“I will remember this week as the one of averted disasters [at Essex Farm]. Our first batch of chicks arrived, and are snuggled into the new greenhouse, looking more vigorous than ever. I spent a lot of time on Wednesday morning fiddling with the heat lamps, trying to get the temperature in the brooder just right. Well, apparently I did not fasten the chain of the lamp properly, and yesterday, Jane and Keir and Emily smelled something strange in the farmyard, investigated, and found the greenhouse full of smoke, the heat lamp on the ground, about to ignite the dry bedding. Miraculously, they caught it just in time, and all of the chicks survived. Even more seriously, Asa had a near-miss with the horses on Monday. Again, it was the simple neglect of a fastener that caused all the trouble. When he hooked the horses to the forecart, the tongue was not through the ring of the neck yoke, but was supported only by its safety chain, which is not designed to take the full weight of a load. As he went downhill with a cart full of compost, the chain popped, the tongue dropped to the ground, and the tug chains came loose from the forecart, so the horses were entirely free. They bolted, and pulled Asa, who held on to the lines, over the front of the forecart. They all stopped a few yards away, and everyone is fine, but I don’t like to think of all the ways in which this episode could have ended. I feel incredibly lucky that the whole farm team got these two stark reminders of what is at stake, and to pay attention to details, and work safely and carefully…” [Continue reading.]

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