15th June 2018
Finally we've had a few weeks of great weather to help us catch up with spring time jobs and start on the summer work of silaging ( cutting and storing the grass for the winter feed for cattle and sheep), shearing the sheep , cleaning out the sheds, and the goslings have arrived!
4th September 2020
We're busy as usual here at Firs Farm. Some of the harvest is completed- eventually after a very wet August. The wheat is not the best in quality or quantity ( as experienced in most of the country), we will feed it to our cattle & sheep during the winter. Home reared cattle & sheep fed on home grown corn & sold in our farm shop!
Full traceabilty & low food miles! Half lamb for the freezer also available
The geese are enjoying grazing the front field, the turkey chicks are arriving this weekend - Christmas is coming!
Our Christmas order form will be available soon.
12th November 2016
We're featured in the Yorkshire Post today, as their "Farm of the Week" , talking mainly about our free range geese , but also on the farm in general.
Orders for Christmas are starting to come in.
To place an order email me on ambattye@btinternet.com , Ring 0114 2301169 or call in at the farm (Fridays or Saturdays are best days to call in ) .
9th November 2016
Think winters arrived at Firs Farm.
The cattle are now in their winter quarters,in the barn, think they were glad to come inside!
The geese had a snowy walk when they went outside today.
16th December 2016
Still taking orders - a few geese and turkeys left, but going fast!
A reminder that when you've collected your Christmas Dinner from us that it needs to be refrigerated - between 1 and less than 6 degrees centigrade is the storage temperature - your veg and salad will be fine in a cool place (or cool box ) , your meat needs that fridge!!
As promised I've put a couple of our tried and well tested recipes for goose and turkey. They are easy - if you've good meat there's no need to do anything too fancy with it, especially if you're not confident doing so!
26th March 2019
The winter seems to have been fairly kind to us this time ( fingers crossed !).
Our early lambing ewes and lambs are enjoying life out in the fields, the later flock of ewes are due to start lambing at the weekend.
Farm work is quite up to date due to the good weather - walls have been repaired and fences replaced where necessary.
We are going to be selling some of our own beef soon , direct from the farm - see other posts on the website.
Full traceability, low food miles, tastes great and will be competitively priced ( same good product as we used to supply into Pickles but cheaper!)
We also have some half lamb available from the freezer, and some home dry cured bacon.
Here's hoping for a lovely springtime, lambs in the fields and crops growing well, the birds and wildlife in our gardens and fields thriving on some good weather!
20th April 2018
As i write this we are finally having some lovely spring weather!
It's been a long cold wet winter for us, but finally nearly all the sheep are back outside enjoying the dry weather and sunshine while they can!
We've nearly finished lambing, the ewes and their lambs are in the fields around the farm, checked by us at least once a day to make sure all is well.
Next out will be the cattle, but the fields need to dry up a little more before they go out, fingers crossed they'll be out in the fields in the next couple of weeks.
Just a gentle reminder if you're out walking with your dog- please do keep it on a short lead when walking on the paths through the fields, we've seen so many tragic incidents where sheep and lambs have been worried by dogs - dogs chasing ( what some might call "playing") is also classed as worrying and any dog is capable of doing it! We can by law shoot any dog worrying our sheep, which we really hate to do .
Over the next few months we will be busy - sheep shearing, silaging , harvesting and lots of other essential tasks, if we are not around in the farmyard when you call in for eggs you can use the honesty box on the table, eggs should be on the table aswell.
May 28th 2020
Thank you for all your support over the last couple of months, we hope everyone is keeping well. Its been difficult at times with the situation we have all been in, but we have gained some new customers over the last few weeks & managed to expand our farm shop sales. We are processing another of our cattle at the beginning of June - demand for our wonderful beef has been great, and its good to see many new regular faces in the yard. Fresh lamb is usually available each weekend, and many other products from the freezer, including sausages, burgers & home dry cured bacon. As usual eggs & potatoes also on sale.
The shop is open each Thursday afternoon until 5pm, and Fridays & Saturdays 9am until 5pm .
If we are working in the farmyard on other days we are often able to serve you. We are closed on Mondays & Sunday afternoons.
Spring farm jobs are progressing well due to the good weather - lambs are growing well , and all the spring crops are sown. Many people have been walking the footpaths around the farm, hope you are enjoying watching the crops and animals growing.
