We were lucky with a sunny day at the end of March for our first Murrister Farm tour. We welcomed Jolene from Island Vista with her guest Jacalyn. They joined us on a sheep feeding run and got to see the native breed Shetland sheep, both ewes, rams and one year old lambs. Some of the flock have a gene pool from Foula so have interesting colours. Hubert gave us a sheep shearing demonstration making it look a lot easier than it is! Jacalyn was interested to see the high quality of Shetland fleeces in a variety of colours.

From there we had a look in the byre to see the all the new calves just born to their Limousin mothers. We fed them with a traditional crop of Shetland kale grown on the farm. 

Our guests took an interest in all the place names where the Shetland sheep graze. We pointed out the knows called black Keostrin and green Keostrin, the crofts called Novazembla and Timirie as well as the area of peatland restoration called Murnavoda. I explained the importance of remembering these place names rather than losing them through time and progress. In the past people moved around over large areas and covered considerable distances either looking for animals or transporting animals. Sheep were kept in the hills the whole year round and there were fewer fences so therefore they roamed greater distances. Other animals such as kye, ponies and pigs were often kept at home in the wintertime but were driven to the hills in summertime to graze allowing the crops in the haemtoons to grow. It was important then that every spot on the hills had a distinctive name so that the places where sheep or cattle were grazing could be described. I use these names in my knitting designs to help keep Shetland words and place names alive.