News from around the property and our Balingup cottage accommodation news


Seasonal News - from around the property

Cold misty mornings and day time temperatures up around 20 degrees make this a very pleasant time of year to visit Balingup. Our morning mists cover the bare branches of the chestnut trees and visitors in the cottage are able to watch as the hills gradually appear when the sun comes out.  We experienced a few very windy days during late autumn and the combination of wet ground and wind caused the loss of a few trees and the subsequent repair of a damaged fence.

Winter is the time when we prune all the trees and try to control the weeds along fence lines, repair fences and generally tidy up the paddocks.   It is also the time to prune the roses, thin out the native bushes and and weed the gardens.  The donkeys and sheep try to help by eating the cuttings but there is a limit to what they can eat.

The sheep have decided they don't like hay very much (spoilt sheep!). There can be a problem in autumn and early winter as there is a high percentage of water in the grass.  So they have been feasting on lupins and oat seeds just to put some dry bulk in their diet.

Jasper rides Rosie Our donkeys Rosie and Maelise now have their warm winter coats and seem to have lost some weight this year.  There is a fine line between just enough and too much food for them as they do not stop eating when they are 'full'.  Too much food (and excess weight) leads to problems with their feet and then they suffer very badly and can't walk.  Their diet must be watched closely all year but particularly from now until December when the grasses hold more sugars. The donkeys just love attention and enjoy having their coats brushed, and they are quite happy to stand very still for a long time while this is being done. 

The smaller birds are busy around the property. We have seen honeyeaters and silver eyes in the bushes and little fan-tails are keen to protect their territory.  Scarlet robins and fairy wrens are still in residence.  There are a number of fairy wren families around the cottage and they are fun to watch. Our pacific black ducks have returned with the rain (and water in the brook), and this year we are seeing a number of wood ducks around our house.  We also have a few resident kookaburras to greet the dawn each day and mark the end of day. And of course the parrots, magpies and ravens are always about. 
Take a little peep at our property, birds and animals here.

Check out what is happening in Balingup this season on our Balingup News page.

Strolling through the local galleries, viewing rolling hillsides, walking in the bush, relaxing in the cottage garden with a good book and a great bottle of wine, or snuggling up under the down doonas on a cool night - winter is always a beautiful time of year to visit our cottage in Balingup.

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