We do ask please that walkers keep to the paths & restrain dogs on leads - the land is growing food crops and many animals are grazing in the fields.
3rd December 2020
Winter seems to have arrived at firs farm, the first flurries of snow blowing in as i write.
The cows are inside. enjoying the warmer sheds and the silage we made in the summer to eat. Sheep sre still grazing the fields, the breeding ewes will come inside prior to lambing , giving the fields chance to recover and enable us to feed the ewes adequately prior to having lambs.
The main theme on the farm at the moment is of course Christmas. Our preparations actually started in February, when we have to make decisions on how many geese and turkeys we will rear for Christmas, and order the young birds. As you will know since then the world has changed so much!
Our geese and turkeys have sold quickly- no geese left to sell , and none of the smallest turkeys are now available. we still have turkeys 5kg upwards available to order- see the Christmas page for latest info. More families seem to be having Christmas at home and we are happy to supply the meat for this special meal.
Our home reared beef and lamb is selling well- lots of roast dinners have been sold over the last few weeks during lockdown . We have sometimes struggled to keep up with our sausage supplies and our home cured bacon seems to fly out! We've been really busy recently getting bacon curing , and making lots of chipolatas for Christmas orders. The best days to call in are Fridays & Saturdays.
From 8th December we will be open every day, at least 10am-4pm .
Wednesday 23rd December , open 8am until 5.30pm, for be collections of pre ordered Christmas goods only.
This year we do ask that
- you shop alone when collecting, no children.
- cash or card payment - we will not know until you collect the exact cost of your order
- help can be given carrying to your vehicle.
and we hope to make collecting as quick and easy as possible.
We will be open 10-12 noon on Christmas Eve , and then close until 10am on Tuesday 29th December. Hopefully we may get a few restful days over Christmas ( we'll need them!) - but the animals still need caring for!
17th August 2019
Time is marching on , and the weather is very unsettled - very wet on occaisions over the last few weeks. Here's hoping we've some longer dryer spells over the next few weeks to help us harvest our wheat and oats. The barley is in store , ready to feed the cattle & sheep mid winter.
Our home produced beef is selling well . We have mainly casserole steak, some beef joints and burgers left in the freezer at the moment. We will have more later in the year, watch this page!
Our new seasons lamb is now available- please get in touch if you would like to order half a lamb for the freezer,or any individual cuts of lamb . We've also home made sausages,lamb burgers & home dry cured bacon available from the freezer.
The Christmas geese are doing well - enjoying their days in the field on Ringinglow Road. We will begin to take orders in September for them. Also , as usual , there will be home reared turkeys ,beef , lamb, sausages & bacon & pork joints available to order- the new order form will be on line soon.
12th October 2019
We've had a wet few weeks on the farm, we're waiting for a few dry days to enable us to finish drilling cereals, but not very lucky with this wish - it keeps raining!
Some of our cattle are now indoors for the winter, we're getting sheep ready for their winter- the rams will go to our April lambing flock soon.
Christmas starts to come early here - we're now taking orders for our home reared turkeys and free range geese & lots more! 2019 Order form will be available very soon.
Our home reared beef will be available after Christmas - the cattle have had a good summer out at grass and are now eating home grown cereals & silage ( chopped dried grass)
April 15th 2017
Spring seems to have sprung at Firs Farm- we have ewes and lambs in the fields - some born in February and some over the last couple of weeks . Its been a busy time, the sheep when due to lamb need checking every hour or so , day and night in case they need any help and to move the mother and babies to an individual pen for around 24 hours , after that if the lambs are feeding well the family will be marked with corresponding numbers ( so we know who belongs to who) and moved to larger pens and then outside into the fields when a few days old.
The weather has been good so far, the lambs have had a good start with some dry and sunny days .
Manure has been spread on some of the fields, then John has been ploughing to prepare the seedbed for planting with peas and fodder beet. The peas will be go into the silage clamp with grass for feed next winter. The fodder beet will be for the lambs to feed on in the autumn.
5th December 2018
We're getting busy now with preparations for Christmas.
We are still taking orders for our Free Range Geese and home reared turkeys , and probably will have them available right up to Christmas. Give us a ring on 0114 2301169 or email me on ambattye@btinternet.com.
Please let us have orders for beef,pork , bacon & sausages as soon as possible.
Veg orders by 16th December please.
The rest of the farm is getting settled in winter quarters. Cattle are now all inside, and some of the sheep that are due to lamb at beginning of February will soon be inside , getting the food and care they need easier in our barns.
