Country diary: Our fields are green, but this farm desperately needs more rain | Sarah Laughton

Long Dean, Cotswolds: Like the recent thunder, there’s been a rumbling of concern about our dry springMay is the greenest month and this year has been no exception, given how high the water table was after such a wet start to last winter. There’s a lush depth to the valley, with the hawthorn – which blossomed early and abundantly – creating a chequered green and white idyll.But it flatters to deceive. Like recent thunder, there’s rumbling concern on farms here where sunlight bounces off concrete yards and there’s only one conversation – “when are we going to get some rain?” Continue reading...

May 28, 2025 - 05:46
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Country diary: Our fields are green, but this farm desperately needs more rain | Sarah Laughton

Long Dean, Cotswolds: Like the recent thunder, there’s been a rumbling of concern about our dry spring

May is the greenest month and this year has been no exception, given how high the water table was after such a wet start to last winter. There’s a lush depth to the valley, with the hawthorn – which blossomed early and abundantly – creating a chequered green and white idyll.

But it flatters to deceive. Like recent thunder, there’s rumbling concern on farms here where sunlight bounces off concrete yards and there’s only one conversation – “when are we going to get some rain?” Continue reading...