August 2008 Archives

Here's something I never I thought I'd see someone doing with vegetables.

It's a shame he didn't take any notice of his mum when she told him not to play with his food...

Images from Google Earth have shown cattle align their bodies from north to south.

German scientists have studied images from around the world and reckon cows use the Earth's magnetic field as a natural GPS.

If only I had similar natural instincts - it would certainly put an end to taunts over my map reading and sense of direction!

Snail farmer Martin Downes will be at the Grand Local Producer Fayre on September 20-21 at La Hogue Farm Shop near Newmarket.

Martin, of Rutland Fine Foods, will be showing live breeding snails (there will be a special "Guess The Weight" competition in aid of a lcoal hospital) and giving the public free tastings. 

The event is part of the British Food Fortnight celebrations, which kick off nationwide on September 20.

Other stars of the fayre will be the award-winning Hereford cows, Bonny and Clyde, from the local Badlingham herd, who will be making a special appearance on both days.

Great news - the lovely Pam Ayres has agreed to be a judge in the poetry competition which we're running here at Farmers Weekly with the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution.

Apparently, she's got a new book coming out next month - a hardback edition of The Works - The Classic Collection published by BBC Books.

It contains some of her most popular early poems such as (and I'm sure 'more mature' Field Day readers will remember these) I Wish I'd Looked After Me Teeth, Do You Think Bruce Springsteen Would Fancy Me?, The Dolly On The Dustcart, and The Battery Hen.

That's my Mum's Christmas present sorted!

One farmer may have gone across the Bering Straits in one - but there are lots more tales of Land Rover adventures on the NFU's website.

Fact of the matter is, some people love 'em, some people hate 'em.

West Yorkshire farmer Steve Burgess has powered his way into the record books, becoming the first person to cross the Bering Straits in a road vehicle, his Land Rover Defender. 

After an epic 50-day journey to the Straits on the Eastern tip of Russia, the 52-year-old took the innovative step of waiting until the Straits melted before making his attempt to cross. 

Once the ice melted away, he strapped two huge floats on the sides of his Land Rover, then attached a motor and propeller to the back, before setting off. 

Thanks to Sophie Beaton for alerting me to this. It couldn't have come at a better time, seeing as I'm busily trying to out-do Matthew Naylor who's been blogging about fancy dress dogs.

This isn't a wind-up or an early April Fool. This is a cat with four ears. Yoda, named after the famous Jedi knight from Star Wars, has been attracting attention for his extra appendages.

Owners Valerie and Ted Rock from Chicago, USA fell in love with the freaky feline when they saw him in a local bar two years ago, and have cared for him ever since, although they have to keep him inside for fear of catnapping!

Yoda's hearing appears to be normal, although vets were baffled by the crazy cat's appearance. It's not hard to see why.

The Guinness World Records has today confirmed that egg producer Clarence Court has set a new record for World's Largest Scotch egg. 

Made using a Clarence Court Ostrich Egg, the meaty mélange weighs in at 6.2kg, the equivalent to a bowling ball.

In order to break the previous record, Clarence Court called upon Lee Streeton, Executive Chef at Rocco Forte's Brown's Hotel.

Naylor isn't the only one who can publish bizarre photographs which are funny and disturbing at the same time. His dogs in drag have got nothing on this little set: the guinea pig olympics.

More stunning pictures involving a hungry animal and an unwitting victim - this time, a seal and a sea trout.

They remind me a bit of the owl eating the weasel, the trout leaping for the dragonfly and, my favourite of all, the cormorant scoffing the pike.

Certain things remind me of my childhood - and Pam Ayres is one of them.

She always seemed to be on TV when I was a kid. I didn't like her at the time; but I'm going to try reading her again now - maybe her brand of humour is more suited to adults.

The reason I've been thinking about her is that the rural charity RABI has asked me to be one of the judges on their poetry competition and we're trying to get Pam Ayres to be a judge, too (apparently she's supported RABI before as she's interested in farming and the countryside).

How low can you go? Having repeatedly taken me to task for publishing cute cat pictures, Matthew Naylor has now resorted to publishing shots of dogs in fancy dress on his blog.

And, here's the worst thing - apparently it's proving very popular!

Here's what I'll be doing this weekend. Not actually up the mast, but on the deck. Clinging on for dear life.

A boat. A stag do. Oh dear...

Those of you who are interested in blogging (and blog yourself) will have probably heard of Judith O'Reilly.

