Highland Cows and Underground Farm Down on the Farm

# Come join us down on the farm today

# Learn about nature along the way

# From seeds to crops, and field to barn

# So much to do down on the farm

# Summer, autumn, winter, spring

# Ploughing, planting, harvesting

# With JB and Storm to lead the way

# Come join us down on the farm today. #

Hi, I'm JB and welcome to Down On The Farm.

Winter's here and lots of farm animals like to stay inside,

but some don't mind the cold weather.

So, while I help these guys get nice and cosy,

why don't you find out what our guest presenter Rory has been up to?

In the winter, I like to be cosy with a nice hot drink and,

at this time of year, lots of farm animals are taken indoors

to keep them away from the frost, rain, snow and wind.

But there's one farm animal that loves nothing more than to be left

outside in the cold, wet weather.

What could it be? Let's go and find out.

-Hi, Karen.

-Hi, Rory.

-These must be the animals that love

-being outdoors.

-Yes, they're Highland cows.

And these guys look quite different from the cows people might be used

to seeing out in the field. What's different about them?

Well, they've got long hair, horns and also big, floppy fringes.

Oh, and I love that floppy fringe.

So, where do Highland cows come from originally?

They come from the west coast of Scotland.

-So, we're in the right place, aren't we?

-Yes.

What do they use their horns for? They've got these huge big horns.

So, as you can see, that one,

they can scratch themselves with the horns and they have a hierarchy,

so when they're feeding, they can shunt each other out the way.

Hopefully we won't see any of that here.

Yeah, hopefully not. Behave yourselves, guys.

Even in Scotland, we normally take cows inside for the winter.

What makes Highland cows so good about being outdoors?

That's a good question. We should take a closer look at one.

-OK, come on.

-OK, let's go.

-Who is this?

-So, this is Wendy.

Hi, Wendy, you are gorgeous.

Wow. And what a magnificent coat she's got.

So, how does this help her in the winter?

Highland cows have got two different types of coats.

This outer coat is a longer,

oily coat, which helps the rain and the snow run off it.

-A bit like my waterproof jacket?

-Exactly like it.

-OK.

-And what about the second coat?

-There's a much shorter

coat underneath there. If you part her hair, you can see it.

It's short and it keeps her nice and warm and dry.

It looks nice and cosy. It's woolly, a bit like my woolly jumper.

Just like your jumper.

Perfect. Waterproof on the outside and warm on the inside.

So, she's nice and warm and dry

through the winter, but what else does she need to survive?

She needs lots of tasty food.

-Shall we go and get some?

-Oh, dinner time.

So, in the winter time, we need to give the cows hay,

because all the grass dies off in the winter

-and this is what we feed them with.

-And hay is dry grass, isn't it?

It is, yeah. We make it in the summertime

-and it's ready for the winter.

-And they are really enjoying it,

-aren't they?

-They are. They're loving it.

While the cows are enjoying their tasty treats,

let's see what other animals do in the winter.

Many creatures have special ways of coping with harsh winters.

After eating lots of extra food in autumn to fatten themselves up,

hedgehogs and dormice find somewhere safe to hibernate.

They may look like they are sleeping,

but hibernation is different from sleep.

The body shuts down for a long time

to save energy during the cold winter.

Other creatures stay out and about, but make changes to survive.

This mountain hare's brown fur has turned white to match the snow.

This means that it can safely search for food on the mountainside without

being spotted by a hungry bird of prey.

These ptarmigan have turned white, too,

and they have extra warm winter feathers on every part of their

bodies, even on their eyelids.

Their feathered feet act like snowshoes,

helping them to get around without sinking into the snow.

Many plants can't survive the winter cold,

but some trees produce a natural antifreeze

to protect them from frost,

while sloping sides and bendy branches help heavy snow

to slide off, without damaging the tree.

In the winter...

..birds find it hard to find food.

To help them, we're going to make...

-ALL:

-..bird feeders!

At this time of year, the ground can go hard and water can freeze,

so it's much harder for birds to find food.

Here in Stevenage, a class is getting ready to help by making

bird feeders. Shall we see how they are made?

We are putting all of the ingredients in

to make our bird cake.

I'm going to mix the lard together.

The raisins, the porridge oats, the bird seed and the cheese together.

Then it's squished into a small container.

-ALL:

-Finished!

And this feeder is made from pine cones and pipe cleaners.

The pipe cleaner is wrapped around the cone to hang it up.

Then the bird feed is squidged inside.

I'm making the hole more bigger, so the stick can fit.

I've put the stick through,

because the birds need to stand on the stick.

Then I'm going to cut a square out,

then the birds are going to eat the seed.

-BOTH:

-Ready!

Well done. You've all done a fantastic job making bird feeders.

Who's ready to take their feeder outside?

-ALL:

-Me!

OK, so are you ready to come and hang your bird feeders?

-ALL:

-Yes!

