And here is another year and right now with lovely crisp winter weather. It is very important for the land that we get a good frost so the land can be better processed in spring. The frost contributes to reducing nuisance pests that usually pop up in spring. Plus of course, being Dutch, we fully enjoy the wintry pictures and the skating!

In the stables we are currently testing a JOZ feed slide.  In collaboration with JOZ we are looking at the digestion of food in the cows. It’s also very nice to see that their feed always lies neatly within the range of the cows. Currently the general farm work consists mostly of maintenance to the many machines and the occasional repair to the stables.

In addition, it is now time for attending meetings and seminars. Marc and Joris have attended a course to gain their spraying license and Natasha and Mariska have followed their compulsary refresher BHV-course.

We are in full preparation with the upcoming tourist season, in particular the Tulip Routes.  On Saturday 15th April, the opening of the Tulip Routes takes place at De Kandelaar. On this day, there are several companies present from the area to showcase their products and activities at a local market. Depending on the weather and the bulbs we should be able to admire the many blooming tulip fields in our area. It is expected that the fields will be in bloom until mid-May.

Last Saturday in Hanneke’s picking garden the tulip routes in the area of Dronten have been opened.

Bed & Breakfast “De Kandelaar” is the starting point of the car and bike trail for all the Dronten tulip routes.

Saturday 23^rd April, an Open Day has been organised at “De Kandelaar”. During the day you can take a closer look at the workings of a modern farm where cows are milked by a robot (DeLaval) . You can also see the variety of machines that are required for planting, caring and harvesting the tulip bulbs. A special “Meet & Greet” has been organised with tulip grower Wim Klink.  For the children and creative people Jolanda Noome of Jono Creatief will run a few small workshops for various ideas on what you can do with tulips.  There will also be coffee and tea at the Bed & Breakfast where the owners will tell you about their farm and the B&B.

You are welcome Saturday 23^rd April from 13:00 to 17:00.

There was a pause in the news but there was a reason, we have been extremely busy! In September the last of the asbestos was removed from the barn and then solar panels were installed.  Not only on the large barn, but also on the roofs of the potatoe barn and cattle shed.  In total, nearly 900 solar panels have been placed on the various roofs.  On a sunny day we will yield approximately more than 1000 Kwh.  Much more than we consume in a day, i.e. at De Kandelaar we contribute to the environment by using green energy and giving back to the grid.

The cattle shed has been widened by 6 metres, where a beautiful space has now been created for resting/dry cows (the dry period is an important resting period for the dairy cow, where fresh udder tissue is formed in readiness for the lactation, and it provides an important opportunity to rid the udder of many potential pathogens that can cause mastitis).  There is now ample space for all cows to stay in good shape.  We also now have a large loft where the cows have plenty of space to wean off their calves, plus the cubicles around the milking robots are now fully operational by the lactating cows.

Meanwhile, we have also had a busy period with working the land.  Due to the cold and wet autumn, the harvest took place mainly in October; harvesting corn, potatoes and part of the sugar beet.  In early November the tulip bulbs were planted again by the White Company in Bovenkarspel and we then also cleared the last of the sugar beet.  Following the harvest and planting, the arable land was plowed and is now ready for the winter – let the snow and frost come.

Finally, thanks to VWA Dronten. We also have been working hard to create the new website and here is the result.  The website is now also available on the iPad and the smartphone.

Planning permissions given, compared the quotes and now construction starts.

After a 2.5 years wait, the permit has finally come through. Today we have made a start with the preparations for the expansion of the dairy barn.

To this end, we will first make alterations to the field where we house our goats and sheep. With the expansion we will create additional space for “dry” cows so that they have more freedom and comfort to move around. (Dry cows: cows which do not produce milk.) As a result the area around the milking robot will now only accommodate the dairy cows.

Next week the current barn wall will be demolished and holes will be dug where the wells are for the new section. From mid-June: the construction of the roof begins.

To make our contribution to sustainability; in the coming summer months several roofs from our outer buildings will be equipped with solar energy. The company ‘Energy Plusdak’ will be here in August / September to install these solar panels, this will coincide with the last removal of asbestos from our yard.

In short, plenty of construction activity in the coming months De Kandelaar.

Preparations are in full swing for the tulip festival in Eastern Flevoland. Dronten has been willing to promote the tulips routes in “Dronterland”. You will be able to find a walking, cycling and a car route on thewww.tulpenroutedronterland.nl.   The car route ends up on our farm.

On Saturday 11 and 18 April and Monday 27 April, there are special activities along these routes. For our guests we have additional cycling routes along the many beautiful, colorful tulip fields in our region.

With the start of spring the activities on our land have increased.  The tulip bulbs are growing and will bloom abundantly within weeks, last week we sew beet roots.  When we have a few days of dry weather Johan van de Bergh will set and sow the onions.

We are also busy with our expansion plans of the diary barn extension to create more space for our cows in-calf, we will expand the stable by 6 meters. At the same time we will also place solar panels on the roof to produce sustainable energy.

Finally, we are now sponsoring the local softball team ‘The Vrijbuiters’.  An advert sign of ‘De Kandelaar’ is placed around the softball field and by supporting the local athletes we also hope many people will see the advert.