The 1970s were notable for 2 great linked events. The TV sitcom “Fawlty Towers” and the great drought of 197x. In one episode of Fawlty Towers (entitled Germans) the punch line was “Don’t mention the War”. So with this in mind I will not mention the great drought of 197x.

Needless to say, many comparisons have been made to the great drought of 197x and that of 2022. The two years have been totally different. But by talking about 197x so much we seem to forget other dry years, like 1989,1990, 1991 and 1995 to name but a few. Then of course there are the climate record breaking seasons throughout the early 2000s.

I think in the future more will be spoken about the great summer droughts of 202x, 203x and the 3 successive droughts of 204x, 204x, and 204x. Alongside the summer floods in other seasons. Climate change is here and the effects are becoming very marked and very real.

One remarkable thing about the summer was the speed and ease of the harvest. I was able to leave crop in the field until it suited me to cut it. I was able to park up the combine in the middle of the day, take a shower and go to a friends garden party. My season ticket at Portman Rd has been used for every single game. After the cereal harvest was complete I took up the lifestyle of a normal person. I went on holiday in august, enjoyed bbq’s with friends and went on family days out. I fact I went on 2 holidays.

On returning to the farm. Nothing had changed. The land was still baked dry and the notion of planting a seed and expecting it to germinate was distant in my imagination. This remains the case even though I had 15mm of rain last week. This has all dried up over the weekend.

The weekend did bring the hugely successful Lt Gransden Airshow. I do not know the final figure but the donation to charity will be very healthy.

I walk the farm and check the soil conditions. All of the fields are in good order. The cracks are wide and deep. The soils are self healing in years like this. There is no need for deep cultivation. The baked dry soil surface is very crumbly and with the addition of moisture will drill very well. So I think it is a case of ordering seed and waiting patiently until the day when I can drill the crop for next season.

But back to the year that must not be mentioned. My most vivid memory was being clonked of the head by my father with the fore-end bale loader. I nursed a headache whilst siting under one of my great oak trees on the farm for about an hour. The headache was only surpassed in later life with the addition of large amounts of alcohol.

And finally, a couple of pictures for you. The sunrise in Southwold on Aug 19th and a Miles Gemini at the Airshow.

Stay safe

John