2025 Newsletter

Al and I feel like proper business people nowadays! We start each week with a ‘proper’ meeting where we plan our week, talk about the week just gone, tick off jobs we have accomplished, write lists for what we need to do and brainstorm new ideas. We thought we would give you an insight into the different parts of our business by setting it out as we would one of our meetings.

Veg Fields and Polytunnels. 

I’m sure we would all agree that last year we had pretty miserable weather up here.  It was cool, damp and cloudy for the most part. We had expanded our main veg patch down in Glen Spean and were really excited by the amount of space we had and the variety of vegetables we were able to plant. Our Highland weather stalwarts like potatoes, leeks, broad beans and green leaf crops (lettuce, spinach etc) were great but anything needing sunshine and warmth really sulked and our crops of green beans, courgettes, pumpkins, and so on were woeful. The brassicas (cauliflowers, broccoli, cabbage, kohlrabi etc) however were AMAZING – they LOVED the conditions and were very productive.

In the polytunnel we had reasonable crops of tomatoes although they lacked the sweetness of a proper sun ripened fruit. We introduced telegraph cucumbers to the other varieties we grow and were very pleased with the straight dark green fruit the vines produced. An early frost at the end of September curtailed our season by a month (in a good year it would continue well into October).

Veg Box Scheme. 

We send out 7-8 different vegetables every week to up to 15 customers. We have 2 routes so our veg box subscribers receive a box every fortnight. We introduced reusable jute bags last year which we pack full of leaves, roots, fruit and potatoes. We try to offer a different choice of vegetables every fortnight although we always include potatoes and salad leaves. We may have some availability this year so do get in touch if you would be interested in joining our scheme and we will send you all the info.

Animals

Chickens – We expanded our flock last year with some gorgeous Rhode Rocks from Craigievern Poultry. They joined some Speckledys, Bluebells and White Sussex girls that were hanging out with 20 Warren browns we had acquired to start the flock.  We also bought another large Solway recycling coop to house them. We really like the coops as they are easy to clean, and there aren’t many hiding places for the dreaded red mite.

By the end of autumn the hens were really beginning to struggle with the constant wet and muddy weather so we decided to move them into our large polytunnel. They have had a lovely winter, snug and dry and pecking over the floor of the polytunnel clearing the weeds and any pests.  They have rewarded us with 30 eggs a day, so we had to set up an honesty box at the end of the lane to stop us drowning in eggs! 

Bees – Our bees have had an adventurous year. For a while we had 3 hives as one swarmed, losing their queen in the process. We introduced a mated queen in the hope of establishing another hive but sadly this colony wasn’t large enough to survive the winter with the periods of bitterly cold weather. We managed a tiny harvest of honey last summer but like so many things last year, the weather played a part – lack of flowers and damp conditions. 

Dogs – We now have 2 Springer Spaniels. (Are we mad?) Finn joined us last October. Tom was getting a little too fond of the sofa and a chilled life and he now finds his ball (very precious!) being stolen and having to compete with a very active puppy. Lots of fun.

Farm Shop. 

As if we weren’t busy enough we decided to open a farm shop last June. We sell our own vegetables and eggs, and we process our excess produce into pickles, chutney and fruit preserves. We also stock a lot of local, Highland and Scottish produce as well. Our freezer has ice cream from Wee Isle Dairy, meat from Gilbert’s Bacon, Jahama  venison and MacBeth’s butchers, pies, bacon & sausages from Gilberts and a range of home cooked ready meals. Our fridge has Highland cheeses, Great Glen Charcuterie, Rora dairy yoghurt, a range of drinks and salad veg and what we cannot grow we buy in so we have the best available seasonal produce.

This year we are going to expand our store cupboard essentials and our gluten free range. We already stock gluten free pasta, crackers and sweet treats. We always have gluten free cake and we stock the shop with gluten free sourdough and other breads on a Saturday. We get a delivery of Doughie’s sourdough on Thursdays.

Farm Kitchen

Our commercial kitchen was inspected and passed its Environmental Health check last summer. The kitchen is 100% gluten free.  We make our own preserves, cakes, bread and a range of farm fresh ready-made meals.  Our meals and sweet treats are always seasonal, reflecting what we can grow or forage and what our meat suppliers have available. We also supply a number of local guiding companies with meals for their expeditions. We do a very limited amount of private catering and had a lot of fun catering for the Roy Bridge Seniors Christmas Lunch at the end of 2024.

Glen Spean Market

You can always find us at the Glen Spean Market held on the second Saturday of the month at the Auction Mart, Torlundy. As co-organisers and founding members it is an important part of our season and we try to make sure we have a good range of vegetables, eggs and jars of preserves available. We love the market as there is a great range of produce and it is all produced or crafted by the stallholder and most of it is made locally.

We launched a set of Christmas Hampers just before Christmas. One was titled “A Taste of Lochaber” and was filled with products made by our fellow market traders. Such a lovely selection and perfect for giving as a special Christmas present.

Plans for 2025

This year is all about consolidation. Last year was extremely hard work as we expanded our business. We have decided to move our veg box delivery day earlier in the week and just open 4 days a week (Thursday to Sunday).  We do look forward to opening our farm shop at Easter and hope to welcome you all back. If there is anything you would like to see in the shop, then do drop us an email, or pop in and see us.

Best wishes for 2025,

Liz and Alasdair.