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Countryfile - Vegetable Harvest: A Very Tough Year
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00:00I'll let you drive.
00:01I mean, yes.
00:04It's quite simple, mate.
00:05It's all on that thing.
00:07There's no accelerator pedal, as it were.
00:09No, no.
00:10I can't floor it.
00:11Don't do that!
00:13Don't do that!
00:13How fast can we go?
00:30Lincolnshire.
00:46A region that produces around a third of all our UK vegetables.
00:54But after the scorching summer,
00:56this harvest could be one of the worst in recent years.
01:01What will that mean for farmers,
01:03for their produce and for our plates?
01:07And could innovations in producing seeds for farmers
01:11help protect the harvests of the future?
01:17We're in the south of the county,
01:20visiting several farms near the town of Spalding.
01:22Charlotte's joining a potato harvest
01:26while I'm at a local seed farm.
01:32Harvesting takes skill.
01:34You've got to be a bit more smooth, I think, than I do.
01:36Yeah, it wants to be more across.
01:37Because this looks like it's been in a fight.
01:40Knowledge and tenacity.
01:43I suppose it's a bit like a talent show.
01:46It's a talent show where everybody has some good characteristics
01:49and what we're trying to do is pick them all out
01:51and then breed them all together and get a star.
01:54You're doing a good job.
01:55Well, I haven't crashed yet, so that's good.
01:57No, you've landed.
01:58Well done.
01:59That's brilliant!
02:01With the proof of the harvest,
02:02what's on the menu?
02:04In the taste.
02:05How's that?
02:06Lovely.
02:07Away from Lincolnshire,
02:11we meet the three finalists hoping to be crowned
02:13this year's countryfile Young Countryside Champion
02:17at the BBC Food and Farming Awards.
02:19The unusual weather patterns we've had in the UK this year
02:34have wreaked havoc on our harvests.
02:37While many farmers in Scotland have seen cooler conditions
02:40and some of their crops faring well,
02:42further south it's a real mixed bag.
02:45There have been bumper crops of apples and soft fruits,
02:48but England's cereal harvest is one of the worst on record
02:53and vegetable yields look likely to fall this year too.
02:59Lincolnshire has long been established
03:02as one of the best places in the UK to grow potatoes.
03:07Here in the east of England,
03:08they tend to have warmer summers and less rain than in the west
03:12and that makes it brilliant for growing spuds.
03:15But this year's blazing summer and dry conditions
03:20have hit crops hard
03:22and growers here are now feeling the pressure.
03:25Worth Farms is one of the country's largest potato growers.
03:29Simon Day is the farm director here.
03:33Simon, just give me an idea of scale
03:36and how many tonnes of potatoes are you producing?
03:38So we're aiming for between 17,000, 18,000 on a normal year
03:42is what we'd want to be producing.
03:44That is a lot of potatoes.
03:46It is a lot.
03:47I mean, looking at the machine behind us,
03:49it all seems to be going really well,
03:51but there must have been an impact
03:52from the hot weather we had over the summer.
03:55Yeah, so a couple of things we're looking at.
03:57Reduced yield,
03:58so the potatoes are a bit smaller,
04:00a bit later than we want to be harvesting.
04:03Scabs, so the skin quality on them
04:05because it's been so hot and dry.
04:07Does scab matter apart from cosmetically then?
04:10No, if you peeled the scab off,
04:11it would be perfectly edible
04:13and as good as any other potato.
04:15But it doesn't look as good?
04:15But it doesn't look as good on the supermarket shelf, no.
04:17And will that mean there's an impact
04:19on the price you can get for it?
04:20With sending it to the retailers,
04:22they could deduct sort of money from us for that, yeah.
04:25I mean, that must have a big hit on the business.
04:28Yeah, yeah, it does.
04:29And coupled this year with other crops that we're growing
04:32that have also suffered in the drought,
04:34it's going to make a big impact to us.
04:36With the lower yields this harvest,
04:41every member of the team has a crucial part to play
04:43in protecting this precious crop.
04:47Hello.
04:48Hello.
04:49Wow.
04:51Oh, it's nice in here, aren't they?
04:53It is nice.
04:54Oh, hang on, let me shut the door.
04:56Yeah.
04:57Oh, well done.
04:57There you go.
04:59The man in charge of lifting the spuds
05:02is a potato farming lifer,
05:05Ronnie Waterfall.
05:07Well, you go quite fast, don't you?
05:09Yeah.
05:09You go as fast as you can looking at the conditions.
05:13If you look on the cameras at the moment,
05:14I have to alter it as fast, as slow,
05:17as the soil's coming up on the machine.
05:19Right.
05:20And this year, as obviously as you know,
05:22it's been that dry.
05:24I've been doing access speeds,
05:26quite fast speeds,
05:27because a simple reason is to try and carry soil.
05:31And you want to carry soil
05:32so that you're cushioning the potatoes a bit.
05:34Yes.
05:35And that's all you're trying to stop,
05:37those potatoes getting bruised.
05:38Bruised.
05:38Because then when I see them in the shop,
05:40I don't want them.
05:40Yeah, no, definitely not.
05:42Yeah.
05:43So how long have you been working on potatoes, then?
05:45Really and truthfully,
05:46I started getting involved in potatoes
05:48when I was very early age.
05:51I lived on a small family farm,
05:54and we used to grow an acre of potatoes.
05:57And I used to help my dad and my mum,
05:59pick them by hand,
06:01and it was hard work.
06:02It probably took us nearly a week
06:04to be honest.
06:06And how many acres can you do in a day?
06:09With this machine,
06:10everything going OK.
