Im moving to Orkney, 1st time small holder - Gimme that knowledge

[2wheels]

That looks stunning, we just missed it came back down south Wednesday. I really look forward to our chance to see, all being well with sale of our house should be ready to go in January, not the best weather wise maybe.

Real shame about the abattoir, I must confess in my initial research to just a quick google and seeing the council run shutting and the consortium taking over shame it didnt last. Im surprised there isn't the demand. Do you know of any other options other than Dingwall? Cant quite see the missus marching out and despatching one of her pet cows.

Thanks for the sound advice.

just chase the cow over the cliffs. i mean the one with four legs before some wag makes a comment. i'm sure your missus is charming. i'll shut up now.

 

[jamesy]

That looks stunning, we just missed it came back down south Wednesday. I really look forward to our chance to see, all being well with sale of our house should be ready to go in January, not the best weather wise maybe.

Real shame about the abattoir, I must confess in my initial research to just a quick google and seeing the council run shutting and the consortium taking over shame it didnt last. Im surprised there isn't the demand. Do you know of any other options other than Dingwall? Cant quite see the missus marching out and despatching one of her pet cows.

Thanks for the sound advice.

There’s a few folk that will do home kills for you.

 

[Dynamite_Matt]

So we made it! left last Monday and arrived 800miles later at our new home Friday morning, it was certainly a trip, two day breakdown at Birmingham (DPF filter) greenflag were amazing putting us up in hotels and paying half the repair all thanks to us having onwards travel cover, it did make us miss the worst of the weather, but it was still hairy enough driving the twisty snowy roads with some intermitent loss of power thing going on with the truck but thats an issue for another day.

It appears im currently farming geese they are everywhere and rats are running rampant in our floors, walls and loft but its the honeymoon period so I think it would take alot to dampen our spirits. PLenty of planning to be done through winter but enjoying just milling around figuring who does what and meeting plenty of very welcoming people.
Im pretty crap at remembering to take pictures I'll try to get some of the other halfs

 

[czechmate]

Wishing you the best of luck

 

[dunkie]

All the best.
Different world up there possibly?

I thought it would be a different world before visiting, never seen so many quality livestock in one place anywhere I have been, that includes all of North America.

 

[jamesy]

View attachment 1009105View attachment 1009106
So we made it! left last Monday and arrived 800miles later at our new home Friday morning, it was certainly a trip, two day breakdown at Birmingham (DPF filter) greenflag were amazing putting us up in hotels and paying half the repair all thanks to us having onwards travel cover, it did make us miss the worst of the weather, but it was still hairy enough driving the twisty snowy roads with some intermitent loss of power thing going on with the truck but thats an issue for another day.

It appears im currently farming geese they are everywhere and rats are running rampant in our floors, walls and loft but its the honeymoon period so I think it would take alot to dampen our spirits. PLenty of planning to be done through winter but enjoying just milling around figuring who does what and meeting plenty of very welcoming people.
Im pretty crap at remembering to take pictures I'll try to get some of the other halfs

Good luck, Sanday is a fine dry island in general with a good bunch of fine folk

 

[Danllan]

its wet windy and cold

Same up on the Orkneys too sometimes; well, it's windy nearly all the time...

@Dynamite_Matt Looks like a very good thing to do and time to go for it - get there now when it's dark and it just gets better.

From my own experience, and based on what you've posted so far, if I were you I'd put all my efforts into two things:

1) Sort the vermin out now, cost and effort are pretty much irrelevant, just get it done.

2) Get as much infrastructure done / up and running as soon as you can, e.g. growing tunnels, sheds, drains, gates, fences, tracks, major repairs of existing stuff. You've got the enthusiasm and - probably - the cash to do a great deal now, and the sooner it's done the longer you'll benefit. It also makes the first few years a damned sight more easy when it's all working, fine tuning later!

Best of British.

