture below, the "fruits" of our first ploughing are showing up...
Our first experiences in working with horses only fuelled
my growing passion. Not having come from a farming background I jumped
in at the deep end, but found the hands-on work with the horses in the
field as valuable - if not more - as any agricultural college education
could have been. However, there was a stage when I felt that going
on some specific courses to broaden my knowledge would definitely
benefit our project. So I attended a number of courses over the
years which included working on a horse-powered farm in Germany. These
were all very important experiences but could never really replace the
practical work at home with our own horses, but only add to them.
What has been helpful over the last few years is my membership with the German Work Horse Association (www.ig-zugpferde.de), and membership with the newly founded Irish Working Horse Association (www.irishworkinghorseassociation.com).
I feel that an important part of any learning process is the exchange with and feedback from like-minded people.
Very sadly, our gelding Zottel died suddenly in 2005. By then, I had bought a pretty piebald mare, Nellie, who gave birth to her first foal, Winnie, that same spring. Nellie has moved on since, but Winnie is still with us. She is part of our small horse family, together with her "husband" Henry and their foals. Unfortunately, we cannot keep the foals as we do not have enough land to support a growing herd of horses, so the foals are being sold each autumn.
What has been helpful over the last few years is my membership with the German Work Horse Association (www.ig-zugpferde.de), and membership with the newly founded Irish Working Horse Association (www.irishworkinghorseassociation.com).
I feel that an important part of any learning process is the exchange with and feedback from like-minded people.
Very sadly, our gelding Zottel died suddenly in 2005. By then, I had bought a pretty piebald mare, Nellie, who gave birth to her first foal, Winnie, that same spring. Nellie has moved on since, but Winnie is still with us. She is part of our small horse family, together with her "husband" Henry and their foals. Unfortunately, we cannot keep the foals as we do not have enough land to support a growing herd of horses, so the foals are being sold each autumn.
WINNIE
Winnie, in the picture with her first foal Spud, was born on our farm in 2005. She is a registered Irish Cob mare and now 7 years old. She went through her training here on our farm and now works in harness as well as under the saddle.
HENRY
Henry arrived on our farm in 2005 as a yearling colt. He
was registered as an Irish Cob stallion in 2009 and is now 8 years old.
When he came here first, he was only halter trained but very keen to
learn more. Over the years, he has picked up most things he needs to
know as a work horse. He is now trained to work in harness and under the
saddle. When there is nothing urgent to do on the farm, we regularly
participate in local horse events or go riding into the hills. He recently started workign with a pack saddle, carrying fence posts.
At the end of last year, we made the difficult decision to geld Henry. Under the current circumstances, it proves to be difficult to find good homes for young horses, so after Winnie's next foal due in May 2012, we will take a break from producing foals. To still be able to offer Henry a satisfying lifestyle, gelding him seemed the most reasonable option.
At the end of last year, we made the difficult decision to geld Henry. Under the current circumstances, it proves to be difficult to find good homes for young horses, so after Winnie's next foal due in May 2012, we will take a break from producing foals. To still be able to offer Henry a satisfying lifestyle, gelding him seemed the most reasonable option.
FLORA
Henry and Winnie's daughter Flora was born in May 2011 and has quickly grown into a sturdy filly. She has spent the Winter on a stud farm in North Cork in a small foal herd. This way, she got the opportunity to spend time with other youngsters, socialise and play.
She returned in February and now enjoys her parents' company again.
She has started to pick up useful things like trotting alongside the cart, being loaded in a trailer, staying behind on her own when Winnie and Henry are out, stand still when beign tied up for a while. And she proves to be just as layed back as her father when it comes to excitement or big lorries or barking dogs.
Flora out on a Sunday morning walk - who's that following me???
NEW FOAL - for sale!!!
This is Winnie's new foal, born on 10th May around 5 a.m. He is a healthy strong colt who already shows great character, exploring the world around him adventurously! He has quite a remarkable little face, with one blue eye with black eye lashes and one brown eye with white eye lashes, and his body is nicely marked, with four white legs.
Unfortunately, he will have to go to a new home in October when he is weaned, so he will be for sale then.
Unfortunately, he will have to go to a new home in October when he is weaned, so he will be for sale then.
Remarkable white eye lashes...
|
and beautiful even markings....a pretty little thing!
|
About our equipment
We use a variety of horse-drawn tools, carts and harnesses.
I was able to pick up some horse-drawn implements from a work horse farm sale in Germany. I was very lucky to find these tools, some of them over 50 years old, in perfect condition. They were taken apart, put in a box and shipped to Ireland, where we faced the challenge to fit various parts together again in the right order and combination!
Other equipment, including a traditional harness, I bought in Ireland from vintage enthusiasts and farmers who had the odd piece still stacked away in a barn.
Other equipment again is home-made or had been left behind on our land by previous farmers when we arrived.
I've started making a list of the equipment we use - please click hereto see.
I was able to pick up some horse-drawn implements from a work horse farm sale in Germany. I was very lucky to find these tools, some of them over 50 years old, in perfect condition. They were taken apart, put in a box and shipped to Ireland, where we faced the challenge to fit various parts together again in the right order and combination!
Other equipment, including a traditional harness, I bought in Ireland from vintage enthusiasts and farmers who had the odd piece still stacked away in a barn.
Other equipment again is home-made or had been left behind on our land by previous farmers when we arrived.
I've started making a list of the equipment we use - please click hereto see.
