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00:00Come on Fletchers.
00:02We're heading into our fifth year of farming in the stunning Peak District.
00:07Here we go.
00:08They're coming!
00:10That's it, that's it. Go, go.
00:12And we're making big plans from our new HQ.
00:16Being back at the farm 24-7, it just feels like the best feeling.
00:20In a caravan.
00:21It's pretty bougie.
00:23Alongside our four kids, who are each carving their own path as young farmers too.
00:28If any of my Jacobs give birth, I've got to do it.
00:33This year we introduce new breeds to the farm.
00:37I'm going to get a new flock of hens. I'm not even telling Kelvin. I'm just doing it.
00:42Come here, piggies!
00:44I forgot how much I love pigs.
00:46They're really cute.
00:48And continue our journey into arable farming.
00:51It's my wife, that.
00:53We've grown in confidence as farmers.
00:56I will not be defeated.
01:00Embracing the fun and chaos.
01:02Why could I not just have five minutes to eat?
01:05And together, we're working hard to live our life to the full.
01:09That was really good.
01:10You know what this called for?
01:11What?
01:11A broom.
01:13A broom?
01:21This week on our farm.
01:24As we continue to explore the best arable options for our farm, I discovered joy in getting my hands dirty.
01:31I thought it was all about livestock.
01:33I thought it was all about sheep and cows and I want to grow veg.
01:39I want to grow veg.
01:41How good is that?
01:43Our new hens arrive and Liz gets her hopes up for a successful match for our new cockerel.
01:49They're definitely interested in each other.
01:51We need a hen cam, don't we?
01:53See what's happening.
01:55See if there's any action.
01:58And Milo gets a lesson on the birds and the bees during tupping season.
02:03So there's 50 sheep altogether.
02:0550 sheep?
02:0650 girls.
02:07And guess how many boys?
02:0810.
02:09One?
02:10One boy.
02:12To marry all of them girls?
02:14Yeah.
02:15Wow.
02:16What do you think of that?
02:17Good.
02:18That's really good.
02:19Good.
02:22Good.
02:30It's hard to believe how long it's been since the fire at the farmhouse.
02:34The smoke damage made the house unlivable and insurance rules meant the place had to stay
02:39untouched for months.
02:41But today's a big moment.
02:43We can finally start clearing the site and begin the journey towards rebuilding.
02:48This is the moment we've been waiting for, the delivery of the skip, because that means
02:53that we can finally start clearing out and rebuilding the house so we can get back in
03:00the house.
03:02And it has felt like forever, like over a year ago we were stood here just looking at
03:07the damage and thinking, what are we going to do?
03:10And now we're stood here thinking, you've got to start somewhere.
03:15And the first place is to get rid of what's rubbish, try and salvage what you can.
03:20This is the best bit, I mean mentally I'm already buying kitchens.
03:24We've got to start somewhere, we've got to start with clearing up.
03:28And typically it's freezing, but we've still got to do it.
03:32This is the exciting bit, this is the beginning of the next chapter, the rebuild.
03:36Before the renovation work can start, we need to clear everything out.
03:40And when you're dealing with a lifetime of memories and belongings, it's not an easy task.
03:45Well we need to create a couple of piles, all that old slate there, I don't really want
03:50to just throw that because that might come in handy.
03:52So any hard coal, any like brick slate, we'll just put to one side in case we can keep.
03:58Yeah.
03:58Any wood that we can, maybe those pallets are always good, so let's put those to one side.
04:05And the rest of it, the rubble, straight in the, I'll get the skid steer.
04:08Yeah.
04:09Well why don't you get the skid steer, I'll get the sage.
04:12Are you really going to stop?
04:13Yeah you've got to just.
04:15What does that do?
04:15It just, you know, gets rid of any bad vibes.
04:19It brings in the positive.
04:21I'm a true believer in the universe and your auras and the vibe and we just want to get
04:27rid of that negativity of the fire and realise that for some reason that had to happen and
04:34now it's a new start.
04:37I think I'm safer not asking any more questions.
04:41I wanted to start this for almost 80 months and then I've become so detached, you walk past
04:50it and just lost my connection really, which is heartbreaking to say, but it was our home,
04:57it was our dream home in many ways and to have that disconnect and you're just so busy
05:04with everything else and the process has been so long, it's just finally good to turn a new
05:09page and finally start the rebuild.
05:12As always we soon slip into our roles, me on clearance and Liz on salvage.
05:19This I will not get rid of.
05:21This was the, I don't know, the maiden and it was on like a drawstring where you dropped
05:25it and then you like wheeled it up like a blind.
05:28That I'm not getting rid of.
05:30That's going in the merch shop.
