FARMING MATTERS: Waiting to get the harvest in

We got the barley in some time ago, and it’s safely in the barn ready to be milled as feed for the suckler herd, but the wheat is still standing out in the field.

And we’re not the only ones. There are plenty of farmers still waiting for a dry spell to get onto the land and bring in the rest of their harvest.

After all this rain, the wheat needs time to dry out so that the moisture content isn’t too high, and the straw stalks left behind also need to be dry before they are baled, to provide bedding for the animals during the winter months.

While waiting for the rain to stop my husband is fully occupied with all the other essential jobs on the farm.

One of the primary ones has been muck spreading, getting manure onto the fields to ensure rich growth next year.

So I got home one evening recently to the unmistakable aroma of manure filling the air, as soon as I opened the car door in front of our house.

At this time of year it’s easy to forget I’m married, and even easier to forget what my husband looks like, as our paths rarely cross.

I think the last time I spotted him, he was at Bucks County Show in the NFU tent asking president Meurig Raymond a question.

He’s out every day on the farm until it gets dark, and at this time of year I have a lot of additional duties at work myself, as I write the leisure and entertainment pages and there are a lot of events to cover.

We communicate via Post It notes and texts, and look forward to meeting again in the autumn in front of a lovely log fire.