Having had a lovely summer with lots of dry sunny days, we have been able to crack on and get the hay made with relative ease, this year. Popping some fertiliser in early spring onto the hay fields allows the grass to flourish and our special blend of hay mix from our incredibly renowned seed merchant allows us to get the best advice on which grasses we need for the horse’s needs.

Ragwort has flourished this year and we have all had the special ragwort fork out keeping on top of this noxious weed. Kenneth always like to get the heavy roller out a couple of times in early summer to stimulate grass growth and even out the fields as well as getting the topper out to keep onto of the doc leaves. Maintaining the grass is important as we allow turn out 365 days of the year. Although the winter can be long and wet, we feel it is really important that horses can have all year field turnout to keep their systems working as naturally as possible.

Our legendary off road hacking routes are amazingly varied, and horses never get bored of the terrain – long stretches for walking and trotting and some of our well known “canter hills” keep the horses keen and fit.

As the nights are closing in on us now, we don’t need to worry as our fantastic state of the art area, recently installed is made up of sand, fibre and rubber is a top-quality surface for keeping our horses fit and healthy and has fantastic spotlights to allows us to have an amazing, illuminated surface. We have recently enjoyed a couple of yard events and are planning more throughout the winter. It certainly keeps the community spirit alive and well here at Blackfaulds Farm Livery, Alloa.