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or 07854595640

Friday 31 August 2012

Ascott Offers - September 2012


Ascott
Septembers Special Offers Now Available
September's special offers from Ascotts are now available. We have put together a range of items ideally suited to this time of year.
Autumn is a great time of year for making jams, pickles and chutneys. We have Five great offers on traditional jam jars, pickling jars and hexagonal jars.
Now's the time to be picking your apples and turning them into apple juice and why not try making some cider. Our 4ltr and 6lt apple presses are ideal if you want to have a go or if you have 3/4 apple trees.
Ascotts are also at this year's Cheese and Agricultural Show at Frome on Saturday the 8th September.
Why not come and say hello
Many Thanks
Mark and Kate
New Spring Catalogue 2012Clearance
September Special Offers September Special Offers
 
September Special Offers September Special Offers
 
September Special Offers September Special Offers
 
September Special Offers September Special Offers
 
September Special Offers September Special Offers
 
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Call us today 0845 130 6285 Email us sales@ascott.biz
Ascott Smallholding Supplies Ltd | Units 21/22 | Whitewalls | Easton Grey | Malmesbury | Wiltshire | SN16 0RD
Opening Times 9am-5pm Monday to Friday

Wednesday 29 August 2012

Hens in Heat and Rain


Hens in Heat and Rain!
What a strange summer, one minute it is cold and wet the next we are in a heat wave! As a veterinary practice we have seen quite a high incidence of weather related problems and many chickens have not enjoyed the unsettled conditions. Our vets are recommending you give your birds some much needed boosters to combat any issues or potential problems on the horizon.
Hens that have carried on laying despite the poor conditions will need a boost and those who are in the grip of this year's red mite explosion will most definitely appreciate some added vitamins and energy in their drinking water to get them over this stressful period.
We have a range of products to help and remember all of these are recommended by our vets and are commonly used in commercial production - so we know they work!
Digesti-Health is a specially designed product to help keep your chickens' intestinal health in check.  It is recommended for use if your poultry is suffering from
  • stress
  • post illness
  • moving to a new home
  • feather loss and moulting
  • extended periods of broodiness
  • loss of weight
  • an aid against the effects of hens drinking out of muddy puddles
It is also particularly useful as an aid to older chickens and ex-battery hens.
This easy to use powder is sprinkled in your chickens' feed, and will help to create a barrier against E.Coli and Salmonella.
Digesti-Health 2kg (will treat 5 hens for approx. 1 month) - £15.00
Beryl’s Friendly Bacteria is a soluble powder containing over 200 species of friendly bacteria. These help to colonise the chicken’s gut, forming a physical barrier against harmful bacteria such asSalmonella and E.Coli.
It is particularly useful at time of hatch, when birds are stressed (travelling, breeding, moving home), if they have had a change of diet, and post illness.
The vets would always recommend using Beryl's if your bird has been sick and been treated with antibiotics. Give Beryl's 48 hours after finishing antibiotics and it will help to restore the normal gut flora that the antibiotics may have destroyed. 
Please keep refrigerated. Once opened use within 6 hours.

Chicken Vet Energy
An energy tonic that improves digestion, stimulates appetite and gives an energy boost following illness, recovery from red mite infesation, and times of broodiness. 
£6.95
Chicken Vet Amino +
A combination of vitamins, minerals, electrolytes and amino acids. Excellent at times of feather loss and feather regrowth. It is added to drinking water for 5 days and is highly palatable. 

£5.95
Chicken Vet Multivits
Your broad spectrum or A to Z of vitamins, use at times of stress, following illness, a booster during extremes of temperature, during laying, broodiness, before and after showing.
£8.75
All products and prices listed are exclusive of VAT and delivery charges.
For more information, please visit our online shop.  Alternatively, please contact us on 01392 872885 or email info@chickenvet.co.uk for further details and ordering.
Many Thanks,

Recipe of the Week - Member - Nick Elcombe


COURGETTE FRITTERS
 
To reduce this years glut into a different way of eating them
 
1 lb courgettes grated coarsely
2 eggs
3 desert spoons of flour
4 fl oz whole milk
1 table spoon of olive oil
 
Mix grated Courgettes with flour and eggs add milk so that a very thick batter in made.
 
