Apart from the usual farm chores (milking and feeding the cows…), there

are always fences to be mended,

We have also had to reorganize some herd management including

putting up new fences for moving the cows before and after milking

following the loss of the 9 hectares of farmland we mentioned in an

earlier monthly report.

Four groups visited during April. Firstly, on the 21^st, a group of

youngsters from Barakaldo,

secondly a family from Bermeo on the 22nd… the three boys

accepted an invitation to get on the big tractor with César for a

ride…

thirdly,  about 85 sixth form students from Erandio on the 26^th, half in

the morning and half in the afternoon

and, lastly, two families from Bilbao came on the 30^th.

A lone example of this species appeared towards the edge of one of our

fields where we usually spread little slurry and thus there is little nitrate

added to the soil. There are many subspecies of early purple orchids

and the colour of their flowers can vary from almost white to deep

purple. As this species of orchid produces no nectar and thus attracts

pollinating insects such as bees, wasps and some beetles with its

showy flowers. The tuberous roots of the early purple orchid contain a

nutritive starch which used to be collectd and dired to produce a flour

that was mixed with sugar and milk or water to produce a drink called

salep.

The temperature in April fluctuated quite a bit but always with a

general tendency to go up, until the very end of the month when

we actually had snow again on the hills. After a few days of cloudy

weather at the start of April we had several very wet days followed

by a spell of hot, dry weather marked by south winds during which

daytime temperatures rose to 24ºC. Although the cows grazed

outside they often looked for shade.

We took advantage of this dry spell to make a first load of silage and

just as we finished were rewarded with a huge thunderstorm with

rain… and luckily no hail… just in time to get the grass growing again

in the fields we had mown.

We collected a total of 135 litres in the rain gauge.

As the start of the month was very wet there was plenty of

grass available for the cows. They both grazed outside and

were taken freshly mown grass to eat in the big barn. We

also gave them some hay.

We were present at the weekly farmers’ market in Bilbao and also

went to the annual organic fair held in Urduña on the 28th.

Recipe of the month: Pancakes.

100g plain flour

1 egg beaten

250ml milk

Tbsp melted butter

Gradually mix together the flour, milk and beaten egg to a smooth

semi-liquid consistency. Heat the butter in a frying pan. Add enough

mixture to cover the base of the frying pan and cook until solid,

tossing the pancake once to make sure both sides are properly cooked.

Do no overcook! If necessary melt a bit more butter in the pan before

introducing more mixture for the next pancake.

Pancakes can be filled with a variety of ways, both sweet and savoury,

the options being almost endless. The filling is usually spread onto the

surface of the circular pancake once removed from the frying pan and

the cake then rolled up. A traditional way of eating pancakes was to

spread first some butter, then some sugar and then some lemon juice

on the cake and then rolling it up.

Best eaten hot.

On the 25th we attended a talk given by a vet in the local farmers’

coop on the links between milk quality and the problem of cheese

swelling. The talk considered those aspects of dairy farming prac-

tice –milk production- which could result in problems for cheese

making, focusing on the use of silage (it is far better to use hay,

but hay making obviously depends in part on the local climate),

adequacy of  mowing practices (basically making sure no soil is in

the cut grass by not cutting grass too near the ground, making

sure the grass is not wet when cutting, not mowing too soon after

slurry spreading….) and optimization of milking practices (particularly

cleanliness in all phases of milking). The talk centered on aflatoxinas

and butyrics although other microtoxins are also important to bear

in mind. The talk has provided us with some useful reminders of the

importance of good farming practice for our dairy business.