Archived News

5th July 2010

The dry weather is causing severe lack of grazing throughout the farm and cattle are being moved in search of anything vaguely green. The Belted Galloways, which looked so at home behind the watercress beds have moved today, along to Abinger Hall.

The oil seed rape at Wotton is ready for desiccation in the next day or so, however the fields of rape between Whitedown and Churchfield are not quite ready.

A mixed crop of peas and barley were sown at Paddington in March and these should be harvested on Friday with a forage harvester , much the same as we harvest maize for silage later in the year. Contractors will harvest the crop and then clamp it in silage pits to be used as cattle fodder during winter months; the peas provide protein and the barley providing carbohydrate.

Laurence and I managed a few hours away from the farm this morning to visit the RHS Hampton Court Flower Show.  We were involved in growing arable crops for Home Grown; a wonderful exhibit celebrating different aspects of commercial agriculture and horticulture in the UK.

I just loved the stunning array of vegetables, crops, and orchards surrounded by hedgerows and wild flowers all representing the diversity of home grown food production. With the weather set fair, I imagine Hampton Court will be swarming with people over the coming days.