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26th August 2010 Laurence was asleep and...Read this entry.

20th August 2010 For a long time the countrys...Read this entry.

15th August 2010 The weather is now fit for d...Read this entry.

10th August 2010 Picture the scene: fou...Read this entry.

8th August 2010 Recycled paper waste is...Read this entry.

30th July 2010 I have just returned fro...Read this entry.

5th July 2010 The dry weather is causing sever...Read this entry.

4th July 2010 It is the end of an era a...Read this entry.

23rd June 2010 We’ve been hosting schoo...Read this entry.

18th June 2010 At the Hampton Court Flo...Read this entry.

8th June 2010 The past few weeks have b...Read this entry.

29th May 2010 Earlier in the year I entered t...Read this entry.

9th May 2010 An enormous amo...Read this entry.

8th May 2010 The extra diligence in the days after ...Read this entry.

17th April 2010 Our sows farrow in barn...Read this entry.

15th April 2010 Based on only one siting of Percy mating with Prudence on 21st December last year, I h...Read this entry.

12th April 2010 A Belted Galloway heife...Read this entry.

12th April 2010 As the weather has recently im...Read this entry.

18th March 2010 Day two of the TB testing has gone...Read this entry.

14th March 2010 It has been a week busy with cattl...Read this entry.

9th March 2010 Read this entry.

7th March 2010 It has been week of voting in...Read this entry.

20th February 2010 At Ham...Read this entry.

10th February 2010 Read this entry.

9th February 2010 Read this entry.

30th January 2010 Read this entry.

24th January 2010 The farm is generally...Read this entry.

7th January 2010 Hello! did you bring any food with you? Read this entry.

6th January 2010 Let it snow, let it snow, l...Read this entry.

5th January 2010 December has been a mo...Read this entry.

18th December 2009 A slight flurry of snow fe...Read this entry.

13th December 2009 It’s certainly...Read this entry.

21st November 2009 Read this entry.

17th October 2009 All the maize grown this y...Read this entry.

14th October 2009 Sadly Prudence lost o...Read this entry.

9th October 2009 Prudence still hadn&rs...Read this entry.

9th October2009 I collected over 2,000 sausa...Read this entry.

7th October 2009 This week’s new experience has been learnig how to butcher a pig!...Read this entry.

28th September 2009 Surrey County Agricu...Read this entry.

26th September 2009 The summer harvest ...Read this entry.

11th September 2009 Farm walk details l...Read this entry.

6th September 2009 We are hosting a farm walk - cum talk at Manor Farm, Wotton, RH5 6QF&...Read this entry.

29th August 2009 Inevitably breakdowns do occur during summer, our busiest time of year,...Read this entry.

19th August 2009 Read this entry.

8th August 2009 Fortunately Laurence man...Read this entry.

5th August 2009 Edward was walking home...Read this entry.

15th July 2009 Since March and during a...Read this entry.

6th July 2009 Hooray!Read this entry.

2nd July 2009 Our main beef herd arrive on the far...Read this entry.

14th June 2009 As a ribbon of mist hung effor...Read this entry.

4th June 2009 Mole Valley ...Read this entry.

1st June 2009 It’s great to have ...Read this entry.

28th May 2009 In checking the pig paddock today, D...Read this entry.

17th May 2009 Raymond has been drilling maize in the sunshine at Wotton and Abinger over the la...Read this entry.

7th May 2009 Read this entry.

3rd May 2009 Read this entry.

29th April 2009 Read this entry.

20th April 2009 Yes I know, it's been an age ...Read this entry.

16th March 2009 As soon as we a...Read this entry.

15th March 2009 Read this entry.

13th March 2009 In preparation for this year...Read this entry.

28th February 2009 This was Prudence's first farrowing (and mine!) so she was likely to have a smaller...Read this entry.

27th February 2009 ...Read this entry.

27th February 2009 Last year, Harvey th...Read this entry.

25th February 2009 The farm is a hub of...Read this entry.

18th February 2009 Mike came along to t...Read this entry.

