Around 800 small round bales, more than a week of work and one small but mighty tractor. Haymaking has kept us busy at Hazel Tree Lodge this year, and the result is a supply of home-grown hay to feed our animals through the winter.
For guests, the fields around our 30-acre smallholding in Tibshelf, Derbyshire, are part of the view. If you have been stay at the Lodge this summer, you’ve probably enjoyed the views of Hay bales. It’s lovely to sit on the patio with a coffee and look out over the fields and see the rows of hay warming in the sun. For us, they’re also where much of the work of caring for our animals begins. Making our own hay is one of the most demanding jobs of the year, but seeing it brought in and stacked is wonderfully rewarding.
Little Blue: small but mighty
Our New Holland Boomer tractor is affectionately known as Little Blue. He may be small, but he’s played a big part in this year’s haymaking, helping us turn the grass in our fields into around 800 small round bales.
There’s plenty of work for the people alongside the tractor, too. From the first cut to the final stack, haymaking takes time, patience and a fair amount of muscle.
From the first cut to the final bale
The job starts with cutting the grass. Then comes the turning: twice a day, we turn the hay to help it dry before it can be baled.
Baling isn’t the finish line. Once the small round bales are ready, we still have to bring them in from the fields and stack them for the months ahead. Altogether, cutting, turning, baling and bringing everything in takes us over a week.
It’s hard work, but it has a very satisfying purpose. This is the hay that will feed our animals through winter, grown and gathered here on the land they call home. And judging by how much they enjoy it, the effort is appreciated.
Our Cheviot flock lends a hand
Caring for the fields is a year-round job. We use organic methods to manage the land, with our flock of Cheviot sheep playing an important part.
Their grazing helps keep the fields in order, so we don’t have to rely on pesticides and other chemical treatments to maintain the grass. They’re very much part of the working life of the smallholding, as well as some of the neighbours you may see during your stay.
Listen for the life around you
Alongside making hay and looking after the animals, we’ve been working to give wildlife more room on the land. As our rewilding efforts have taken shape, we’ve welcomed back owls, buzzards and woodpeckers.
You may hear an owl hooting in the evening, or the tapping of a woodpecker during the day. Look up and you might see a buzzard soaring overhead. These are some of the things we love most about living here, and we’re always pleased when guests notice them too.
Our tree and hedgerow planting is another part of that ongoing work to care for the smallholding.
A glimpse of life on the farm
Haymaking is just one chapter in the year at Hazel Tree Lodge. The fields change with the seasons, the animals have their daily routines, and there’s always something that needs doing.
When you stay at Hazel Tree Lodge, that everyday country life is all around you. You might be enjoying a coffee on your private patio while we’re out in the fields with Little Blue, or listening for an owl as the evening settles in.
For now, the hay is in, the bales are stacked and there’s feed ready for winter. A busy week well spent.