06:12Big fields,
06:12you can do on an average 20 acres a day.
06:15Wow.
06:17So do you like potatoes?
06:18I like potatoes.
06:19I love potatoes.
06:20That's a good job, really.
06:24It's been a very difficult year this year
06:26because the simple reason is
06:28it's been so dry,
06:30the potatoes are under stress,
06:33the costs have gone up through the roof,
06:34the demand for potatoes is not there.
06:37It just makes you wonder
06:39what people are actually eating,
06:40to be honest and truthfully.
06:43With 14 tonnes of potatoes lifted,
06:46the hopper is emptied,
06:48ready for the next round.
06:49So what we'll do is we'll unload.
06:51Unload.
06:52And then when we go down there,
06:54I'll let you drive.
06:56I mean, yes.
06:59So what we always try and do,
07:01we try and layer load it,
07:02so it reduces the drop,
07:04higher the drop,
07:05more damage you get.
07:07So they're all landing on other potatoes,
07:09they're not landing on the bottom of the trailer.
07:11No, no.
07:11You just treat them like eggs.
07:12It's quite simple, mate.
07:18It's all on that thing,
07:19on your,
07:19you don't,
07:20there's no accelerator pedal,
07:21as it were.
07:22No, no, no.
07:23I can't floor it.
07:24Don't do that.
07:26Don't do that.
07:26How fast can we go?
07:27Oh, that's well fast enough.
07:32I'm going to...
07:32Yeah, faster, faster.
07:34Faster.
07:34And if I go too slowly then,
07:36what happens?
07:37You're going to roll in about,
07:38rolling about like bingo buses.
07:40Oh, I see someone bruising them.
07:41Yeah, so just go a little bit faster.
07:42Good, so they go keep moving forward.
07:44OK, I've got you.
07:45Yeah.
07:45Are you happy with the screen?
07:46What's going?
07:47It looks good to me.
07:48Yeah, that looks all right,
07:49because they're moving forward.
07:50Yeah, you're doing a good job.
07:51Well, I haven't crashed yet,
07:52so that's good.
07:53No.
07:54Hopper full.
07:54Yeah.
07:55You've landed.
07:56Well done.
07:57That's brilliant.
07:59Once the precious spuds
08:01have been expertly lifted,
08:03by Ronnie, not me,
08:05they're washed and graded.
08:07But before any are shipped to customers,
08:10Darren Gilbert heads up
08:11a strict quality control stage
08:13to check for any bruising.
08:16This basically warms the potatoes up
08:18that we've sampled the day before,
08:20gets them to a temperature
08:22to accelerate the bruising process.
08:24OK.
08:24So we can see the following day
08:25exactly what damage we've done
08:26from the previous day.
08:27Oh, Lord.
08:28Right, let's have a look then.
08:31So we're taking samples
08:32through the day.
08:34The previous day's lifting,
08:35we'll sample about every 50th box.
08:37And we've got to peel these now,
08:38haven't we?
08:38Yeah, so what we tend to do
08:39is just peel around the edges,
08:41sort of thing,
08:42on the long edge.
08:43And hopefully,
08:43what you should find
08:44is as you're peeling it,
08:45there's no visible signs
08:47of any damage or anything there.
08:48Right.
08:48But if there's nothing like that.
08:49I mean, this one's fine.
08:50Yeah, that's great.
08:51That's what we want to see.
08:53What you tend to find
08:54is the larger potatoes
08:55obviously damage more
08:56because there's more weight to them.
08:57We've got a really good team
08:58and they understand the process
08:59of being gentle with the potatoes
09:01from start to finish.
09:02But they can damage at any point,
09:03whether it's on the harvester,
09:04whether it's on the grader.
09:05So this one here,
09:06look, you can see
09:07that's got a bruise.
09:08You see that bruise there?
09:09Yeah, I mean,
09:09it's not huge, is it?
09:10No, it's not.
09:11But you don't want to see that
09:12in your Sunday roast,
09:13probably, do you?
09:14No.
09:14So you'd peel that again.
09:16It's still there, look.
09:17It's still there.
09:17So after two,
09:19if it's gone after three,
09:20then that's an acceptable level.
09:21Okay.
09:22If you'd peel that potato three times
09:23and that bruise is still there,
09:25that's what we call major damage.
09:27That's major bruising.
09:28Right.
09:28That's not really acceptable
09:29to our customers.
09:30So how much will you get
09:32for a ton of really good potatoes, roughly?
09:35Varying prices,
09:36a couple hundred quid,
09:37300 quid.
09:38It just depends on the year, really,
09:40and what your contract is.
09:41So if this were bruised,
09:44beyond and it wouldn't make the grave,
09:46where would it go
09:47and what would the difference be
09:48and what you'd earn?
09:50If we've really damaged them
09:51ridiculously bad,
09:52we may even have to stock feed
09:54some of them,
09:54which will go off to
09:55the stock feed market
09:56for cattle industry
09:57and anaerobic digestion plants
09:59and stuff like that.
10:00And how much do you get
10:01for a ton there?
10:01This year,
10:03you're lucky if you got paid for them
10:04because they've got the pluton.
10:05For nothing.
10:06Yeah, yeah.
10:07So you can get paid
10:0815, 20 quid a ton sometimes.
10:10You can hand them over
10:12and just be lucky
10:12to get rid of them other times.
10:14For the expert team here,
10:18it's a fine line
10:19between success and failure.
10:24We are surrounded
10:25by a mind-boggling amount of potatoes.
10:27How many tonnes in here?
10:29So there's probably about
10:30a couple hundred tonnes
10:31ready in boxes
10:32to go out to the stores
10:33around the farm.