2018's dry summer was on the whole very good for us. We have managed to produce enough silage (preserved grass) for our stock - not as much as in past years but we should manage.
Cereals, hay and straw prices have risen due to the reduction in crops ,caused by a lack of rainfall.
Potatoes are more expensive this year. we now buy in ( in past years the economies of scale of us growing them just didn't add up ), and our supplier has only 50% of the usual crop due to no rainfall.
As usual we have free range eggs, potatoes & logs available to buy.
From Monday 10th December the shop should be open 9am until 5pm each day. We will close on Christmas Eve at 12 noon.
28th September 2018.
Well we've enjoyed the hot dry summer we have all experienced, the cows and sheep seem to have done well despite the grazing pastures being very dry and there not being alot of grass around.
We have made silage - their winter feed- and are hoping we have enough to see us through the winter, stocks are not as high as in previous years due to the dry weather.
Harvesting is finished and the corn being fed to the geese and cattle. We're now busy ploughing and planting next years cereal crops .
The geese are enjoying grazing the field on Ringinglow Road every day, and eating our home produced corn when brought inside in the evening.
The turkeys have a cosy life in the barn, away from predators and the harsh winter weather which will no doubt be with us all too soon! Means they'll be plump and tasty for Christmas lunch!
Orders are now starting to be taken for Christmas.
We are selling locally produced free range eggs, (From Bennetts at Bamford) and locally grown potatoes, which will seem expensive this year compared to last year, as it has been a very poor season for potatoes and all vegetables due to the lack of rainfall.
Potatoes available in 2.5 kg and 5kg bags, 12.5kg and 25kg sacks.
The sheep are sheared every year, usually mid June. Each fleece is rolled up securely, packed into large wool bags , and goes to the British Wool Marketing Board at Bradford. The price we get for the wool does not cover the work involved in shearing it, but it has to be done. Our wool will go for making into carpets mainly.
9th September 2021
Harvest is finally finished here at Firs farm - the corn has been combined and in store ready to feed to our livestock, the straw baled and in the shed ready to spread daily in the shed when the cattle and sheep come inside for the winter. We have made silage and hay earlier in the summer for winter feed.
Geese are back spending their days inthe front field, and being herded back into the shed every evening.
The Farm shop has expanded its variety of goods - but still with our ethos of knowing just where everything we sell is reared . We have free range chickens from Soanes Poultry East Yorkshire - excellant tasty chicken - whole birds or chicken fillets available.
We also stock Hartington Cheese from Pike Hall, Pork is from a local farm near Bakewell, which we make into home cured bacon and at least 3 different varieties of sausage.
A recent addition are Steak and ale or steak & stilton pies, made with our own Firs farm beef by Kevins Handmade pies in Sheffield. These are selling well, with great feedback from customers.
We are proud to sell our own beef & lamb, geese & turkeys, along with local food with full traceability and sustainability.
Christmas will be with us very quickly. I have started taking orders - call in Fridays or Saturdays to order (and have a look at what else we have on offer!)
Order forms will be ready soon, prices will be confirmed at the end of October.
#buylocal #supportlocal#sustainability#fulltraceability
From time to time I'll try to keep you up to date what's happening on the farm.
When customers are collecting their Christmas dinners I'm often asked for advice on cooking, so I'll give some tips on what works for me and my family - take a look on the recipes and tips page!
20th March 2020
Difficult times for everyone at the moment. The farm shop is open , we have home reared beef & lamb on sale , along with our usual potatoes & eggs. We're struggling to keep up with the demand for eggs, unfortunately we can only sell the number the hens lay! Please be patient with us - we are trying to make sure our regular customers are supplied , but it maybe we ask you to take less & return again the following week rather than take a large amount.
Hope we all stay in good health. We are able to have an order ready for you & we do have the card machine if that is preferred. Please contact us on 0114 2301169.
3rd March 2020
We're taking orders for our home reared beef - available over the next few weeks. Please get in touch if you require any specific cut of beef or size of joint etc,
email ambattye@btinternet.com or Saturdays are best day to call in at the farm.
It will also be available from the freezer, along with our lamb,sausages & bacon.
Its been a difficult 5 months with all the rain we have had. The only consolation is that we are at the top of the hill so the fields are very wet but alot of the water does go past us down the hill. We still have crops left to plant as it was so wet in September & October, and possibly some to replant as the weather has flooded the crop. Around the country there are many fields which did not get planted with the 2020 crop - could be a tough year ahead.
