November newsletter
Farm School Prime stock show successes, piglet and puppy news, Farm shop Christmas goodies and more...
Livestock news
It's been a very busy few weeks for the livestock here at South Brockwells Farm. All eleven of our rams have been with our ewes for the past four weeks and have been busy! Fingers crossed for lots of lambs in the Spring.
These two naughty Herdwick Rams had a bit of a quarrel and ended up conjoined!
Our goats have been moved to their new quarters and are loving their indoor cosy barn life. Goats originate from hot dry countries and therefore living outdoors in our cold wet winters would not suit them. So as soon as the weather changes they are brought indoors to relax in our warm dry barns.
Clever Snout and Freeda
In September we told you that our sows Snout and Freeda were expecting piglets. Well, 3 months, 3 weeks and a little over 3 days later they both had the most beautiful piglets. Snout gave birth to 11 little piglets, and Feeda 3 - sadly one did not make it but her remaining 2 babies are growing fast and thriving!
In other baby news, Tess our wonderful working sheepdog, gave birth to six beautiful puppies! Tess is very protective of her puppies, as we would expect, and we respect this so we have no photos of her beautiful puppies yet but we will hopefully have some for you in the December edition of our Newsletter.
Our amazing maize
The sunflowers have ended but our maize crop keeps giving and we collect the cobs weekly to supplement feed for our chickens and ducks. We leave the rest for our wild birds and animals to enjoy.
This month also saw a huge amount of preparation for the South Eastern Prime Stock Show. We took 30 lambs(26 of them with our farm school children)and 2 pigs to the show representing the farm in many breeds, young handler and commercial classes. Read our Farm School update below for news of how we got on.
Farm School
On 23rd November we took 26 sheep, 2 pigs, pies, sausages, photographs and 17 children to compete at the South Eastern Prime Stock Winter Fayre 2023. We walked away with smiles on our faces and rosettes in many classes!
Our young handlers were a credit to the farm and demonstrated determination, confidence and skill. In good company, we were thrilled to pick up prizes in the wool class and in all age categories of the young handlers as well as prizes in the photography classes for ‘what farming means to me’.
We couldn’t be prouder of our farm school students who had very little idea of what to expect. In a big, noisy show environment, with the pressure of an audience and remembering what you want to tell the judge all whilst keeping their lamb under control…….It’s a lot! They smashed it.
Enjoy a South Brockwells Christmas!
With only a few weeks to go until the big day, why not take the strain out of Christmas and let us prepare your food order for collection. All of the ingredients for your South Brockwells Feast are available in the farm shop including a wide selection of freshly cropped vegetables.
Our Christmas order form is available to download - just click on the link below, complete your form and either e-mail or drop your form into the Farm Shop.
South Brockwells Christmas Feast ideas
For the main event why not treat yourself to a free range bronze turkey from Bridgers Farm .
Or why not try our very own South Brockwells award winning grass fed lamb, Plashett Estate wild venison guard of honour, wild local pheasant, duck or even partridge. We are also offering fabulous chicken liver parfait and wild venison wellington to order for your festive feast.
Finish off your meal with Harvey's Brewery traditional Christmas Pudding, Angie's fabulous Chocolate and Raspberry Tart or Angie's Fig, brandy and walnut roulade - my mouth is watering typing this!
After all that sweetness it's time for Cheese. Try our great selection of British cheeses including our best seller, Balcombe Blue Clouds, fabulous Lord London, creamy Cricket St Thomas brie and camembert and the fabulous Stichelton!
And to wash it all down we also have festive drinks
We are pleased to announce we are offering a carefully selected range of quality wines from our friend Ian Wilson, at Ucopia Wines in Mayfield. Ian has chosen each wine to pair with our meats and wild game. We are delighted to be working with this new and forward-thinking company and enjoy their delicious wines! We also welcome Three Acre Brewery back to the farm shop and have a range of their fabulous beers, brewed just a few miles from the farm shop.
Have you visited our Farm Kitchen yet?
Each Wednesday to Friday we offer freshly ground coffee, hot sausage rolls, homemade cake and pastries. We serve hot food between 10 am - 2 pm every Saturday and Sunday and in the run-up to Christmas we are offering a glass to accompany your meal. Look out for our December menu and treat yourself to a taste of South Brockwells!
Every weekend our talented chef Angela Carter cooks up a storm using our homegrown and local wild produce.
Firm favourites include:
Sussex hanger steak sandwich made with our 33 day aged grass fed beef from the Pevensey Levels,
Beaters Baton - wild local pheasant breasts, wrapped in pancetta with a redcurrant sauce.
Local free-range duck eggs with our home smoked salmon or mushrooms on sourdough from Sussex Kitchen.
Pan-seared venison steak served with mushrooms in a creamy balsamic glaze on sourdough. Chef's Specials
Angie's specials constantly evolve in response to the fabulous produce the changing seasons offer. A Taste of South Brockwells Gift Voucher
Treat a friend or relative to a South Brockwells Farm Shop gift voucher. We have printed vouchers in the shop or we can e-mail them for long-distance gifting. Give the gift of a meal this Christmas
Last Christmas, with support from 3VA ,we supplied 400 meals to families in need the week before Christmas and we would like to do the same again this year, but we are asking for your help.
We have 100 children (who are in receipt of Free School Meals) attending our Mini Farmers Holiday Club the week before Christmas and whilst we are all feeling the impact of the cost of living crisis, those already struggling are being hit very hard. We would therefore love to send each of them home with a meal at the end of the day.
For just £10 we will provide a healthy, nutritious and filling meal for a family using our ome reared meat and seasonal vegetables. If you would like to contribute to our "Gift a meal this Christmas" initiative simply ask to add £10 to your bill when you next shop with us or email farmshop@southbrockwellsfarm.com and we can forward further information.