We received four visits in June. On the 18^th a couple living in Plentzia

visited, a Basque lady with her Czech Republic partner. On the 21^st,

22 residents of the local Old People’s Home in Karrantza came to the

farm and dairy.

On the 28^th, 53 three to five year olds taking part in a summer

camp in Sondika came to see us (There was no parental permission

for photos).  On June 30^th Josh and Chris came to see the farm and

dairy and were particularly interested in the farm machinery!

Joseba, a local sheep farmer promoting the local Karrantzan

sheep breed “Mutur Beltza” came to make yoghurts with the

idea of making yoghurts with local sheep’s milk in the near

future.

Ben helped out on the farm, milking, herding cattle and mucking

out the barn, amongst other things

Granny stayed with us in June and helped with the pea and the black

red currant crops amongst many other things.

Also known as wild clematis or old man’s beard (because of its fluffy and

abundant seed heads), this plant trails over hedges and shrubs and can,

in fact, be a bit of a nuisance. In fact in some places it is considered to

be invasive. .  On the farm we find it on some of the hedges around the

lower fields. .  On the farm we find it on some of the hedges around the

lower fields. There is evidence that the plant stems, which are woody

and tough, were used for rope making in the Stone Age in places such

as modern day Switzerland and in later years were weaved to make

baskets.  It also appears that some beggars used an extract of the

plant to produce open wounds on their legs and thus, hopefully,

receive more alms from passers-by.

Although the temperature went up, the start of the month was grey

and damp, something that show up cobwebs beautifully.  As we men-

tion below this sort of weather doesn't make getting in silage or hay

very easy. A week of sunny, dry weather towards the end of June

helped, although the very end of the month was marked by a mixture

of grey days, hot sunny days and thunderstorms. Temperatures

varied from a low of 11ºC to a high of 28ºC and we collected 66

litres of rain in the rain gauge.

As in May, the cows were able to graze most days and the few

they could not was due to the rain (which softens the earth

which would then become muddy and compacted should the

cows graze) we gave them some dried alfalfa or grass silage.

Given the damp conditions at the start of the month

making silage and hay was a bit of a lottery, but we

eventually managed both, firstly silage,

Recipe of the month: Fruit smoothie

Although the weather is very variable, the temperatures are rising so

we have included a recipe for a summer drink. Not all fruit is available

at the same time in different places, so we have suggested different

fruits. These can be changed according to what is available. There is

also the option of using fruit that has been picked and frozen in an

earlier season.

season.

• 225g fresh blackberries
• 225g fresh raspberries
• 225g fresh blueberries
• 1 just-ripe medium banana, broken into pieces
• 150ml natural plain yoghurt
• 150ml milk
• 1 tbsp icing sugar (optional)

1. Measure all the ingredients into a food processor and whisk
2.  until smooth. Alternatively use a hand-held blender.*
3. Pour into a tall cool glass and enjoy.

*To avoid the hard seeds of some fruit, this may be blended first

and the seeds removed by passing the blended fruit through a sieve.

Four cows calved in June, but we will only keep one of them,

a heifer calf. The twin calves in the photo will be sold off for fattening.

We went to the weekly markets in El Arenal (Bilbao) and on the

16th we were also present in the market organized alongside the

events held to promote the local Karrantzan sheep race, Mutur

Beltza, in Karrantza. We also attended two promotional activities

in Bilbao: one held on the 18^th of June for members of the hotel

and catering trade and the second on June 30^th for the general

public in the Ribera covered market.

Once again the hospital in Cruces, Barakaldo, organized an organic

menu for patients on June 5^th, International Environment Day.

The local associations that organize fiestas in Bilbao, Bilboko Konpartsak,

once again used our milk for the Midsummers’ night festivities they hold

in Bilbao (basically to make the hot chocolate drink usually provided on

such occasions).

The rainy weather and thus very “green” grass, plus the hot weather

that means the cows drink far more water has given rise to a drop in

the fat content of our milk during the past few months.