Autumn Special Countryfile


Autumn Special

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Autumn - a kaleidoscope of colour, before the slow descent into winter.

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For many, it's a season to wind down, but in our woodlands,

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nature's having a final flourish, bursting with ripe treasure.

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In today's special celebration of the season,

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we're going to put on our boots, kick through the crisp leaves,

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and explore the fruits of our forests.

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Anita's exploring the wonder of walnuts...

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..John catches a glimpse of some rare hazel dormice...

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because this is the first time I've ever seen a dormouse.

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..Naomi hears how conkers nearly helped us win the war...

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..and Adam pigs out with celebrity chef Cyrus Todiwala.

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Can't come and cook lunch for me tomorrow as well, can you?

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I'm in the depths of East Sussex. At least, I think I am.

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I've got a map, but there aren't any road names.

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It's more like a floor plan of a wild supermarket.

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Well, I've been invited round for dinner

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about living off the fruits of our forests.

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Now, where you may see a thicket, a stream, and a few trees,

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he sees a meat counter, a vegetable aisle, and a salad bar.

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In his mid-20s, Nick Weston gave up the rat race

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as a jobbing chef in the city, and set himself a challenge -

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to move back to the countryside, build a treehouse,

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and stay in it for six months, living off the land.

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Every day, he kept a diary, detailing his steep learning curve.

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Pigeons have a reputation for being reasonably bulletproof.

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I waited until the bird gave me a profile of his head,

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GUNSHOT WINGS FLAP

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The pigeon folded, and dropped like a stone to the forest floor.

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I feel Mother Nature was smiling on me.

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Either that, or the pigeon was depressed,

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Well, Nick has since upgraded, and he's built a bigger treehouse,

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but as he's now married with a young baby,

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he uses it to teach others how to get back to nature,

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And, according to these three, he's just up here on the left.

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Morning, Matt. How are you doing? This is mightily impressive!

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Good to see you, mate. Good to see you. Oh, who's this, down here?

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This is Bea. Hello, Bea. She's our little truffle dog.

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Goodness, what a place you've got here, Nick! Lovely, isn't it?

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So, you've got a kitchen here, then? Yep, this is our wood-fired kitchen.

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In here, we've got the grill, clay oven, got a built-in smoker.

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And I'm glad to see you've got the coffee on as well. Yes, indeed.

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Which is great. Most important bit.

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So where did all this idea come from, Nick?

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So, I mean, originally, I worked as a chef in London,

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I got to the point where I wanted to get

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a bit closer to my ingredients, and do hunting, fishing,

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so it was kind of about being a 21st century hunter-gatherer.

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Were you quite outdoorsy as a kid, though?

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so it sort of partnered quite well with the challenge I'd set myself.

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And of course, the whole point is seasonality. Mm.

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You're eating what's fresh at that time of year,

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so the way that your food must change through the year

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must be quite an exciting thing for you, from a chef's perspective.

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I mean, that is the amazing thing about doing this,

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cos you are so close to the ingredients,

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and we do, throughout the year... Every month,

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there's a new plant that comes in, or a new part of a plant.

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This time of year, obviously, some fruits, nuts,

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which is always a very exciting time of year.

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And, so, what's on the menu today, Nick?

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So, today we have some pheasant and some partridge.

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We've got some of Bea's truffles that she found. Oh, good stuff.

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But then we're going to have to go and forage some ingredients

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Let's go shopping! Let's go shopping indeed.

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'Needless to say, this is a private woodland,

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'and Nick has permission from the landlord to forage.'

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The important thing, I think, with foraging,

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Flavour-wise, you can have a little nibble of it.

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..slightly, kind of, aromatic. Oh, yeah, that's good.

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Its Latin name is Achillea millefolium,

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cos it's believed that Achilles used to use this

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'A bit of sorrel and vetch, and we've got ourselves a wild salad -

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'though I think Bea wants fish for dinner.'

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So, we've got our pheasants and we've got our partridge,

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and then we've got another ingredient,

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which is over there, and over there, which is fire,

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so that's all our wild elements for the dish.

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OK. And how long do you expect this to take, then,

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before it's on a plate, ready to eat?

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Cos we're going from scratch, about an hour. OK. Sounds good.

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I'm not the only one making the most of autumn's abundance today.

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to meet a man growing a crop that's a tough nut to crack.

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an ancient 300-acre estate on the edge of the Somerset Levels,

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once owned by the medieval abbots of Glastonbury.

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Today, the estate is in the hands of Roger Saul.

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Roger has championed the use of the age-old grain spelt.

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But this autumn marks the first commercial harvest

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In a nutshell, Roger's growing walnuts.

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So this farm has an ancient heritage,

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and is that something that you've consciously tried to recreate?

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was I had a look at the history and said,

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"Could we recreate, in some way, that mixed economy organic farm?"

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So, as I set out, I had sheep, cattle,

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You don't really think of walnuts as being traditionally very British.

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No, and very much, they'd have come from Persia, I suppose, originally,

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but as I was doing building work in the house,

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we were going through a really old wall,

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a scallop shell, chicken bones, and they were all stuffed in,

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where the monk had been putting in plaster to make the wall.

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Clearly, they'd been here 500 years ago, or more.

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So, how old is this tree behind us? Can I have a closer look?

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Yeah, this tree would have been... We planted these 12 years ago.

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Here's one that's already fallen down. OK.

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That's the husk, and in here, you've got...

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That's not quite ready yet. It's still very damp.

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Right. So, that's now what we call a wet walnut. OK.

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It really is brain-shaped. You know, so if you look at...

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It's brain food as well, isn't it? Yeah.

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Delicious though they are, with 200 trees to harvest,

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entrusted to gather Roger's first commercial crop -

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farmhand Gemma Dart and manager Rowan Norman.

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Hello, Rowan. Hiya. How are you doing?

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All right. Good to see you. Yes, and you.

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No, we harvest walnuts with tractors nowadays. I thought you beat them?

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Not any more, thankfully. Let me show you this thing.

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Apple shaker, from cider orchards. Right.

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So, we hook it up to the trees, and shake them all down.

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And how do you collect the walnuts, then?

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We then collect the walnuts off of a tarpaulin that we lay on the floor.

