 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Follow us on Twitter @lobbsfarmshop |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
Winners of the Taste of the West 2010 Gold award for Online retail outlets in Cornwall and the Taste of the West Silver award for Local Retail Outlet.
We are a 850 acre traditional mixed and non-intensive family run farm based in the heart of rural Cornwall and we produce, supply and deliver the finest quality meats and produce from our licenced premises. All the beef and lamb sold in the shop is born and reared on our farm.
|
|
Seasonal Selection from Lobbs Farm Shop ...
May 2012
Click on a photo for more information and buy
online |
|
 |
| Delicious Homemade Ham & Egg Pie |
|
 |
|
Newsletter Spring 2012
Spring has officially sprung, and isn’t it great to see some much needed rain at long last?! The unusually dry weather has stressed both the farmer and the crops! We expect yields to be lower at harvest as many of the winter barley fields are suffering from diseases which in a normal year the crops would be able to grow and shake off. One is a fungal infection of the roots which causes the roots to blacken and wither; new roots will grow in the spring provided we have moist conditions. Another problem is a manganese deficiency; all crops just like us need a balanced diet which includes a few micro-nutrients. Because of the mild winter the crop continued to slowly draw down on the soil reserves and was unable to find all of the nutrients required. I have now sprayed the field with a liquid fertiliser to replenish the crop and yesterday’s rain has been extremely beneficial. The field has now improved but it will probably not achieve the record yields that we managed to harvest in 2011. This is a classic story of farming - one year up and one year down; such is life.
On the other hand, as my daughter points out, we have had a successful calving birth rate this season! The first calves are now a month old and are enjoying the fresh spring pastures. With about half of our cows left to calve, we are then on to cutting silage in May followed by the June lambing! Farming really is non-stop!
Terry, Richard and I have been busy hosting school and university farm tours; including Exeter University, Charters School Ascot, and St.Clement Dane from Chorleywood. I often ask a visiting group whether they have visited a real farm before or have any relations that are farmers. Unfortunately only a couple had been to a farm before and the majority had NEVER visited a farm or met a farmer! These students were 17 to 18 years old and asked many pertinent questions which we were able to answer. The comments received from the lecturers were very complimentary commenting “1st class level of education – professional and informative” and “fantastic as always”.
A big undertaking this winter has been the erection of covered sheds to comply with nitrate vulnerable zones legislation. By covering over the open yards there will less slurry (Liquid manure) and more of the traditional solid farmyard manure which can be stored easier and is less likely to run of the fields and pollute the waterways. We have invested a large amount of time and money into this work which is part of a government initiative to keep our rivers and streams as clean as possible. We have not had any problems previously on our farms but work such as this should reduce any future potential incidents. The scheme is attempting to improve the water quality of river catchments to benefit wildlife and people similar to the clean sweep programme.
If you have sighted any shepherdesses in bright pink coats and wellies, you will be aware that we have spent many a weekend morning moving sheep. The two helpers, being very glamorous, are my wife Helen and daughter Georgia who are dragged in to assist with this task. The roads and byways have been used for this purpose for all time and only recently has the car shared the highway with the animals. We believe our sheep enjoy their celebratory marches around St Ewe to the new pastures and the bright pink clothing provides the much needed cheerful spirit for the carnival like processions. We thank you for your patience if you do happen to be delayed on your journey; many visitors stop to take action photos of this quaint country practice so in many ways we could be seen as a historic visitor attraction.
What an eventful few months at the farm shop! We’ve had special deals on our yummy home-made frozen ready-meals, two for one on our humungous home-grown cauliflowers and only £19.99 per kg on sizzling sirloin steaks! If you’ve missed out on these steals do not fret, because summer special offers are on their way to help you save the pennies and let you enjoy the best local food all year round! Remember, Lobbs isn’t just for Christmas!
The Charity Coffee Morning, on Saturday 11th Feb, raised a whopping £330 for Cornwall Hospice Care! The talented ladies, including Kathy, Mandy, Anne and in particular Gill and Caroline (& family), cooked and baked countless cakes and yummy nibbles for the event. There were a variety of prizes generously donated including a family ticket for the Lost Gardens of Heligan. The turn-out for the morning was excellent and seeing many local friendly faces supporting a great cause chased our February blues away! Please check out the notice boards for information on future events in the barn; we hope to see many more of you Lobbettes attending to raise an even greater sum for local charities.
It was a Chocolate Egg-stravaganza at Lobbs’ Easter Egg Decorating Workshop on Wednesday 4th April! An abundance of chocolate Easter treats and goodies were crafted under the expert eye of Gill (chocoholic) Paull, ably assisted by Georgia Lobb. The workshop was enjoyed by all ages, ranging from 10 to 92 years young, and included chocolate egg demonstrations, exclusive use of delicious Cornish chocolate kindly donated by ‘Trenance Chocolates,’ unlimited decorating tools, Easter crafts, lunch and even a chocolate filled goodie bag to take home!
If you’d like to take part in our next workshop, a pasty event, then please watch the shop notice board. This is for adults and children, ladies or gentlemen in fact any lover of a good pasty.
Lobbs Farm Shop is now selling new season Cornish potatoes as well as new season lamb and we are awaiting the asparagus and strawberries which should soon be ready to harvest. I really enjoy eating the seasonal food when the flavours are at their best. The asparagus is an example of where the supermarkets scour the world looking for a crop to sell out of season. The South American asparagus is flown here (bad for the environment) and by the time it gets here the flavour is diminished; I do not believe it tastes as well as local fresh asparagus grown here in Cornwall. Importantly vegetables especially can deteriorate from the moment they are picked so the fresher and closer to the source as possible should be a better flavour and will contain more of those important nutrients that we need. By buying local we can support Cornish jobs and the money is kept locally to be spent back in other local shops and businesses supporting the local food economy. You pay the money you take your choice.
We have just rung our strawberry supplier, Phil Boddington, and the crop is growing well. He expects to be picking strawberries soon. My mouth is watering now as I anticipate the taste and succulence of a newly picked strawberry. The patch is only 2 miles away from our shop here at Heligan so the fruits really are fresh and local. The Boddington family also make some lovely jams and marmalade which are all of an excellent quality and with a very high fruit content. The range includes orange marmalade, blackberry conserve, raspberry conserve and the original strawberry conserve, all made with no artificial additives. These are truly scrumptious and are well worth trying; you will come back to buy again because they are so yummy!!
|
|
|
| |
|
 |
|
|
List
all our products ...
Our Farm Shop at Heligan
