Broome Park Farm, Farmhouse Bed & Breakfast Accommodation Cleobury Mortimer, Shropshire

Boxing Day was another perfect winter’s day - cold and bright. After a quiet morning we took the dog for a walk after lunch, following part of the Jack Mytton and Simon Evans Way to Detton, across Titford Bridge then back by Reaside and Chiltern.

This is the beautiful Christmas wreath made by Rachael, from Fred’s Fruit and Veg, that greets all my visitors this Christmas.

All the family here at Broome Park wish all our friends and guests past and present a Very Happy Christmas and Prosperous New Year!

Today the ewes have been scanned to see how many lambs they are expecting. There is a man inside the steel cabinet behind the race with an ultra sound scanner - just the same as used for an ante-natal scan! - and he calls out the number of lambs. The ewes are then colour coded accordingly and sorted into different groups. Those expecting more lambs are given more food to ensure strong, healthy lambs are born - I always find it amazing that we take such trouble!!

The young cockerel is beginning to look very smart and hopefully we will be able to hatch out some eggs in the Spring. That is if egg production increases - at the moment I am only getting 1 or 2 eggs a day from 8 hens - a very poor return! I think I will have to invest in some more hens too.

Elsewhere on the farm we now have young calves in the new shed and John is busy converting another of the buildings to take the 2 sets of twin calves as they are rapidly out growing their current pen.

Today is a perfect winter morning - frost on the ground but a cloudless blue sky. Ideal weather for walking! Yesterday the boys injected the bulls against black leg - a viral infection that can result in sudden death. A lot of the calves are also suffering with pneumonia and will need to be vaccinated.