Mistletoe and Soup Down on the Farm

# Come join us down on the farm today

# Learn about nature along the way

# From seeds to crops then fields to farms

# 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. #

COCKEREL CROWS

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

Winter is a busy time on the farm and it's harder for animals to find

food, so farmers help to make sure they have plenty to eat.

While I help look after the chickens on this farm,

let's find out what Storm's been up to.

I've come to an apple orchard in Worcestershire,

but not to find out about the crunchy fruit

or the big trees they grow on.

Instead, it's something that grows on the trees.

It's this - mistletoe.

Mistletoe is a plant with white berries that mainly grows

in the winter. It grows on trees and bushes.

It wraps itself around the branches really tightly

so it doesn't blow off.

This is Mark. He farms mistletoe on his orchard.

-Hi, Mark.

-Hi, Storm.

So what makes mistletoe so special?

It's one of the few plants that flowers in the winter.

And why do you love mistletoe so much?

It's beautiful. Look at this.

It is very beautiful.

People around the world use it for decorations,

and I collect it to sell.

I've brought some friends along to help us collect the mistletoe.

Here they come now.

-Hi, guys.

-Hi, Storm.

Now, we're going to be looking for mistletoe up high in these trees.

Do you think you might be able to help us find some?

Yes!

Mark uses a special tool called a sickle to cut the mistletoe off.

Yay!

Off we go.

So there's plenty of mistletoe around.

What does the mistletoe look like?

We think it looks like a green stalk

and white bluebells, probably.

Can you eat the berries?

Although the berries look pretty, you can't eat them.

They're bad for your tummy.

Aw!

Thank you very much. Look at how much mistletoe we have here.

We can take this back to the barn and sort it into nice, neat sprigs.

Have you finished, guys?

Yes!

Let's see your bunches.

Wow, they look amazing.

-What do you think, Mark?

-Oh, they're fantastic.

Now just to take them off to the markets and shops.

Well, while we get these packed away,

why don't you find out what else happens at this time of year?

CLUCKING

Around our coasts,

beaches that were packed with holiday-makers in the summer attract

different visitors in winter time.

Huge flocks of birds, like these arctic knots, swoop in,

searching for food.

At low tide, the waves roll back to reveal wide stretches of sand.

The hungry birds are quick to spot

signs of creatures burrowing just under the surface.

They rush to eat as many as they can before the waves roll

back in and cover the beach again.

Winter storms and high tides wash lots of seaweed up onto beaches.

The seaweed attracts millions of little flies,

which make a welcome meal for hungry starlings and other birds.

Grey seals visit winter beaches too.

These super swimmers usually spend most of their time in the sea.

They have a thick layer of fatty blubber and fur to keep them warm

in the cold water.

But in late winter they start to moult.

This means that their tatty old fur is replaced with new fur.

While they are moulting, seals find the water too cold.

They haul themselves onto land and wiggle their way up the beach as the

tide comes in, to avoid the icy waves.

Moulting also makes the seals want to rub their bodies on anything they

can find,

so a pebbly beach is the perfect place for a good scratch.

In the cold winter some animals hibernate.

This means their bodies slow down and they rest.

But some animals that should have hibernated by now haven't,

so I've come to this special animal rescue centre to find out what they

do here to help them.

-Hi, Gaye.

-Hi, Rory.

And look at this little guy!

-Hedgehog!

-Yeah.

So, Gaye, I hear that you look after animals that haven't been able to

-hibernate.

-That's right. These hedgehogs we've got are too young.

They haven't had enough time to put on enough weight to hibernate.

And how do you know when they're ready to go outside?

We weigh them on a daily basis,

just to make sure they're gaining weight steadily.

What weight do they need to be before they're released?

Now that we're well into the winter,

it'll be 700 grams before we put them out.

OK. So, shall we weigh them now?

-Yeah.

-I've got my gloves.

Gaye is letting me pick up the hedgehog,

but you should never do this.

About 510 grams. It's not time for you to go outside yet.

I think this one might be heavy enough to go.

OK, let's find out.

Oh, wow. Over 800 grams. You're definitely ready, sunshine.

So we've got a nice, happy, healthy hedgehog here.

-What else does he need?

-He needs a safe place to hibernate now,

and I know a farmer that'll be happy to take him.

Brilliant.

CATTLE LOW

Hi, Robert. Hi, Ceona and Lucy.

Hi, Rory. Hi, Gaye.

So, I have got a hedgehog here that needs a safe place to hibernate.

Check it out.

Eugh, look at its nose.

-What do you think, Robert?

-I think hedgehogs are great.

They're a farmer's friend. They eat slugs, they eat insects.

-So it's all good.

-Perfect. So, away to find a safe place for this guy.

-Where are we going, Gaye?

