Bean and gone
Sporting Shooter|October 2020
Andy Crow and cousin Gary are out shooting over stubbles – standard for this time of year! It’s a slow start, but some lumpy ground and a bean bonanza leads to a fantastic result
Andy Crow
Bean and gone

Andy Crow loves shooting over beans. “I’ve had my biggest ever bag of pigeons on bean stubbles and lots of very memorable ones over the years. This is a food source that is energy-dense and very high in protein, not to mention easy to find and fill a crop with. No wonder pigeons are really ‘on them’ at times.”

Andy is at a farm in Kent where the beans were sown during the terribly wet period last autumn. “It was so difficult to get on the ground. They ended up ploughing the beans in and then aiming to go over it with a press, but they never got the chance. The result is basically a ploughed field with beans growing in it!”

Fast forward to this summer and the conditions have evolved from flood to near drought. As a result of the dry growing season, the stunted bean plants are between 12 and 24 in height with the majority of the pods very low to the ground.

Modern harvest machinery is pretty sophisticated, but these factors, combined with rough, rock hard and uneven ground make combining them efficiently a near impossibility. To the farmer’s chagrin, the majority of the beans ended up on the dirt rather than in the harvester’s tank. Mind you, the local pigeon population was certainly not complaining, with the grey hordes pouring in from the surrounding area to feast on the beany bounty.

Andy is shooting on the stubbles next to a large block of unharvested beans and the pigeons are cycling between the two areas. Shooting on the stubbles makes retrieving shot birds easier as well as protecting the remaining crops. The ideal spot looked like it was going to be along a hedge line right in the middle of the field, but it’s set to be a scorcher of a day so plan B is called for.

Bu hikaye Sporting Shooter dergisinin October 2020 sayısından alınmıştır.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

Bu hikaye Sporting Shooter dergisinin October 2020 sayısından alınmıştır.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

SPORTING SHOOTER DERGISINDEN DAHA FAZLA HIKAYETümünü görüntüle
RSPB gives mixed message on shooting
Sporting Shooter

RSPB gives mixed message on shooting

Having recently attended the RSPB’s virtual AGM, Conor O’Gorman discusses the outcome of the charity’s year-long review of game bird shooting

time-read
2 dak  |
December 2020
Causeway for concern
Sporting Shooter

Causeway for concern

Alan Jarrett’s renewed interest in reading takes him down memory lane to an offshore island duck flight that very nearly ended in disaster

time-read
4 dak  |
December 2020
Through a purple patch
Sporting Shooter

Through a purple patch

The Garrows Estate is taking a conservation-focused approach to restoring the wildlife populations and biodiversity on the Scottish heather moorland.

time-read
8 dak  |
December 2020
When the wheels fall off
Sporting Shooter

When the wheels fall off

Losing form on a day’s shooting can be infuriating, especially if you’ve been shooting like a god up to that point. Simon O’Leary looks at some common causes and how to remedy them

time-read
4 dak  |
December 2020
Beaches, books & bad behaviour!
Sporting Shooter

Beaches, books & bad behaviour!

The annual Kay family vacation to Northumberland offers a chance to give the cockers a blast on the beach – although they don’t always shower themselves in glory, as Ryan Kay recalls...

time-read
7 dak  |
December 2020
Using the Stop whistle
Sporting Shooter

Using the Stop whistle

Now you’ve instilled the basics, it’s time to up the ante with some more tricky distance work. Howard Kirby explains how to take the core Stop whistle command to the next level

time-read
5 dak  |
December 2020
The humble teal
Sporting Shooter

The humble teal

They may be tiny, but as far as Rupert Butler is concerned, the appeal of this little duck is huge. He recalls some of his most memorable nights in pursuit of these aerial acrobats

time-read
4 dak  |
December 2020
Fab all-rounder
Sporting Shooter

Fab all-rounder

Mike is impressed with the Fabarm Elos B2 Field Notte, which offers great value for money, is suited to fieldwork or clays and is future-proofed for use with steel in all choke constrictions

time-read
5 dak  |
December 2020
CALL OF THE WILD
Sporting Shooter

CALL OF THE WILD

Dom Holtam reconnects with one of the purest forms of shotgun shooting as he walks-up woodcock over pointing dogs in the Scottish Highlands

time-read
8 dak  |
December 2020
A yen for the Fens
Sporting Shooter

A yen for the Fens

Tony Jackson recounts a memorable duck flight over an area of Fenland in Norfolk with his friend and author, the late Alan Savory

time-read
4 dak  |
December 2020