Place tablespoons in heated oil. Turn when browned well and cook otherside to similar colour. Should make 8 about 3 inches in diameter.
 
Serve hot with salad as a starter or  with  fish or poultry

Recipe of the Week - Member - Nick Elcombe


CHEESE  AND BACON TARTE
 
INGREDIENTS
 
Serves 16
 
2 sheets ready made puff pastry
1 lb streaky bacon rind removed cut into 1/4 inch pieces
1 lb onions diced small
12 eggs
1 pint double cream
1 pint milk
1 lb grated cheese I use cheddar or Lancashire
1 tablespoon olive oil and same of butter
 
Line a tin  with the puff pastry sheets. I use the large Aga  roasting to which is 14" x !0 " x 2 1/2 ". The sheets should just overlap use a pastry brush with water to fix 2 sheets together. The sheets should just cover the rim of the tin. Place somewhere cool while the filling is prepared.
 
Heat the oil in a frying pan cook the bacon for about 7/8 minutes  remove. Place on 1 side
 
Using the bacon fat add butter cook onion until soft and just starting to take colour
 
Place bacon and onion over base of pastry add about 1/3 of the cheese. Mix eggs cream and milk in a bowl pour gently over bacon and cheese, strew with the remaining cheese.
 
Place on floor of Roasting Oven in Aga for about 35 minutes turning round after 15 to 20 minutes.
 
There should be that very important wobble remaining in the centre of the Tart when removed from the oven.
Allow to cool.
 
If 8 are to be served use the small Aga roasting tin and halve the ingredients and cook for about 25 minutes.
 
It is great sliced into squares at lunch with a salad
 

 

Red Mite - Prevention better than cure!

Stay on top of Red Mite with Predator Mite
You must remain vigilant where Red Mite are concerned. Remember to keep monitoring the levels of Red Mite, check the coop and your birds for signs at least once a week. The mite's short life cycle of 7 - 10 days means it reappears very rapidly.
If you have recently purchased the Predator Mite Booster Cartridge Insert and Holder, it may soon be time to top up your predator mite levels with a new Cartridge Insert Depending on level of infestation this would normally be required every 3-6 weeks. The cartridge works best when attached as close to the infestation as possible.
Use 1 Cartridge per 1 sq. metre of perch space. Once you have purchased the blue holder, you only need the insert.
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100ml sprinkler is used in an area of around 10sq. metre of coop, (curatively) or 20sq.metre preventively.
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500ml shaker treats 20sq. metre of coop, (curatively) or 40sq metre of coop preventively.
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The Sprinkler and Shaker contain a higher concentration of predator mite that can be used to dust the nest boxes and house, and should be used to complement the Booster Cartridges.
Do not apply using a double dose thinking this will work better. If the Predator Mite eat all the Red Mite and have nothing to survive on they will die themselves before the Red Mites re-hatch.  Always use as per instructions.
If the biological (Predator Mite) method of control is not for you then a more conventional regime will need to be followed.
Prevention, not cure
Remember, it is difficult to eradicate Red Mite completely, and it takes regular cleanouts and management of your coop to stay on top of it. Red Mite can often stay dormant and be much less obvious or cause many problems during the colder weather and winter months. If you had an infestation last year they will probably re-emerge as soon as the weather gets warmer. Next year try and start preventive treatment as early as March or April. A programme of keeping levels low should then be followed throughout the summer months.
Red Mite Treatment - Best practice
Remove all bedding from your house and burn if possible or compost as far away from the coop as possible. The following is a good programme to use for prevention or low mite levels.
Remove all organic matter and disinfect with Chicken Vet Poultry Shield (right, 1litre, £11.00). Leave in place for one hour and then rinse with cold water.
Then use Chicken Vet Mite Powder (1kg, £12.30) weekly in nest boxes, dust baths and on the birds.  It's safe to owners and birds, and kills mites within 3 days.
For more moderate levels of mites, use Chicken Vet Die-Mite (500ml, £13.13), a sticky silicone based product which entraps the mite and hinders movement - spray around the perches and nest boxes. If you have previously used Mite Powder then scrub thoroughly to remove all traces as this powder hinders the effectiveness of Die-Mite.
The above knockdown products will unfortunately kill Predator Mite and as such should not be used when Predator Mite have been released in the coop. We recommend using the above products to bring any serious infestation under control, before introducing Predator Mite 4 to 6 weeks later.
All products and prices listed are exclusive of VAT and delivery charges.
For more information, please contact us on 01392 872885 or email info@chickenvet.co.uk. Alternatively, please visit our online shop for further details and ordering.
Many Thanks,