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We sweep them into a big pile, and shovel them into boxes.

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This is our very first time. All right, well, let's do it.

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Let's give it a go. Let's hook it up.

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Let's just hope harvesting this new crop with traditional methods works.

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Oh, right, I'd better get out from under the tree!

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He's done a good job. The system works.

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And there we have the first ever walnut harvest.

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I feel a bit queasy after that. ROWAN CHUCKLES

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Having collected all the nuts from the ground,

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we've ended up with a good few boxfuls,

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before drying in Roger's own home-spun fashion.

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OK, Roger, so what's this bit of the process?

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So, we've got a tray of walnuts at each level. Oh, fantastic.

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So these'll be in here... Depending on what the weather's been like,

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they'll probably be in here for up to 24 hours. Yep.

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No, but it just takes the moisture down by about 20%,

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and then we put it out here, just to air dry,

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and this netting is to keep the squirrels off.

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again depending on how much moisture there is in the air.

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And how many do you think you'll have this year?

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Should be somewhere between 300 and 400 kilos.

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those 200 trees should produce about five to ten tonnes.

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Well, it's been fascinating seeing the whole process,

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Roger's toasting some of last autumn's haul

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So you're just replacing the pine nuts with the walnuts?

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That looks like a nice paste coming on, there.

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Let's just pop a bit of that in there.

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Let's pop some more Parmesan in there. Yes, please.

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And I think the walnuts are just about ready.

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Smells so good! This is going to be great. I can tell.

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Fingers crossed. Fingers crossed.

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That is delicious. You can't get fresher or more seasonal than this.

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Somerset walnuts... On the Somerset Levels. On the Somerset Levels.

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Autumn's certainly a plentiful time in the trees and hedgerows,

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but beneath the display, there's inevitably decay.

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Tim Shepherd is a botanist and cameraman

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who's captured some of the most famous time-lapse sequences

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His footage offers a window to a little-seen autumnal underworld.

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Looks like an earth ball that's got some parasitic fungus growing ON it.

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It's pretty much the only toadstool that you'll find

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that is more or less guaranteed to kill you.

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I was really lucky at school, to have an amazing teacher,

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and we went a bit mad, and we spent a whole term on fungi.

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And it just got me so excited about this other world,

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It sort of looks like a piece of raw meat,

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and it's actually a beefsteak fungus.

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Fungi do crop up at different times of year,

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but the autumn is just so much better than any other time,

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and it's really down to their biology, because of humidity.

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I've found this amazing bracket fungus.

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It's very important for the fungus to release its spores

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when it's humid, and then the spores can survive

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for a long time in the air, and spread a long way.

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The puffballs release their spores by raindrops landing on them,

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and the energy of the raindrop puffs the spores out the top.

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A lovely row of sulphur tuft along here.

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Time lapse is great, cos it reveals things that you can't see.

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You're just speeding up the action, that's all it is, really.

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Reducing a day or two into a few seconds.

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And then you can see exactly how they're growing,

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Slime moulds are just a fascinating group. Very common in the autumn.

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They're not animals, and they're not plants. They're really unique.

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And it creeps about really quite quickly.

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They pulse, they look sort of like an alien creature, in time lapse.

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If I collect something and take it into the studio,

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then I can control all the conditions that it's growing under.

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I can make sure that the lighting is consistent.

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And, as long as I've got the right conditions

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hopefully it'll grow, and you'll get a lovely shot.

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I've got a lovely old building which my studio is in.

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It's an old sawmill. It's full of old sets and bits and bobs.

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You could say my studio is a bit haphazard.

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But, what really matters is what the camera sees.

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Most of my fungi shots end up with a set being built

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inside a, like, a little mini greenhouse type arrangement.

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Then the fungus has got its 100% humidity.

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It's just a stills camera, and you just take one frame at a time,

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and replay them back at 25 frames per second.

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It's not until you actually sequence the shot and play it back,

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you realise what's happened in between.

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And, very often, there's some amazing surprises.

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You have to sort of make it up as you go along, really,

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I'm not a boffin, but I'm a... I don't know what I am!

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If you've been inspired to get out and take some autumnal photos,

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Tweet us, and you never know, you might even see them on the show.

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Now, they're the very essence of autumn -

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horse chestnut trees, laden with conkers -

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this humble nut can pack a punch in more ways than one.

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Green, spiky orbs, containing precious treasure.

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Every year, the horse chestnut gives up its fruit -

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but they don't lie abandoned for long.

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We've been soaking them in vinegar, baking them,

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and threading them on a string for generations,

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each autumn, children and adults alike,

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battling it out in a game of conkers.

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But these tough nuts haven't just been used for childhood fun.

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110 years ago, they were called upon for a far more serious battle.

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It was 1915, and our country was at war.

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The British Army was facing a crisis.

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Continuous, fierce fighting had led to a chronic shell shortage,

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guns only firing as few as four shells a day.

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To create firepower, the government needed a propellant called cordite,

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but a key ingredient, acetone, was in short supply.

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which, when fermented, could produce the much-needed acetone.

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And who better to collect them but children?

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The Ministry of Munitions released an urgent demand

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to schools and Scout groups up and down the land.

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Thousands of tonnes of conkers were collected and sent for processing.

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So how did they conjure up an explosive material

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Dr Kristy Turner is a chemist from the University of Manchester.

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Loving this woodland science lab. Very nice.

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So, can you tell me, how did you go from one of these

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into something used to fire shells and bullets?

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So, in World War I, they did this by doing a fermentation process

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which is what you we're going to show you here. OK.

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In the war, they used bacteria to do the fermentation,

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but today, to make it a bit easier, we're going to use yeast.

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The bacteria and water would be added to the conkers

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enzymes getting to work to create the acetone.

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So we're going to have to filter the solids from it.

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the next step was to distil the acetone mixture to make it pure.

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Only then would it be mixed with other explosive ingredients

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to make the spaghetti-like strings of cordite.

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But the grand ambition for conkers wasn't to be.

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On this small lab scale that we have here,

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but when they scaled it up to factory scale,

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it didn't work too well, and in the end

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they abandoned the process after about three months.

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may not have left a dent in the history books,

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but their traditional use as a tool for fun is as strong as ever.

