Chickens and Hill Farming 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 welcome to Down On The Farm.

It's summer, and on hot days, farmers need to make sure

their animals keep cool and have plenty of water.

While I look after things here, let's see what Storm is up to.

I've come to a farm in the southwest of England

that has over 8,000 chickens.

But... Where are they?

-Hi Farmer Becky. Hi Holly, hi Daniel.

-ALL: Hi, Storm!

So I've come here to ask you where all the chickens are -

but I think I can hear them.

-They're in the barn.

-They sleep indoors overnight,

and we let them out to roam in the field during the day.

We're about to let them out - would you like to join us?

-Absolutely, I can't wait to meet the chickens!

-Come on, then.

Time to let the chickens out.

Good morning, chickens!

CLUCK! CLUCK!

I've never seen so many chickens.

So, this many hens must mean a lot of eggs.

It does - and we collect them mechanically.

Oh, so you do it by machine. How does that work?

We've got nest boxes for the chickens inside the shed

and the eggs roll out the back of the nest box

onto a conveyer belt,

which carries our eggs into our packing room.

They get their stamps

and then they get packed onto trays of 30 eggs each time.

So, if the machine collects the eggs,

what is there for the people to do?

We walk the chickens.

Now THAT sounds like fun.

These chickens are free-range,

which means they spend most of their time roaming around the fields.

We walk them to check that they are healthy.

So, what are we looking for?

We need to make sure the chickens are walking well

and have lots of energy.

All these guys are walking really well.

What are we looking for, Daniel?

Their combs need to be bright and red.

-So the combs need to be bright and red. Like this one.

-Yeah.

Well I've had a lovely day helping out with the chickens -

but I do have one more question for you.

How do you get ALL of these chickens back in that barn?

We train them.

-When it gets dark we walk back to the barn.

-Trained chickens?!

That's brilliant!

When it gets dark, the chickens head to the barn.

They need to be inside at night to keep them safe from predators -

like foxes.

While they all get tucked up for the night,

let's find out what else happens in summer.

Lots of different fruits grow in summer.

Plants grow fruit in order to spread their seeds.

When fruit is eaten by birds or animals, the seeds pass through them

and are dropped on the ground, where they can grow into a new plant...

..but it takes a lot of energy for a plant to grow fruit,

and all that hard work will be wasted

if the fruit is eaten before the seeds are fully grown.

To stop this happening,

plants make their fruit taste sour or bitter at first.

The young fruit is often hard and pale green in colour.

So that animals won't see it amongst the leaves.

Later, when the seeds are ready, the fruit starts to ripen.

Some become much sweeter and tastier,

and many also change colour,

growing darker or brighter to catch the eye.

As it ripens, the fruit usually becomes softer

and easier to pick, too.

All of these changes encourage animals to eat the fruit

and spread the plant's seeds -

and they make it perfect for us to eat, too!

Today, I've come to a city farm in Leeds.

I've been asked to bring this plastic basin along -

but I'm not sure why.

Let's go and find out.

-Hi, everyone! ALL:

-Hi, JB!

-Well, this is a beautiful pond.

-Thanks, JB.

Ponds are good for all sorts of creatures,

from the small ones that live in them

to the big ones that cool down in them.

Today we're building smaller ponds around the farm -

-and that's why you need your basin.

-ALL:

-Let's go!

-Come on, then.

We're looking for a good place to build our new ponds.

What do you think? Down here?

-What about here?

-There's loads of space.

-Yeah, this is a great spot.

There's plenty of wildlife around -

bit of shade from the trees, but also we've got a bit of sun.

-Why do you think that's important?

-Because it helps the plants to grow.

-Good.

-It keeps the water warm.

-Yeah.

-The insects would like warm water.

That's right. Now, let's get digging.

The first thing we do is dig a hole for the basin.

Good job, guys!

Well done.

You can use other things to line your pond, too.

We're using clay for this one.

We also put some sticks and stones at the side,

to help small creatures get in and out.

Right, then, I think there's one thing missing from this pond.

-Do you know what it might be? BOTH:

-Water!

JB LAUGHS

Well, you guys have made some great ponds.

Whilst we wait to see which creatures come to explore them,

why don't you enjoy a poem about the summer sun?

Hello sun, so bright, so warm, so early to rise,

Climbing so high.