Saturday 25 August 2012

FOR SALE - Guinea fowl keets


Guinea fowl keets for sale

Off heat and growing well £8 each. 

Please call Nick (Member) on mobile number 07850 665302
 

Supporting our pig farmers


To raise the awareness of how British pig producers are facing increasing pressures due to rising costs - and how this may force many out of business, the National Pig Association last week released a top ten list of facts, some of which can help shoppers support the industry. 

This story joins our dairy farmers who are of course also under threat.
 
1. Bacon is Britain’s favourite According to the British Top 100 Foods Index compiled by Food Network UK, bacon is Britain’s favourite food.
2. The future of British bacon is under threat this summer Harvest failure around the world has made pig-feed so expensive that more British pig-farmers are quitting every week because of mounting losses.
3. Shoppers can save delicious British bacon for future generations If all shoppers make a special effort to choose bacon with the independent British Red Tractor logo they will push up demand and retailers will have to pay farmers a price that covers their costs of production.
4. Why British bacon is the best in the world British pig farmers are acknowledged world leaders in higher welfare pig husbandry — and meat scientists are clear that happier, stress-free pigs make better bacon.
5. Britain is only 25 percent self-sufficient in bacon Most shops and supermarkets sell mainly imported bacon which is usually produced on more intensive farms and is cheaper — sometimes they package it to make it look like British bacon.
6. Farmers who produce British bacon do not receive subsidies Unlike most farmers, British pig farmers do not receive European Union agricultural subsidies for their pig enterprises.
7. Britain’s pig farms are on a knife-edge Pig farming is a difficult way to make a living. It takes eight months to produce a bacon pig, and another six months for retail prices to reflect higher production costs — so pig farmers cannot respond instantly to changes in market conditions such as the current feed-cost crisis.
8. Shoppers reward supermarkets that support British farmers One retailer, which sells only British bacon, has seen its sales increase faster than any other retailer but some supermarkets don’t care where their supplies are coming from tomorrow... they are only interested in piling it high and selling it cheap today.
9. Supplies of cheap imported bacon will soon start to dwindle New European Union welfare rules come into force in January to force continental pig farmers up to the high welfare standards already used by British farmers.
10. Buying British Red Tractor bacon safeguards British sausages too Pork pies, sausages, Sunday roasts, chops, ham and spare-ribs all come from the same pigs as bacon... so when shoppers make a special effort to choose British Red Tractor bacon they are supporting the whole British higher-welfare pig industry.

The ESSG urges all  consumers to buy British and support our hard-pressed farmers - we must not allow cheap, low-welfare imports to strangle our industry and must be prepared to pay a fair price for a good product. The upcoming Countryside Alliance Awards (opening on 3rd September) give the perfect platform for consumers to praise their producers, farm shops and butchers and help us highlight the excellence of British farming. 