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And it's the tiny village of Southwick in Northamptonshire

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for those who are nuts about conkers.

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For decades, the World Conker Championships

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has drawn competitors from all over the globe

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and I think I need to find out a bit more from King Conker,

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who I believe is this gentleman in green here.

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Now, should I call you King? Yes, if you wish, for the day.

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So, can you tell me, how did this all get started?

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Well, it started many years ago - 1965 to be precise.

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it was a windy day, they couldn't fish,

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so they decided to go to the public house, have a drink.

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Conkers were falling outside the public house,

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From there on, it became a yearly event,

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and it's multiplied and multiplied and multiplied.

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Well, my role is probably keep order, make everybody happy,

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try to advise people how to play conkers,

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and just hope everybody has a good time.

:21:12.:21:13.

COMMENTATOR: He's not invoking the rule.

:21:14.:21:15.

Struggling with that knee injury, but soldiering on at the age of 81.

:21:16.:21:24.

Richard Howard has been chief umpire -

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but his connection to conkers goes back much further.

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I'm nearly 75. I've been playing it all my life,

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And in fact, my father and his family

:21:37.:21:42.

used to actually collect conkers during the First World War.

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Looks like I've picked the right guy for some tips, then.

:21:47.:21:49.

You don't have a choice of conker. Thank you.

:21:50.:21:54.

We gather them within the week leading up to Conker Day,

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How many do you collect? About 2,000 to 2,500.

:21:59.:22:04.

Three hits each until the conker is knocked off.

:22:05.:22:10.

And you better keep your string at the right length.

:22:11.:22:13.

It's got to be eight inches between the knuckle and the nut.

:22:14.:22:20.

Careful. I'm going to yellow card you. Oh, oh...

:22:21.:22:34.

Well, that's my conker career shattered.

:22:35.:22:39.

Luckily there are some people here who know what they're doing.

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as well as some rather eccentric costumes.

:22:44.:22:48.

to the thousands who come to this tiny village every autumn?

:22:49.:22:54.

I see people here from all round the country every year.

:22:55.:23:00.

And it's this beautiful setting, a village atmosphere.

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I can't get enough of it. HE LAUGHS

:23:04.:23:07.

One by one, hopeful champions are knocked out.

:23:08.:23:10.

COMMENTATOR: This, for the world title, Tom Dryden.

:23:11.:23:13.

Until a new Conker Queen and King are eventually crowned.

:23:14.:23:19.

The humble conker has had an eventful history,

:23:20.:23:27.

And now, as this eccentric event shows,

:23:28.:23:34.

they're still giving pleasure to people all over the world.

:23:35.:23:38.

An autumn tradition that will hopefully never grow old.

:23:39.:23:46.

Well, thanks to the Countryfile calendar,

:23:47.:23:49.

we'll know when to start prepping for next year's World Championships.

:23:50.:23:54.

If you haven't got one yet, here's all the details.

:23:55.:23:56.

It costs ?9.50, including free UK delivery.

:23:57.:24:00.

where you'll find a link to the order page.

:24:01.:24:04.

Or you can phone the order line on...

:24:05.:24:14.

Well, last year's calendar was a record breaker,

:24:15.:24:17.

raising over ?2 million, and it goes without saying,

:24:18.:24:20.

this year, with your help and the help of these beautiful photos,

:24:21.:24:25.

we want to continue that amount of support.

:24:26.:24:30.

then send your name, address and a cheque to...

:24:31.:24:43.

And please make your cheques payable to "BBC Countryfile Calendar".

:24:44.:24:48.

A minimum of ?4 from the sale of each calendar

:24:49.:24:51.

will be donated to BBC Children In Need.

:24:52.:24:59.

Autumn is as fruitful as it is flamboyant.

:25:00.:25:02.

vital fuel to get animals through the winter.

:25:03.:25:08.

Not to mention the odd calorific crumble for us.

:25:09.:25:12.

autumn also presents a last-minute opportunity to pig out.

:25:13.:25:20.

I'm delivering some pigs to a farming friend of mine,

:25:21.:25:22.

and I've already overloaded some Tamworths and Iron Age,

:25:23.:25:25.

and next, we've got this litter of Berkshires

:25:26.:25:27.

and some Gloucestershire Old Spots too.

:25:28.:25:30.

And these old-fashioned breeds fell by the wayside

:25:31.:25:32.

because of fast-growing, modern pork production.

:25:33.:25:36.

But now, thankfully, they're coming back into their own

:25:37.:25:39.

It's really lovely to be able to take these rare breeds

:25:40.:25:45.

to a farm that's going to appreciate them.

:25:46.:25:49.

The piglets are going just down the road

:25:50.:25:51.

Farmer Simon Wilson sells his rare breed meat

:25:52.:26:03.

But his methods of rearing them are very traditional.

:26:04.:26:09.

Good to see you again. Good to see you.

:26:10.:26:11.

This is lovely for them in here. Yeah, it's perfect.

:26:12.:26:13.

They've got three acres to run around in here. Wow, lucky pigs.

:26:14.:26:16.

Hoovering up woodland nuts and berries

:26:17.:26:19.

not only gives their meat great texture and taste,

:26:20.:26:22.

it also clears the woodland floor, allowing regeneration.

:26:23.:26:25.

Simon, they're instantly relaxed, aren't they?

:26:26.:26:27.

If they were in the natural situation,

:26:28.:26:31.

If they were just native pigs, they'd be in a forest or woodland.

:26:32.:26:36.

And is that why these more ancient, sort of, traditional British breeds

:26:37.:26:40.

like this kind of environment, do you think?

:26:41.:26:42.

I think so. They wouldn't be happy indoors.

:26:43.:26:44.

They need to be outside, rooting around.

:26:45.:26:46.

They've got more hair and more fat, haven't they?

:26:47.:26:48.

They've got the wherewithal to survive out here.

:26:49.:26:51.

And the flavour is in the fat, you know,

:26:52.:26:53.

so we don't mind a little bit of extra fat.

:26:54.:26:55.

there's plenty of food for them, isn't there?

:26:56.:26:59.

There's acorns, blackberries, there's even the briars,

:27:00.:27:03.

they'll eat those, and the fallen leaves. Nothing's wasted.