10:34And we've just seen
10:35beautiful potatoes,
10:36no bruising.
10:38So it's all good.
10:39Today, yes.
10:40The rest of the season,
10:42not so.
10:43So obviously,
10:44the yields,
10:44we're sort of 10% down.
10:46Roughly about
10:47half a million pounds
10:47worth of revenue
10:48that that's not
10:49top of the business.
10:52How's that been
10:53for you and the team?
10:54Does it weigh on your mind?
10:57Yeah, massively.
10:58You lay there at night
10:59thinking about potatoes.
11:01It's either the weather
11:02or potatoes, really.
11:03And if we have
11:04a really good day
11:05lifting sort of 400 tonnes,
11:07we come in in the morning
11:08and they're all bruised,
11:09what do we do with them?
11:10So, yeah,
11:11there's a massive worry
11:12every day, really.
11:14So what about next year?
11:16Well, as ever in farming,
11:18we get to do it all again.
11:19So we're busy planning
11:20next year's fields,
11:21looking at the varieties
11:22that have worked well this year,
11:24ordering the seed.
11:26And we're looking to do it
11:27all again next year.
11:28And fingers crossed
11:29the weather plays
11:30into our hands.
11:31With the extreme weather
11:40we've been experiencing,
11:42it's not just potato farmers
11:44feeling the strain.
11:45Many other vegetable growers
11:47across Lincolnshire
11:48are battling to keep
11:49their harvests secure
11:51for the future.
11:53But there is hope
11:54taking root
11:55in the form of new seeds
11:57developed to withstand
11:58whatever the weather
12:00throws at them.
12:01David Koop and Richard Tudor
12:05are seed specialists.
12:08They're running trials
12:09to create high-performing,
12:11resilient varieties
12:12of vegetables.
12:14And they're going to show me
12:15some of their recent discoveries
12:17at their seven-acre facility.
12:19Wow, this is some greenhouse,
12:21isn't it?
12:22Here they're trialing
12:23over 500 different lines
12:26of purple sprouted broccoli
12:27with the aim of creating
12:29a variety less vulnerable
12:31to harsh weather.
12:33They're using the traditional practice
12:35of selective breeding,
12:36meaning they only choose plants
12:38with the desired traits
12:40that their offspring will inherit.
12:42Well, selective breeding
12:44isn't really new, is it?
12:45I mean, it's been going
12:46for centuries.
12:47So what are you doing
12:48that's different?
12:50We are finding ways
12:51that we can speed up
12:52that breeding process
12:53to bring new varieties
12:54to market quicker.
12:55What we're looking for
12:56is the best
12:57and we're looking to combine
12:58all the best features
12:59into one super variety
13:02if we can get it.
13:03One that really is resilient,
13:04one that's really tasty,
13:06one that does all the job
13:07for everybody in that chain
13:09that has to produce it
13:10to get food on our plate.
13:12What we have here,
13:13we've got different types
13:15of purple sprouting broccoli
13:16and what we want to do here
13:18is look for
13:19which are the ones with,
13:20for example,
13:21good disease resistance
13:22or good flavour
13:23or good colour
13:25and also we're looking
13:26for things that they're doing wrong,
13:28things that perhaps
13:29they're not strong in.
13:30I suppose it's a bit like
13:31a talent show
13:32for purple sprouting broccoli.
13:34Yeah, it is.
13:35It's a talent show
13:37where everybody has
13:38some good characteristics
13:39and what we're trying to do
13:40is pick them all out
13:41and then breed them all together
13:42and get a star.
13:43So, for example,
13:44here you can see
13:45we have a plant
13:46that's got some signs of disease
13:47so that would be something
13:49that we wouldn't take forward
13:50whereas here you can see
13:51a nice clean leaf,
13:52no signs of disease
13:53or pest damage
13:54and this is a great candidate
13:55for one of our superstars.
13:57Every farmer is now
13:58facing the problems
13:59of climate change
14:00and I suppose
14:01with vegetable farmers
14:02there are some particular concerns.
14:04With sprouting broccoli,
14:06traditionally,
14:07it's only available
14:07for a very short period
14:09of time in the spring
14:10just a couple of months
14:11and to get to that point
14:12it has to be growing
14:13all the way through the winter.
14:15So, that's a very long time
14:17out there
14:17of vulnerable in the field.
14:19If we can reduce that time
14:21and actually
14:21if we can take it away
14:22from needing to be out there
14:23in winter
14:24that's a much safer crop
14:26and farmers are much more likely
14:28to get a good yield.
14:32Growing plants to maturity
14:34and assessing them by eye
14:36is very time consuming
14:37especially when you have
14:40so many lines to examine.
14:44To speed up the process
14:45and gain a better insight
14:47the team must peer deep
14:49inside the plants
14:50at their DNA.
14:53Plants have DNA like humans
14:55so like humans have DNA
14:56that codes for blue eyes
14:58or green eyes.
14:59Plants have DNA
14:59that code for resistance
15:01or susceptibility
15:02or resilience to drought
15:03and what we can do
15:05is we can test these plants
15:06to see what marker they have
15:08that represents that trait of interest.
15:11So, we have two plants here
15:12so we don't know
15:13if these are resistant
15:14or susceptible
15:15to a particular disease
15:16and rather than go through
15:18big field trials
15:19that take a lot of time
15:21we can take a sample of DNA
15:22from these plants
15:23we can do the analysis
15:25and the results will tell us
15:27quickly and more accurately
15:28whether these plants
15:30are resistant or susceptible.
15:31So, shall we test these two then?
15:33Yeah, why don't you
15:33take a sample John?