05:32Just keeping this one.
05:34This is a classic.
05:36I can't believe she's got, I don't even know what it's called, what is that, it's like
05:39a hanger.
05:40A maiden.
05:41A maiden.
05:42A maiden.
05:42I mean, that's a posh maiden, when we, it's one of those, when we viewed the house and
05:50it had a little utility room and it had a fancy pull up maiden that you wound up to something,
05:56well that's just, but for us where we come from that was like, look at that maiden.
06:01Something else I've seen, our old rusty locks, put that in a little bit of coke, it'll be
06:09brand new.
06:10Well, maybe it won't actually.
06:12Maybe it won't.
06:14But I just can't get rid of stuff like that, but I just, I like to keep stuff.
06:19This is going to be my keep pile.
06:22Definitely need that for the hose pipe.
06:24Might even just keep this table.
06:26This is, the, I reckon this would still work, but the worst thing is, it has still, still
06:33got our clothes in it.
06:36I've not had a good look through this yet.
06:37What else?
06:38Is there anything for me?
06:38Can I keep anything?
06:40Oh, look at that.
06:45Is that a Spiderman outfit?
06:47Oh, it's Milo's Spiderman outfit that.
06:50When we told the kids about the fire, we also said that Milo's Spiderman costume had survived
06:56the blaze, and he told us it's because it has superpowers.
07:00I'm going to save this, and I'm going to frame it, and I'm saying, this is a symbol that
07:14we're survivors.
07:16We can get through things.
07:20Adversity is part of life.
07:25In a way, it actually helps when something's beyond saving.
07:29Otherwise, I'm not sure we'd ever get rid of anything.
07:33It feels really special now.
07:35That'll just drive us and motivate us for the rest of the year.
07:39And we'll just work towards this.
07:40This is the goal for 2026 to get back into the house.
07:45This is my favourite bit.
07:46My dad always says, you've got to crack a few eggs to make an omelette.
07:49We've cracked the eggs, and soon we'll be making an omelette.
07:54But before we get making the omelette, we need to tackle the inside of the house, as well as the
07:59equally important job of burning sage.
08:06This is legal, by the way.
08:10Right.
08:10Come on.
08:11Away with the bad vibes.
08:13We're turning a corner.
08:15And it's going to be good.
08:16Rebuilding in 2026.
08:20I'll do the loop of the house.
08:23Today marks the day we can finally put this behind us.
08:28It still makes me so sad when I come in and see it like this.
08:32But the thought now that we can just clear up.
08:38People say, oh, you've had some bad luck this year, haven't you?
08:41But actually, we do always say, we've been so lucky that we weren't here.
08:45I just can't imagine what that would have been like.
08:49I spent my childhood with my mum and dad building, decorating, doing something.
08:54The house was never finished.
08:55The house got finished when they sold it.
08:57I feel like I'm just repeating my childhood now.
08:59I'm going to live in a building site, aren't I, for the rest of my life?
09:03And probably when we finish it, then we'll be so old that then we'll sell it and move on.
09:09History repeating itself.
09:25You've not got any sheep, have you?
09:26Yeah, so can I.
09:29Why, what are you asking?
09:30I just really want them sheep.
09:33What, you would like your own sheep?
09:35Yeah.
09:36Oh.
09:38Come on, I'm a farmer, I'm nearly seven.
09:42This morning, Milo and I are off to check in on our tup, Larry,
09:46to see how he's settling into his first tuping season.
09:49And if Milo does want his own flock, he's got lots to learn.
09:54You know the difference between the clins and the mules?
09:56Yeah.
09:57So the mules have got a black and white face.
09:59Yeah.
10:00And the clins have got a...
10:02White face.
10:02A white face.
10:04We've got about 40 clins.
10:07They're all white sheep.
10:08Yeah.
10:09And of those clins...
10:10Yeah.
10:11Ten have never had a lamb before.
10:14They're what we call shearlings.
10:16So what are we doing now?
10:18So now we're going to come and check.
10:19So there's 50 sheep all together.
10:2150 sheep?
10:2350 girls.
10:23And guess how many boys?
10:26Ten.
10:27One?
10:28One boy.
10:29To marry all of them girls?
10:32Yeah.
10:33Wow.
10:34What do you think of that?
10:35Good.
10:36That's really good.
10:37It's good, isn't it?
10:38So one boy marries 50 girls and we've put rattle on him.
10:42We've put yellow on him, matching daddy's jacket.
10:45He's got a yellow chest.
10:46I can see the boy now.
10:48What he'll do, he'll leave a yellow mark on the sheep's back.
