We’ve followed the Boyd family – on their organic Whittington Lodge Farm near Cheltenham – through autumn, winter and spring of the farming year. Now, as summer warms the earth, they’ve new tasks to perform: finding a bull to service their cows; picking fruit in the ripening orchard; looking towards the spring barley harvest in late August. (When your land lies 900 feet up in the Cotswold hills, harvest takes place a little later than down in Gloucester Vale). Lockdown has been affecting the Boyds, too; but the joys of the farm go some way to compensating. Social distancing means nothing to the clouds of butterflies that feed on the wildflower meadows, or the voles busy in the orchard.
Ian and Dale – the farm manager - are responsible for general farm work, as well as tending the herd of pedigree Hereford cattle. Ian’s wife, Cathy, manages meat retail sales in partnership with their daughter Steph. Steph also runs her own business, Bhoid: contemporary British fashion accessories. Here’s Ian’s summer:
Spring and early summer are my favourite times of year: sunny mornings and evenings have to be good for the soul. Flowers emerging from winter slumber; cowslips in the wildflower meadows; green-veined and early purple orchids. Insects flying around - like the amazing fly bee - hovering in flowers; and the sometimes almost deafening sound of birdsong in early morning.
Denne historien er fra June 2020-utgaven av Cotswold Life.
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Denne historien er fra June 2020-utgaven av Cotswold Life.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Gloucestershire After The War
Discovering the county’s Arts and Crafts memorials of the First World War
THE WILD SIDE OF Moreton-in-Marsh
The days are getting shorter but there’s plenty of reasons to be cheerful, says Sue Bradley, who discovers how a Cotswolds town is becoming more wildlife-friendly and pots up some bulbs for an insect-friendly spring display
Mr Ashbee would approve
In the true spirit of the Arts & Crafts Movement, creativity has kept the Chipping Campden community ticking over during lockdown
The Cotswolds at war
These might be peaceful hills and vales, but our contribution to the war effort was considerable
Trust in good, local food
‘I’ve been following The Country Food Trust’s activities with admiration since it was founded’
Why Cath is an open book
Cath Kidston has opened up almost every nook and cranny of her Cotswold idyll in a new book, A Place Called Home. Katie Jarvis spoke to Cath ahead of her appearance at this year’s Stroud Book Festival STROUD BOOK FESTIVAL – THIS YEAR FREE AND ONLINE: NOVEMBER 4-8
From the Cotswolds to the world
Most people know that the Cotswolds have featured in a fair few Hollywood movies and TV series.
The Wild Hunt
In search of the legendary King Herla in the Malvern Hills
Fighting spirit amid the flowers
Tracy Spiers visits Warwick, a beautiful town that is open for business and ready to welcome visitors
Final journey
Cheltenham author and volunteer on the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Steam Railway (GWSR), Nicolas Wheatley, recounts the fascinating story of funeral trains