15:34What you're doing is
15:35feeding the leaf
15:36into this little gap
15:38and then punching down
15:40and then put it into here.
15:41Now, you mustn't touch it
15:42because otherwise
15:42we'll have John Craven DNA.
15:44Oh, right.
15:46Perfect.
15:47And you've got to do
15:47all of those?
15:48Correct.
15:49In fact, thousands of them.
15:50We take these leaf discs
15:52we mash up the tissue
15:53and extract the DNA
15:54and then we put the DNA
15:56into a machine
15:56that analyses the markers for us
15:58and that will tell us
15:59whether those lines
16:00are resistant or susceptible
16:01for a disease in this instance.
16:03On this graph here
16:04we can see that the
16:05resistant dots are red
16:07so red is good
16:08and we have the blue dots here
16:10which are susceptible
16:10to a disease which is bad.
16:12It's showing us here
16:13that this variety
16:14is resistant
16:15to a particular disease
16:16and that makes this
16:17a great candidate
16:18for crossing into new varieties.
16:20And the science
16:21seems to be working.
16:23Fifty of the best
16:24purple sprouted broccoli lines
16:26have been taken
16:27to the next stage
16:28of the process.
16:30So what have we got here then?
16:32So here we have
16:33some full-grown plants
16:34of the plants
16:35that we saw in the lab
16:36and this one we now know
16:38is really good
16:39for resistance to drought
16:40and this one we know
16:41has good disease resistance.
16:43So these are amongst
16:44the finalists
16:44in the talent show, Eddie?
16:45Absolutely.
16:46What we need to do now
16:48is we cross those plants together
16:50to produce a superstar plant
16:51that has both drought tolerance
16:53and disease resistance.
16:54So how do you do that then?
16:56So what we do
16:57is we take pollen
16:57from one plant
16:58so this plant
16:59that had the good
17:00disease resistance
17:00and if I rub my fingers
17:03you can see the pollen
17:03coming off.
17:05If you take this flower here
17:06with the pollen on
17:07which is the male part
17:08and rub it onto this flower here
17:09and this will combine
17:10the genes from both plants
17:12and we will end up
17:13with seed that contains
17:14both the disease resistance
17:15and the resistance to drought.
17:17And how long
17:17before you know
17:18if it's worked?
17:19So we will see
17:20these plants in the field
17:21probably next year.
17:22We will test them
17:23for a couple of years
17:24for taste
17:25for disease resistance
17:26for colour
17:27for how they act agronomically
17:29and if the growers like them
17:30and we think they're ready
17:31they will become
17:32a commercial variety.
17:34The 50 lines
17:36that have gone through
17:36this exhaustive testing process
17:39will be narrowed down
17:40to just one.
17:43So here we are then
17:44the winner.
17:45Yes
17:45this is our superstar
17:46this is Burgundy
17:48new variety for us
17:50and it's got
17:51all sorts of
17:51fantastic characteristics
17:53it's got
17:53first of all
17:54the most important
17:55would you like to try
17:56and have a little taste job
17:57because it tastes fantastic.
17:59Yeah.
18:00What do you think?
18:03Mmm.
18:03Yeah?
18:04Yeah.
18:04Nice and sweet.
18:05Yeah
18:05quite powerful sweet though
18:07isn't it?
18:07Probably the most
18:10outstanding thing
18:11is that
18:12rather than
18:12like a traditional variety
18:14it was really only available
18:15for two months of the year
18:17now you can have broccoli
18:18all throughout the season
18:20all throughout the year
18:21for us to be able to eat.
18:22Well that's a huge breakthrough
18:23isn't it?
18:23It's massive
18:24yeah
18:24it's a massive change.
18:26And was all that
18:27due to the
18:28selecting the right DNA?
18:30Yeah
18:30so we selected varieties
18:31that no longer required
18:32the cold of the winter
18:33so these varieties
18:34will head up
18:35without that harsh cold period
18:36it means we can
18:37extend the season
18:38and growers can get
18:39a harvest all the way
18:40in the UK
18:41from April through
18:42till November.
18:43And of course obviously
18:44right at the start
18:45for the farmers
18:46is getting the seeds.
18:48Yeah absolutely
18:48well that's the bit
18:49that we sell to them
18:50so we actually have
18:51some of the seed here
18:52you can see
18:53how that looks
18:54so we take a great care
18:56to ensure
18:57this is the right quality
18:58that it's the right cross
19:00that it's got all
19:01the right genes in it
19:02and we even go to the stage
19:03of having them all graded
19:05so that within a quarter
19:06of a millimetre
19:07we know exactly
19:08what the size is
19:09so that the farmer
19:10can sow them
19:11successfully
19:12and very accurately.
19:13So seeds of hope.
19:15Absolutely yeah.
19:16While John's looking
19:31at the seeds
19:32of the future
19:32I'm meeting the farmers
19:34trying to make the most
19:35of traditional crops
19:36by extending
19:38the growing season.
19:40That's a careful
19:42balancing act.
19:43Timing is everything
19:45and one bout
19:46of bad weather
19:47can throw it all off.
19:50But one Lincolnshire farm
19:52has come up
19:53with a smart way
19:54to beat the seasons
19:56and keep cauliflower
19:57on our plates
19:58almost all year round.
20:00How?
20:01Well it turns out
20:02that this
20:02is a numbers game.
20:04Nigel Clare is the co-founder
20:09of Peloton Produce
20:10running the
20:12two and a half
20:12thousand acre
20:13Brassica farm
20:14here in Lincolnshire
20:15and he's on a mission
20:17to supply year round
20:19British cauliflowers.
20:22Morning Nigel.