10:54So if we see a sheep, what we've got to do is count all the sheep with a yellow mark
10:59on the back.
10:59And that means they've been served.
11:01And then we know how busy he's been.
11:03So what we're going to do now is have a walk around and spot how many sheep have been served.
11:08Right, shall we go and count these backs?
11:10Yeah.
11:11The more yellow backs we see, the better.
11:14Come on.
11:14Let's go and count them.
11:15See how busy he's been.
11:18One tup is able to serve up to 50 sheep or more.
11:22But if his numbers are low, then we'll need to introduce another tup to help get the job done.
11:27Oh, he's been busy.
11:29Has he?
11:30Oh, yeah.
11:30I can see quite a few.
11:31Yellow.
11:32One, two, three.
11:34Four.
11:35Four.
11:35Five.
11:37Six.
11:38Seven.
11:38Eight.
11:39Nine.
11:40Ten.
11:41Geez, he's been messing around.
11:43I think that's pretty good, that.
11:45Of the 50 that are in here, there's 16 that have been served.
11:4934 to go.
11:53He's done a good job.
11:54And what's it been?
11:56It's not even been a week.
11:59He's been a busy boy.
12:00Because maybe he's done it in threes in one day.
12:05Or twos.
12:07You always want to check, you always want to make sure that he's got a few under his belt.
12:12And he's certainly done that.
12:13Obviously, it's his first time.
12:15He's a shearling himself, so he's not done this before.
12:18The real test is, come April next year, you know.
12:21Well, actually, come the scanning, when we scan in January, that's the big reveal.
12:26But for now, there's another ten or so days left, and then they'll be entering the second cycle.
12:33At that point, we're going to mix them all together.
12:35So, he's got another ten or so days to prove himself and see what we end up with.
12:40But so far, so good.
12:42He's done a good job.
12:45Oh, he's sniffing.
12:46He's about to serve that one.
12:47You watch him.
12:47He sniffs first.
12:48Denise, you stand still.
12:51Oh!
12:52I thought we were going to see some action then, but we might have a little bit of stage fright.
12:57It's a cracking start for our new top, and it could well be the first step on Milo's journey
13:02towards one day running his very own flock.
13:05It's the first time Milo was...
13:08Asked.
13:08Asked for his own sheep.
13:12And when he said that, I was beaming inside.
13:14Yeah, no, it's good.
13:15I want him to have an interest.
13:17If you was to get your own sheep one day, and you thought about what breed,
13:22would you want the Jacobs like Marnie, the black and white ones?
13:26Or would you want a clin?
13:28Or do you maybe want a mule?
13:31Or do you want a white one, a clin?
13:33You want ten?
13:35Daddy started with ten sheep.
13:37Then what will you do with them?
13:39Just...
13:40Put them in the top field.
13:42Alright.
13:43Dad.
13:44What?
13:44Can we go home and get a cup of tea?
13:47Come on, now.
13:49Let's go and get a cup of tea.
13:51You have a lot of tea breaks here, don't you?
13:53Yeah.
13:54Why do you have so many tea breaks?
13:56Because I just like tea.
14:16While Milo and I enjoy a hard-earned tea break, Liz is checking in on our new cockerel, Daniel.
14:22And it's time we set him to work.
14:25But as our four leghorn hens have turned out to be the least maternal animal we own,
14:29we're keen to give him a fighting chance to father some chicks.
14:34What happened with the other ones?
14:37We did this whole routine of them coming in, shutting them in at night, and then they just decided to
14:43roost in the trees.
14:44And it was like from then on, they were like, no, no, no, you don't put us in the pen.
14:49So while the leghorns roam free, Liz has been out on the hunt for some new hens that are happy
14:54to stay home and roost.
14:55Daniel the cockerel has been getting on great, he's been cock-a-doodle-doing, he's been having a look around.
15:00I've not let him out purposely because I don't want him to start trying to herd those hens.
15:05Now, Debbie, my good friend Debbie, she's bringing me a special delivery of hens, which are very, very good-looking.
15:15Very, very pretty.
15:16When it comes to hens, these are the prettiest hens I've ever seen.
15:20And the plan is that we pen them up with the cockerel, so that they're in there together for about
15:25two or three weeks.
15:26Hopefully they create this strong bond together.
15:29Not only will they lay eggs, hopefully we'll get some chicks for them.
15:32The main thing is that they're a crew, they're a flock.
15:38They stay together.
15:39So we'll see, we'll see how he is with the new hens.
15:43We'll see if he's, as Kevin will say, got the emeralds.
15:47We'll see if he's a nervous wreck around the new girls.
15:49Or we'll see if he's the alpha, that he's supposed to be.
