FARMING DIARY

Was 2006 an average year for weather in the UK? The answer is no. Records tumbled throughout the year. It was the warmest ever Autumn, the warmest ever July in central England and the warmest September. Rainfall was also unusual with the wettest May in England and Wales for 30 years and June the driest since 1995. Averages conceal many regional variations with torrential rainfall in many places leading to flooding and waterlogged fields. Even local variations are becoming more frequent with 35mm in Hempstead being matched by 5mm in Castle Camps.

The rains in the late Summer and early Autumn caused both harvesting problems and also delays in drilling. For several weeks we were behind with our work but this all changed when we planted our spring barley. Normally planted in January to April we have developed a technique for planting in late October/early November. The reason for this early planting is better soil conditions at the time of planting and normally better yield and quality at harvest. Though the growing crop looks very well this year we probably would have been able to plant at the end of January. However we did take the opportunity to plant our spring beans a month earlier than usual!

The weather conditions have been so warm that butterflies have been on the wing during December and January. We have seen Tortoiseshell, Red Admiral, Peacock and Comma.

Another difficulty, or more an inconvenience, for us, are the introduction/maintenance of field edge margins. These are cross compliance margins, set-aside margins, entry level scheme margins and higher level margins. All are predominantly for environmental purposes but all have different maintenance regimes. Some we can cut, some we can’t cut and some we can cut some of! In a nutshell the idea is to keep fertilizer and pesticides from the hedges and ditches, and to increase the environmental value of the crop margins by allowing ground nesting birds more habitat to live in. Other indigenous flora and fauna will also hopefully return to our fields. I must emphasise that these margins are not footpaths. Cross field and headland footpaths are normally signed and even on these dogs should be under close control and on leads near livestock and during the nesting months. Those of us who enjoy the countryside and who have worked hard to create wildlife habitats are often frustrated by the lack of thought of some people who use farmland like a park for their animals to play in, without any thought for the consequences. PLEASE REMEMBER THE COUNTRY CODE.

Further on the weather front, as I write this article, I am sitting in lovely sunshine which is like either late autumn or early spring. The birds are twittering on their feeders and a Robin is sitting indignantly 2 metres away, with its chest all puffed up, waiting its turn in the birdbath. I cannot believe that we have had winter yet. Normally it will snow in the last week of February and I do not expect this year to be much different. We shall see what we shall see!

Giles

The Country Code