Or, you may not have heard of Judith O'Reilly, but you're almost certain to be familiar with her blogging name: Wife in the North.

Her blog charts the trials and tribulations of life in rural Northumberland, after she moved to the North East from London. It's been turned into a book which, frankly, has got bestseller written all over it.

Anyway, I'm very excited because I've just been talking to her (well, swapping emails) as she's going to write a piece for Farmers Weekly (you'll be able to read it on this blog first).

She's a bit of a star: there have been articles about her recently in The Times and The Mail and here's one in The Times last year that talks about her book deal. 

Field Day reader Phil was so pleased to see a photo of a kangaroo on Field Day he sent me one that he took. Note the joey's feet sticking out of the pouch!

Anyone who's feeling hungry as a result of looking at Phil's photo might be interested in this recipe using kangaroo meat.

Here's something else you can do to help save the planet if you can't kill a moose. Eat a kangaroo.

Did anyone see that bit on More4 News last night about crop circles? It was outrageous.

Here are my thoughts on the subject:

Anyone who makes them is a vandal.

Anyone who believes they're created by martians is a nutter.

Have your say on Farmers Weekly's forums.

The big cat hunt seems to be shaping up nicely.

Quite a few people have been in touch with me; someone's forwarded me this news story from a local paper; and the users are talking about it over on Farmers Weekly's forums.

Am I nervous about it? Right now, no. But when I'm in the middle of a field in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night, I'm sure I'll be terrified.

Today's The Glorious 12th - the first day, in other words, of the grouse shooting season.

The day has seen, as it does every year, a rekindling of the arguments over the merits and morality of the pursuit.

Fans (and you need deep pockets to take part) have been enjoying a day out on the moors and talking about the benefits grouse shooting brings to the countryside.

Opponents, meanwhile, have criticised them, with the League Against Cruel Sports claiming "barbaric and immoral" would be more suitable terms for the day than 'glorious'.

The arguments rumble on. The guns go off. I wish I had enough money for it to be something I could at least consider doing.

Another one for machinery buffs. That New Holland combine harvester I mentioned the other day has set a new record for cutting wheat.

Apologies if you find this boring - but there are men out there for whom photos of big shiny farm machines are akin to pornography.

Had a growler today as well as yesterday in a bid to bolster the ailing pork pie industry.

Also had pancakes for lunch today and it's not even Pancake Day. That's just the kind of wild-living guy I am!

I know what I'm about to say is sacrilegious to a lot of people, but I don't care. 

I'm not a fan of The Archers. In fact, I'll go further. I positively dislike it. It spoils a bath if the show comes on; I have to get out and turn it off.

Followers of the popular R4 series, however, will be interested to know there's a new edition of Who's Who in The Archers about to be published.

The 2009 edition, by Keri Davies, will be published by BBC Books on October 9, priced £5.99.

Complete with an A-Z listing of the key characters and places, as well as a full Archer family tree and an index of character forenames, it promises to "transform even the most recent of fans into complete Archers experts".

It's probably essential reading for fans, but I'm afraid I'd rather watch paint dry than read it.

Five year-old Lucy Hancock from Cornwall has won the competition to come up with a name for a new potato variety. 

The competition, run by Branston at the Eden Project, saw children suggesting a name for the new variety based on a traditional Peruvian species. Lucy's was one of over 500 suggestions.

The new spud is the result of several years of collaboration between Branston, a leading potato supplier, and the Scottish Crop Research Institute (SCRI).

Previously know only as 00.H.14 A3, the potato is now set to be called 'Inca Bella'.

It has a creamy-yellow flesh and distinctive pinky skin colouration. With its excellent flavour and smooth texture, Inca Bella will be a multi-purpose type of potato, ideal for salads and roasting.

You can't beat a nice pork pie (a 'growler', as I've heard them called).

I eat three or four a week (ideally with spicy pickle, cheese and tomatoes) but it seems like they're falling out of fashion.

Figures from the British Pig Executive (BPEX) show customers are turning their back on them because of their reputation as an unhealthy product.

189 million meals featured pork pies in the year to February, apparently, representing a 9% decline on the previous year.

"Pork pies are very easily associated with obesity," so BPEX Chris Lamb (an ironic name for a man who works with pigs) told The Grocer magazine. "They are suffering as a result of all the health messages."

The good residents of Melton Mowbray will no doubt be appalled at the news. 