15:53Debbie has assured Liz that the new hens are real home birds.
15:57They are aracunas, and once settled, can lay up to five beautiful blue eggs a week.
16:02Look!
16:04Here she is.
16:05Look at them!
16:09Yes.
16:10Wow!
16:12Oh my God, so tame!
16:17Ain't she beautiful?
16:19Hello, girl!
16:20And these give you...
16:23Like a...
16:24A blue egg.
16:25Bluey green.
16:26Bluey greeny egg.
16:28Hello beautiful!
16:30They are stunning.
16:32They're lovely, aren't they?
16:33He's going to be so excited.
16:34The project is, we want eggs and chicks.
16:38Yeah?
16:39So here, I'm going to pen them in for about two to three weeks, not let them out, so that
16:44they get that initial bond.
16:46Yep.
16:46And then I'm hoping that once I let them out, I'll make sure they get in every night, but we're
16:50hoping for chicks.
16:51Are you going to incubate them?
16:52Yeah.
16:53Yeah, I'd incubate them.
16:54Yeah.
16:55Well just collect them in, when you see them, when they lay, they might lay anywhere in here, but when
16:59they lay, just collect them in, put the date on in pencil.
17:02But remember, you can't tell which is hens and cocks for ages.
17:06Like mine, I've got five, and one's just started crowing that I thought was a hen.
17:10And that's how you found out, because they crow.
17:12Yeah.
17:13Any male cockerels we breed will have to be sold on so that Daniel can keep his position of ruler
17:18of the roost.
17:19And it looks like he likes what he sees, because he wastes no time eyeing the hens up and strutting
17:24his stuff.
17:25He's really puffing his chest out. He does want to impress them.
17:28Oh, look at him. He's showing off, isn't he?
17:31He knows the girls.
17:33He's doing that thing, you know, when you were younger, you were in a bar and you knew your boyfriend
17:36was there, but you pretended you'd not seen him, so he came to you first.
17:39Yeah, yeah. When you're not looking, but you are.
17:42Yeah, when you know he's there, but you're like, oh, I've not seen him, I've not seen him. Oh, hi!
17:47I'm not just saying it, but I think they are the prettiest things I've got on the farm.
17:51They're beautiful.
17:52They look so fabulous.
17:56And I was going to go for a classic brown hen, but then these came available.
18:02Now, they're not cheap, and you can tell why, because they look beautiful.
18:05But I thought, do you know what? Yeah.
18:07Let's go for something different and see what we get.
18:10They'll give us a beautiful coloured egg, and I'd be interested to see what chicks we get from the two
18:15together.
18:18But they're definitely interested in each other.
18:20We need a hen cam, don't we?
18:21Yeah.
18:22See what's happening.
18:23See if there's any action.
18:25X-rated.
18:25X-rated, yeah.
18:27Hen station.
18:34Oh, brilliant.
18:35Thanks, Deb.
18:36That is amazing.
18:37You're very welcome.
18:38We'll see what happens.
18:43Right, girls.
18:47Don't just keep yourselves away.
18:48Make sure you play hard to get.
18:50OK?
18:51You never know.
18:52Make sure he's right before any of that happens.
18:54Thanks.
18:56I'm watching.
19:09I'm watching.
19:12Today, Liz and I will be working with Triple Trouble.
19:16Right.
19:17What are we doing, guys?
19:19Do you want to go and check the cows?
19:21Yeah.
19:21Come on, now.
19:22Let's have a wander up.
19:24With Marnie at a dance tournament, Milo, Maximus and Matthias are tasked with helping us on the morning rounds.
19:30And we're happy to take things at a gentler pace and enjoy the walk.
19:36Oh, oh, is that for me?
19:39Give me a kiss.
19:40I love you.
19:42It's autumn now.
19:43It's nearly winter.
19:44You know what happens in autumn?
19:45The leaves fall down.
19:48The leaves fall down.
19:50Well done.
19:51So the leaves were green.
19:52Yeah.
19:53They used to be green like that.
19:54Yeah.
19:54And then they change to brown.
19:57And then when they change, they then fall off.
20:00And the wind comes along and blows them off.
20:03And then all the leaves go.
20:05And that's when you know it's getting ready for winter.
20:08We're all heading up to the top field to check the flock and herd.
20:12Give us your best shot, Wind.
20:15See how much you can blow us.
20:18Dad, don't do that.
20:19Wind, I'm on the sun!
20:21To help warm the kids up, they're helping us move the herd to a different field,
20:26as this one is getting a little bit waterlogged.
20:28So what we're going to have to do now is somehow get the cows out without getting the sheep out.
20:33And I get my darling lamb in the...