9th February 2009 What fabulous weather for walking in, it’s cold and wet and I di...Read this entry.

2nd February 2009 Being up on a...Read this entry.

30th January 2009 We have jus...Read this entry.

19th January 2009   Read this entry.

4th January 2009 We get a few days each wint...Read this entry.

1st January 2009  Read this entry.

11th December 2008 We are making slow progre...Read this entry.

3rd December 2008 It is a time of paperw...Read this entry.

21st November 2008 Over the weekend we had tw...Read this entry.

12th November 2008 Laurence is up at Sto...Read this entry.

10th November 2008 It has been a very bu...Read this entry.

17th October 2008 Read this entry.

5th October 2008 Congrat...Read this entry.

26th September 2008 Tha...Read this entry.

26th September 2008 Read this entry.

22nd September 2008 We have just been through a rather stressful half an hour.  Laurence tele...Read this entry.

21st Setember 2008 Two of the cattle on the North Downs indicated a thicker ...Read this entry.

19th September 2008 The main ‘summer&rsqu...Read this entry.

15th September 2008 Animal Health are TB testing here today.  Thirty one animals will be test...Read this entry.

14th September 2008 The wheat harvest was completed at 1am and after a short sleep laurence heade...Read this entry.

13th September 2008 The grain has been coming off the ...Read this entry.

11th September 2008 One of our boys is doing a weather log over this week for his Geograph...Read this entry.

10th September 2008 I met with graphic designers today who are producing an historic information board ...Read this entry.

4th September 2008 Laurence finally rolled in a...Read this entry.

4th September 2008 I have been renewing all the photos on my educational display boards, which took the...Read this entry.

30th August 2008 Sunshine in Surrey!Read this entry.

26th August 2008 EVENING UPDATE - FIRE!  A...Read this entry.

26th August 2008 Read this entry.

25th August 2008 The last of the fields at Silen...Read this entry.

21st August 2008 Unfortunately rain keeps stoppi...Read this entry.

18th August 2008 The unexpected heavy rain on Saturda...Read this entry.

16th August 2008 The pigs continue to grow ever larger, particularly Percy who is such a ...Read this entry.

9th August 2008 It is like winter outside, grey...Read this entry.

7th August 2008 A letter has arrived from DEFRA inform...Read this entry.

3rd August 2008 A scene of carnage met us in th...Read this entry.

29th July 2008 Read this entry.

28th July 2008 The boys came running to find me...Read this entry.

18th July 2008 We have put out feelers to buy s...Read this entry.

13th July 2008 Hampton Court Flower Show was wet unde...Read this entry.

8th July 2008 Having spent hours with the ITV camera crew and the presenter Chris Choy Laurence had gi...Read this entry.

7th July 2008 Read this entry.

7th July 2008 Read this entry.

6th July 2008 Fred used to say to Laurence &lsq...Read this entry.

30th June 2008 The name of a book which our boys...Read this entry.

22nd June 2008 This year's International Oilsee...Read this entry.

17th June 2008 The maize we planted under plastic in ...Read this entry.

14th June 2008 In the last 14 years being marri...Read this entry.

8th June 2008 It is a quiet weekend apart from the usual round of checking livestock and ensuring they ...Read this entry.

5th June 2008 What a glorious day, not 'flaming June' but never the less, the sun is shining and that's...Read this entry.

1st June 2008 Already into the sixth month of the year, time flies too fast!  Laurence is sub-soi...Read this entry.

29th May 2008 ...Read this entry.

27th May 2008 The Surrey County Agricultural Society (SCAS) took a huge loss at the County Show in 200...Read this entry.

22nd May 2008 After digging a 400m trench, layi...Read this entry.

19th May 2008 Much of the same work continues, it may...Read this entry.

15th May 2008 We have vaccinated just over 500 c...Read this entry.

10th May 2008 La...Read this entry.

8th May 2008 It’s all systems go! ...Read this entry.

7th May 2008 1pm.  We have had a call from ...Read this entry.

6th May 2008 We went to collect our piglets last...Read this entry.

