Month: January 2026

Wk34 – The Start of 2026

And like that, 2025 was finally over. Not that 2026 is likely to feel any better. However, comparing the start of years highlights a small change in mindset. In 2025, we packed up and headed to a temporary rental property, having failed to complete before Christmas. Yet this year, we’re still taking it all in and wondering if the farm bubble will ever burst.

Given the weather at the end of the first week of 2026, I may have fallen in love with the farm all over again.

Hedges

Overgrown

The biggest project this week has largely had me sitting in the warm shed watching someone else transform the farm’s appearance.

Hedges as they stood in 2024

Most of the farm’s hedges have not been touched since the previous farmer retired. And during the three years the house was empty, while someone was contracted to keep them tidy, this never happened.

The ‘Allotment’ in 2024, during a site visit.

In those years without management, the hedge had grown vertically by up to seven feet. And almost as much in width. On the narrow lane, this was a big loss of width, and on the main road, the lack of vision around the bend was becoming an issue.

All the gear

A chance spot of doom scrolling on Facebook, and I spotted an advert for hedge cutting. Having had a call a few days before to find the guys we had booked could no longer come, it seemed like a rather lucky spot.

The hedges will be no match for a full-size Valtra.

A few messages and a price and time were set. Early on the 2nd of Janaury this beast turned up, driven by a local young farmer. Not only did he bring the right tools, he also brought a lot of experience.

Beautifully topped and levelled hedge row.

The pictures won’t do justice to how well the height was brought down, and then the width was reduced. I’m always a little apprehensive about finding trades on Facebook with limited references and shiny pictures. However, this time I really landed on my feet.

From Jungle to managed hedges in just one day.

Around every post, pipe and tree was perfectly cut. I expected there might be a lot of tidying up around some of the bigger posts; however, as I watched the precision driving, I soon realised there would be nothing that needed fettling.

By the time the artist had finished on my hedges, he was off down the road to do most of the neighbours properties too!

And then the snow came

Some of my favourite books from when I was young include The Jolly Christmas Postman, The Snowman, and the Thomas the Tank Engine episode where he refuses to wear an ‘ugly and heavy’ snow plough and hits a snow bank.

The first snow of the season starts with just a few flakes.

I love snow, and I love that pre-Beaching romantic snow-covered countryside that I was exposed to at a young age. Imagine my excitement when the snow started to fall here!

Idyllic pictures of the Ford7610 with fresh snow.

Even after a brief flurry, there is something magical and levelling about the crisp white snow that transforms a landscape. Even just a brief scattering on the wheels of the tractor is enough to make me smile and lift my mood.

Tell the kids the snow will be there in the morning, and they won’t believe you!

Over a few days, the briefly scattered snow landed on very frozen ground and failed to vanish, as it usually does. Try telling children in the UK that there will be snow in the morning, and they won’t believe you. And I understand why. These two were still coming down the big hill on a sledge after dark. And I’m so disappointed I was still at work!

But it wasn’t all fun and games when I fell arse over tit in a well-hidden ice patch. I don’t think I have ever decked that hard in my life. It certainly took a few moments to breath again, a few more to find my glasses, and manay more for the bleeding to stop!

Husbandry

For all the animals, this was their very first snow, which didn’t really seem to slow them down.

Felis Catus

I suspect I had more fun with the snow and the tiny little paw prints than the cats did. We went out with them when they first ventured into the white stuff. And it was hilarious.

First snow for the dynamic duo.

I don’t speak cat, but the expressions and behaviour certainly said ‘what the hell is this’ as they tried to shake the frozen water from the fur. But it didn’t stop them. They went everywhere that day.

Porcine

And the pigs were equally unperturbed by the blanket of soft, fluffy covering that they woke up to. There was a little less routing for a few days, and I suspect they might have enjoyed their extra rations.

Bacon, chilling.

One thing about the chilled bacon is the amazing pictures that follow. I really could have sat capturing still images of these guys all afternoon as the sun slowly descended. This really is a much better way to live.

And that’s it for this week. A very full work week means there will be no Wk35 article, so I will rejoin you in Wk36.

That’s all for now
Nothing to Farm

January 20, 2026
Wk33 – When Is Bins?
The last post of 2025, and as I sit, we’re right in the middle of ‘Betwixt-mas’. That weird time between Christmas and New Year, when the effects of excess cake give rise to the question ‘When Is Bins’? Frankly, I’m dependent on neighbours to know which bin goes out when. However, I am a master of my own destiny when it comes to the farm! Well, sort of.

Things not covered in this week’s report;
- The annual pilgrimage North to the in-laws.
- Unexpectedly large bills.
- Never ending dog barking.
Husbandry

Felis Catus

The cats seem to be slowly progressing upwards from spiders, through worms and on to mice. They’ve even been spotted making daft attempts on bird.

The cats are finally mousing.

The move to mousing is rather welcome as we’re seeing more and more evidence of the mice in our storage area. As much as I don’t mind sharing with wild animals, they are starting to destroy soft furnishings.

Some of the mice are brought to us; this one wasn’t so lucky.

We’re not entirely sure who is the better hunter, but we have seen Bonnie bringing in two small and formerly furry criters. The chewed up ball of mouse above didnt seem to quite make it in the door, much to Bonnies confusion.

