ColinF

Don't limit your search to a .223, you could also use a .17 Rem, or .222 donor. My .204 is built in an old .17 Rem action

I'm near Towcester and will hopefully have a spare magpie in the next few days if you wanted to pick it up?

We've been given permission to plant out an unused corner of the farm, to help develop a new drive. We planted 240 shrubs last week, and need another 100 or so to finish it off. There is also an old railway embankment running through the shoot which is the basis for two drives, and that could also do with some planting to improve the cover for holding birds. We also have very heavy cover in parts of our wood, and we will be having a couple of work parties to cut some paths through the worst of it. We are very lucky that most of our beaters will also turn up to help with the work. During February and March we have had weekly roost shooting sessions. Although we haven't seen many pigeons, we have shot around 20 crows each week, which should put a dent in the local population. I've been running a few fenn traps, which have accounted for plenty of squirrels, a few rats and the odd stoat. I will start with the Larsen trap as soon as the clocks change. Most of the feeders are empty, but I have continued feeding in the wood. Hopefully that will help hold the birds, and some will nest there in the next month or two. The pens have survived the winter and only a few small repairs are required, we might extend one of the smaller pens if time allows.

In that case, your wife could transfer some of the beneficial interest in the building to you before you sell it, in order to make use of your CGT annual exempt amount. You would need to take advice from your Accountant and/or Lawyer on this point, but usually a Declaration of Trust is sufficient. You also need to consider the rate of CGT that you and your wife would pay. For Income Tax, the 2014/15 Personal Allowance is £10,000, and the next £31,865 is taxed at 20%. Say her income for the year is £12,000, that would leave £29,865 of the 20% band unused. For CGT, your wife would pay tax on the first £29,865 of her share of the gain (after the annual exempt amount has been deducted) at 18%. Any gain above this will be taxed at 28%. As you are a higher rate tax payer, you will pay CGT at 28% on any gain.

That's what I was thinking. The loan interest would be allowable against the rent, and the OP would save the legal and estate agency fees

Letting residential property is not a trade, and a buy to let property is not a business asset, so rollover relief doesn't apply. If it was a commercial property like a hotel or factory, which was used for the purposes of a trade, rollover relief would be available. Have a look here: http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/manuals/pimmanual/PIM1020.htm

No, I'm a tax adviser. I work with 2 or 3 people who are ex HMRC

Only if you lived in the property at some point, if its been a buy to let all the time you've owned it this won't apply. There is nothing to say that you have to live in a property for 2 years to claim Principle Private Residence relief. HMRC would review the facts of each case to decide if the relief applied. Even then, the gain would be apportioned over the period of ownership. So if you had a £100k gain on a property that you had owned for 10 years, let for 8 years, and genuinely lived in by yourself for 2 years, the taxable gain would be £80k. The other £20k would be tax free due to PPR.

If the property that you are selling has always been a buy to let for the time that you have owned it, and you haven't lived in it yourself, then you will need to pay CGT on the difference between what you paid for it and what you sell it for. When you calculate the gain, you can deduct any costs involved with buying and selling the property, including legal and estate agent fees. You can also deduct the cost of any improvements that you have made to the property during the time that you have owned it. This part can be a bit tricky, deciding what is an improvement (allowable for CGT) and what is a repair (allowable for income tax), but broadly anything that you couldn't offset against income tax on your rents will probably be allowable against the gain. Once you've calculated the gain, you can deduct your annual exempt amount of £11,000 for 2014/15. If the property is owned by more than one person, you can each deduct £11k from your share of the gain. If the property is in your name and you are married, you can transfer 50% of the property to your wife before the sale, to make use of her £11k if she isn't already using it. Any gain left will be taxed, the rate you pay will depend on your level of income for the year, but it will either be 18% or 28%. Someone mentioned rollover relief, but this is only available for business assets. Unfortunately, residential lettings are not classed as a trade by HMRC so buy to let properties are not business assets for rollover relief.

There is some good information on gapes, and just about everything else, on these links: http://www.nadis.org.uk/bulletins/diseases-of-game-birds/part-4-diseases-from-10-days-to-7-weeks-of-age.aspx http://www.nadis.org.uk/bulletins/diseases-of-game-birds/part-5-the-release-pen.aspx

We've got a Woodwarm stove, which has been great so far http://www.woodwarmstoves.co.uk/

There are some guidelines here: http://www.heygatesfeeds.co.uk/pheasant-feeds/ Heygates pack their pellets in 20kg bags, so bear that in mind when looking at the "bags per week". Some other suppliers pack in 25kg bags. We feed our poults from hoppers, which get topped up everyday.

There are various catch crops available, but I think you will struggle to find anything that can be planted in October, and produce cover for the same season

Smelly cartridges? If you don't like the ground, or the cartridges they sell, shoot somewhere else. Unless you are just trying to tarnish their reputation??

This is the right answer.

As its getting towards the end of the season, can you mow a narrow strip of maize every few days? That would smash the cobs up, and the birds would have something to scratch around in

The problem is there are very few HP steel cartridges available. As far as I know, none of the UK cartridge manufacturers make them, just the standard steel

There's not much in it, unless you need to use non toxic shot. I think that's the only time that the 20 bore is seriously disadvantaged

I checked this point out with Kings, and RCG can cause staggers in sheep and cattle if they graze it when its growing in the spring/early summer apparently

No, you need kale for a second year, so Moir Mix would give you a second year (only the kale though). If you want more than one year, also have a look at reed canary grass, chicory or artichokes, which will all do 5-10 years

I think they recommend drilling it, but we broadcast ours through a slug pellet spreader. Once the seed was spread I worked it in to the soil with a shallow pass of a power harrow.

Yes, I'm really pleased with it. I think it will easily hold up until the end of the season, unless we get some snow

Here you go, I took these earlier today

No, but I will take some for you in the next few days

We grew some Moir mix, and its ok, but not great now. The various kale varieties got hammered by flea beetle in June, despite spraying for them several times, so it didn't do very well. It probably also needed some fertilizer on it, which it didn't get. In another season, with better growing conditions for kale, it would be a good mixture. We also had some Campaign South, which is similar to Sunny Daze, but without the sunflowers. That has been brilliant and is still holding birds well, I will be growing some more for next season.