Discovering Our Countryside

Forward planning your Veggie Patch – Seasonal vegetables are about forward planning. Even when it is snowing in spring you can be starting your spring planting with home made newspaper plant pots!
Preparing for Calving and Sows Farrowing – Shows a farmer fetching in his cattle ready for calving in the spring, Then goes on to show how piglets are born all year round. With footage of piglets actually being born .
New Life in the Greenhouse –Show the tomatoes we saw being planted and grown as seedlings now being transferred and set out in greenhouses.

Farm Animals and Computers – Shows how computers are used to monitor pigs feeding during pregnancy and also how they are used to help farmers weigh ingredients so they can mix the correct food ingredients for cattle. It also shows how even milking cows and goats is helped by the use of computer to monitor how much milk is produced.
In your local Greenhouse – Shows how machines are used to plant seeds then how computers and robots are used to then sort the growing seedlings. It also shows how human input is still needed for many jobs that computers cannot do – yet!
Winter Harvest – See what you can harvest even in winter on our allotment.

This program looks at the importance of weather how it effects wildlife and the onset of spring, how we can cheat the weather to some extent by growing plants and using bees in a greenhouse, but not without a cost. Also how it can still cause problems with keeping livestock like pigs outside.

Spring has sprung – Should you rush to start planting your plot on the first day of spring? What else could you be doing?
Beating the weather? –Another visit to the greenhouses to see how the tomatoes are progressing, as well as cucumbers and surprisingly strawberries.
The weather can kill! – This follows our newborn piglets through to weaning, looking at what different systems are available for rearing pigs and how the UK pig herd has some of the highest welfare standards in the world – which we should be supporting if we believe in animal welfare.

This program looks at the importance of weather how it effects wildlife and the onset of spring, how we can cheat the weather to some extent by growing plants and using bees in a greenhouse, but not without a cost. Also how it can still cause problems with keeping livestock like pigs outside.

Spring has sprung – Should you rush to start planting your plot on the first day of spring? What else could you be doing?
Beating the weather? –Another visit to the greenhouses to see how the tomatoes are progressing, as well as cucumbers and surprisingly strawberries.
The weather can kill! – This follows our newborn piglets through to weaning, looking at what different systems are available for rearing pigs and how the UK pig herd has some of the highest welfare standards in the world – which we should be supporting if we believe in animal welfare.

Extending the Veggie Patch – extending our veggie patch to grow more fresh produce.
Milk beyond the farm – Shows that the safety of this important foodstuff starts with storage on the farm and then shows how it is treated to keep it safe to consume and then how it is packed into the cartons of liquid milk you buy as a consumer.
Potatoes beyond the farm – This shows how the surplus of harvest is stored and gradually used to keep the shops of Britain supplied year round – without the need for ‘fresh’ imports of potatoes from abroad as some shops would have you believe. It also shows how one of our favourite potato products is made – Crisps!

Christmas Harvest in the fields. – Christmas Trees and Sprouts being harvested for Christmas.The wet Autumn has meant farmers are still trying to harvest some other crops to0…..
Christmas Jumpers. – See how the wool for your jumper get from the sheep to Santa’s sack!
Using Wildlife to help you celebrate Christmas. – Gives details of how to make a traditional Christmas Wreath decoration using foliage from the countryside
Plus Bonus – How we can help you with your growing in school next term