Here's hoping the next few weeks the weather improves , the grass starts growing and we can get the early lambs outside. Our main flock starts lambing in April.
Just a reminder to please keep dogs on leads around livestock - too many incidents of sheep worrying keep being reported, some very close to here.
2nd July 2020
Hope everyone is keeping well - its strange times for us all , perhaps not affecting us in as many ways.
We are still busy on the farm - routine jobs of checking cows & sheep out in the fields each day, and also other seasonal jobs as the weather allows- sheep shearing is top of the list.John has got some of his contract shearing jobs done, but we could do with a few dry days to get our own sheep done! We have got our first crop of grass cut & in the silage clamp for winter feed, waiting for a few dry days to get the "second cut" done .
Soon be harvest time - and then really the start of our farming year- planting next years crops, sorting sheep ready for breeding next years lambs , and so the cycle begins yet again.
Thanks to all our lovely customers the farm shop has been busy - meaning we're kept busy cutting u meat , curing bacon & making sausages - Thank you , your support is most appreciated.
Christmas preparations are once again underway - the goslings have arrived and are growing fast , and decisions have to be made about other Christmas produce. I will open the order book in September!
24th February 2019
Well February is treating us very well with the lovely weather we have been experiencing recently.
We have been busy with some of our sheep lambing the earlier lambs, theyre ready to go outside soon, but the grass not just too plentiful yet, and the weather can bring us some shocks yet!
The main of our lambs are due at the beginning of April, and hopefully these will be out in the fields within a few days of birth, hoping the weather is good and the grass has started to grow!
Recently we had an unfortunate sheep worrying incident. We are very grateful that the owner of the dog alerted us to the situation and we were able to treat the injured sheep. Unfortunately at least 2 other sheep have since lost the lambs they should have had in April.
Please, keep your dogs on leads among sheep and anywhere near fields they may be grazing. Dogs often get away from their owners and then find themselves in fields with sheep in. What might look like playing & chasing around to you, is actually sheep worrying even if no visual damage is done. The owner of the sheep is allowed to shoot dogs found out of control in their sheep.
We are hoping to make available home produced beef - please get in touch if you may be interested. All cuts of beef will be available ( similar to what we supplied into Mr Pickles but i'm sure at a much better price!)
14th November 2017
Think winters arrived!
Had some lovely bright frosty mornings over the last few days , hope it continues as its much preferred than a wet and mild winter!
The cattle are now happily all in their winter quarters inside, being fed on our summer made silage and some of them get some of our home grown corn mix. We collect the spent grains from Abbeydale Brewery on a regular basis, which all the cattle seem to enjoy!
The sheep are grazing on winter pastures home and away , the early lambing group are being scanned today, those early ones should lamb at the end of january.
The poultry are growing well, we are also going to be busy making sausages and pigs in blankets etc - get you
.
6th June 2019
A beautiful summer morning here at Firs Farm, as we remember the D Day operations of 75 years ago. Never forget - they fought for us to have the bit of England we are able to call ours at Firs Farm, and live our lives as we wish to.
This week we have moved our little shop into a new building in the yard - signs going up soon.
We've a special offer on just this weekend- pack of four lamb burgers , beef burgers or 400g pack of sausages - any 2 packs for £5. Perfect for a BBQ on Sunday!
We've also steaks, joints, minced beef, & casserole beef in the freezer for sale- our own Aberdeen Angus beef. Excellant quality and competitively priced. Ideal for BBQs
We will be around Saturday 9am until 4.30pm, and Sunday 9am until 1pm.
Rest of the time if we're around the farm we are happy to serve you.
Lambing time has gone well - the weather was kind so that does help alot!
Cows are turned out onto summer pastures.
We have the spring drilled crops starting to grow nicely, and have made our first cut of silage earlier this week ( grass cut,chopped and put into a clamp for next winters feed)
Next job at Firs is sheep shearing , in the next few weeks we shall shear the sheep and the wool goes to the wool board - unfortunately not worth alot , but can be made into loft insulation, duvets & pillows and even coffins these days!
The goslings have arrived. Yes we're already planning for Christmas.
Look out for them over the next few weeks as they start to venture outside.
