David's Digest

I don't suppose I'm the only farmer to be obsessed with weather forecasts while at the same time not really believing them. The other evening I listened to the latest forecast on our local radio station only to hear the same station change its mind an hour later. I shouldn't blame the newsreader, of course. They only go by what the met office tells them. The only thing we can be sure of is that predicting the weather is not an exact science.

There was a forecast in the Daily Telegraph yesterday that said British weather would stay unsettled until mid August but after that it would be hot and dry for an extended period. Not satisfied with a vague national assessment, this morning I phoned the local weather service based in Norwich. Their prediction was that the rest of today would be fine, as would most of Saturday but that there would be substantial rain on Saturday night. Monday to Friday of next week, on the other hand, would be fine and dry.

So, who to believe? I suggest we shouldn't believe any of them, absolutely. I prefer to use forecasters only as a guide to trends and, rather than wait for some so called promise of a fine spell weeks into the future, make use of every opportunity to do some more harvesting. That's what we mean to do - always bearing in mind the cost in cash and carbon footprint if we cut crops when the grain is too moist.