20:38Darling is one of the twin lambs that was named by Maximus in the spring.
20:42I think your darling lamb is like a grown up now.
20:46We're so darling lamb, but don't tell him.
20:48Mummy, Mummy, Mummy!
20:51Don't tell me.
20:51Why?
20:52Because she got big.
20:54She got a good price at market, but I'm going to hold off telling Max the news just yet.
20:59We've got a job to do, and he's on main gate duty with Liz.
21:03We don't want the sheep to come out the gate.
21:05We just want the cows.
21:07Yeah.
21:08Tell me what I just said.
21:11Nobody coming out the gate, the cows.
21:14And Mateus and Milo are with me guiding the herd down.
21:18Right.
21:18Just walk slowly behind the calf and walk the calf up here.
21:25That's it.
21:25Walk slowly and don't get too close to the calf.
21:28Just walk up behind it.
21:30Shhh, shhh, shhh, shhh, shhh, shhh, shhh.
21:32So look, they're getting all the cows together and all the cows.
21:35And then hopefully, they'll just walk over.
21:38We can open the gate.
21:41Good boy.
21:42And just keep telling him he's a good boy.
21:44Liz, open the gate and shout.
21:48Come on.
21:48Come on.
21:50You stay there.
21:53They're coming, they're coming, but you just come on, take a bend.
21:56Liz.
21:57Yeah?
21:57Go ahead and open that next gate to the winter field.
22:00No, it doesn't.
22:03It's not too close, kids.
22:04That's it.
22:05Perfect.
22:05What you did there was brilliant.
22:07High five.
22:08Yeah.
22:09Let's just make sure they get in.
22:10Look, they're running now.
22:11They're excited.
22:12Wait for us, Milo.
22:17They did it.
22:18Well done.
22:19Did you see that, Mummy?
22:20That was amazing.
22:20Well done.
22:22The boys were brilliant.
22:23They just kept really calm and they walked up and behind them.
22:26Look how happy they are now.
22:29Have you noticed, can you see Ezra?
22:31How he's nibbling grass?
22:33So it's because he's getting older now.
22:35When he was a baby, he only had his mummy's milk.
22:39But now he's getting a little bit more developed.
22:41His body's changing.
22:43He's able to eat grass now as well.
22:44So he's still having his mummy's milk, but he's eating a bit of grass as well now.
22:48Did you get to listen to Elizabeth?
22:50I did, yeah.
22:52But now she looks well.
22:53Yeah, she's growing.
22:54She's looking good.
22:56After the recent treatment for a touch of pneumonia, our newest addition to the herd has turned a corner.
23:02I'm happy with Elizabeth.
23:04She seems happy.
23:05I'm always happy with Elizabeth.
23:07I'm always happy with Elizabeth.
23:08Easy life.
23:09And she's happy, so.
23:11What are you talking about?
23:12I'm always happy.
23:14You're the moody farmer.
23:16I'm just so happy with the boys.
23:18And then Max did good with mummy on the gate.
23:19That was really good gate duty.
23:22Can we go home and have a tea?
23:26Is that what you want?
23:27Why, because you've worked hard?
23:29Yeah.
23:29All right.
23:30Well done, mate.
23:31You did well there.
23:32I'm starting to think that like us, Milo runs on tea.
23:36There's one thing we've kind of forgot to mention.
23:38What?
23:38There's a good chance that both Cherry and Ruby are going to be back in calf.
23:43Oh, bless them.
23:44Because Crowder's running with them, so they've got calves at foot.
23:47And no doubt Crowder's had a cuddle and they're back in calf.
23:52The herd is growing.
23:54The herd is growing.
23:56Come on, Milo.
23:57Come on.
24:11Fall!öh.
24:1425%
24:15was the launch of our arable farming journey. We grew
24:19oats on land that hadn't seen crops in over 20 years.
