Nevertheless we hope to have our own rhubarb for Easter, but think asparagus might not appear much before the end of April. Should temperatures warm up soon, and in particular night time temperatures, then the situation could change. We will keep you posted!
Lambing is well underway now; with the first born lambs now out at grass with their mothers. They had a tough time at the beginning with those Siberian winds finding their way into every corner of the lambing shed. Frozen water pipes just added to the workload, and the younger generation had to be reminded that winters were “routinely like this” in the old days! Calving is also in progress, and there are lots of very gorgeous South Devon and Longhorn calves frolicking in the yards. If customers would like to visit them please just ask in the shop and we can arrange this.
For keen gardeners, we may well have a few asparagus crowns surplus this spring. We are due to plant again sometime around the end of March/beginning of April, and suggest anyone interested in buying some contacts us in the shop. The variety is Millennium a F1 hybrid which is a vigorous Canadian variety suited to our conditions.
Our first pop up dining event in the Granary was deemed a great success. Over 40 people turned up to enjoy a convivial evening of our Cook’s home made pies, crumbles etc seated around a roaring log fire. Following this, the Antiques Valuation day, in conjunction with JS Fine Art, raised over £250 for Katharine House and produced some very interesting items. Our next event, for which we are taking bookings, is a Spanish Wine Tasting evening on Thursday 22nd March. The idea is that North Oxfordshire Wines will talk guests through a selection of 8 excellent, but different, Spanish wines whilst encouraging them to sample authentic tapas and artisanal foods at the same time. It promises to be a fun evening and very social. Please see our website for more details or to book a place.
