A Week on the Estate: Harvest Home, Autumn Arrives & Swapping Houses
Meteorological autumn begins today and we bid farewell to another topsy-turvy summer. True to form, while August brought cool, damp weather, September is set to feel more summery, with high pressure, sunshine and a temperature range of 25C-12C forecast over the next seven days.
Last week, we hit the final lap of Harvest 2023. We cut the in-conversion winter wheat ahead of spreading some of the fertile silt removed from the Lake and stored in a bund nearby. The remaining spring crops aren’t quite ready (an extra burst of sunshine please!) so we caught up with some cover-crop drilling.
We also took some long runs with a topper over the organic red clover. Cover crops like this protect and nourish our soil, giving us a healthy soil biome and strong root systems that resist both wind erosion in dry summers and wet run-off in rainy seasons. The topper takes off the aerial tops of the cover crops, preventing seed production and germination.
There’s a seasonal abundance to be found closer to home too. When the Walled Garden giveth, Damian Furlong taketh away and maketh a tasty crock-pit treat. He took aubergines, courgettes, golden runner beans, green beans, celery and garlic from the Walled Garden. He added chopped shallots and chili pepper, a chicken stockpot, a tin of chickpeas, a dab of parsley and a few cherry tomatoes, then crock-potted the lot for four hours. He served this wholesome dinner with grated beetroot.