24:23after testing our oats at the mill we found that our first batch didn't grade well enough to make
24:28forage but we're not letting that stop us and our agronomist Ben is back to help us plan ahead to
24:34spring so Ben yeah we're actually sacrificing this field this year sacrifice this is going
24:41to be our winter field so we're going to run all our livestock on this field so we're going to
24:44save
24:45the rest of the pasture oh yeah but we've got some big plans for this yeah yeah which is what
24:49today's about I'm taking Ben to the lodge to talk business and man is on hand to take notes
25:01welcome back hey this is exclude you know not many people get to come in here so um what's to
25:10talk
25:10about yeah oats we need to revisit and conquer revisit and conquer I couldn't have put it better
25:22there wasn't enough oomph there wasn't enough grow to make porridge so but with that in mind even
25:27though we were a little bit not I won't even say disappointed we were just oh the crop looked good
25:31all year didn't it I think it's just that dry yeah I'm happy to so many people the old story's
25:38not
25:38over I'm gonna nail oats yeah we're gonna nail oats I'm determined to get oats right this time so a
25:45combination of switching to a different field plus more rain could see our next crop being porridge
25:51approved but that's not the only arable venture we have in mind for 2026 if you thought mine was a
25:57bold ambitious and ideal last year waiting to see where liz is we want to grow maize yeah to make
26:04a maze yes and right in the smack bang in the middle of the maze it's gonna be a cafe
26:08oh right oh well
26:12it's quite hard to plan I did yeah okay well the maze is doable oh we'll do the cafe you
26:18don't need to
26:27but liz and I don't really know much about maize I'm not too embarrassed to say but what actually
26:34is it what is maize it's like corn on the cob sweet corn yeah it's corn on the cob so
26:39we'll get corn on the cob at the
26:40end of it well it's not actually for human consumption the one that we'd be growing if you want a
26:44maze you want
26:45something that's going to get up and get up and get going but you could also use it as animal
26:49feed
26:49after the maze what we could do is somebody buys it off the farm they buy it off the field
26:57they buy
26:58it off the field and they think yeah I mean it was a thousand pounds an acre a thousand pound
27:02an acre
27:03yeah give over yeah for a full for the whole crop for maize yeah I had a few guys that
27:09told it
27:09a bit more than that as well a thousand pounds an acre we'll do it it's a big one but
27:15you'll get 17 16
27:1617 tons I mean that's a thousand pounds an acre sounds brilliant especially for animal feed but as
27:27either with farming we would be naive to think it's a simple process to achieve this maize only ripens on
27:34heat units which is just how much heat it's exposed to so obviously you'd be high up you're going to
27:41be getting on average every day two to three degrees less than someone down sort of nearest the sea level
27:47and that racks up I've spoken to quite a few people about maize altitude and the percentage chance of it
27:54going wrong is higher hmm really it could be about as tall as me how tall are you 5.9
27:59or 5.8
28:01it's enough it could be it could be just a maze for kids it could be kids mate we know
28:06the risks and
28:07we'll take them we'll take them well something else wanted to mix in the maze though
28:12what oh there's more grow sunflowers um I would favor something like a wildflower mix versus
28:20sunflowers because that's a lot easier how long did the wildflowers take to grow six weeks but they
28:27they do stay around to be honest they stay around for a pretty long time because one of the main
28:31things is that bees we want to introduce to the farm yeah and so we're not just doing this for
28:37the
28:37sakes but there is reason behind you are you keen no totally yeah it's bold it's ambitious
28:43adventurous it's all everything that we but we specialize in especially so what do we do now
28:50we've got a child arrived um for now not a lot really wait for it to get warmer and that's
28:56it
28:56power and then plow it also i'll come and soil test it a little nearer the time well thank you
29:02ben
29:02that's been really uh really productive and ambitious for the other man to do it should be good
29:22it's great to be planning ahead with ben and crops are most definitely part of our future plans for
29:28the farm but before we start thinking of planting anything we've got to work through autumn and winter
29:33and at the top of that list is a successful topping season but it's fair to say it hasn't quite
29:40started
29:40as we'd hoped with viper yet to bring his a game viper man is top um even though he's in
29:47great
29:47condition and he's out with 23 females he's only top three and we're a week in now and he should
29:57have done more than that comparison the young clin over there uh larry the larry the clin of the 50
30:04or
30:04so he's with he's tucked 20 so there's there's quite a difference and he's the inexperienced and he's
30:10a mister experience so we're a bit of concern and we've also seen that he's been ramming a few of
30:15the sheep which is obviously not good josh is rounding up the flock as we have a plan for
30:20getting breeding season back on track for the jacobs so as an idea we've got a young jacob top a
30:27shearling top we've sent in a replacement to help him we're not going to take viper out we're going to
30:33allow vipers to stay in there but we're just we're bulking up supplies we've sent another one in and
30:38uh sam's going to go and check now to see how he's gone we only sent him in today so
30:42um
