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■ 2 1 RURAL LIFE .


B ii Jlj AY is a favourite month for me and, I n a l


rnore sPace> 1 could wax


H 111 1 'yrical about the dawn chorus, the 1 W 1 amazing blossom, my vegetable .


plot... ■ ■: # •


But no, I'm going to leave all that garden talk to our resident expert


Spliced between our usual range of expert columnists we have some


. J


Michelle Unsworth, who will wax away on / my behalf on page 18.


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15


wonderful features for you, including one a that marks the 50th anniversary of the .


It


livestock auction in Lancaster. Turn to ‘ : page 7 to read what it's like to sit in - as a non­ farming observer - on a morning sale of cattle. We are also encouraging all the other non­


farmers among you to take part in a national event that aims to help bridge the gap between the food we buy and the people who produce that food. National Farm Sunday takes place on June 8 and there is sure to be a farm near you that is taking part, sp why not go along? We spoke to one of the participants who gave us


an insight into life on a modem dairy farm. See ■ page 3. We remain in the countryside for our cover


story about a wonderful arts trail that sees artists (welcoming people into their homes and studios to see their work. The Silverdale andAmside Art and CraftTrail


will be held at the .end of June and is a great way to meet local artists and pick their brains about their work. You can read short profiles on a handful of those taking part on pages 12 and 13. We welcome our new chef, Gill Parker from


The Priory Restaurant at Scorton. Gill has kindly agreed to share some of her recipes with us and you will find her first offering on page 11 If you have anything you would like Rural


Life to cover or have something to say about countryside issues, give our reporter Joyce Bishop a call or drop her an email on the address below. You'can also follow us on Twitter ©RuralLifeNW


NICOLA ADAM, Editor Contents


Yet c o l u m n .... .A.......;.'.. Farming column...................... Auction action..............;..;.......'. Tasty recipe.....;.;;..........;.......... Pictures perfect Gardening...;.....;....;.;..;...;;....... Country Trails......................... Property............................... What’s On............... ...............


GLASS ACT: Debbie Copley with some of her beautiful stained glass work Pictures by ROB LOCK and ALEX PEACH


S WrK seems convinced the a s s ie s Win a summer hanging basket


Editor, Nicola Adam: nicola.adam@jpress.co.uk


Reporter, Joyce Bishop: Tel: 077922 19671 (office hours only). Email: joyce.bishop@lep.co.uk


Advertising, Garry Darton: Tel: 07803 506008. Email: garry.darton@jpress.co.uk Sarah Turner: Tel: 07803 506161


Email: sarah.turner@jpress.co.uk


Customer-Sales team: Tel: 01772 838089


Twitter: @RuralLifeNW t i l t rj S I


Oaktrees Nurseries on Settle Road, Bolton by Bowland, which this year celebrates 25 years as a plant nursery, has kindly ■ donated a prize for this month's Rural Life


competition - a beautiful summer hanqinq basket.


a s The basket, made from a contemporary


rattan, will be filled with a selection of summer-flowering plants such as trailing petunia, verbena and examples of some of the nurseries 40 varieties of fuchsia Oaktrees owner Phil Cook said: "It will


provide a colourful and long-lasting display in the coming weeks." .Al.1 y °u need to do to be in with'a chance


of winning is answer the following questions- 1 .How many varieties of fuchsia does


Oaktrees Nurseries stock? 2.Which anniversary is Oaktrees Nurseries


celebrating this year? 3.Which road is the business on in Bolton


by Bowland? You can either answer through the Rural


Life Facebook page at www.facebook. com/rurallifenw or send your answers, on a postcard or the back of a sealed envelope, to Garry Darton, Hanging Basket Competition, c/o Lancashire Evening Post, Oliver's Place, Fulwood, Preston, PR29ZA.. The closing date for entries is Wednesday,


June J 1,2014. Normal LEP competition rules apply. Entrants must be aged 18 or over and the judges' decision will be final. . • Please note that the prize is to be


collected by the winner. Congratulations to our winner of last


month's competition for a hanging basket, ; also from Oaktrees Nurseries: Mrs M Armitage from Grimsargh.


