From twitter and instagram (as well as that old fashioned thing called the weather forecast) I see that some parts of the country have received a small amount of rain, although still very little and it has really been restricted to parts of the west.
In my part of Essex it hasn’t rained properly for weeks. Farmers such as Guy Smith, who owns the driest farm in the country over in St Osyth, are concerned. In Farmer’s Weekly he quoted his father having said a wonderful line: ‘It’s a dripping June that will keep your farm in tune”. Unfortunately this year this was not the case and for anyone growing crops on light land it is a real concern. We’ve still got some hay to cut so there’s a silver lining there, and our farm being on heavier land the arable will probably get by ok, but it’s not ideal.
On top of problems with crops the dry nature of the land has resulted in risk of fire, and actual fire in places, including Lancashire moorland, which has made the headlines in recent days.
There certainly doesn’t seem to be any sign of the hot and dry weather halting at any time soon, as much as farmers and gardeners, especially those growing potatoes, might long for it. Surely hose pipe bans will kick in soon.
For sure, 2018 will be remembered as one of weather extremes. A sign of things to come? A signal that we should better prepare ourselves?
thinkingcountry.com 