20:23Hi how are you?
20:24I'm fine
20:24I'm just trying not to
20:25damage your cauliflowers
20:26as I wobble across your field.
20:27You're fine.
20:28How's it going?
20:29All good
20:29you brought the weather
20:30with you
20:30I'm amazed how difficult
20:33it is to kind of
20:34see the cauliflowers
20:35in all the leaves.
20:36Yeah we've got
20:37a high leaf structure
20:38at the moment
20:39so the guys are actually
20:40feeling to try and see
20:42where the curds are.
20:43We're looking for
20:44a minimum of
20:4411-12 centimetre
20:46cauliflower
20:46So this is the curd
20:48is it?
20:48That's the curd
20:49yes.
20:49Oh right okay.
20:50Yeah and we're looking
20:51for a nice white cauliflower
20:52like that.
20:53That's ideal.
20:54They're going really fast
20:56aren't we?
20:56We've only been standing
20:56for a minute
20:57and they're harking off
20:58down the field.
20:59Yeah.
21:03The pickers here
21:04do work quickly
21:06with their bespoke
21:07cauliflower knives
21:08and Nigel's offered
21:09to show me
21:10how it's done.
21:12Right so the idea
21:13is that you go
21:14break a leaf off
21:15so you can see
21:16where you're going to cut
21:17cut underneath
21:18like so.
21:19So that's one cut
21:20yeah.
21:21And then in theory
21:22you would just take a top
21:23Oh but you didn't need
21:23to on that one.
21:24Yeah that's called scooping
21:25so I scooped that one
21:26so we got it out
21:27like that.
21:27Yeah you see
21:28that's years of experience
21:29isn't it?
21:29Yeah it is.
21:30Right okay.
21:30How hard could it be?
21:32Right so.
21:32So break a leaf.
21:34Break that leaf
21:34because we're going
21:35in under there.
21:35Keep your knife
21:36fairly well up
21:36that's it.
21:38Cut that?
21:38And cut yes.
21:40And then hold the cauliflower
21:41don't let it go on the soil.
21:43Oh hold on.
21:45That's it.
21:45You made this a lot
21:46look a lot easier
21:47than it actually is.
21:48Oh hold on hold on.
21:49You've got it.
21:50Oh nearly.
21:50Probably need to just
21:51cut a bit more yeah.
21:52Yeah there you go.
21:52That's it.
21:53Right so then
21:54I brought a bit more leaf
21:56than you did.
21:56So now you've got
21:58to trim the top
21:59but you hold on
22:00to the rib cage
22:01so hold on to the bottom
22:03here where the
22:03that's it the ribs are.
22:04Yeah okay.
22:05Yeah and then
22:06that's it.
22:07Oh that's quite
22:07okay like that.
22:08Yeah.
22:08That doesn't look
22:09half as neat
22:10as the ones going up there
22:11though.
22:11No that's good though.
22:12That's good.
22:13That is good.
22:14So hold the bottom
22:14now cut across the top
22:16like so.
22:16That's it.
22:17You've got to be a bit
22:20more smooth I think
22:22than I'm doing.
22:22Yeah it wants to be more
22:23across.
22:23Because this looks like
22:23it's been in a fight.
22:24Yeah it's more like that
22:25across the top of the
22:26cauliflower.
22:29Really nice.
22:29Brilliant.
22:30And then we just pop it
22:31on there do we?
22:31Yeah now we put it
22:32on to the cup system.
22:34Wait for an empty cup.
22:35There you go.
22:36Brilliant.
22:37Today the team will
22:41harvest around 10,000
22:42cauliflowers by hand
22:44selecting only those
22:46that are ready
22:46because not all the
22:48cauliflowers in this
22:49field are big enough
22:50to be cut.
22:53We're growing somewhere
22:54around 17 and a half
22:56million cauliflower in a
22:57year and we're trying
22:58to get 52 weeks
22:59continuity by using
23:02many many varieties.
23:04We're now using I
23:05think 110 varieties
23:06and some varieties
23:08will grow in 11 weeks
23:09and some varieties
23:11take 42 weeks.
23:13So when we plant
23:14that little seedling
23:1542 weeks later we're
23:17in here harvesting
23:18that cauliflower.
23:19And that's so that
23:20you can keep the
23:21seasons going.
23:22Yes.
23:22But how can you grow
23:23cauliflower in the
23:24depths of winter?
23:25Because they're going
23:25to get frozen aren't
23:26they?
23:26Well technology with
23:28the varieties now is
23:29changing and so we're
23:30starting to see that
23:31in Lincolnshire
23:32especially we can grow
23:34during the winter
23:34months which we never
23:35used to be able to do.
23:36The hardy winter
23:40collies are slow
23:41growers and leafy
23:42which helps shield
23:43them from the frost.
23:45The summer varieties
23:46develop leaner leaves
23:47and take a lot less
23:48time to mature.
23:50Committing to growing
23:51these different
23:52varieties keeps the
23:53collies coming
23:53whatever the weather.
23:54people say well why are
23:58you growing 110 varieties
23:59it's purely looking for
24:01those varieties that
24:01will weather the storm
24:03you know and come
24:04through the hot with
24:05less moisture.
24:07We're finding those
24:08varieties now but also
24:09we're looking further
24:10afield so we're now
24:11growing in Norfolk
24:12never thought we would
24:13grow in Norfolk it's
24:14just giving us a bit
24:15different climatic
24:16conditions.
24:17With our weather changing
24:20brassica growers like
24:22Nigel and his business
24:23partner Julian van
24:24Dahlen are having to
24:25adapt fast.
