David's Digest

It probably doesn't feel like 2008 has been a fecund year to farmers who still have grain to harvest. But my observations suggest most crops have produced exceptional yields this year. That goes for hay, vegetables, roots, top fruit and soft fruit as well as cereals. Our apple trees are laden at present; the hedgerows are full of blackberries and other berries best left for birds; and the other day I picked a bumper crop of wild mushrooms.

In my view there is little that beats a pan full of wild mushrooms picked straight from the field. A bit of English bacon and a couple of fresh, home produced eggs make a meal fit for a king. It's one of the few dishes I can cook rather well myself and although I'm not allowed it often it's a real treat when I am. The flavours are so much better and sharper than the bland cultivated mushrooms that come from supermarkets. It's one of the reasons I, and you too, I imagine, enjoy living and working in the British countryside. Aren't we lucky?