:27:04.:27:06.

And they'll rootle in the ground as well?

:27:07.:27:07.

Yeah, there's worms and slugs in the ground.

:27:08.:27:10.

They've all got their heads down already.

:27:11.:27:12.

They're looking really happy, aren't they?

:27:13.:27:14.

the porkers would take about five months to rear. Yeah.

:27:15.:27:19.

Well, we're looking at six to seven months,

:27:20.:27:22.

because we're producing a premium product.

:27:23.:27:26.

They want to know where the animals are living? Yeah, they want a...

:27:27.:27:30.

They want free-range pork. That's really quite important.

:27:31.:27:33.

Well, if I was going to be a pig, reared outdoors,

:27:34.:27:36.

This is lovely, isn't it? This is a happy place, isn't it?

:27:37.:27:40.

It's good for the pigs, good for the woodland,

:27:41.:27:47.

and especially good for the customer.

:27:48.:27:49.

Simon sells his woodland-reared pork locally in his farm shop.

:27:50.:27:56.

What I'd like is some of your free-range woodland pork mince. Yes.

:27:57.:28:02.

A couple of kilos, if you've got some of that. Couple of kilos.

:28:03.:28:04.

Thanks very much. Thank you very much.

:28:05.:28:12.

Being able to buy meat of this quality and provenance

:28:13.:28:15.

is a real treat, but to make the most of the flavours,

:28:16.:28:18.

you don't want me cooking it. We need to bring in the professionals.

:28:19.:28:21.

Right, I'd better get him paid for this.

:28:22.:28:25.

Back at my farm, I'm meeting up with celebrity chef

:28:26.:28:28.

and rare breed enthusiast Cyrus Todiwala.

:28:29.:28:31.

Look very docile, don't they? Yeah, they're nice and quiet.

:28:32.:28:34.

for his contribution to the hospitality industry.

:28:35.:28:39.

who's embraced the qualities of our rare breeds in his dishes.

:28:40.:28:44.

His series The Incredible Spice Men brought together the best

:28:45.:28:50.

of what British ingredients and Indian spices have to offer.

:28:51.:28:54.

Cyrus, when my father first started keeping rare breeds

:28:55.:28:57.

it was all about saving them from extinction.

:28:58.:29:01.

Sure. But you're more about giving them a purpose, aren't you?

:29:02.:29:04.

in the sense that he actually had vision

:29:05.:29:08.

beyond what was required at the time.

:29:09.:29:11.

To save them from absolute extinction,

:29:12.:29:13.

It sounds rather strange, but the more of the rare breed

:29:14.:29:18.

you demand as a meat, the more the chances of the breed surviving.

:29:19.:29:22.

And for you? What are your favourites?

:29:23.:29:24.

Oh, my favourites. Manx Loaghtan, for example. The sheep.

:29:25.:29:27.

I think they are as interesting to look at as they are to cook.

:29:28.:29:31.

They are absolutely mad, I think, when I tried to catch one once.

:29:32.:29:34.

So Manx Loaghtan, I've got very fond of at the moment.

:29:35.:29:37.

And is it about educating farmers, chefs, AND the public?

:29:38.:29:41.

I think we need to start with the public,

:29:42.:29:44.

because the public dictate how food trends go,

:29:45.:29:46.

and I think that's where the value comes in.

:29:47.:29:49.

If people will start to demand, "Where did that come from?

:29:50.:29:51.

"Who farmed it? Where was it grown? What did it eat?"

:29:52.:29:54.

That makes the bond between the customer and the chef closer,

:29:55.:29:58.

but, again, the third party involved is the farmer

:29:59.:30:01.

for his producing such high-quality produce

:30:02.:30:04.

I couldn't agree more. I'm loving what you're saying.

:30:05.:30:11.

'And what better way to appreciate such fine British produce

:30:12.:30:15.

'than to use Cyrus' expertise to knock up a batch of spicy sausages?'

:30:16.:30:20.

'But first, we need to know what we're working with.'

:30:21.:30:28.

So, Cyrus, as an Indian chef, you're famed for your spices,

:30:29.:30:31.

but you're cooking this without any seasoning at all so far.

:30:32.:30:34.

No, so, that's the way I like to understand my meat better.

:30:35.:30:38.

It's very important that I get the flavour of the meat in my mouth,

:30:39.:30:40.

for me, to work the spicing - or I could get over-enthusiastic,

:30:41.:30:44.

as I would, normally, and chuck it all in,

:30:45.:30:46.

and then realise, "What have I done? I can't taste the meat any more.

:30:47.:30:50.

"All I'm tasting is the chilli, the ginger, the garlic."

:30:51.:30:52.

Yes. But I want the meat to stand true.

:30:53.:30:54.

which is reared with passion and love and affection...

:30:55.:30:58.

You need to be careful. You need to be careful.

:30:59.:31:01.

We want juiciness. And look at that.

:31:02.:31:04.

OK, what you're seeing is the juiciness coming through.

:31:05.:31:08.

See, if you look at that. Look at all that.

:31:09.:31:10.

You see? How good that meat is? Really juicy, really soft.

:31:11.:31:19.

And the meat itself is so flavoursome. Mm.

:31:20.:31:22.

It is full of flavour, isn't it? Yeah.

:31:23.:31:24.

What you're tasting there is purity in its best form.

:31:25.:31:28.

What you're tasting is what's gone into making that animal grow

:31:29.:31:32.

from there to there, before it comes to us.

:31:33.:31:35.

Now what will you do with the spices to enhance the flavour?

:31:36.:31:38.

For that sausage, we are going to saute some onion.

:31:39.:31:41.

They are very basic, but they enhance meat.

:31:42.:31:49.

'Seeing a top chef like Cyrus at work

:31:50.:31:52.

'makes you appreciate how he values ingredients like this woodland pork.

:31:53.:31:56.

'I'm just glad to have played my part in rearing it.'

:31:57.:32:02.

This is my contribution, I'm not very good at the chopping.

:32:03.:32:04.

No, you still have to make the sausages, my dear sir.

:32:05.:32:07.

Have you made sausages before, are you good at that? I tried once.

:32:08.:32:10.

On a professional machine, and it flew 50 yards.

