Growth in the hay meadow caught up in spades at River View Pateley despite an unusually dry start to the year. Guests at the holiday cottage oversaw a bumper crop this August, bank holiday, with so many bales that the barn was overflowing.
The ground nesting chicks had flown the nest. Butterflies and the bees had taken their turn at flitting over the rich variety of grasses. Now it was time to harvest a crop to keep the animals going over winter.
Sunshine on the field for five consecutive days cured the grass beautifully, creating hundreds of small bales of perfect hay. With seeds now ready to germinate, we'll look forward to what next Spring brings.