-I think we know just the place where it'll

be good for it to hibernate.

Right. Let's go and find it.

Oh, wow!

This is beautiful and looks like the perfect place to release our

-hedgehog, doesn't it?

-It does, yeah.

There's lots of leaves they can use for making a nest,

and a field nearby where they'll find lots of nice things to eat.

Excellent. And what's this?

This is a wooden hedgehog house that I put here.

Lovely. Guys, shall we put some food and water in there for the hedgehog?

Yes.

There's a hole in the side of the

house so the hedgehog can get in and out until it finds a new home.

Right, guys, this is looking good, but there's something missing.

-The hedgehog.

-Yes, of course.

Let's pop the hedgehog in.

Here we go.

Well done. Make yourself nice and cosy.

Happy hibernation!

While the hedgehog gets comfy in his new home,

why don't you enjoy a winter poem?

You dreamed of snow and now it's here.

A snowball whizzes past your ear.

Let's build a snowman, what a treat.

He'll be the best one in the street.

Onto a slidy sledge we jump.

Off we go with a bump, bump, bump.

We're whooshing, booshing, down the hill.

Hold on tight, it's such a thrill.

Cold ears filled with squeals and laughter.

We'll remember this day for ever after.

I've come to a special factory in Basildon that makes something which

gets used on farms all across the world.

It has four big wheels, a noisy engine,

and helps farmers with lots of different jobs.

Can you guess what it is?

That's right, it's a tractor.

And this is where some of them are built.

Let's go and take a look inside.

Tractors are one of the most useful vehicles to have on a farm.

They can do so much,

like pull trailers, lift muck and help harvest crops.

I love using mine on my farm.

Many different parts are needed to make a tractor.

At this factory,

specially trained people put the parts together on this.

It's called a production line.

Each worker builds a different part of the tractor.

Today, I'm meeting Mark, who works at the factory,

to tell me how it's done.

-Hello, Mark.

-Hello, JB.

Can you tell me about the main parts of a tractor?

Yes, so the base of the tractor is called the driveline.

And from here we connect the engine.

Wow. And the engine in my tractor at home is really big and heavy.

Yes, they have to be big in order for the tractor to pull heavy loads.

-What happens next?

-So, then we add the cab.

The cab is where the farmer sits and drives the tractor.

The cab also keeps the farmer warm in the winter

and cool in the summer.

-And every tractor has to have wheels, right?

-That's right.

So we have two large wheels at the back and two small wheels

at the front.

Can you believe that thousands of tractors are made here each year?

It's not just people who build the tractors.

Clever robots with specially made parts help paint them, too.

And there you have it. A brand-new tractor.

Let's go and take one for a test drive.

Hi, Sean.

I'm really excited about this.

This feels pretty fast for a tractor.

This course is designed to test how well the tractors are made.

There are lots of bumps and dips on the road,

just like there would be on a farm.

-This is what they call a rocky road, is it?

-Yeah.

If the tractor passes the driving test,

then it is ready to go to work on a farm.

Well, that was fun.

I've had a great time learning about how tractors are made and even

getting to ride on a brand-new one.

Now let's find out about a tasty food that heats you up

in the winter.

Today we're in Glasgow to meet Rueben who is on a farm,

packing freshly picked vegetables.

In this box we have some vegetables we've grown here,

including potatoes, leeks, onions, turnips and these.

They're carrots.

All these colourful vegetables are full of vitamins to

help keep you healthy.

Reuben brings tasty veg like these from lots of farms to families every

week. Today, Rosa, Sophia and their mum are going to use them

to make a yummy winter soup.

What's the first thing we need to do before we cook any food?

Wash our hands!

'We need to wash the vegetables too,

'to get rid of any dirt or soil before we prepare them.'

I wonder what this carrot's going to look like when we chop it up.

-Orange?

-Let's see.

-It is orange!

-Orange!

'Now it's time to prepare two other important ingredients.

'This is called a stock cube.

'When it's crumbled and mixed with hot water,

'it provides lots and lots of flavour.

'And this is pearl barley.

'It makes soup lovely and thick.'

Now we've prepared the vegetables, we're going to make the soup.

Today we're going to make a vegetable broth.

'The vegetables are cooking nicely,

'so the colourful carrots are added

'along with the tasty stock in barley.

'It's left to bubble away, turning the veg soft.

'Look, the carrots have made the soup purple, too.

'Now it's ready to eat.'

Doesn't it look tasty?

Mm... Yum.

'Hot and healthy soup, a hearty way to keep warm in winter.'

Storm, Rory and I have had lots of fun today, and we hope you have too.

Don't forget to check out the CBeebies website

for more great things from Down On The Farm. See you next time.

Bye.

# Come join us down on the farm today

# Learn about nature along the way

# From seeds to crops then fields to farms

# 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. #