On a very wet Saturday in July a group of North Pennines smallholders met at The Hagg farm to have a cup of tea.

We eventually walked down to the meadow, in the rain, to discuss various types of meadow management, agri-environment schemes and harvesting and spreading (upland hay meadow restoration).

Discussing meadow management

We were then delighted to find that Ginny and her family at West Studdon farm had put up a tent and carried over benches so we could have tea and sandwiches. They showed us a powered scythe that could handle steeper slopes and an ingeniously home-made small baler.

Powered scythe for tricky areas

After a short walk past chickens, ducks and along the riverbank, we had a look at the meadows at Peckriding which are full of great burnet and the farmer was happy to tell us that the species-richness is due to the lack of sheep. This led to a discussion about various different types of grazing and changes in cutting dates.

Back at The Hagg we finished the day with a lovely cake (and more tea!) made by Brenda. The day went very well, despite the rain, and due to the success of the workshop, the North Pennines AONB Partnership would like to run this again next year if there are a group of willing smallholders to help out.

Thank you very much to the smallholders who provided tea, cakes, tents, benches and demonstrations!