There’s always work to be done on the farm. And Schlattgut farm run by the Ledergerber family is no exception. Visitors of all ages can have fun on the farm above Herrliberg. Max and Filipp can tell you a thing or two about it!
Their mother has told them so much about it, and now they want to see it for themselves.
Julia Faulhaber, media officer at The Living Circle Group, and her husband Frank, a health scientist
at the University Children’s Hospital in Zurich, take their two sons, Max (8) and Filip (6), to Schlattgut farm above Herrliberg run by the Ledergerber family. The two boys have soon forgotten
their parents — the animals are all they are interested in. They also learn some amazing new facts.
ONE: Donkeys are not stubborn
On the contrary, they are extremely patient. Sina, Stella and Ben stand still and let themselves be groomed by the two boys, who give all they’ve got, brushing their coat for almost a quarter of an hour. The animals only complain when the two young hobby keepers leave the donkey compound, bellowing an obligatory “hee-haw”.
TWO: HENS ARE NOT STUPID
This is an experience for Filip above all. Farmer Domenik Ledergerber shows him the correct way to pick up a hen. Filip creeps up to the white hens on tiptoes. But they all fly away as soon as he gets near them. There are 160 hens at Schlattgut farm, pecking at the green grass, worms and seeds.
THREE: COWS CAN MOVE FAST
It is 4.45 in the afternoon, and the cows want to go home. You can hear them from a distance, mooing on the meadow. Cows are creatures of habit. So the Faulhaber family sets off to fetch the 29 Brown Swiss cows and one Jersey cow from the field, after carefully cordoning off the route. It is not long before the cows are safely home, with the astounded Faulhaber family trotting after them.
FOUR: MILK SQUIRTS OUT IMMEDIATELY
This is the moment the two boys have been waiting for: Under the expert eye of Peter Leder- gerber, they are allowed to milk the cows, which are standing calmly in their enclosure. First their teats have to be cleaned and activated, something that Filip particularly enjoys. As soon as the cow releases its natural hormone, the milk squirts out. Each cow can produce up to 40 to 50 litres per day.
FIVE: PEOPLE CAN PIG OUT, TOO
The cows devour the fresh hay the Faulhaber family gives them after milking them in the barn. And the two young farmers are famished too. They wolf down the dried meat, smoked sausage and boiled eggs from Schlattgut farm, served with freshly baked buns and bread rolls. This afternoon snack is followed by a sweet surprise: Rhubarb and strawberry ice cream from the farm. Some 1000 litres of it are sold in six varieties every year. The ice cream is also served at Restaurant Buech next door — prepared by Domenik Ledergerber himself. Next year, they plan to make yoghurt, quark and other delicacies from fresh farm milk. Max and Filip have also signed up again to help out on the farm.
Text: Reto Wilhelm
Photo: Anna-Tina Eberhard
The Living Circle – is a hand-picked group of first-class hotels and restaurants in incomparably beautiful locations, run by dedicated hosts. Rice, vegetables, fruit and a whole array of exquisite products – including wine, of course – is whisked fresh from our own farms directly to your table. That is how we define luxury. That is The Living Circle – luxury fed by nature.