The fightback starts here: I'm going to buy one at lunchtime today.

I'm not as anti-Dragon Den as Mr Naylor, but I do find it a little boring these days. At first it was great, but the concept has worn a bit thin. And, I've never seen that Deborah Meaden say Yes to a single proposal.

Might be worth watching tonight through - as farmers son and racing driver, 18-year-old Robert Hall from Herefordshire, is on the show which airs on BBC2 tonight at 9pm.

He'll be pitching to the dragons for £50,000 and help introducing new investors to Motorsport to progress his career. 

I lived in London for six years in the same flat and never as much as exchanged a word with my neighbours.

I heard their music and their heavy-footed guests and, occasionally, other things in the night that I'd have rather not have heard, but we never spoke. They probably wouldn't have even been able to pick me out if I'd appeared in a police line-up (which, I hasten to add, I never did).

My experiences aren't unusual, though, if the findings of a new study from insurer NFU Mutual  are anything to go by.

It shows that urban dwellers believe there is a greater sense of community in the countryside than in the city - but that rural inhabitants make be taking it for granted.

Hobbies, interest groups and religious activities are principal sources of 'community' in the countryside.

Everyone is searching for a sense of belonging," said NFU Mutual's Sylvia Newham. "City dwellers are clearly envious of the tight-knit community of the rural population - but maybe it is being taken for granted by those who live in it. Sadly, a sense of community is missed more by those who do not have it than it is valued by those who do."

How would you sum up your life in six words? For some examples, here's how people have been summing up their farming outlook in this way on the Farmers Weekly forums.

"Are you mad?" people have been asking me.

Well, no, I don't think I am - but I definitely want to go on a big cat hunt.

I'm not talking about overfed examples of the domestic kind (like this monster), I'm talking about your bonafide, proper, pucca wild big cats. Your panthers, pumas and lynxes.

When I say 'a hunt', I'm obviously not going to be hunting them, but I'm going to spend a night in the wild in a hot-spot filming. I am, in the name of reseach and investigative journalism, going to become 'bait'.

It's a big problem for farmers in some areas, who have lost lots of livestock to such animals. Of course, some people reckon it's all rubbish and they're not living wild in the UK.

I think they do exist and I'm going to try and prove it. It can't be as scary as the night I spent in Britain's Most Haunted Farmhouse. Here's the video we made that night:

We've got a couple of possible spots lined up, but if you happen to know of any land where there has been lots of sightings I'd be very interested to know...

After the litter and M&S shopping post, here's another Bryson-related one.

He's written the introduction to a rather splendid-looking new book, Icons of England, which has 70 contributions celebrating everything from water meadows and windmills to lighthouses and crags.

One of the contributors, incidentally, is friend of Field Day, Richard Benson. Another is author Sebastian Faulks, who I hate because he knows everything about everything.

As a kid, I spent whole days out on the north Kent mudflats.

One of my friend's parents used to go Flounder Tramping. I haven't thought about it for years, so enjoyed reading this recent account of the practice in The Field magazine.

I doubt if Rosie Boycott would have ever had snails on the front page of The Independent when she was editor there. 

They're on the front page of the Telegraph today, though, in a piece that will make grim reading for gardeners. The proliferation of the snail population.

I love the quote from the bloke at the Royal Horticultural Society. With a job title like "principal entomologist", I was expecting him to say something complicated and scientific - not that 'there is a whole array of ways to beat the snails, from stamping on them to cutting their heads of with secateurs'.

Here's something I've learnt today.

London Mayor Boris Johnson has appointed newspaper editor-turned-organic farmer Rosie Boycott as the London Food Board chairwoman. She's certainly had an interesting life.

This made me laugh. Tesco have illustrated their porridge oats with a photo of, eeer, wheat.

In this case, every little obviously didn't help.

Wow, how exciting. I'm going to meet Prince Charles in September.

Not, I have to point out, because of anything I've done, but I'm going to Highgrove with those lovely ladies from the Women's Food and Farming Union. It's kind of them to ask me along - especially seeing as I'm not a woman.

Any tips on social etiquette will be gratefully received. Meanwhile, I'll have to hope no one tells him about the photo of him and a carrot I used on Field Day.

Speaking of posties, I once spent a day with one who had one of the most rural rounds in Britain. Here's the article I wrote for Farmers Weekly, if you're interested:

Two pubs, a quarry, a youth hostel, an outdoor centre, a tiny village school and, of course, lots of hill farms all get their deliveries from Co Durham postman Norman Dunbar.