:32:11.:32:14.

Well, between us, we might make a right hash of it.

:32:15.:32:18.

This is good fun. Oh, we've lost one, we've lost one.

:32:19.:32:30.

'Little touches like poaching the sausages before grilling them

:32:31.:32:44.

'gives you some clue as to how far Cyrus will go...'

:32:45.:32:47.

That is showing how great we are as sausage makers.

:32:48.:32:50.

'..to get the best out of his bangers.'

:32:51.:32:53.

Well, it's lovely, the energy and effort

:32:54.:32:55.

that farmers put into producing their food,

:32:56.:32:58.

and then chefs like you put so much passion into cooking it well.

:32:59.:33:01.

And if you didn't have customers who appreciated good food,

:33:02.:33:08.

'Some of my pigs, given the top chef treatment by Cyrus.

:33:09.:33:15.

Now, think about it. 100% meat, no bread, nothing in it.

:33:16.:33:25.

And just to arrange a few slices on top, like that, like that,

:33:26.:33:28.

I can't wait. Are you ready for this?

:33:29.:33:37.

but those spices you put in are really bringing it out.

:33:38.:33:53.

You can't come and cook lunch for me tomorrow as well, can you?

:33:54.:33:57.

Just absolutely wonderful, thank you so much.

:33:58.:34:12.

'Today, we're exploring the fruits of our forests,

:34:13.:34:15.

'autumnal treasures ripe for the picking.

:34:16.:34:21.

'I've been learning about the wonders of walnuts

:34:22.:34:24.

'Joining in with the harvest is Catherine Lewis from Cardiff -

:34:25.:34:31.

'but she's not here for the delicious, nutritious nuts,

:34:32.:34:34.

'but for their inedible outer husks.'

:34:35.:34:40.

Why would anyone be interested in the husk?

:34:41.:34:44.

This is full of tannins, tannic acid,

:34:45.:34:47.

which is great for dyeing cloth and making ink,

:34:48.:34:49.

so you can see my hands are already stained pretty quickly with it.

:34:50.:34:54.

See, I thought tannin was something you just found in wine and tea.

:34:55.:34:57.

Yeah, it's found in wine because the wine's stored in oak barrels,

:34:58.:34:59.

and oak trees and chestnut trees and walnut trees

:35:00.:35:02.

are all really high in tannic acid, which is a dye.

:35:03.:35:07.

'Back in Catherine's studio in Wales,

:35:08.:35:09.

'she starts transforming the husks into creative colorants.

:35:10.:35:14.

'It's an Aladdin's cave filled to the brim

:35:15.:35:16.

Catherine, this place is perfect, isn't it? Thank you.

:35:17.:35:24.

It's just what you'd imagine... An art den.

:35:25.:35:27.

Yeah, an artist's studio-to-be. I've got a pinny for you.

:35:28.:35:30.

Thank you very much. This was dyed with blackberries and indigo.

:35:31.:35:33.

Oh, wow. So you did this as well? It's gorgeous.

:35:34.:35:37.

Right, so what are we doing, Catherine?

:35:38.:35:38.

We're going to be using the walnuts we collected at Sharpham Park

:35:39.:35:41.

And we're just going to cut them up and put them into water.

:35:42.:35:45.

Some natural dyes need what's called a mordant,

:35:46.:35:49.

which helps the dye stick to the fabric,

:35:50.:35:51.

but walnuts don't need anything. And does it have to be fresh?

:35:52.:35:55.

For dyeing fabrics, I've found they work best fresh, yeah.

:35:56.:35:59.

So this is the best time of year to be doing this?

:36:00.:36:02.

Yeah, it's really good to get them straight off the tree,

:36:03.:36:04.

straight into the water, and get the fabric in there, yeah.

:36:05.:36:07.

And how do you know what strength of colour you're going to get?

:36:08.:36:10.

You don't, really. It's a bit of trial and error, yeah.

:36:11.:36:13.

Sometimes I leave them in soaking overnight,

:36:14.:36:16.

sometimes you can get a really great colour in an hour,

:36:17.:36:19.

it's a little bit of alchemy, really.

:36:20.:36:22.

It is alchemy, I love that you said that,

:36:23.:36:24.

because this does feel like a little alchemist's studio-to-be.

:36:25.:36:28.

'Catherine's chemistry does spin gold. Not from lead,

:36:29.:36:31.

'but various seasonal plants, like daffodils.

:36:32.:36:35.

'And complementing the walnuts' dark hues,

:36:36.:36:38.

'Catherine uses woad plants to produce indigo blues.

:36:39.:36:45.

'The walnut husks are gently simmered

:36:46.:36:47.

'to reduce the liquid and enrich the colour.'

:36:48.:36:50.

So we're going to do some fabric dyeing now.

:36:51.:36:52.

This is an old parachute? Yeah, from an old parachute, yeah.

:36:53.:36:57.

So these will become scarves, like the one I'm wearing now.

:36:58.:37:02.

So, depending on what type of fabric you use,

:37:03.:37:04.

this is the colour palette you can get from the walnuts.

:37:05.:37:07.

and then coming down to cotton and linen.

:37:08.:37:12.

And they're all really different. And they were all dyed exactly

:37:13.:37:15.

'We're using the ancient Japanese technique of kanoko shibori,

:37:16.:37:23.

'better known in the West as tie-dye.

:37:24.:37:27.

'It should create a series of circles. Fingers crossed.'

:37:28.:37:33.

So we're going to do that a few times. As many as you fancy doing.

:37:34.:37:37.

'the silk is quickly soaked to ensure a consistent final colour.'

:37:38.:37:49.

So we're going to take it out of the water and put it into the dye.

:37:50.:37:54.

And I'll give it a little stir, shall I? Yeah.

:37:55.:37:58.

And now it's going to be a pretty tie-dye scarf.

:37:59.:38:08.

'Not only do walnuts produce beautiful fabric dyes,

:38:09.:38:11.

'but richly coloured inks for writing and printing.

:38:12.:38:15.

'Catherine carefully adds a few magic ingredients.

:38:16.:38:18.

'Gum arabic to thicken, iron sulphate to make the ink permanent,

:38:19.:38:23.

'alcohol for preservative, and even juniper for scent.'

