On the sixth day of Christmas…
December 18, 2015
On the sixth day of the South Downs Christmas, we visited SouthDownsFood.org to find some great local locally produced geese – and chocolate, and wine, and beer, and cheese and ice-cream…
We discovered that Durleighmarsh Farm shop is stocking Hyden Farm Originals geese, born and bred in Hambledon. Hyden Farm is a small family run farm who have been producing Christmas Poultry since the 1940’s, the tradition passed down from a grandfather who started on Hilhampton Farm in East Meon.
The geese arrive as goslings in July and spend six months leisurely grazing the pastures. Did you know that geese are one of the few animals that it is impossible to farm intensively?
And we should also give a mention to the many wild geese that pass through the South Downs each year.
The brent goose is a similar size to the mallard duck, with either a pale or dark belly depending on the race. They fly in loose flocks along the coast, differing from the grey goose who prefer to fly in tight flocks. It is on the RSPB Amber list as numbers are found at only a few sites.
Canada geese are large, with a distinctive black head and neck featuring a white throat patch. This species was introduced from Northern America and has successfully spread over most of the UK. You can often hear a flock of Canada geese before you see them as they are extremely noisy.
Greylag geese are the largest and bulkiest of the wild geese native to the UK and Europe. The greylag goose symbolised the sun god Ra in Ancient Egypt and in Ancient Greece and Rome they were associated with the goddess of love, Aphrodite, and goose fat was used as an aphrodisiac!
Photos by Bruce Middleton and Durleighmarsh Farm Shop