Market forces

This photograph was taken early on the morning after the final night of the sheep flocks stay in their nearby summer home. It didn't seem appropriate to disturb them by venturing nearer for a better photograph.

The sheep had been walked as usual through the neighbouring farmlands clearing weed and fertilizing the land as they moved across it; those thousands of tiny feet lightly tilling the top soil as they walk as grazing animals do so well. Constant movement prevents overgrazing and allows grass fields and native crops to re-grow.

Throughout the night the sheep circled constantly treading their straw bedding into the ground; and huddling together for protection against any predators, able to negotiate the electric fence that surrounded them. When morning came they happily walked away over the familiar territory unaware that today they were heading for market.

Ewe Tube from Wales

We spend our spring and summer watching the Catalan shepherds controlling 500 head of sheep using just two Gos Catalan (sheepdogs) so when we saw this Welsh sheep farmer use his flock to put on a display we thought other bloggers might appreciate the film.

No more morning fields of amber grain

There will be no more morning fields of amber grain 

patterned by swirling wind 

for Ordi has been harvested 

 straw rolled bound and bailed.

 Soon the plough will turn the land 

till then the sheep may forage 

'til they too are harvested

there will be no more morning fields.

(Ordi -barley)

Don´t fence me in!

Carol´s sister Marie and her husband Alan flew out from Cambridgeshire UK to visit us and help with our never ending work. Leaving bright and sunny England they arrived in cold, wet and windy Girona. (Still the English love irony!)

We managed to get through a lot of stuff with their help. Priorty for Carol was to restore the fencing that we took down two years ago. We removed the fence which partitioned the house and garden from the finca land (a field) to make a coherent garden plan. It had been intended to have a meandering path leading from the patio area to a seat placed under the old fig tree. In reality the only meandering which occurred was that done by Francisco´s sheep as they sought to devour our vegetation. This year the flock will get a shock when the come up against the newly errected barrier.

This is Alan getting to grips with the fencing.

Pest control

Having avoided using chemicals in the garden until we establish if there is a natural balance between pests and predators; we were expecting to have some damage to our plants. Enormous snail population aside there is a wealth of other pests inhabiting our land, particularly sap sucking insects.

The damage to this tree’s leaves was caused by sheep grazing on them. The sheep’s natural predator is the wolf which is making a come back in the Iberian mountain ranges to the north and west. Farmers and Shepherds are already raising the alarm over wolves in Galicia, and their problems may be about to become exacerbated due to the successful re-introduction of the brown Pyrenean bear. In the countryside those shepherds often stay out with their flocks 24 hours a day, some of them are becoming increasingly concerned not only for the welfare of their livestock but also for their own safety.

xx

Going Solo ? Going loco!

The blood curdling alarm call from Carol stopped my heart for a moment; even though I know that such a shout or scream could be the result of nothing more than a mere shadow. I hastened to the garden to see what terrible manifestation it could be. It was a sheep a solitary sheep was stood in the garden eying the lush vegetation in our flower beds. Facing the sheep was Carol armed with a broom, shooing the ship for all her worth. The sheep stood impassively chewing on it’s last mouthful of grass.

Now an independently minded sheep can be a worrying-some thing. They were designed after all to follow each other around until such time as somebody or something eats them! This one had been emboldened, leaving the other 499 to follow Ubacca the African shepherd boy; it has evaded the two dogs and headed for us.

I understood at once why Carol was nervous. Yesterday I had allowed Francisco the owner of the flock to bring 50 or so of his sheep on to what little grass we had. I was about to cut the ragged sward when I saw him heading out across the field struggling to find fodder on the parched land around us. The sheep seemed grateful for the opportunity and quickly devoured the grass. Gradually the body of our own small flock separated into ever smaller groups, each manoeuvring their way around the garden trying to pass us and get to the shrubs and flowers. Several of them went round the back of the stable block, and Carol was now caught in a pincer movement. Which ever way she ran the sheep on the opposite side of the stables would get by; and now some of my group were heading for the trees on the far side of the garden whilst the remaining sheep strolled purposefully towards the flower beds. It was chaos!

Hearing our frantic calls Fransisco and the two dogs came running, even the dogs were grinning to themselves; and possibly a few sheep too. Soon order was restored and the sheep resumed the journey over the fields.

And today one of them had returned to try again, single handily, a stealth sheep, a sheep which had almost evaded our defences until confronted by the Memsaab and her broom.

The sheep decided that two of us and a broom had changed the odds. It left the arena crossing to the finca where it grazed beneath the fig tree. And there or thereabouts it stayed, occasionally approaching the garden perimeter but staying a broom length or two away. We were therefore confined to the house if we turned our back, Solo as we had decided to call the Ewe, Would feast upon our plants.

When Ubacca and the flock returned I told him he was missing one of their number.

He looked concerned and asked if the ewe was feeding, when I told him she was he smiled and said

¡No Problemo! 

This is of course the typical Spanish response to any difficult situation they may encounter up to and including the end of the world. Before I could say another word he pointed, there trotting happily towards the rest of the flock came Solo.

¡No Problemo! Repeated Ubacca. 

Solo would have a story to tell that evening I’m sure.

Autumn

The autumn rains have not materialized. The temperatures are pleasant during the day with clear blue sky, but much cooler at night. Due to the ongoing fire risk we can not burn our perennial weeds, not until November at the earliest.

Seedlings and rooted plant cuttings that were growing on strongly have been wiped out by the 500 sheep that graze the sparse grass each day. With so little vegetation around anything still growing appears to be a magnet for them. Time to start again.