:38:24.:38:35.

There's a mesh that's had a photographic image put on there,

:38:36.:38:42.

and this is a walnut tree. Perfect. Of course it is.

:38:43.:38:46.

And the tree that these walnuts came from, actually. Ah!

:38:47.:38:49.

So I'm just using recycled cotton bedsheets.

:38:50.:38:52.

I'm just going to put some of the ink on there.

:38:53.:38:55.

OK, so you're going to lift your squeegee up and put it behind,

:38:56.:38:58.

and then about a 45 degree angle, and pull it slowly down towards you.

:38:59.:39:03.

Oh, wow. It's worked. Fantastic. Walnut ink, walnut tree. Beautiful.

:39:04.:39:18.

'And the scarf hasn't turned out too bad, either.'

:39:19.:39:22.

'From food to fashion to calligraphy,

:39:23.:39:36.

'the humble walnut is the gift that keeps on giving.'

:39:37.:39:40.

And is this quill for me? It is. And so you just dip it in.

:39:41.:39:44.

Just dip in, give it a little tap to take any excess ink off.

:39:45.:39:48.

I'm going to write something, I'm just going to go for it.

:39:49.:39:50.

I'm going to write something for Countryfile.

:39:51.:39:52.

It's a lovely autumn brown. Isn't it?

:39:53.:40:02.

Very good. Where is she going with this?

:40:03.:40:08.

I'm actually just using this quill, letting it do its thing.

:40:09.:40:15.

Very good. "Countryfile is nuts for autumn."

:40:16.:40:19.

'that take advantage of autumn's rich pickings. Fish do, too.

:40:20.:40:34.

'We caught up with wildlife photographer Jack Perks

:40:35.:40:36.

'in Nottingham, as he filmed this seasonal wonder beneath the water.'

:40:37.:40:49.

I used to quite enjoy fishing from an early age, like 11, 12.

:40:50.:40:53.

And I'd come down here on the brook, catch little tiddlers.

:40:54.:40:57.

It seemed like this giant river that had these monster fish

:40:58.:41:01.

And it was just great when you'd peer over

:41:02.:41:06.

and you'd see in the willows these chub cruising by like submarines.

:41:07.:41:10.

That really drove my interest in fish.

:41:11.:41:18.

Fairham Brook, it's quite an odd place.

:41:19.:41:20.

It's this mosaic of habitats that come wild, urban, wild, urban,

:41:21.:41:24.

and they just mesh together to make this really strange looking place.

:41:25.:41:28.

Really, it's an urban oasis, it's a wildlife corridor.

:41:29.:41:39.

Autumn's a fantastic time on the river.

:41:40.:41:42.

This is certainly the time of year that I look forward to most,

:41:43.:41:45.

particularly now we're just starting to see the leaves threatening

:41:46.:41:48.

to turn yellow and those kind of golden hues.

:41:49.:41:52.

The main thing that I focus on is freshwater fish.

:41:53.:41:56.

They're just amazing, they have all these interesting behaviours

:41:57.:41:59.

and different lifestyles - they're just fascinating.

:42:00.:42:06.

Underwater photography really appealed to me,

:42:07.:42:08.

just cos it was a way of showing off these fish.

:42:09.:42:17.

The fish don't particularly want to be photographed,

:42:18.:42:20.

so that meant using things like camera traps -

:42:21.:42:22.

so, having small cameras weighted down on the bottom

:42:23.:42:25.

and then leaving them be for however long,

:42:26.:42:28.

and then watching what fish come in to investigate.

:42:29.:42:36.

Other times, I'll get in the river and I'll snorkel.

:42:37.:42:41.

other times I've had them almost come in and nibble my finger,

:42:42.:42:46.

really, really curious, which we don't tend to think of with fish,

:42:47.:42:50.

this big, gangly thing, floating in the river.

:42:51.:42:59.

It's all about the blackberries along the river bank

:43:00.:43:02.

and, in particular, chub gorge on them.

:43:03.:43:09.

But I just love watching them wait under these blackberry bushes

:43:10.:43:12.

They're straight in there, filling themselves silly on fruit.

:43:13.:43:22.

I mean, the word "chubby" comes from chub,

:43:23.:43:26.

Elderberries they'll eat, hawthorn berries...

:43:27.:43:34.

It's quite weird, fish that eat fruit, but they do.

:43:35.:43:38.

and of course that's important for them for the winter

:43:39.:43:44.

to pack on the weight when there might not be as much food around.

:43:45.:43:48.

They love the autumn, and I'm almost sorry when it's over,

:43:49.:43:51.

without them scoffing all these berries!

:43:52.:44:07.

Back in East Sussex, I'm with chef Nick Weston,

:44:08.:44:10.

And I'm getting very hands-on with some pheasant and partridge

:44:11.:44:17.

So we're going to focus mainly on the breast.

:44:18.:44:24.

The thing about pheasants, I mean, they are such...

:44:25.:44:26.

Just coming into season, beginning of October,

:44:27.:44:28.

so it's a really good wild meat to use, and so plentiful.

:44:29.:44:33.

Nick's approach to butchery is very much in the field...

:44:34.:44:38.

..and a quick warning, if you're squeamish, look away now!

:44:39.:44:40.

So if we lay the bird down on the floor like that

:44:41.:44:44.

and get one foot really nice and close into the breast,

:44:45.:44:50.

and then same on the other side like that,

:44:51.:44:54.

now if you grab the legs around there, quite firmly...

:44:55.:44:58.

And then what happens is you end up with two bits of birds,

:44:59.:45:07.

that crown and the breast, which we're going to take out,

:45:08.:45:14.

so all you have to do is go to your chopping board

:45:15.:45:17.

So you just run your knife in right up

:45:18.:45:23.

So, you know, that's a really nice chunk of meat,

:45:24.:45:30.

and that's about as free-range and wild as you can really get.

:45:31.:45:34.

Next up, the partridge. So, just going against the grain, as it were.

:45:35.:45:40.

Just literally pulling them straight out, like that.

:45:41.:45:45.

Of course, Nick's not one for convention,

:45:46.:45:56.

so we're roasting the partridge over fire...on a sycamore branch.

:45:57.:45:59.

