Episode 10 Down on the Farm

# Come join us down on the farm today

# Learn about nature along the way

# From seeds to crops and fields and barns

# So much to do down on a 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

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

In summer farmers get some help from insects

which help plants and crops to grow.

While I help out, too, let's see what Storm is up to.

SHEEP BLEAT

CHICKENS CLUCK

Back in spring I visited Farmer Francis, Abby and Millie

on a lavender farm.

The lavender hadn't started flowering in the fields yet

so I've come back in summer to see how it's growing.

-Hi, guys! BOTH:

-Hi, Storm!

Now, the field is looking so colourful.

-Is all this lavender ready to be harvested?

-Not quite, Storm.

The flowers will continue growing till the end of summer,

then I'll come in with my tractor and harvest it.

But now we can cut some by hand. Would you like to come and help?

Great, let's go.

How do we know when the plants are ready to be harvested?

There's a rhyme and it goes like this.

One flower open.

-One flower over.

-And one yet to come.

Let's get harvesting, guys.

It's going to take a long time to pick the field like this, isn't it?

-This one's big.

-That one's huge!

-I'm going to pick that one.

-Going to pick that one?

Another way to tell if the lavender is ready is to rub it between

your fingers and smell.

Do you want to rub it between your fingers and smell?

Oh, it smells lovely.

Farmer Francis, I think it smells absolutely delicious.

I wish we could bottle it.

We do bottle the smell of lavender when we make essential oil.

What's essential oil?

This is the oil that we take out the plant that smells like the flowers.

-Do you think we might be able to make some today?

-Of course we can.

The essential oil is made in a machine called a still.

First we put in some water, then the lavender flowers.

-Think we'll be able to fill this up?

-Yes.

-Pushed them in.

Right, now that's ready for us to put the still together.

Now Farmer Francis needs to light the burner to heat up the water

in the still and turn it into steam.

The steam will rise up through the lavender flowers, picking up

the smell and the oil.

As the steam cools, the oil is separated out

and ends up in this glass.

It can be used in soap and candles

or it's good for insect bites and burns.

Now we've collected the oil, what's the next step?

This oil is not ready to be bottled.

But I have some in the garden that is.

What do we need to do first?

-First of all, we need to fill the bottles.

-OK.

-There's a lid.

-Thank you.

While we finish getting these ready for the shop,

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

Wild-flower meadows are wonderful places to visit in summer.

Usually grown to make hay, and for farm animals to graze on.

The long grasses and bright, sweet-smelling flowers also attract

all sorts of wildlife.

This shire roe deer has come to nibble buttercups.

It feels safe amongst the long grass.

Rare birds like skylarks and lapwings can find

plenty of spiders and insects to eat here.

Butterflies, bees and hoverflies come to summer meadows to feed,

as many wild flowers are especially rich in nectar and pollen.

But meadows are much harder to find now as most farmers use

their land in different ways.

It is difficult for bees to survive without them

so some farmers are letting grasses and wild flowers

grow on their land again.

Often at the edges of fields.

While in towns and cities wild flower meadows are being

planted in gardens, parks and verges.

This helps nature and can brighten up our summers, too.

Do you know what these funny-looking things are called?

They're scarecrows.

In Herefordshire they have a whole festival about them every summer.

But what are scarecrows used for?

Scarecrows stand in fields and gardens.

They look a bit like people.

They flap and wave in the wind to scare the birds away and

stop them eating the farmer's crops.

Scarecrows have been used in fields for a long time.

But nowadays some farmers use different things.

Not all of them keep the birds away by looking scary.

Some make a loud noise instead.

BANG!

These are called bangers because they make a "bang" sound.

This is Robert, who helps organise the scarecrow festival.

Lots of people have built scarecrows.

They're on display all over town.

Amelie and Brynlee are off to find some.

-Wow! Do you know who he is?

-God of Thunder.

-What's that, Amelie, up there?

-The sun.

-The sun.

Can you guess the theme yet?

This scarecrow's a weatherman.

He has curly hair and glasses.

The theme this year is...

-BOTH:

-Weather!

As part of the festival people have a go at building a

scarecrow themselves.

This is our scarecrow's hat.