5th May 2008 Each year we can loose hundreds of acres ...Read this entry.

2nd May 2008 It...Read this entry.

25th April 2008 Read this entry.

18th April 2008 Read this entry.

17th April 2008   Read this entry.

2nd April 2008 Read this entry.

27th March 2008 Read this entry.

23rd March 2008 Read this entry.

14th March 2008 Dick is fencing down in the Rookery, David is doing repairs to the grain store and Donald, ...Read this entry.

12th March 2008 Read this entry.

7th March 2008 Paula Matthews Read this entry.

1st March 2008 Paula Matthews Read this entry.

27th February 2008 Laurence is busy preparing for a v...Read this entry.

13th February 2008 Laurence has been combining the last of the maize today so the combine harvester can...Read this entry.

11th February 2008 On such a beautiful spring morning it was an added bonus to hear the bleating of a n...Read this entry.

8th February 2008 Bluetongue Protection Zone extended - Manor Farm in zone ...Read this entry.

4th February 2008 I have been busy printing off letter...Read this entry.

 22nd January 2008 After the high winds last night, the skies cleared an...Read this entry.

15th January 2008 Our friends from across the water, Seaumus and Aisling have just survived a...Read this entry.

13th January 2008 It has been a busy media week for farming with TV programm...Read this entry.

Avian Influenza Three dead wild mute swans at the Abbotsbury Swannery in Dorset have been conf...Read this entry.

10th January 2008 Laurence gave a local radio interview on New Year's Eve, looking back on the ...Read this entry.

31st December 2007 The maize is in ventilated storage waiting...Read this entry.

26th December 2007 I have just returned from a walk with the dogs and checkin...Read this entry.

16th December 2007 Paula Matthews We have had another visit from the Fire Bri...Read this entry.

14th December 2007   Farming continues all year round and some m...Read this entry.

11th December 2007 Where have the last eight days gone? Read this entry.

3rd December 2007 Orders have been coming in fast for the first Manor Farm be...Read this entry.

2nd December 2007 The rain was coming sideways this morning and even the chic...Read this entry.

26th November 2007 Laurence and I had a really interesting visit to meet Vir...Read this entry.

24th November 2007  Beef Box Scheme It ...Read this entry.

22nd November 2007 Another Pirbright Scare.  Read this entry.

An Inspirational Teacher. I recently attended a Farmers Seminar organised b...Read this entry.

21st November 2007 With cattle safely back near home for their winter keep and another twelve off to Chitty's...Read this entry.

Robin Atkins 1939 - 2007 I would like to pay tribute to our landlord at Normandy who sadly passed away thi...Read this entry.

Paula Matthews 20th November 2007. The Year of Food and Farming The Year...Read this entry.

15th November 2007 Today began bright and crisp and was just perfect for a...Read this entry.

6th November 2007 We have received written notification that the cattle recently tested on o...Read this entry.

23rd October 2007 A new Foot and Mouth Restricted Zone (RZ) has been put in place which includes the Surveillan...Read this entry.

17th October Wednesday evening A further call has confirmed that DEFRA would like to take bl...Read this entry.

17th October 2007After a very stressful and resticting couple of months some of our staff are get...Read this entry.

16th October 2007 When DEFRA began to give daily updates of Bluetongue disease cases, it was pres...Read this entry.

15th October 2007 A temporary control zone has been placed over a farm in Rye, Sussex as a precaut...Read this entry.

13th October 2007 Almost every day now there seem to be two or three revised licenses on the DEFRA...Read this entry.

10th October 2007 Having completed various exemption forms today to apply for cattle movements, Lau...Read this entry.

8th October 2007 We are just trying to fathom out the regulations regarding the movement of livestock...Read this entry.

2nd October 2007 The end of our financial year was on Sunday so Laurence has been ...Read this entry.

26th September 2007 The sixth British Food Fortnight between 22nd September and 7th October is the biggest national...Read this entry.

22nd September 2007 Just when we thought things had to get better - There is an announcement from DEFRA of the first UK case of Bluetongue in the...Read this entry.

