Restoration.

Farming has seen a down turn in the late 1900 and like many small dairy farms in the area life became hard. Often these farms had old properties that were high maintenance and with falling incomes and rising cost of livings and skilled trades these properties were often left to fall into disrepair, Goren Farm was no exception. Due to family circumstances and ill health the house and farmland fell in to disrepair over 100 years and many buildings were left under used and left without repair.  The gardens became over grown and roofs failed. Drains became blocked and hedges and ditches over grown. 

the only way in was a small footpath cut through the brambles.

Many of the windows were missing and boarded up.

The gardens were seriously over grown. This being the walled garden. (but the  jewel was the meadows through benign neglect and very extensive farming had begun to develop a life of their own. more of that later.)

in 2001 the scene was set. The course was clear and we started project to gather materials and skills in order to start the restoration. The scrub was cleared, roofs, gutters repaired, water supply and drains overhauled in the first 2 years.  A new hay barn built in 2003 inorder to continue farming.

A woodmizer sawmill was aquired to produce own own timber from our hedgerows and local woods. Oak, beach, ash and ceder were sticked up for drying and future building works.   

A Lime pit dug and new farm buildings put up within the first 5 years.

 

Lime putty was slaked and stored for repairs. Today we are still staking lime for building walls, plastering and painting. The hay business from the meadows meant we had plenty of horse hair from our customers too. 

relaying some old cobble floors. here you can see where new stones have been placed and the old ones reset to create a smooth floor.  

after rebuilding the box sashes, new lintels and water tabling it was time to re-render and lime wash the old place.

 

Farm.

Hedgerows