30:44they're standing the tups have spent time together to help them bond but putting news in the mix can
30:50bring out the boys competitive sites he's straight to it isn't he go on lad i mean he's not even
30:56got a
30:56name this replacement we're gonna have to give him a name super sub yeah the super sub it's gonna be
31:00the sub kelvin kelvin the standing the replacement who got called up last minute is in and already is
31:09is done a few if liz can name a calf after herself then why shouldn't i have a namesake in
31:15the flock
31:16and as i was called in as a substitute on strictly it feels fitting that our super sub is my
31:22namesake
31:22let's just hope he's a winner too showing more interest than bark was oh
31:31he's a bit more active now isn't there as well yeah he's a bit of competition his viper's seen that
31:36he's got some competition so he's oh yeah what's happening there is uh viper has suddenly seems a lot
31:46more active which is good which is what we wanted but he's also attacking the other top so that's
31:55what happens you see two males two strong males fighting for the same females it looks like our
32:02new young gun is earning his status as a super sub but it's also starting to highlight a bigger issue
32:08with viper's performance we were hoping maybe two things one he'll spur viper along he'll get viper
32:15feeling a little bit like there's some competition there better up my game and two he's gonna be active
32:20so to keep tabs on who's pulling their weight we've marked viper in blue and our new tub is leaving
32:28a red
32:31mark i mean already i can see one two three red bums yeah and he's re-tucked one that viper
32:39has
32:39took the blue red alone oh interesting which not means normally sheep can sense if something's been
32:48tucked they wouldn't go there a second time whereas if you can see the super sub tupping something that
32:54viper's already tucked it means that viper he might have mounted it but he's not he's not got
33:00the minerals he's not finished the job which is again slightly concerning viper was sassy by the
33:07vet he's healthy his sperm's healthy there's no reason why you can't do the job for whatever reason
33:13a week in and he's just not really showing interest but he's now attacking the other male that we've just
33:19put in what we don't want him is attacking the male potentially killing the male and viper not
33:27working and we've got we've got no lambs at all marnie's she was probably hoping for best part of 50
33:32lambs and at this rate we we might be lucky if we get six so you know something's wrong so
33:52our move into arable farming is an important piece of our farming jigsaw me and liz would love
33:58this place to be fully sustainable rearing livestock growing crops and vegetables for us to eat ourselves
34:04or self so to get some tips on growing the arable side of our farming business
34:10liz and i are heading over to the other side of cheshire to meet a couple whose veg business grew
34:16from their passion to try something new lovely sheds out there david how are you mate how's it going
34:24yeah really good thanks how are you yeah good thank you hello nice to meet you nice to meet you
34:28nice to meet you david and becky's enterprise started small but now their business supplies
34:37around 3 000 households with fresh veg boxes every week and it's 90 locally grown we had just a rusty
34:46gate out there no power no water just a green field but just this idea this this uh light bulb
34:53moment
34:53like we're gonna start growing our own veg it was a little bit unsure but i was like okay let's
34:57go for
34:58it there's people really interested in it 12 years on and they now have a team of admin staff and
35:06packers
35:06pickers all working year-round producing and selling seasonal veg wow so impressive such a great setup
35:22it's just unbelievable it smells fresh the colors everything it feels like we're looking at me and
35:30kelvin in the future because they started out where we started out it was us two you're trying to do
35:36every single job and it's you stretch to the limit you get to the point where when you bring people
35:42in
35:42you can grow that bit more and look at this it's inspired me to really go for that now
35:48it's really really impressive
35:52across 92 acres they produce seasonal veg year round in winter it's crops like carrots potatoes cabbage
35:59and parsnips i mean the weather's not looking good we've got to go outside picking in a minute
36:05i've not brought my jacket i'm not i've not brought my big coat i've not even got my wellies
36:11and they're going to want us picking but i've just noticed liz is wearing wellies and this has got a
36:17big coat on so i might delegate that liz doesn't just pick it i've picked before and i i've done
36:23i don't want to be doing that i'm above that now i'm a level above liz is still working her
36:30way up
36:30so i'll let liz pick it's good if i pack your wellies isn't it yeah perfect although i've not got
36:38my
36:38welly socks so much for not getting my hands dirty today let's get picking
37:00i think the carrots yeah oh wow we'll do it we'll do it the old-fashioned way
37:09there you go wow look at that look at that do you know what when they're nice and fresh like
37:16this they taste so much better yes man have a go oh that was nice you must be so proud
37:29of what
37:29you've done like you're literally creating the freshest veg it's amazing when you think about the
37:36journey and how we've started and with the two of us and the little carrot patch and now you've got
37:41there's nine acres of carrots and it's just you know i love it i love it i love it it's
37:47come alive
37:47now i definitely want to grow a few i stand corrected picking is where it's at and liz is more
37:54than happy