15th October 2016
The good September weather has meant that we have been able to complete our harvest of wheat, barley and oats, and the cereals and straw are now stored in the sheds. We feed all our livestock on home grown feed, and the straw will keep them dry and comfortable when they come inside again until springtime.
Next years cereal crops have now been sown.
It's sheep work that's on the agenda at the moment, getting the ewes (female sheep ) ready to meet the rams ( male sheep) and so begin next years lamb crop!
We have potatoes, free range eggs, and logs for sale. Also we have home made lamb burgers and packs of home made pork sausages and sausage meat, available from the freezer. Packs of half a lamb can be ordered ( cut up to your requirements) .
We've also started taking orders for Christmas .
We will be open Friday and Saturday this week from 9am until 6pm.
14th December 2017
Christmas is fast approaching and we are getting very busy preparing lots of Christmas orders We still have a few turkeys and geese available to order - ring on 0114 2301169 for more details . Can be reserved for New Year also.
A reminder that all meat and poultry will need to be refrigerated after collection from us on the 23rd- needs to be stored between 1 and 6 degrees centigrade. Take your salads and vegetables out of the fridge- they'll be fine in a cool place until its time to cook your meat!
Or get the cool box and ice packs going for extra fridge space.
We've also our usual eggs, potatoes and logs available for sale, call in, there's someone available to serve you 9am till 6pm every day up to Saturday 23rd December.
Christmas time on the farm still means feeding and bedding the cattle every day, and checking the sheep in the fields. We're hoping for a little time for relaxing and enjoying our Christmas turkey!
Thank you all for your support and custom, wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas and all best wishes for 2018.
1st November 2017
Well its that time of year again- all our corn is safely gathered in , ready to feed our livestock over the winter months. We have ploughed and scattered , just watching the crops grow that we will harvest next summer!
The geese are growing well, they have enjoyed the wet weather of the last couple of months more than most at Firs Farm, they have ponds to dip into in their field which shouldn't really be there! The turkeys are also doing well at the farm.
Potatoes and eggs are on sale, as well as home made lamb burgers and pork sausages (From the freezer)
We have some freezer packs of lamb in the freezer - packed and labelled, around £65 per half.
We are taking orders for Christmas , we have an order form with the full list of goods for sale - we shall have home made sausages, chipolatas, and sausage meat, along with pigs in blankets , using our home cured bacon and sausages.
As usual we will have seasonal veg, beef and pork joints , eggs, and goose fat for sale, alongside our home reared poultry.
To order : Email ambattye@btinternet.com - all emails will be replied to.
Telephone : 0114 2301169 ( Allmessages left will be replied to)
Call in at the farm : Saturdays between 9am and 6pm is best, but if we are working around the farm on other days we will serve you.
26th February 2021
Some lovely dry weather today after a long wet and at times very cold winter. Hope it stays like this - we have some young lambs and their mothers to get outside in the fields very soon. Our main flock of sheep will start lambing early April.
Meanwhile we are kept busy with the usual winter yard jobs each day of feeding & bedding up of the livestock that are inside, and checking and supplementary feeding of the sheep out in the fields.
The Farm shop has been busy, and we are grateful for your continued support.
We have an Easter order form available- it will help us greatly if we know just what customers might require for Easter. Please email me on ambattye@btinternet.com or ask at the shop.
Just a polite reminder to anyone walking on the footpaths that run through our farmland - please keep to the path & dogs to be kept on leads please. Many thanks.
18th February 2018.
It seems to be a long and very wet winter up here on the Sheffield hills. Snow keeps making extra work in the yard, feeding and bedding the cattle and sheep in the snow and cold damp weather we have been experiencing is not very pleasant!
Our "early lambers" have nearly finished producing their lambs, will be off out into the fields in another few weeks, we hope the weather will give us some dry days which will dry the fields up a bit and let us put the ewes and lambs out to pasture. The main flock should be lambing early April. We have some of our cows due to calve in the next few weeks.
We are selling eggs , potatoes and logs - best day to call in is probably Saturdays 9am -5pm or Monday mornings , but we are often around the farm on other days.
We have meats for sale from the freezer-
Half lamb - packed and labelled
Home made pork sausages and sausage meat - gluten free also available
Home dry cured bacon
Fillet steaks and sirloin steaks
Lamb burgers
Turkeys , large chickens and geese- there are a few of each in the freezer .
I think we are all looking forward to the spring - the snowdrops that are out in the garden show us thats its on its way .