"It's nothing like being a town postie - it's a different job altogether," says Norman, whose working day starts at 5am.

Norman's round starts in Barnard Castle but soon takes him out into the Teesdale countryside. He covers about 65 miles on a typical day, with the remotest farm on his patch about five miles from its nearest neighbour. "In winter, you can't hear a single thing up here," he says.

It's a glorious July day when Farmers Weekly visits - one of the best, Norman says, in what's been a dreadful season. The sun's out, the farmers are itching to get haymaking and Norman has a quick word with some as he delivers their mail.

What's happening on the farm is a key topic of conversation and Norman - a self-confessed townie - has got to know a lot about agriculture since starting this round about 12 years ago. On one occasion, a woman even asked him to help deliver a calf.

Winters, however, can be tough on this remote and high ground. "I've always got a shovel in the back of the van.

"That's about the only downside of the job - it's often dark and windy and cold. When you get right up on top," he laughs. "If the wind drops, the people fall over."

A date for your diary if you're either a) hacked off with litter in rural areas or b) a fan of the writer Bill Bryson.

The author, who's president of the Campaign to Protect Rural England, is on Panorama talking about how the countryside is blighted by litter and fly-tipping on August 11 at 8.30pm.

Is it just me, or do you look at this picture and think: There's a man who likes to shop at M&S?

Another quick video clip while I'm in a YouTube mood. This time, a fat cat. Not an overpaid company director - but literally a fat cat.

I reckon he'd give Orazi a run for his money. Or maybe a waddle for it...

This is an amusing video clip: an eagle playing with a tennis ball. (Maybe we have finally found a British hopeful for Wimbledon!)

I like the way the bird's handler seems completely unfazed by the occasional talon injury!

Who says romance is dead?

Robert Szabo is living proof that it's not. He proposed to his childhood sweetheart Sarah Garside by having the question ploughed in a field then flying her overhead.

The pair took off from Humberside the day after the eye-catching pattern had been put in a field near Winterton. (Agriculturalists may be interested to know a crop of winter barley had just been harvested from the land.)

This made me laugh.

It's one of the drawings from The Countryside Cartoon Joke Book by Roger Penwill. Might make a nice birthday present...

Young Farmers are an ingenious lot.

A group of 12 from Devon have just returned from Tanzania where they installed a water pump for the Livestock Training Institute near Arusha.

They had twinned up with the Bicton Overseas Agricultural Trust to ensure running water was provided for the diary unit at the college; this will be used to supply fresh water for the pasteurisation of the milk which will then be sold at the college farm shop.

After my foray into the world of powerful and pricey machinery yesterday, it's time for something more touchy-feely. Some poetry.

I used to love Dylan Thomas's work. The sheer sound of it, it's like listening to music. I can't help but a feeling now, though, as if that's pretty much all it is: nice sounds.

Anyway, the reason I'm thinking about him is because one of the houses where he wrote some of his poetry has come on the market, in the beautiful spot of Laugharne in West Wales.

Even if you can't afford the house, the area is well worth a visit.

The highlight for me when I visited was seeing the Boat House, where he lived for a while, but you can also see (if, like me, you're interested in morbid things) his grave.

And finally, here's an interesting fact. The name the poet came up with for the fictitious village in Under Milk Wood, Llareggub, is actually 'Bugger All' spelt backwards.

He obviously had a sense of humour as well as a drink problem.

It's August - which means it's time for the Pershore Plum Festival.

You think you have problems in the heat?

Pity the poor farmers in California who who, faced with sun-induced blemishes on crops like apples, tomoatoes and grapes have been forced to spray on a sun-block.

Purfresh says it has got positive results with its SPF45 spray, which deflects ultraviolet and infrared light but allows photosynthesis. It helps prevent cosmetic imperfections which reduce the value of the crop.

I saw Peter Purves at the Game Fair. Admittedly, he's not in the same league as Cribbins, but he's still a bit of a star.

For anyone over 40, he's best known as a Blue Peter presenter, but he's most famous as an anchorman on Crufts these days.

Just read he had to be treated in hospital after being bitten by a dog at at All About Dogs event in Norfolk, which he was involved in shortly after his Game Fair visit.

And here was me begining to like dogs more. I knew they weren't be trusted!

Apparently, the bite to his hand wasn't too serious.