The feeders need to be hung high up,

so predators like cats and foxes can't reach the birds.

OK, now that all the bird feeders are hung, what should we do next?

-ALL:

-Bird watch!

Bird watch.

While we wait outside for the birds,

why don't you head inside for our winter poem?

When the cold winter air turns the garden to white

Little creatures and beasties will hurry inside.

They scurry into corners by warm firelight

Or creep into sheds on a cold frosty night.

Listen closely to hear the quiet rustling of a mouse

Sneaking food and bedding for its own winter house.

Spiders scuttle between floorboards and under our chairs

While ladybirds keep cosy in nooks under stairs.

In winter, our homes can be perfect for all

Toasty and snug for guests, big and small.

I've been told there's a farm right here in the middle of London,

but I haven't seen any fields,

there's no tractors, and where are all the farmers?

Are you sure I'm in the right place?

Storm, Storm!

Over here.

Olivia, there you are. I've been looking for a farm everywhere.

-I'm so confused.

-It's right here. It's underground.

-Underground?

-Mm-hmm. Come on in. I'll show you.

'I'm going 33 metres underground -

'That's close to eight double-decker buses on top of each other -

'to discover a special farm that no-one would know is there.

'First, I have to put on protective clothing to make sure germs and dirt

'don't land on the food they grow here.'

Beautiful. Ready?

This is amazing.

I've never seen a farm like this.

It looks like a spaceship.

-What are you growing here?

-We are growing small herbs and leaves for

chefs to use in salad and on food.

Why are you growing it underground?

Well, above ground, there's not a lot of room for farms like this,

so we decided to come underground so the herbs are nice and fresh.

Now, I was under the impression that all crops needed sunlight and food

and water and soil.

Well, they actually get all of those down here.

So, the lights act like the sun,

these pipes are where they get their water

-and then this carpet acts like the soil.

-Carpet?

Mm-hmm, it's recycled material that's basically carpet.

How do you start to grow them?

Well, they start off like seeds, like this,

-that we sprinkle on the carpet.

-And how long do they take to grow?

We can grow them in as little as eight days.

Eight days? Mm-hmm. That's no time at all.

They look absolutely beautiful, but the most important thing is,

how do they taste?

Here's some baby rocket.

It's really peppery, isn't it?

That's a really, really strong flavour.

I like it a lot.

So, you know they taste good, so let's go pack them up for delivery.

'The freshly picked herbs are trimmed,

'weighed and put into small packets.'

And there, all ready for the markets and shops.

Now, all that's left is for it to be delivered.

Well, that sounds like a job for me.

Going up.

I've got a delivery of pea shoots for a friend of mine at the

-local fruit and veg market.

-Great. Thank you

for showing me about and I'll get these delivered.

-Thanks, Storm.

-See you later, Olivia.

-See you. Bye.

-Hi, Jade.

-Hi, Storm.

I'm expecting a delivery of herbs and leaves.

I've got them right here, fresh from underground.

Perfect, our customers are going to love this.

Great. Well, while I do the rest of my deliveries,

why don't you find out what else happens in winter?

Today, we're in Ayrshire to meet Willie and his helpers,

Robbie and Leila, who are collecting the ingredients

to make a yummy treat.

First of all, Willie needs to milk his cows.

Then they need to collect some fresh eggs from his chickens.

Now they've collected two of the main ingredients,

can you guess what they're going to make?

Ice cream!

Chef Elaina makes the ice cream.

The first job is to add yellow yolks from the chicken's eggs

to the mixture.

You might be surprised to see that we use egg yolk in ice cream.

This helps make them smooth and creamy.

Elaina adds sugar to make the mixture taste sweet.

And finally, cow's milk.

Now we have to give them a whisk.

Today, we're making mince pie-flavoured ice cream,

so we have to crush up these mince pies

to add to the mixture once it's out of the machine.

Now all the ingredients have been mixed together,

they are poured into this machine,

which turns the mixture into ice cream.

The top half of the machine is called the pasteuriser.

In here, the mixture heats up and then quickly cools back down.

This helps remove any harmful germs that may make you unwell.

The mixture then passes down to the bottom part of the machine,

where it is much colder. In here, the mixture is churned,

which means it's mixed with air.

The cold mixture is now ready to be poured from the machine

into a big tub and the mince pie pieces are added.

Now it's ready to be sold in the shop.

Who'd like to try some fresh ice cream?

-BOTH:

-Yes, please!

Mince pie ice cream - what a lovely treat.

Storm, Rory and I have had a great time Down On The Farm

and we hope you've enjoyed it too.

There's even more from Down On The Farm on the CBeebies website

just for you. See you next time.

# Come join us down on the farm today

# Learn about nature along the way

# From seeds to crops, and field to barn

# So much to do down on the farm

# Summer, autumn, winter, spring

# Ploughing, planting, harvesting

# With JB and Storm to lead the way

# Come join us down on the farm today. #