24:27The challenge is to
24:28combine their tried and
24:29tested farming techniques
24:31with a forward thinking
24:32approach.
24:32Hi Charlotte welcome to the
24:35cold face just in the
24:37nick of time because
24:38we've got plenty of
24:39cauliflower coming at us.
24:41We're going for three
24:42two one and one in each
24:43corner but that one's
24:44too big if you put that
24:45in the tray over there.
24:45Too big.
24:47That.
24:47That goes like that.
24:48There's a pattern to this.
24:49There is a pattern to this
24:50so they look nicely
24:51presented to the customer.
24:52I think we've missed one
24:53there.
24:53Have I missed one out?
24:54Oh I have you're right.
24:55I think there isn't room
24:56for it now.
24:58You've got to be quick on
24:59this haven't you?
25:00You've got to be quick.
25:01A gang like this would
25:02on a good day cut
25:03fifteen hundred trays
25:05eight in a tray.
25:06Eight in a tray.
25:07So that's a lot of
25:08cauliflower.
25:09And they're quick as well.
25:10Yeah there's about a
25:11quarter of a million
25:11cauliflowers in this field
25:13and we've got about
25:14seventeen million in total.
25:16So yeah when the
25:17cauliflower's ready we do
25:19need to be quick and
25:20on the ball.
25:21One thing that strikes me
25:23is that actually it's
25:24quite an old fashioned
25:24way of doing it.
25:25You've got a little bit
25:26of mechanisation but
25:27mainly it's get into a
25:29field because of
25:29cauliflower.
25:30It is.
25:30The cauliflower's quite
25:31delicate.
25:32There isn't really a
25:33machine that could do
25:34this.
25:34Certainly couldn't cut it
25:36and or pack it.
25:37So really it'll be one
25:38of the last ones to be
25:39mechanised I think.
25:40Do you think it will be
25:41mechanised eventually?
25:43I'm not so sure.
25:44Really?
25:44The planting side we have
25:45mechanised to a certain
25:47extent.
25:47It's still a work in
25:49progress.
25:50But a lot of this might
25:51have been planted
25:51mechanically.
25:52Yeah.
25:53But it's always going to
25:54have a certain artisan
25:55element to it I think
25:56cauliflower.
25:57So you started this
25:58business Julian what five
25:59years ago?
26:00Five years ago yeah.
26:01And you've had five
26:01really rubbish years to be
26:03honest.
26:03We've had some five
26:04challenging years we like
26:05to say.
26:05Well.
26:06The real challenges for us
26:07are the weather.
26:07Really?
26:08Cauliflower in particular
26:09is the real bad boy of the
26:11brassica industry.
26:12He's the one that's most
26:13affected by the weather.
26:15Most likely to grow quickly,
26:17slowly, be good one day,
26:19bad the next.
26:20Yeah.
26:20So it's really a tricky
26:21crop to manage.
26:22And of course with the
26:23dry weather we've recently
26:25had, moisture retention
26:27is critical.
26:29If you think this field is
26:30about 23 acres large,
26:33Charlotte.
26:33Yeah.
26:34The water that these
26:35cauliflowers needs is the
26:37equivalent to about 10
26:38Olympic sized swimming pools.
26:40Crikey.
26:41And that's what the plant
26:42actually needs.
26:43So if we don't get the
26:44rainfall we need land that
26:45will hold on to that
26:46moisture as best it can.
26:47For now, these cauliflowers
26:50only receive water from
26:51rainfall.
26:53The alternative would be a
26:54large scale, complex and
26:56costly project with no
26:58guarantees of success.
27:00In the future would you
27:01think about irrigation?
27:03Irrigation is something we
27:04definitely would think
27:05about.
27:06There's only so much
27:07irrigation you can apply.
27:09Yeah.
27:10Irrigation is one thing that
27:12crops need.
27:13The correct temperature is
27:14another.
27:14If it gets too hot, the
27:16crop shuts down.
27:17We get back to a lot of
27:18work that's been done on
27:19the varieties that we
27:21grow and we do a lot of
27:22work in cahoots with some
27:24of our southern European
27:26partners in terms of how
27:28they irrigate the crops, how
27:30they cultivate the land, when
27:32they irrigate the crops, with
27:34how much and in what way.
27:37If we do get more of these
27:39long, hot, dry summers, will
27:41you survive here in
27:42Lincolnshire?
27:43I think cauliflower
27:44production has been here in
27:45Lincolnshire since the fens were
27:46drained in the 1800s and I
27:48don't see that changing.
27:50It just may look slightly
27:51different in the future if the
27:52weather is indeed becoming
27:54different and that's something
27:56we need to work with, which
27:58indeed we are.
27:59Back in June, we asked you to put
28:14forward a young countryside champion
28:16for the BBC Food and Farming Awards
28:182025, a young person who made a real
28:21difference to the UK countryside.
28:23And from all the brilliant nominees,
28:24we've had to narrow it down to just
28:26three finalists.
28:27So let's find out more about those
28:29who made the shortlist.
28:3422-year-old David Pett is on a mission
28:37to keep whales buzzing.
28:40Inspired by his grandad, he's
28:42passionate about protecting
28:44pollinators and sharing his love for
28:46beekeeping with others.
28:47My grandfather first got me into
28:50beekeeping when I was 11 years old.
28:53First of all, it was one day a weekend
28:55and then we ended up spending the
28:56whole weekend together doing the
28:58beekeeping.
28:59And from that time, I completely fell in
29:01love with it.
29:05In 2017, unfortunately, he passed away.
29:08It was an emotional time.
29:10Nobody else in the family had ever been
29:11interested in the bees.