37:55in a supervisory role i thought it was all about livestock i thought it was all about sheep and cows
38:01and
38:02i want to grow veg i want to grow veg how good is that just getting your hands in the
38:11soil in it that's
38:12it this is what it's about i could do this with the kids yeah kids love picking the veg oh
38:18god i bet
38:19they love it he's not stopping is he we should sign him up get him on the team listen i'm
38:25ready
38:26for it kelvin is is completely like i've never seen excitement like it he's bonding with david over
38:33the soil digging i mean that is boys in their element isn't it in mud with a pitchfork digging up
38:45carrots it's just good soil it's just getting your hands in it if you know you know you know don't
38:51you the feeling i'm gonna take my shoes off in a minute amazing onto the parsnips now
39:03let's get picking parsnips
39:11that's a reject in the supermarket what's now wrong with it that is huge wow you don't get that in
39:21the supermarket do you we waste so much veg in the uk because it but it can be used i
39:27mean obviously
39:27obviously this one's perfect and that's perfect look at that make some parsnips soup or roasted
39:36parsnips a bit of drizzle a bit of oil drizzle a bit of honey stick them in the oven beautiful
39:43i can't stop i just love it honestly i just didn't think i'd enjoy it as much as this
39:52where have i been all my life what have i been doing just hearing the piece of the
39:58countryside nice isn't it first thing i'm gonna do when i get home is just go mark out a bit
40:04of
40:04ground and that's it i'm having that ground well that is one of the most enjoyable things i've ever done
40:22have you enjoyed that yes honestly you've sold me i'm already thinking of where we can do it so
40:30we've picked it now we've got to pack it yeah come on and then are you going to deliver it
40:34no
40:39we may struggle to grow this much veg at altitude on our farm but today feels more
40:44about getting a glimpse of our future cells and it would be great to see our farm producing crops
40:49and products on this kind of scale come on let's get going let's get going
41:13after a long cold day we're all finally able to get warm in the lodge and tonight there's something
41:19extra special on the menu so i don't normally go to this extent but because we've been to grubabs and
41:26got all this fresh veg i can't not use it the smell is just so it just smells so sweet
41:33and fresh and
41:34clean that i thought you know what i'll go that little bit of extra mile i'm gonna make the most
41:39of it while i can i used to be the cook and liz should be the first to say she
41:46was well fed it was a
41:48proper meal every night breakfast i made i was the i was the house husband but then since pretty much
41:55we've been here that is no longer the case and liz has taken that mantle and i've lost 10 kilograms
42:07is that true that is true but there's only one way to fix it start cooking again start cooking
42:16right kids tea's ready it's the best meal i've ever cooked
42:25see when i've got the time and when i try i can actually cook i cannot believe there's no coleslaw
42:32on
42:32this anyone who knows liz knows that she puts coleslaw on everything i remember one year we were lambing
42:40and i was just shattered i've been out in the shed all night i come in out absolutely starving and
42:46she
42:46had a chicken kiev in the oven for about six weeks this chicken kiev was absolutely just
42:54burnt to a cinder and it was just there in a plate i think i put it on my instagram
42:58and people were just
42:59laughing their heads off and that was my tea and then i said liz it was burned and she was
43:05like
43:06just put some coleslaw with it but it's one of them where you just take a deep breath
43:14and i did i put some coleslaw with it and i had to and he fixed it
43:20i'd made a chicken kiev the size of a chicken nugget tonight's dinner is a big step up and it
43:26looks
43:26amazing right kids come on because i'm not joking i've never cooked such a meal this is a celebration
43:33wow you look good come on kids being at the farm that grew this veg makes it all the more
43:39special
43:42wow sit down my love this one's yours
43:49max you're here manny you're here right go big voices
43:54okay helping hands and quietly say thank you for our food today
44:03now we can all eat exactly
44:12somebody asked me today do you guys live on a farm me so yeah they said what's the best
44:19bit about living on a farm so like riding the quads being on the vehicles i really like it where
44:24max and matthews come and wonder off and mommy paints and then mommy and daddy and me
44:31those two parcels i just love that we and like look around and like a farm and see if we
44:41could build
44:54the kids are tucking in and it's great to think that one day soon they could be filling up on
44:59veg grown
45:00on our own farm oh well daddy's finishes daddy's finishes dinner so i'll be having a dessert and
45:07that's about as long as our dinners last before you get like five seconds you think this is going
45:12to be good and then they are just ants in their pants
45:25next time on our farm the barn undergoes another transformation as preparations for this year's
45:32winter event gets underway you go steady first right now go
45:38that's it the lads you need to carry on painting it but there's your sign the santa's grotto
45:44ginger gives birth to her first litter this one's a big lad what are you boy
45:52and the bad weather puts a halt to rounding up the flock as we can't see them will the sheep
45:58see you
45:58the sheep won't know where to go oh
46:35this one's a big one's a big old fish
46:35what are you going to see them are a big leaveness
46:39doing it
46:39you
46:39you
46:39you
46:39you
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