Blog of the week – A Small Holding

A Small Holding follows the plant, vegetable and animal adventures of Mo and Steve, on their much loved plot that’s “bigger than an allotment, but smaller than a farm”.

Their journey as smallholders in South Yorkshire is told with plenty of enthusiasm and good humour, despite the usual trials and tribulations. The chickens and pigs take pride of place as is demonstrated by their own dedicated pages on the blog. There’s a plentiful supply of fresh veg and herb posts to tickle your tastebuds. When combined “A Small Holding” is a wonderful tale and fabulous resource for those wanting or trying to do the same.

A Small Holding is a treasure chest of knowledge for goodies you can grow and eat. For pigs there’s articles on everything from building your own pig ark to DIY butchery. Chicken knowledge nuggets include ways to choose, keep and care for your feathered friends. A wide range of vegetable wisdom is shared from artichokes to tomatoes, as well as a fragrant selection of herb help. There’s also the odd illuminating idea for the garden, for example: did you know that Crown Imperials pong like foxes, so they will keep away pesky moles and rodents?

On the theme of traditional knowledge, A Small Holding seasonally celebrates the rural traditions and history of Britain. From May Day hanging of Rowan on the front door, to the eating of dried peas on Carling Sunday (the 5th Sunday in Lent apparently!), A Small Holding is sure to remind us. To help us all remember and rejoice, a calendar page with a growing number of high days and Holy Days is a permanent feature on the blog.

A Small Holding has been chosen for review partly because it shares the heartwarming enthusiasm for ‘the good life’ with plenty of engaging humour. But the main reason is Mo and Steve have created a valuable library of posts that will inspire small holders for many years to come. As a result, the blog is a popular resource for small holders and bloggers who can often be seen contributing in the comments.

We haven’t chosen a Dobbies blog of the week for a while, but the unique content and quality of A Small Holding was impossible to pass without comment.