29:13So if I didn't take them on at 14 years
29:16of age, they would have been abandoned.
29:18And that's not what my grandfather
29:19would have wanted.
29:20It was responsibility at such a young age.
29:23The first time I opened the hive,
29:27I'll be completely honest, I lost all
29:29confidence because I didn't have my
29:30grandfather, but I kind of stepped up
29:33and just thought, let's get stuck in and
29:35run them the way that my grandfather
29:37would have wanted them to be run.
29:39I knew that having those bees as well
29:41was making a positive impact to our
29:43ecosystem, it made me feel really proud.
29:47Here we are.
29:47Perfect.
29:50So at the moment, we probably have
29:52around 100 hives.
29:54Each hive in the summertime can have
29:57up to 50,000 bees.
29:59It's a lot of bees.
30:04It actually become a bit of a business
30:07accidentally launched the website and
30:10the next minute, orders just started
30:12coming in.
30:13You know, we supply shops nationally
30:15across the UK.
30:18So my full-time job is an IT engineer.
30:21I'm also in uni as well, so trying to
30:23fit everything in is really, really hard.
30:26But we managed to make it work.
30:27I think the average age for beekeeping
30:31is 65.
30:33A couple of years ago, I launched an
30:34initiative to get more young people
30:37into beekeeping using social media.
30:40I'm a trustee for Bridgendon District
30:42Beekeepers Association.
30:44And as part of our charity, we provide
30:47courses to aspiring beekeepers.
30:49My dad would be looking down
30:52and he'd be so proud.
30:58Quite often, we'll see a little robin
31:00and we'd be thinking, well, that's my dad,
31:03you know, looking on at him.
31:06It's amazing.
31:08Carrying my grandfather's legacy on
31:10is really important.
31:12Without the guidance of my grandfather,
31:15there's no way I'd have the business
31:18that I have now and also outside
31:20of beekeeping, the stuff he's told me
31:22is, you know, he'll stay with me for life.
31:27Our next finalist is 22-year-old
31:30Paula Grace Gilroy from County Fermanagh
31:32in Northern Ireland.
31:36Hill farming up on bog and limestone
31:38doesn't come much tougher.
31:42But Paula's proving the future of farming here
31:45is in young, determined hands.
31:48Working alongside her family,
31:51Paula's helping her rural community
31:52stay strong and connected.
31:56It's absolutely stunning.
31:57Today is like a wonder day.
31:59But when you're coming up here
32:01in the height of winter
32:02and it's minus two,
32:04it's quite challenging.
32:06It's not a question of,
32:07I want to farm,
32:08I want to farm up here.
32:11Sucky, sick!
32:12My cows are just my best friends.
32:17If someone listened to me,
32:18they'd probably go,
32:20right, she's a few screws loose.
32:22She's sitting chatting to her kettle.
32:25Sucky!
32:25Everything I kind of do is,
32:31how's it going to benefit them?
32:33I'm a member of the Aberdeen Angus
32:35Youth Development Programme.
32:39We at the minute have around 70 cows,
32:42a pedigree Angus herd,
32:43and then we have Angus cross with Short Hoard.
32:47We're improving the herd.
32:49We're trying to produce better cattle
32:51with the same genetics
32:53as the older heritage Aberdeen Angus.
32:55What is fit to walk and thrive up here?
33:02I'm Paula's father.
33:04I didn't actually think
33:05to be another generation farming up here,
33:07so to know that my work
33:09and my father's work
33:10and my grandfather
33:11and great-grandfather's work
33:12wasn't all wasted.
33:14I'm extremely proud of Paula.
33:16All right, we've got this.
33:21I do think with being
33:22a young woman in farming,
33:24maybe not everyone's
33:25that impressed by it.
33:28I can do anything a man can do
33:31and very little will turn me
33:33if I think I can do it.
33:35There's more women coming into it
33:36and it's absolutely brilliant.
33:38The more people that showcase that
33:39is just going to help the whole thing.
33:44Paula loves to help in the community
33:46and loves to be part of the community.
33:48Whether it be a tractor,
33:49run to raise money
33:50or do anything,
33:50Paula's the first up for it.
33:53Definitely inspires me.
34:00Farming can be quite isolating.
34:03What do you say, princess?
34:04I'm a public relations officer
34:06in the Young Farmers.
34:09I run the social media.
34:11I'm organising a coffee morning
34:13and we're raising money
34:14for type 1 diabetes
34:14as it is close to my heart
34:16as a type 1 diabetic.
34:21Well, up here,
34:23it's one in a million.
34:25You can farm it all you want,
34:27but if you don't love it
34:28through and throughout,
34:30you'll never be fit to thrive
34:32and do well up here with it.
34:36Farming's not a job,
34:39it's a lifestyle.
34:41Our third finalist
34:43for this year's Young Countryside Champion
34:44is Samuel Brown.
34:48At just 22,
34:50he's helping shape the landscape
34:51of Denbyshire, North Wales,
34:53growing rare native trees
34:55with a local council team
34:56and inspiring others
34:58to care for the land they love.
35:03This year,
35:04I managed to produce
35:05about 9,000 trees.
35:08I like to think
35:10of a single sapling
35:11growing over the next 30 years
35:13and producing more and more branches
35:15and more and more spaces
35:16for birds to nest.
35:17It gives me so much joy.
35:21They'll do loads for biodiversity,
35:22but they'll also do loads for people.
35:27Nature has taught me
35:29a lot of things about myself.
35:31Being dyspraxic meant
35:32that I really struggled
35:34with processes.
35:35It also made things like
35:37physical activity more difficult.
35:42Now, I don't really consider it
35:43a setback.