Your sunbeaming smile makes me linger awhile,

You make the world gleam, with your shimmering sheen -

But before long your heat, makes me want to sleep,

So I seek out some shade, from your powerful rays.

Many hours will pass by, before you dip from the sky,

When you do, I will sigh

At your gorgeous goodbye.

Today, I'm in Yorkshire. I've come to a farm which is very different.

Let's go and meet Farmer Neil, who can tell us some more.

-Hi, Farmer Neil!

-Hi, JB, welcome to the farm.

-Thank you.

Now I've heard you've got lots of sheep and cows,

-but I can't see them. Where are they?

-Well, this is a hill farm,

so all the stock are out on the hills.

Some are lower down, but some are up on the tops.

Is there a way that I can help?

-If you could help bring cattle down.

-Absolutely.

Great, there's your stick.

Farmer Neil has 30 cows and 20 calves on his farm.

These calves are one week old.

Here are the cows you've been looking for.

I don't think I've seen cows like this before.

-What breed are they?

-Belted Galloways.

They've got a white stripe

and that's the bit that's known as the belt.

They're great cattle for me,

cos they live outside all year.

Unlike cows that come into the barn for winter?

-Right.

-What do they eat?

They eat the grass that's growing on the hill behind you.

At this time of year we move them to a different field

as there's more grass elsewhere.

We'll bring them off that hill and move them to a different field.

Why do we have to move them?

It allows the flowers and grass to recover -

that's great for insects, bees and other creatures.

-Can I help you move them on?

-That'd be great -

-thanks very much.

-Brilliant.

First we have to group all the cows together.

Then it's time to take them to a new field.

Walking with the cows like this is called Droving.

Neil uses the long stick to help show the cows which way to go.

This is a really long walk.

It is, and we have to do this whether it's sunny like today,

or rainy or windy, or even if it's snowy.

-Come on, we haven't much further to go now.

-OK.

Well, this looks like a great field,

and the cows have got lots of lovely grass to eat.

There's lots of grass, so we'll leave them here

until we're ready to move them on again -

but for now we'll just let them explore the new field.

Hill farming is hard work, but I've had a fantastic time today.

Thanks very much, JB.

Maybe you could come and help us move the cattle when it's snowing.

Thanks, Neil. While we enjoy this beautiful view,

why don't you find out about being outdoors in the summer?

In summer when it's nice and hot,

there are three important things to remember.

Put on sunscreen to protect yourself from the sun.

Always make sure you drink lots of water.

Wearing the right clothes, like a hat

and sunglasses will keep you cool.

Enjoy being out and about.

Today we're at this farm in the Scottish Borders

to meet Arthur, Oscar and Harriet.

In the summer the fields are full of fruit to be picked, like...

Gooseberries!

-Blackcurrants!

-ALL: And lots of raspberries!

Raspberries grow on tall plants -

but first the plant makes a small, white flower.

Then it grows a tiny green fruit,

which takes six weeks to turn big and pink.

Ready to be picked.

OK, we're going to go and pick some raspberries.

We don't want to pick ones that are green, or hard,

because they aren't ready yet.

We want to pick ones that are nice and red and juicy.

-Let's go fill our punnets! BOTH:

-Yeah!

A punnet is the small container we collect the raspberries in.

-Which raspberries do you think we want to pick?

-These ones.

Cos they're red, juicy and pink.

Sometimes the tastiest ones are hiding down low.

Look how many I have!

-Who would like raspberry ice lollies? BOTH:

-Me!

After we wash our hands, we wash the raspberries.

Now that everything is clean,

lets mash up these raspberries on our plates.

Good mashing, Oscar. We've got two other ingredients in our lollies.

-The first is honey. Which is made by...? BOTH:

-Bees!

And the other ingredient is yoghurt.

We put the mixture into lolly moulds.

Then we add some wooden sticks.

They're put into the freezer to turn into delicious frozen ice lollies.

After a busy day of picking fruit and working hard,

who's ready for an ice lolly?

-BOTH:

-Me!

They're really yummy!

Why don't you make some, too?

Can I have another one?

Storm and I have had a great time today.

If you want to have fun with your own farm,

go to the CBeebies website to play the down on the farm game.

See you next time. Bye!

# 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. #