 

[Wolds Beef]

Some more very good Lincoln's delivered on to the Island a few weeks ago. They came from some friends of ours. @jamesy

 

[jamesy]

Some more very good Lincoln's delivered on to the Island a few weeks ago. They came from some friends of ours. @jamesy

Dare I say it, but I bought a LR bull in the spring to run with some Simx heifers. Looking forward to seeing the offspring

 

[Wolds Beef]

The Lincoln x Simmental is a very good cross, what else is there in there? Lincoln's are on farms from Cornwall to Orkney and are a very good native breed living cheap.
WB

 

[jamesy]

The Lincoln x Simmental is a very good cross, what else is there in there? Lincoln's are on farms from Cornwall to Orkney and are a very good native breed living cheap.
WB

The Sims are probably about 7/8 pure with the odd one a hint of sh. Have used all Sim bulls since 2003 with a sh doing some work about 6 years ago

 

[bobajob]

Are you settling in OK?
How has the weather been, it feels like Scotland has had a stormy few weeks!

 

[quavers]

Same up on the Orkneys too sometimes; well, it's windy nearly all the time...

@Dynamite_Matt Looks like a very good thing to do and time to go for it - get there now when it's dark and it just gets better.

From my own experience, and based on what you've posted so far, if I were you I'd put all my efforts into two things:

1) Sort the vermin out now, cost and effort are pretty much irrelevant, just get it done.

2) Get as much infrastructure done / up and running as soon as you can, e.g. growing tunnels, sheds, drains, gates, fences, tracks, major repairs of existing stuff. You've got the enthusiasm and - probably - the cash to do a great deal now, and the sooner it's done the longer you'll benefit. It also makes the first few years a damned sight more easy when it's all working, fine tuning later!

Best of British.

tunnels in Orkney , think your wasting your time there , its so windy no trees grow there !

 

[JockCroft]

tunnels in Orkney , think your wasting your time there , its so windy no trees grow there !

There is a very strong version developed in Shetland, the "Polycrub" . Look it up on Fb. More permanent features. Even Grant approved by the Crofters Commisison. Neighbour has one and brilliant. Only snag I could see was fitting the transparent sheeting, a bit of a faf and took a while to do, mainly because it needed near zero wind speed to handle the 6 or 7m long sheets. Its a long term building.

 

[Dry Rot]

There is a very strong version developed in Shetland, the "Polycrub" . Look it up on Fb. More permanent features. Even Grant approved by the Crofters Commisison. Neighbour has one and brilliant. Only snag I could see was fitting the transparent sheeting, a bit of a faf and took a while to do, mainly because it needed near zero wind speed to handle the 6 or 7m long sheets. Its a long term building.

Best done at dawn. This tip came from the manufacturers who always have one erected at the major agricultural shows.

I put one on my polytunnel, had it half on (single handed) and decided to stop for tea. Came out to find the sheet wrapped around the barbed wire fence the other side of the field! But the weather forecasts are better these days.

 

[Dry Rot]

tunnels in Orkney , think your wasting your time there , its so windy no trees grow there !

Not exactly true. I lived in the Outer Isles for two years and we had the Forestry Commission out for a look see. Their expert said they'd been on Orkney and found this magnificent example of a Norway Spruce outside a croft house. So they knocked on the door to ask about it.

A little old lady came to the door and agreed it was indeed a very fine tree, adding, "But it's getting a bit big now to bring inside over the winter!".

But I believe they do have some blocks of trees on the Uists now. The trick is to plant them in a block so they shelter each other. The problem is not so much the wind but the saline sea spray which is blown miles inland.

Climate wise, the far north is better than the borders which gets far more snow and the Mainland will get colder. But, wind, yes.

 

[Highland Mule]

Best done at dawn. This tip came from the manufacturers who always have one erected at the major agricultural shows.

I put one on my polytunnel, had it half on (single handed) and decided to stop for tea. Came out to find the sheet wrapped around the barbed wire fence the other side of the field! But the weather forecasts are better these days.

Polycrub is more like a see-through Nissen hut - they use curved panels of the sort used on conservatories, not the flexible covers found on conventional tunnels.

 

[Danllan]

tunnels in Orkney , think your wasting your time there , its so windy no trees grow there !

Yep, I'd have thought so too, until I saw @Highland Mule's earlier post. But I included them, with other infrastructure, on the principle that if you get it done early, while you have the enthusiasm and cash, you benefit from it longer.

 

[quavers]

Polycrub is more like a see-through Nissen hut - they use curved panels of the sort used on conservatories, not the flexible covers found on conventional tunnels.

have seen them at local show , expensive for what they are i thought

 

[Highland Mule]

have seen them at local show , expensive for what they are i thought

No idea on cost, but got to be cheaper than a pile of bent bars and a plastic sheet a couple of postcodes away.