Greetings all!

Red_Pepper · Sat Apr 08, 2006 5:18 pm

Hi I am new to this site, it was recommended to me by my friend.

I am very impressed with it! you all seem very freindly, I shall be frequenting it often!

I am very much into self-sufficiency and permaculture, growing organically.

My children and myself are hoping to move to a smallholding soon, we had one once before, but had to move, and miss it very much.

anyway just wanted to say hello really!

Mandy (Red_Pepper!)

Shirley · Post: # 17046Post **Shirley** » Sat Apr 08, 2006 6:07 pm

Hiya Mandy

Very much looking forward to your organic growing tips.

Welcome to the forum.

Red_Pepper · Sat Apr 08, 2006 6:16 pm

Well thank you, might be asking you for tips, I am looking in Aberdeenshire for property!

Where abouts are you?

Any tips on the growing season up there?

I am looking forward to being able to have animals again soon!

ina · Post: # 17050Post **ina** » Sat Apr 08, 2006 6:39 pm

Hi Mandy

Welcome to the site! Are you a specialist on pepper

? I'd have a question... Mine aren't growing as they should!

Anyway: Aberdeenshire seems to be getting incredibly popular with potential smallholders. Growing season is a bit short; if you want to be anywhere near self sufficiency in veg (and don't want to eat just neeps all year round

), you'd definitely need a greenhouse or polytunnel. Some areas are a bit exposed to wind as well, that restricts what you can grow, too.
Apart from that - the scenery is generally rather nice!

Red_Pepper · Sat Apr 08, 2006 7:35 pm

Jolly good, it sounds very nice.

I am not an expert on peppers, but being a red head people call me one!

But will try to help if you want? Peppers need a failry hot humid growing space, so a greenhouse that is heated is ideal, or a polytunnel!

I would probably have 2 poly tunnels, to enable enough growing space!

And will have goats, sheep, and maybe a house cow. plus me chickens, that is if this blooming bird flu does not get too bad!

anyway am really hoping to get this place, and then we will be very happy!

thanks for the advice...
mandy

Shirley · Post: # 17074Post **Shirley** » Sat Apr 08, 2006 7:39 pm

Hi Mandy

I'm near Alford...which is about 40 miles west of Aberdeen. Whereabouts are you thinking of moving to??

Growing season, as Ina said is short... but it's certainly not impossible. Lots of people do it.

Wombat · Post: # 17093Post **Wombat** » Sat Apr 08, 2006 11:37 pm

G'Day Mandy and welcome to the site!

Nev

Millymollymandy · Sun Apr 09, 2006 11:13 am

Hey, that makes 3 Mandy's now - we're the best!

Welcome to the site and I hope you get your smallholding soon.

ina · Post: # 17148Post **ina** » Sun Apr 09, 2006 1:27 pm

The set-up you are planning is what I'd like, too... I have two goats, but due to space restrictions at the moment they are only "lawn mowers", i.e. I can't breed and milk them. I'd love a house cow, too - worked with dairy cows for several years, and still miss the milking (not so much the getting up in the middle of the night, though

). Plenty of sheep here; we are in the midst of lambing, and would really like a bit more warmth. Snow this morning, again, and b***y freezing wind. Went out and bought more fleece for the garden! If I want any veg out of there this year, I think I have to wrap it all up.

I'm 30 miles south of Aberdeen, by the way - so if you take Shirley and myself, we can more or less cover both ends of Aberdeenshire with our local knowledge!

"I am not an expert on peppers, but being a red head people call me one!"

Better than being called carrot head, I suppose! Different, anyway. I think it's just too cold for my little peppers; I sowed them on the 20/2, they took almost 4 weeks to germinate, and they haven't grown much since... I try to keep them in the warmest place (at work, actually - my house is colder than the office), but I don't think it would make much sense to turn the heating up high just for the pepper! It'll just have to grow more slowly. My tomatoes aren't doing much better, either.

hedgewitch · Sun Apr 09, 2006 4:03 pm

Hello and welcome to the site - it's great!!

Andy Hamilton · Sun Apr 09, 2006 10:34 pm

Hello there Mandy and welcome, I did think that Red Pepper was some kind of reference to ready steady cook.

Red_Pepper · Mon Apr 10, 2006 5:03 pm

Hi all and thank you for the great welcome!

Am currently trying really hard to find something, but when you need to rent there is not much available is there!

There is a place near Aberdeen that I am waiting to hear about but apart from that not a lot else.

It is very very hard when you are stuck in town wishing to be somewhere else!

Anyway hope to be able to find something soon...

Thanks again for the brilliant welcome!

Mandy

gunners71uk · Tue Apr 11, 2006 6:27 pm

hi red pepper welcome what you got growing lol

Red_Pepper · Tue Apr 11, 2006 6:45 pm

Nothing growing at the moment not much point when i have to move at the end of the month!

ina · Post: # 17476Post **ina** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 12:05 pm

Red_Pepper wrote: Am currently trying really hard to find something, but when you need to rent there is not much available is there!

Mandy, what kind of place are you looking for? Not that I know of anything off hand, but places for rent are sometimes just advertised in local shopwindows - so I (and everybody else around here) could keep an eye open for you.