The hunters are getting bolder and have a wider search radius.

Both cats are continuing to push their hunting boundaries. Bonnie has been seen in the lane, although she may have just been following us! While Clyde has started prowling the field!

After a long day hunting, they still enjoy a box to sleep in.

And all this extra activity seems to be tiring them out. I’m not sure if they know about Christmas presents under the tree, but they really should have asked for a new box for their ‘main’ present.

Porcine

The piggies are really starting to grow now, and they definitely won’t let us forget a feed. The auto-filling water trough has gone down well; they even seem to have worked out thatthey need to take turns.

The Kune Kunes have been quite a draw for the locals.

They’ve enjoyed a couple of extra feeds in the last week, having become something of a local tourist attraction. Well, the neighbours’ grandkids and other school kids have been to visit.

The piggies seem rather robust to the cold.

They’ve also been given the last of the windfall before it becomes inedible. That was a very happy day for the piggies. I think they may have gorged themselves as they spent the afternoon lying in something of a dog pile.

Megashed 2.0

Plastering Touch Ups

Last week’s write-up ended with the application of expanding foam and plenty of polyfilla to bridge some of the holes. The gaps were of my own making, where the boarding wasn’t especially tight.

Gaps around the steelwork are filled and prepared.

Fortunately, the gaps filled up rather well, and once the filler was dry, it could be scraped and sanded back into shape. The final result was far better than I expected.

The ceiling is fully painted with a white matt emulsion finish.

With the gaps filled and prepped, I could finish off painting the ceiling. Fortunately, I had precisely the right amount of paint!

The room is far too ‘white’ as it stands.

Ceiling paint work finished and wall primed, the whole room was cleared out. The vapour barrier was tidied up and pinned down ready for flooring.

Rustic-looking ‘village shop’ with the pallet stands.

With the pallet scaffold piled up outside, the Megashed 2.0 looked rather rustic.

Top Coat

A new day, and the final layer of paint could be added!

‘Tranquil Dawn’ top coat is applied to the walls.

I’ve opted for the Dulux colour of the year, Tranquil Dawn. According to various online articles, the colour should promote peace and tranquillity. It was also on offer at B&Q.

With a bit of help, the walls are covered in double time.

I had expected to spend a whole day painting the walls at my usual precise but slow pace. However, a visitor and long-suffering friend arrived, took pity and smashed it out in an hour. His extra height probably helped.

Final Window

When we brought the carport down earlier in the year, there was a small incident with one of the window cill pieces. Applying 200kg of flying beam to a plastic trim part doesn’t end well.

The hole for the last window has been opened.

This meant the installation of the final window had been much delayed. After months of trying to find some second hand trim in a light oak finish, I finally had to bit the bullet and buy some new materials.

The new sill is attached to the window unit and installed.

Once the new sill arrived, I could finally install the last window and seal up the whole building. While the addition of the final reclaimed UPVC unit didn’t significantly affect the heat, it certainly helped with humidity.

Flooring

With the paint probably still drying on the walls, my attention turned to the flooring. So far, only a thin 9mm sheet of plywood has been in place as the subfloor.

Primary flooring of 22mm Caberfloor is quick to install.

Over the subfloor, I’m installing a 22mm Caberfloor. The tongue-and-groove is glued together as the sheets are installed with a minimum of screws.

The result is a quieter and more solid feeling room.

All in all, it took about three hours to get the flooring down. The trickiest bit is around the door where the ductwork comes up from the plant room.

Within hours of the flooring going down, the carpet is laid.

While I was on such a roll with finishing the interior, I just couldn’t stop. By 9 pm, I had recovered the underlay and carpet from the downstairs of the farmhouse and reinstalled it in the shed. This is a level of comfort we’ve not enjoyed for a long time!

Minecraft now dominates the activities in the shed.

And the following day, we started moving in. Once I had my computer over from the farmhouse, the children descended, and much of the rest of the day was spent on Minecraft. A fantastic way to end the week.

Vehicles

Motorbike – BMW F650 ST

Regular readers will remember I had a rather unexpected but welcome trip out on a motorbike last week. Well, during the day out, I might have done a thing!

The bike doesn’t stay in one piece for long!

Through hit-and-miss texts when the signal allowed, I ended up buying my first motorbike. And as I had not yet returned the team bike trailer, an early Monday morning saw this beautiful machine brought up from the Midlands.

A clean bike is easier to work on, so it pops out for a bath.

From the picture above, I’m sure you can see that within hours of the bike arriving at the farm, the boys were round and had it stripped down! However, towards the end of the week, I had the back wheel back on and took her outside for an overdue wash down.

The wet is baked off in the afternoon sun.

In a rare breakthrough of warming sun, the bike was introduced to some of the other farm equipment and allowed to bake. Of course, it rained before I took her back inside! I won’t give too many updates on here; I have a whole separate blog for car and automotive things, BXProject.co.uk, which I hope to get back into shortly.

And that’s all for 2025.

I’ll be taking a few weeks’ rest from the write-up at the start of 2026, so don’t panic if you don’t hear from us for a few weeks. If nothing else, I need a few weeks to catch up physically from the Megashed 2.0 build.

Until next time.
NothingToFarm
January 2, 2026