The thing is, cos this is kind of spring-loaded,

:46:00.:46:03.

it keeps these birds on here really nice and snug.

:46:04.:46:06.

Though Nick is passionate about eating wild,

:46:07.:46:16.

he freely admits nature often needs a helping hand.

:46:17.:46:19.

It's not all about using just foraged ingredients.

:46:20.:46:23.

You'd probably end up having not a particularly great meal

:46:24.:46:26.

if you didn't use things you can get from the supermarket,

:46:27.:46:29.

because game has very little fat, so adding in things like butter,

:46:30.:46:33.

..is just a wonderful way of keeping it nice and moist

:46:34.:46:38.

While the partridge roast over the fire,

:46:39.:46:49.

Nick does his cheffy bit with the pheasant.

:46:50.:46:52.

He opens it up, adds a shaving of truffle

:46:53.:46:54.

They look done. Shall I bring them over? Yes, please!

:46:55.:47:15.

You can't really beat that smoky flavour.

:47:16.:47:24.

Our wild salad, some pickled carrot to garnish

:47:25.:47:30.

and that's our partridge dish done.

:47:31.:47:35.

Look at that, eh? That's autumn on a plate, isn't it?

:47:36.:47:48.

Right, let's stop looking at it and get eating it.

:47:49.:47:51.

Joining us upstairs for our autumnal feast are Nick's wife Claire

:47:52.:47:58.

Look at this beautiful display of wonderful colour and gorgeous food.

:47:59.:48:05.

Do you eat like this all the time, Claire?

:48:06.:48:07.

Pretty much, yes, pretty much. Do you?

:48:08.:48:09.

I have to say though, I'm not a massive fan of game or truffles!

:48:10.:48:14.

Right. Two of the things I have on tap! Well, that's fair enough.

:48:15.:48:18.

But I think we should certainly give it a go.

:48:19.:48:21.

It looks beautiful, it smells delicious.

:48:22.:48:27.

That's good, isn't it? That is actually very, very good.

:48:28.:48:36.

It's very tasty, that. And you butchered it. Mm.

:48:37.:48:39.

It's about trying to get it all on a plate and capture that season

:48:40.:48:44.

and I think with those two, we've certainly done that. Yeah.

:48:45.:48:48.

Do you know what, I'll do the washing up in just a moment.

:48:49.:48:50.

If you wouldn't mind. I will quite literally wipe the slate clean!

:48:51.:48:54.

But before that, I'm just going to link to the weather!

:48:55.:48:58.

Yes, if you are planning an autumn adventure

:48:59.:49:00.

then you're going to need to know what the weather's got in store,

:49:01.:49:03.

so here's the five-day forecast for the week ahead.

:49:04.:49:05.

Has been very dry, 14% average rainfall, also dry in Pershore. Most

:49:06.:49:39.

of the rain on the east coast, way born more than average, the showers

:49:40.:49:42.

have been hit and miss and brought in on an easterly wind. We still

:49:43.:49:46.

have an easterly wind right now, the wind will be lighter overnight but

:49:47.:49:50.

there is more cloud in the southern half of the UK so it won't be as

:49:51.:49:55.

cold, not likely to get the fog, we will get showery bursts of rain in

:49:56.:49:58.

the south-west. Further north with breaks in the cloud it will be

:49:59.:50:01.

culled enough for a touch of frost and patchy

:50:02.:50:14.

fog and a few light showers coming into eastern parts of Scotland,

:50:15.:50:18.

perhaps. As we head into Monday the first fog Emma North will lift and

:50:19.:50:21.

we will get sunshine coming through. Further south, Midlands, Wales

:50:22.:50:23.

southwards there will be more cloud than today hence the chance of

:50:24.:50:25.

showery bursts of rain clipping south-west Wales and especially the

:50:26.:50:27.

south-west and potential flaws in torrential and perhaps thundery

:50:28.:50:29.

downpours, not far away at all. That is something to watch. No more than

:50:30.:50:32.

the odd spot of rain in the south-east, dried but much more

:50:33.:50:34.

cloud, as they will be further north through the Midlands and across

:50:35.:50:38.

Wales but in northern England it may stay dry with a few showers around.

:50:39.:50:43.

More of Scotland will be dry, the winds will be lighter so the showers

:50:44.:50:49.

not coming as far inland. Light winds on Tuesday, frost and fog in

:50:50.:50:53.

Scotland, Northern Ireland and northern England, only slowly

:50:54.:50:57.

lifting. Further south, not as much cloud, the cloud will be thinning,

:50:58.:51:01.

more of us will get sunshine, very few showers around, 15 or so in the

:51:02.:51:05.

South, 11 or 12 degrees in the North. As we head into Wednesday we

:51:06.:51:08.

start to see a change. We have some stronger winds coming in across

:51:09.:51:24.

northern parts of the UK, not easterly but westerly wind and the

:51:25.:51:27.

weather front arriving. It will not give much rain at all but the rain

:51:28.:51:30.

will trickle down across Scotland, Northern Ireland and into northern

:51:31.:51:32.

England and North Wales together with strong and gusty winds. Further

:51:33.:51:34.

south and east lighter winds and dry, early mist and fog and

:51:35.:51:36.

sunshine. The weather will start to change from mid week onwards.

:51:37.:51:39.

Looking to the other side of the Atlantic, there is colder air

:51:40.:51:41.

digging down from eastern parts of Canada. But there is warm air moving

:51:42.:51:45.

northwards closer to the UK and the clash is strengthening the jet a

:51:46.:51:49.

powerful jet stream developing later in the week. The position of the jet

:51:50.:51:54.

stream means that to the south high pressure builds in and that will be

:51:55.:51:58.

dominant across the southern half of the UK. Stronger winds on Thursday

:51:59.:52:02.

across the North colour may be outbreaks of rain over the hills but

:52:03.:52:06.

gusty winds to the east of high ground. Further south across the UK

:52:07.:52:11.

the winds will be brighter, -- lighter but temperatures rising

:52:12.:52:14.

across the board. Friday sees the threat of rainbow are mainly the

:52:15.:52:18.

hills of western Scotland, cloud in other areas, the best sunshine in

:52:19.:52:23.

the east and temperatures of 13-16d. By the end of the week of the high

:52:24.:52:28.