Ascott - August Newsletter


Ascott
Welcome to our August NewsletterAugust 2012
Don't forget our 8 special offers for August...
Jam Making Kit
Apple Juice Bottles
Fruit Crusher
12oz Hexagonal Jame Jars
6 Litre Spindle Press
8oz Round Jars
Smite Organic Mite & Louse Powder
Telescopic Fruit Picker
Dear carlie
Vegetables and soft fruit, autumn raspberries, tomatoes should now be in plentiful supply, all be it that they could all do with some sunshine (including ourselves).
Now is the time to start to enjoy this harvest by cooking, eating and storing the fruits of your labour. If you are lucky to have a glut, then it’s great to make them into pies/jams and preserves.
Difficult conditions early in the year may have led to a reduced crop of apples and pears but there should still be fruit to pick over the next month.
Ascotts have introduced lots of new lines to help with your harvest, New ranges of bottles, New smaller pack sizes of all the different types of jam jars, New apple press kits, New harvesting equipment.
Have a look at our Autumn Offer Sheet for some great offers.
We have also included in this month’s email a great autumn recipe and some monthly hints and tips. These will also be included on our Facebook and Twitter pages.
Please feel free to let us know what you think or if you would like to contribute a recipe for our monthly newsletter.
Ascotts are out and about again. We will be exhibiting at the Frome Agricultural & Cheese Show on Saturday the 8th September
Hope to see you there

Many Thanks
Mark and Kate
New Spring Catalogue 2012Clearance
Hints & Tips
When storing apples, pick the fruit from the tree, wrap each apple in a piece of newspaper, place in a wooden box in a well-ventilated shed, Check regularly and remove any that go soft.
It is possible to store apples for a couple of months.
Don’t forget to give your chickens a little extra boost Late summer is the time when your chickens will began to moult Poultry zest, Poultry Spice and chicken lickin intervets are ideal for this purpose.
Bramble jelly
Blackberries make a great clear jelly. You do have to wait patiently while the juice strains from the berries. Great on buttered toast or pancakes and wonderful in puddings or on ice-cream
You will need:
At least 1kg blackberries, washed
Granulated sugar

Put the berries in a large, heavy pan, along with just enough water to get the juices running (a couple of centimetres in the base of the pan). Bring to the boil and simmer, stirring occasionally and crushing the fruit against the side of the pan, until the berries are collapsed and have given up all their juice.

Transfer to a jelly bag suspended over a bowl . Leave the juice to drain through overnight. If you want a crystal-clear jelly, let the juices drip of their own accord. However, if you want to maximise the yield, give the bag a bit of a squeeze to get out the last drops of juice. Your jelly will cloud a little but will taste none the worse.
Measure the juice, then transfer to a clean pan along with 750g sugar for every litre of juice. Stir over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved, then boil, skimming if necessary, until you reach the setting point for jelly - this can be measured at 105C on a sugar thermometer.
As soon as setting point is reached, remove the pan from the heat and pour the jelly into warm, sterilised jars. Cover with a disc of waxed paper, then with a lid. Leave for a few weeks to mature before eating. The jelly should keep for up to a year.
Many Thanks to Nuts Catering for this recipe
New Products
6oz Round Jars
6oz Round JarsSmall glass jar with straight shoulders, supplied complete with lid.
Ideal for jams, lemon curd, and speciality pickles etc.
60 x 60 mm high
Click here for more....
2lt Cider Jars
2lt Cider JarsTraditional Cider Jar with swing stopper
2lt capicity
Swing Gallone
Ideal for Cider nad fruit juice etc
Click here for more....
12lt fruit press kit
Berry/Fruit PickerEverything you need to make apple juice or cider
Kit Includes
1 X 12lt Spindle fruit Press
1 X 12lt Press Filter Bag
1 X Pulp Master
1 X Real Cider Making Book
1 X Cider Yeast 5g
1 X Campden Tablets (x100)
12 X 2.5lt Plastic Containers
Click here for more....
Stock Clearance Sale
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Call us today 0845 130 6285 Email us sales@ascott.biz
Ascott Smallholding Supplies Ltd | Units 21/22 | Whitewalls | Easton Grey | Malmesbury | Wiltshire | SN16 0RD
Opening Times 9am-5pm Monday to Friday
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