Tag: agriculture

July 26th – Passing through Stonnall on my way home, I noted the harvest has started, presumably to beat that morning’s rain, but it’s a sobering sight.

Near Lower Stonnall, the oilseed rape has been cut, the fields looking ragged and desolate, covered in the stalks, pods and shredded chaff that the harvester blows out after flailing out the precious black seeds.

Perhaps more strikingly, the field adjacent has already been harvested and ploughed over for the next crop. 

It feels uncomfortably like Autumn’s breath is on my shoulder…

July 14th – Well, they’re definitely here at Jockey Meadows at last, my friends the coos; but the lads were far too busy eating to go look at the cyclist calling them from the gate. 

It looks like we’ve got seven as usual, probably Dexters as they’ll eat just about anything.

Oh well, perhaps when they’ve settled in they’ll say hi…

July 9th – I shot down the A5 to Tamworth, heading for Atherstone, because I was late. Just at Streetway, near Weeford, a field of stunning light purple flowers I mistakenly thought were flax. They were absolutely gorgeous.

Alive with bees, I counted 15 species. The flowers themselves seemed to be a lavender-white with purple stamens, and I’ve not seen the like before.

It turns out the crop is phacelia or purple tansy, a crop that’s grown to rest the land and attract pollinators between productive years.

You can find out more about phacelia here. A remarkable and beautiful thing.

July 8th – At Hammerwich earlier in the ride, a disappointment. Flax had flowered here in characteristic blue a couple of weeks ago, but now it was over and I never managed to catch this stunning crop. But I had been told it was currently redeeming itself by showing a riot of poppies.

Well, it was and it wasn’t.

In fairness, in real life it’s gorgeous and well worth popping to look if you’re passing – but somehow, I just couldn’t capture it with a camera. Whatever I tried, the shots came out dull.

Oh well.

June 15th – I heard about the local poppy field on Facebook, and it being very sunny and early, I took a detour on the way to work to check it out.

The field is just on the east of the Chester Road before the Wood Lane junction and is glorious. A few snatched pictures don’t do this gem justice. I will revisit it soon.

I love to see the poppy fields at this time of year, and welcome their rise since the drop in farming use of herbicides that used to kill them.I also adore the randomnesss of the places they appear – never the same two years running.

A beautiful and ephemeral thing – get out and see it while it lasts.

June 3rd  – Every summer one crop will seem particularly common, as prices are high or subsidies increase for that product, and this year the golden grain seems to be barley. 

I’ve never seen so much of the suff. All across the plains of East Staffordshire, acres of land shimmer gently as this strangest or seed-grasses bobs in the breeze.

All this grain will make plenty of malt, or beer or breakfast cereal; and for the price to be high, there must be demand, but it’s a very odd sight, I must say.

April 27th – Also near Stonnall, a classic spring view: cottages at Mill Lane, Lynn surrounded by an ocean of bright yellow oilseed rape, the cheesy scent of which is filling the air in the backlanes at the moment.

It’s still way too cold, but the countryside is showing itself beautifully.

March 18th – Talking of swans, here’s a flock of about 100 grazing on a field of young oilseed rape near Wetleyhay, between Whittington and Fradley, today.

This behaviour isn’t often witnessed by urban swan fans, but large congregations of these birds will often descend on open farmland to feed from young crops and can actually totally strip a field in no more than a few days.

This presents quite a challenge to farmers, who know public opinion isn’t on their side. In frequently targeted areas, farmers will often zig-zag tapes across vulnerable fields to make landing difficult for the swans.

Whilst we all love these large, beautiful birds, it can’t be very easy for farmers to lose their crops in this way…

March 17th – I popped into Lichfield to do some shopping on the way home, and in the failing light, noticed the field of lambs and their mothers on the bypass near Waitrose.

Healthy, happy sheep and their new offspring graze, play and doze contentedly. These guys really do have cute in shedloads, and really are worth stopping to see.

After a really grim, groggy week, seeing this fresh life enjoying being alive was a tonic to the heart and soul.

October 23rd – The pigs of Packington Moor are always entertaining. Their fields move around the area, from Little Hay to Hopwas as due to their impact on the ground they need to be relocated regularly. Free range, they dwell in pig arcs and huts in good sized pens, and seem happy – their bacon is certainly amongst the best locally.

I was amused to note the pigs – right now up on the Moor and near Hopwas Hays Wood – tolerating crows perching on their backs, pecking mites and bugs that would otherwise irritate them. I watched that for ages.

Nice to see well kept, apparently happy, content livestock in the fields.