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HERE is no doubt that, where art is concerned,:


there is nothing better than being able to meet


the artist when you buy a piece of their work.


-


It gives you a chance to , ask them questions about


their technique, their thought process, their journey as an artist, and adds a whole new


dimension - a face as well as a name-to your purchase. So the idea of having a


whole weekend when multiple artists open up their homes and studios to the public is . inspired.


It's not new, of course; The Silverdale and Arnside Art and


tiVr#: fast


CraftTrail is in its 10th year in 2014. In fact, there are art trails popping up all over the place - The Lunesdale Art Trail, north of Lancaster (May 31, June 1, 7 and 8), and Cumbria's C-Art, a two-week long event in September, are just two in the North West. The public appetite for art, however, and their desire


to get a glimpse behind the scenes, is such that there will always be scope for another one. With three on our doorstep,


____ there is plenty of choice - J- but we decided to feature Silverdale because it is


M , marking its first decade LV,, this year, and because : it has grown to include


jjjjgf more than 100 artists S -almost 60 per cent of 111 I whom live and work in the H • area. ■fl Because this is art we . ■ are talking about, the I pictures speak much —T louder than the words-so take a peek at pages 12


and 13'and see what is in store on the trail, which is open from the evening of Friday, June 27 through to Sunday, June 29.


young people who haven't a clue where the ingredients for their


S


beef burger were sourced. Next month's ninth annual


Open Farm Sunday provides a great opportunity to address that worrying disconnect between the food on our plates and the producer.


And one Lancashire farm that is


opening its doors to the public will really give them food for thought. Newland Home Farm at Bay


Horse, near Lancaster, is a forward- looking dairy farm that has a few surprises in store for anyone who visits.


Cath Morley, 37, who lives


on the farm with partner Chris Halhead, their three-year-old son Archie and Chris's parents, David and Janet, has organised the day. And she thinks that their modern methods will be an eye-opener. "We have a robot milking


parlour and the cows are milked 24 hours a day," she says. "They choose when they want to go in there. On average they go in three times each day, but some of the higher performing ones are in four or five times and some only twice. "Amazingly, they learned how


to use the parlour very quickly, but they get a really nice feed of corn when they're in there - a bit like us having a bar of chocolate as a treat; it smells good, so that encourages them."


OME consumers wouldn't dream of buying a joint of meat without knowing where it came from.


In contrast, there are many The herd of 150 Holstein


Friesians, which produces about one-and-a-half million litres of milk a year, is also motivated by how full and uncomfortable their udders feel. Anyone who is sceptical about


the system will be able to see it in action on Sunday, June 8, when the farm will be taking part in the national event for the first time. "We wanted to get involved to


So THAT'S what happens... Down on the farm ...and it includes robots!


try to engage the public about the link between the food on the supermarket shelves and the producers," says Cath. "Some people don't realise how much farmers invest in producing that food and we hope that we K -i™, can help by opening the farm to the public for a few hours." As well as the milking


parlour, there will be farm machinery on display, cheese tasting, guided walks at 11 am and 2pm, and a self-guided walk through the surrounding farmland where families can picnic and take part in a nature trail quiz. Children are welcome on the farm, but dogs should be left at home. Newland Home Farm will be


open on June 8 from 10.30am to 2.30pm. There is no charge, but Cath said that the family would welcome donations, which will go to two charities providing help and research for motor neurone disease and lupus. For more information on Open Farm Sunday go to www. farmsunday.org


ABOVE: Cath Morley with partner Chris Halhead and son Archie


RIGHT: Cows enioythe robot milking parlour...or at least the treat of com when they're there which, to them, is akin to us having a bar of chocolate


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