Hillandale Farm News -- October 2002

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This is just a quick newsletter to tell you about our fine spring this year and include some photos taken by recent visitors, Paul and Lindsay.

We have had lovely early rain at Hillandale again this year and the veld and gardens are looking lovely. We have goats and sheep kidding and lambing and we are hoping for a good summer.
Robin planted oats during the winter so we have extra food for the "Mommies" who have twins at foot. Our game have also multiplied well this season and we have seen a large number of young. The "Old Folks" always used to say that the game knew when there was a good season coming and multiplied accordingly. We hope that they are right!

Some of you may remember that I mentioned our wool sampling last spring (newsletter September 2001). We have been disappointed with the outcome so far, because suddenly the demand for fine wool seemed to diminish and that for stronger wools increased. We also tested our Angoras and found very much the same story here. However we feel that in time to come all fleeces will have to be micron tested as the buyers will buy the fibres on micron.

The good news is that there has been a steep increase in the wool price this season which we are very excited about. The increase comes from Australia which means that it is probably not largely due to the exchange rate as has been the case in the past. We are due to shear our goats at the end of this month (October) and the sheep in February so we shall have to wait and see!

While farm work keeps us and our staff busy, we should mention that for visitors all energetic activities are entirely optional!

There is no pressure to rush around "doing things" and often people prefer to relax and enjoy a break from the telephone, the television, the newspapers and the hustle and bustle of everyday life. In fact many of our visitors come to Hillandale just to absorb the peace and quiet, to stroll in the veld and to be close to nature.

If you would like to visit Hillandale at any time, please contact us and we'll be very glad to provide more information and arrange bookings for you.

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