No scyther enjoys meeting a molehill whilst mowing. It interrupts the flow of your scythe strokes, and worse still, blunts your blade! We have a very healthy population of moles on the farm, complete with accompanying molehills. Now, whilst the weather is dry but before the grass is really growing away, is the time of year to flatten them. The industrious moles will of course … Continue reading Spring in the Meadows – Molehill bashing!
It’s officially Spring, yet at this time of year the wildflower meadows are keeping the glory to come well hidden. A combination of autumn grazing by our two cows, followed by winter grazing by our flock of sheep has left the vegetation short. It looks unpromising now but it is all ready to grow away with the warmer weather. The role of grazing in … Continue reading The hidden promise of the winter wildflower meadow – the role of grazing in management
National Meadows Day last Sunday saw us spending a fair part of the day out in one of the Trust’s meadows, saving the hay. This is grass that was cut in the rain on our last scythe course. We would not normally choose to cut hay in such weather, but it is an interesting challenge to save it despite the less then favourable conditions. The … Continue reading Saving the Hay
Every year I mow a labyrinth into the top hay field for Summer Solstice. Here is the one I mowed last year. The labyrinth is useful in that it gives people a chance to walk and play right in amongst the flowers WITHOUT trampling our valuable hay crop. Our children have been raised with the idea that unmown grass is sacrosanct and wouldn’t dream of … Continue reading Mowing a Meander in the Meadow
One of my personnel markers of Spring is the moment when the sheep refuse even the sweetest hay in favor of the new grass growth, sparse as that may be. Thoughts then start to turn towards making the next crop. One of the first annual tasks in the hay meadow is flattening mole hills. While moles may be indicators of a healthy worm population, mole … Continue reading Moles in the Meadows
I mowed a Labyrinth into the Top Field for a Summer Solstice celebration we held at the Trust on 22nd June. Using our trimming scythe and a Profisense 50cm blade I mowed a narrow path through the wild flowers based on a traditional pattern. A sketch of the design of the labyrinth We have found mowing a couple of paths and a labyrinth into the … Continue reading Things We Do With a Scythe 5 – mowing a Labyrinth