pressure will build in and push rain to the north-west of the UK. There

:52:29.:52:31.

will not be much rain over the week ahead. We start off pretty chilly,

:52:32.:52:37.

some patchy frost, fog and sunshine too. From midweek less likely to

:52:38.:52:39.

have frost and fog because it will JOHN: Autumn,

:52:40.:52:47.

one of nature's greatest displays. A final fanfare before

:52:48.:52:59.

the cold sets in. And for hibernating hazel dormice,

:53:00.:53:03.

the race is on to stock up on the fruits of the forest

:53:04.:53:08.

before winter takes its hold. For thousands of years,

:53:09.:53:14.

they've survived everything that's been thrown at them,

:53:15.:53:17.

but now dormice are on the brink. In just 16 years, in the UK, their

:53:18.:53:21.

numbers have dropped by a third. there is hope for these

:53:22.:53:26.

endearing creatures. are owned by the People's Trust

:53:27.:53:34.

for Endangered Species and they're on the front line in the

:53:35.:53:38.

fight to help our native dormice. Ian White is the trust's

:53:39.:53:43.

Dormouse Officer. that makes it such

:53:44.:53:46.

a safe haven for dormice? Well, we manage this woodland

:53:47.:53:51.

by coppicing it, and there's just really good

:53:52.:53:54.

and important understory There's no deer on the island

:53:55.:53:58.

to eat all this regrowth, so it actually comes back

:53:59.:54:03.

really well and creates a really

:54:04.:54:05.

good habitat for dormice and a range of other species,

:54:06.:54:07.

as well. Dormice have been known to double

:54:08.:54:08.

their body weight in autumn as they build up for that

:54:09.:54:11.

risky time, hibernation. If it's a mild winter,

:54:12.:54:14.

they can actually wake up and every time they wake up,

:54:15.:54:17.

they lose energy, they can only do that so many times

:54:18.:54:21.

before they can no longer survive. So what kind of percentage

:54:22.:54:25.

do you reckon Well, from the long-term monitoring

:54:26.:54:27.

programme we've looked at, it looks like between 40 and 70%

:54:28.:54:31.

of dormice won't survive over the winter. Goodness me, that's

:54:32.:54:34.

a shocking percentage, isn't it? Certainly the biggest killer of

:54:35.:54:38.

dormice in this country Ian and his team are giving dormice

:54:39.:54:41.

a helping hand by pioneering The woodlands that still exist are

:54:42.:54:49.

becoming more and more fragmented. Where there are fragmentations

:54:50.:54:58.

of woodland, we can actually use this

:54:59.:55:00.

to connect those up, as they live

:55:01.:55:02.

in the tree and shrub canopy - it helps them move

:55:03.:55:06.

between woodlands. A number of wildlife bridges have

:55:07.:55:08.

been put up throughout the country, but this is the first one

:55:09.:55:11.

that's been shown to be used by wild dormice,

:55:12.:55:14.

so it's quite exciting. 24 cameras monitor the area

:55:15.:55:17.

every night, and the dormice certainly seem to

:55:18.:55:20.

like their new high-level crossing. And Ian's brought along some proof,

:55:21.:55:24.

to show me. that they seem to prefer

:55:25.:55:29.

the bridge to the ground. The woods also have more than

:55:30.:55:40.

600 nest boxes that give vital shelter for the

:55:41.:55:43.

dormice as they breed and sleep. So this is a dormouse nest

:55:44.:55:48.

because of the green leaves on top. That is a telltale sign, is it? Yes,

:55:49.:55:52.

definitely. Oh, look, there's one. There's another one there.

:55:53.:55:55.

Two. Two so far. There's another one inside,

:55:56.:55:58.

as well. Wow. 'We're in luck -

:55:59.:56:01.

a mum and her two young.' So this is a juvenile dormouse.

:56:02.:56:05.

What sort of age would that be? This would be born this year,

:56:06.:56:08.

probably about six weeks old. that they use to feel their way

:56:09.:56:11.

around the woodland at night and big eyes, again,

:56:12.:56:16.

to help them see at night. There's his tail. They've got quite

:56:17.:56:18.

long tails, haven't they? They're our only small mammal

:56:19.:56:23.

with a furry tail. to check they're building up

:56:24.:56:25.

well for hibernation. that have been through one

:56:26.:56:29.

hibernation. So, Mum is weighing in at 21.5g,

:56:30.:56:36.

so, heavier. And they're quite safe

:56:37.:56:39.

in these bags, aren't they? Yes, there's plenty of food,

:56:40.:56:41.

the amount of time we'll be, there's plenty of air

:56:42.:56:43.

in there for them. The young male is also

:56:44.:56:45.

looking healthy, so Ian is hopeful for this

:56:46.:56:46.

family's chances over winter. I must tell you, Ian, that this is

:56:47.:56:50.

quite a moment for me, because during my time

:56:51.:56:54.

on Countryfile, and looked into them and never found

:56:55.:56:57.

anything inside - this is the first

:56:58.:57:02.

time I've ever seen a dormouse Though numbers have gone down

:57:03.:57:05.

dramatically in recent years, The right kind of woodland

:57:06.:57:11.

management and new ideas like the dormouse

:57:12.:57:14.

bridge here at Briddlesford That and a coldish winter,

:57:15.:57:17.

so they keep on sleeping. Well, the native dormouse certainly

:57:18.:57:25.

needs our protection, against its invading

:57:26.:57:29.

non-native cousin, which is currently causing

:57:30.:57:34.

many problems for people living on the

:57:35.:57:36.

Chiltern Hills? Well, find out more about that

:57:37.:57:39.

and many other things by tuning in to

:57:40.:57:41.

Countryfile Autumn Diaries every morning this week

:57:42.:57:44.

on BBC One at 9:15. It's the most sensational season

:57:45.:57:50.

of them all... FIREWORKS EXPLODE

:57:51.:57:53.

..autumn. it's a chance to stock up before

:57:54.:57:56.

the harsh winter days ahead. We'll be bringing you the seasonal

:57:57.:58:04.

stories that matter Well, hope you can join us then,

:58:05.:58:07.

but for now, goodbye.

:58:08.:58:27.

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