21st September 2007 Members of the public are keeping a close watch on livestock as they walk in the countryside which is appreciated.&...Read this entry.

20th September 2007 Our new routine will entail Sam checking the cattle at Chappel Farm on his way to and from work and he will feed the...Read this entry.

19th September 2007 The test results on the cattle at the fifth farm show antibodies to FMD and during the post mortem, 10 day old lesions were ...Read this entry.

17th September 2007 - nearly the 18th! Our main aim is to do all we can to eradicate Foot and Mouth Disease from Surrey, so we are ensuring all ou...Read this entry.

17th September 2007 A typical livestock day during this time of FMD entails checking each group of cattle, feeding calves and any livestock in bar...Read this entry.

16th September 2007 It's all gone very quiet. This weekend most of our staff had some time off, although feeding of calves and checking livestock ...Read this entry.

13th September 2007 Many of our cattle moved to new grazing yesterday morning, before the news of the suspected case of FMD had reached us. We are...Read this entry.

12th September 2007 Early arrival of a 'new' tractor today (two of the Same tractors are still out of commission). It is actually six years o...Read this entry.

11th September 2007 We are back on track with 75 calves arriving over the past week. Each calf must arrive with it's personal passport and the ear...Read this entry.

8th September 2007 At midday the Foot and Mouth restrictions were lifted! The 10km zone around Normandy has been removed, leaving the 5km temporar...Read this entry.

6th September 2007 Tomorrow there should be an official announcement of how Foot and Mouth Disease escaped from the Pirbright Laboratory or Merial...Read this entry.

3rd September 2007 Work went fairly well yesterday. Early in the morning before the Sunday drivers were out in force, Laurence took the combine h...Read this entry.

31st August 2007 Cattle welfare is of paramount importance from the time the calves arrive on farm through to their journey by haulier to abbatoir...Read this entry.

30th August 2007 The combine harvester, tractors and trailers have struggled on some very wet fields over the past few days so the weather needs ...Read this entry.

26th August 2007 This week we have taken the loss of two steers that had been ready to go to slaughter. The barn in which they were housed was mu...Read this entry.

23rd August 2007 Today has brought some good news. The Great Britain wide movement ban on live animals will be lifted ...Read this entry.

19th August 2007 Originally I was expecting to use this latest news page every so often just to outline the work currently being undertaken on t...Read this entry.

18th August 2007 The blood tests and swabs taken from our calves on Monday have confirmed our earlier diagnosis of Infectious Bovine Rhinotracheit...Read this entry.

Monday 13th August 2007 We had expected to hear the diagnosis on our calves today, however it transpired over the weekend that for bio security me...Read this entry.

Sunday 12th August 2007 Yesterday afternoon and evening Laurence harvested 50 acres of wheat at Westcott and Hackhurst which is quite good going c...Read this entry.

Saturday 11th August 2007 NEGATIVE results to all tests! Fantastic news and such an enormous relief.  Laurence phone...Read this entry.

Friday Evening Until all the tests are completed, farms under suspicion receive a daily visit from the DEFRA vet.  The vet came round this afternoon ...Read this entry.

Friday 3pm Why is it that no one from DEFRA contacted us to explain that a Temporary Zone was being put around our farm, will they tell us when it's lifte...Read this entry.

Friday 10th August 2007 - 12.15am We had a call just before midnight on the farming grapevine, that Debby Reynolds, Chief Veterinary Officer was about to ...Read this entry.

9th August 2007- Thursday Not a good start to the day.  Some of the calves are looking a bit poorly so we have called the vet and just waiting for hi...Read this entry.

Wednesday afternoon I have just heard that animals are being culled on a third site and I feel sick to the stomach.  Pigs are very contageous, so it ...Read this entry.

8th August 2007 - Wednesday The last few days have merged into one. On Monday afternoon we heard from John Gunner whose cattle are grazing the land we re...Read this entry.

6th August, 2007 Just before 10pm on Friday 3rd August, I had a call from Laurence who was still out combining. He said to switch on the news because t...Read this entry.

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