Lots of people are busy making scarecrows with straw and string.

A scarecrow is just one name for these straw people.

Do you know any more?

-In Somerset scarecrows are called...

-Murmet.

People in England called them...

The Scottish name for scarecrow is tattie bogle.

Time's up. And just look at these amazing scarecrows.

This one's a mermaid.

This is Scarecrow Bob.

Super scarecrow!

-ALL:

-Why don't you build a scarecrow, too?

GOAT BLEATS

First we find the perfect spot

Not too breezy, not too hot

We spread the blanket and open up a picnic basket packed to the top

There's sandwiches and apples crisp

Delicious drinks for us to sip

The strawberries, they taste so sweet

The loveliest you could ever eat

The buzzing flies, they think so, too

"Buzz off," we say, "Go on, just shoo!"

And cheeky birds with rumbling tums

Are hoping that we leave some crumbs.

PIGS SNORT

Today I'm in Lancashire to meet Izzy, Ollie and their dad, Ian.

They have lots of animals on their farm and I've come to meet

one of my favourites, the pigs!

-Hi, everyone.

-Hi!

-Hi, JB.

JB, these are our pigs and they're Oxford Sandy and Blacks.

-Do they like being out here in the summer?

-Yes.

They love being outside in the summer, JB.

When it's hot they need lots of wet, cold mud to roll in.

I can see there's lots of mud in there.

It's so muddy, we'll have to prepare

-a new sty for a female pig and her piglets.

-Can I help?

-Yeah, absolutely. Come on.

-Cool.

The first job we need to do, JB,

is dig a big hole in the ground, called a wallow.

It's hard work digging all this mud.

Next, we have to add some water.

The water makes the ground muddy, like a big mud bath.

The pigs love digging, so over time that'll make the wallow even bigger.

Pigs like mud because it helps to keep their bodies cool

and protects their skin from sunburn.

A bit like the sun cream that we wear.

And now we need a place for the pigs to shelter.

This is a pig ark, JB. It's where the pigs shade from the sun.

-Shall we get it ready?

-Yes.

We put lots of straw into the pig ark so it is comfy for the pigs

to lie down in.

The pigs need lots of water to drink, too.

We've dug the wallow and prepared the ark.

We've made sure the pigs have lots of clean water.

-Shall we let them in?

-OTHERS:

-Yeah!

Wow, she really likes that, doesn't she?

And the piglets going in, as well.

-Look at that.

-Have you seen that one there? Look.

She's really enjoying that.

While the pigs enjoy their new wallow, why don't you find out

how to look after ducks in summer?

SHEEP BLEAT

In summer you may see ducks when you're out.

It's fun to feed them but we have to look after them, too.

Bread fills them up, so there's no room for the healthy food

they need to make them strong.

One of their favourite things to eat is peas.

Enjoy being out and about.

SHEEP BLEAT

This is Farmer Edward.

On his farm in Somerset he grows blackcurrants, which are made

into blackcurrant juice.

When the berries are perfectly ripe

they will fall easily from the bushes.

This enables us to pick them with a large machine.

This is called mechanical harvesting.

As the harvester drives along each row, it shakes the currants

off the bushes.

The currants are moved to the back of the harvester on a conveyor belt,

where the leaves are removed.

The right blackcurrants are collected in these big green tubs

where any leaves and sticks that the machine has missed

are picked out by hand.

When the tubs are full, we have to get them to the factory quickly

while the blackcurrants are still fresh.

At the factory a forklift truck picks up each tub.

The blackcurrants are tipped into a container called a hopper,

one tub at a time.

The juicy blackcurrants are moved through a mill.

The machine that turns the blackcurrants into juice

is called a press.

This squashes and squeezes all the currants together

and the juice is collected in big tanks.

The leftover mix of seeds and skins is called pomace.

This is not wasted - it's used to make lots of products,

like natural food colours.

The blackcurrant juice is used to make lots of tasty drinks

and juices like this one.

Delicious!

SHEEP BLEAT

Storm and I had an excellent 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 fields and barns

# So much to do down on a farm

# Summer, autumn, winter, spring

# Ploughing, planting, harvesting

# With JB and Storm to lead the way

# Come join us down on the farm today. #