Spring is my favourite time of year as the countryside is transformed with a variety of green leaves and colourful flowers. At Cwmfron the lambs are growing well, the cattle are out of the sheds but at the moment the grass growth is slow as the temperatures are low, particularly at night.

The cold spring does not appear to affect the nesting birds. May is the best month for bird songs as territories are maintained, chicks hatch and food is gathered. Some days I wake at dawn, open the window and enjoy the fantastic optimistic dawn chorus. One morning a knowledgeable friend, Barbara Brown, spent two hours before a well-deserved cooked breakfast, listening to the birds around the farm and listing the species for us. We were thrilled to hear that she found around 30 different birds. There were many migratory birds such as the pied fly catcher, black cap, redstart and redpoll plus tits, siskins, wrens, meadow pipets, warblers, sky larks a pair of red kites and two pairs of curlew.

We had a great time with the 10 boys from London who came up for our twin grandsons’ party. For many of the children this was the first time on a farm. They all loved feeding the stock and the freedom to explore and run in the fields, and play football on the river field. A lot of food was eaten including a midnight feast, when we were exhausted and in bed, and no one wanted to go home.

Finally, I would like to encourage you to sponsor Matt Launder, a young Montgomeryshire farmer, who is scaling nine peaks in the UK in 72 hours to raise money for the mental health charity, the DPJ Foundation. If you would like to give money please search for Matt Lauder on www.gofundme.com. Montgomeryshire NFU Cymru has donated £200 to the endeavour.