You may remember a couple of years ago how I was forced into the nettles and almost into the River Dee by a herd of cows so I am a tad nervous of the animals. You can therefore imagine my horror this morning to see a herd of nine wandering through the farmyard and up into my garden, as you can see below.
I did wander up and make vague suggestions that they may want to leave but to no avail. Thankfully the Old Bill tracked down farmer C and he turned up and ushered them away. But not before they had damaged two barn doors, left cow pats in one barn and across the vegetable garden and upper orchard and had a good eat.
Several apple trees have been damaged as well as cleansed of apples, my beetroot are largely gone but thankfully cows seem not to like tomatoes, leeks, marrows, rhubarb or chilies. Joshua and I were delighted to see that the two vines and a pomegranate we are nurturing were untouched. A small fig tree narrowly survived though the stake to which it is attached was crushed. Farmer C says that he is insured for this so I will be sending him a bill once I have walked along the river bank to see how many apple trees there the herd took out.
I posted a desperate please to the farmer on the village facebook group and was met with one or two comments about “it’s not his fault, you live in the country” etc. It was not his fault. Some prick had, not for the first time, smashed a gate on his field and his cows had walked through and wandered through a small paddock onto my land. Then they had used the lovely path I have mowed by the river to arrive, after 800 yards, at my house and started.
It is the fault of the pricks who broke the gate. Just as the dogshit I found yesterday on that path I mowed is the fault of a prick living in the village who has just no manners. And so I have spoken to a man about putting a gate on the wooden bridge that separates my land from the small paddock. It will be padlocked. That will keep out cows but also humans who will find themselves reading a sign “Private Land Trespassers will be prosecuted.” And they will be.
I had, until today, said that I was happy for folks to walk through what is private land by the river. But the cows, the dogshit and the comments means that my patience has finally snapped. Of course, neighbours of mine who I know and trust can still use the path. But the wider community cannot. The actions of a selfish minority have ensured that.
