Once, when I suggested a family member was being too pessimistic, she retorted that at least she’d either be right or pleasantly surprised. I suspect the words weren’t of her own coinage. But the phrase came to mind last week when I was decoying over a field of linseed. It was one of those outings that don’t seem very promising at the outset but turn into cracking sport. You know the sort I’m sure: an evening flight where the weather’s warm but duck are on the move all the same; the walked-up, end-of-season rough day for “just a couple”, where it turns out that there are lots of birds still to be hunted out.
We’re growing linseed as the farm’s break crop this summer, which is a change from our normal sugar beet. Although linseed doesn’t make as much per acre as sugar beet (roughly £165/acre for linseed compared to £300/acre for sugar beet) it leaves the soil in a much better state. It’s a simple March-to-September crop. A late summer linseed harvest is a more appealing prospect than the battle to get the sugar beet out of the ground right in the middle of the shooting season. Beet can leave fields looking like a World War I battle site. Obviously, beet is a better holding crop for gamebirds but my memory of past years was the trade-off that linseed offered good decoying.
Denne historien er fra June 24, 2020-utgaven av Shooting Times & Country.
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Denne historien er fra June 24, 2020-utgaven av Shooting Times & Country.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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United we stand
Following United Utilities' decision to end grouse shooting on its land, Lindsay Waddell asks what will happen if we ignore our vital moors
Serious matters
An old gamebook prompts a contemplation on punt-gunning
They're not always as easy as they seem
While coneys of the furry variety don't pose a problem for Blue Zulu, he's left frustrated once again by bolting bunnies of the clay sort
Debutant gundogs
There's lots to think about when it comes to making the decision about when to introduce your dog to shooting
When the going gets rough
Al Gabriel returns to the West London Shooting School to brush up on his rough shooting technique
The Field Guide To British Deer - BDS 60th Anniversary Edition
In this excerpt from the 60th anniversary edition of the BDS's Field Guide To British Deer, Charles Smith-Jones considers the noise they make
A step too far?
Simon Garnham wonders whether a new dog, a new gun and two different fields in need of protection might have been asking too much for one afternoon's work
Two bucks before breakfast
A journey from old South London to rural Hertfordshire to stalk muntjac suggests that the two aren't as far detached as they might seem
Stalking Diary
Stalkers can be a sentimental bunch, and they often carry a huge attachment to their hill
Gamekeeper
Alan Edwards believes unique, private experiences can help keepers become more competent and passionate custodians of the countryside