35:44I consider it a blessing
35:45because I was able to form
35:48a hyper-fixation
35:49with things I loved.
35:51Probably in my last year of college,
35:53I felt truly confident in nature.
35:56Suddenly,
35:57looking at every species
35:59and naming it
36:00because that's something
36:01I was never able to do in school.
36:04And it was then and there
36:05that I decided
36:06I wanted to work with woodlands
36:08for the rest of my life.
36:15This is wild service tree,
36:17Sorbus torminalis.
36:19It's one of the rarest trees in Britain.
36:22This is one of our hybrid elms,
36:24probably a hybrid between
36:25Olmos glabra and Olmos bina.
36:27And I think it's my absolute favourite tree
36:28at the tree nursery.
36:31I think what drives me
36:33in my conservation work
36:34is three things.
36:36It's the awful nature depletion
36:38we see happening before us.
36:41It's the terrible climate change events
36:43that we see becoming more frequent
36:45and it's my faith as well.
36:49I love teaching people.
36:51There's something really nice
36:53about having knowledge
36:54and sharing it.
36:56I find it really satisfying
36:59when the volunteers come here
37:00for a tree planting day
37:02and it makes you really happy
37:03to see other people learning.
37:05These are from Park Coords in Denby.
37:08I'm Roger,
37:10one of the regular volunteers here.
37:12His enthusiasm is very infectious.
37:16He's very knowledgeable
37:17and he's prepared to share that knowledge
37:21in a really lovely, unassuming way.
37:25Try that again.
37:32When you have passionate people,
37:34you have a passionate community.
37:36And when you have a passionate community,
37:38you're able to solve problems much better.
37:42And I think that's why young people matter in this
37:45because we can use our passion
37:47and we can use our enjoyment of life
37:50and our optimism to fight
37:52all of these problems that we face.
37:54So, those are our three finalists.
38:00Proof that our countryside is in safe hands for the future.
38:04So, join me in a couple of weeks
38:06at the BBC Food and Farming Awards
38:08when we will be revealing who's taking home
38:10the title of young countryside champion.
38:13Back in Lincolnshire,
38:18we've been seeing this year's crop
38:20of our favourite veggies.
38:22But there's a rising star
38:24emerging in our fields,
38:26championed by celebrity chefs,
38:28its popularity booming
38:30with the move towards plant-based diets.
38:33It may not be pretty,
38:35but celeriac is taking centre stage
38:37in many tasty recipes.
38:39My name is Julian
38:41and this is my favourite ugly vegetable.
38:50I am Managing Director of Jackbuck Farms
38:53in Boulding, Lincolnshire
38:55and we are best known for our celeriac growing.
39:01Well, we started as a business growing celeriac
39:03back in 1986.
39:05We were introduced to it by a fellow farmer
39:08and he said, it's odd,
39:09it will suit you lot.
39:12When we first saw celeriac,
39:14we thought, wow, this is ugly.
39:15It looks a bit like a brain.
39:19We often say beauty is beneath its skin.
39:22It's flavour, not glamour.
39:26It's a root vegetable that you can eat raw,
39:28you can cook it,
39:29you can do anything with it.
39:30And so when we started to grow it,
39:34we got so enthusiastic
39:35of sharing its uses to other people.
39:43So celeriac is native to the Mediterranean
39:45and North Europe,
39:46but it was introduced into the UK
39:47in the late 18th century.
39:49And then it must have fallen out of favour
39:51because it didn't get reintroduced
39:53into the UK market until 1986.
39:56It was then in the mid-80s
39:58that Julian and his farm
40:00took the massive risk
40:01of trying to sell this quirky-looking vegetable
40:04to the masses.
40:06Celeriac has been a learning curve
40:08right from the beginning.
40:10There was no book we could refer to,
40:13there was no-one else doing it in the UK
40:14and everything we did was trial and error
40:17and we made more mistakes
40:19than I'd care to admit.
40:22We had no idea it would grow
40:24to be as big as it has been.
40:25We started off with two acres in 1986.
40:28It took another 10 years to get to 100 acres
40:30and then suddenly it took off
40:32and we grow 500 acres for the UK market now.
40:37We are all very obsessed with the crop.
40:40We took it from its infancy 40 years ago
40:42to where it is today
40:43and we're very proud of it
40:46and we really do like to look after it
40:49right through all the processes,
40:52do the best job we can.
40:55Planting 11 million plants a year
40:57at the market share we think we've got over 90%.
41:00We do feel as a business we've brought Celeriac back.
41:04But being the biggest Celeriac producer in the UK
41:07and one of the largest in Europe
41:09brings great responsibilities.
41:11Well we are in harvest time
41:14the pressure's on
41:16because the weather can turn against us very quickly.
41:20You've grown the crop,
41:22you've got to get it out the ground as best you can,
41:24keep the quality right
41:25and just get it in the shed,
41:27in the boxes, in the stores
41:28as efficiently as possible.
41:30All your money and all your value
41:33of what you've done in the whole year
41:35is in the ground waiting for harvest.
41:38So it's a long, intense harvest
41:41and for us it starts in August
41:45and we don't finish till the end of November.
41:49Storage of harvested veg
41:50is a costly challenge for farmers
41:53but for Celeriac it's an even trickier task.
41:56So we're in a specialist building
41:59designed to hold Celeriac through
42:01from November to July next year.
42:04We've got no chance of keeping it beyond
42:06sort of February, March
42:07without the right storage environment.
42:11Celeriac is not easy to store.
42:14It loves to rot
42:15and we've learnt the hard way many times.
42:17Celeriac is a hypocotyl
42:21so it's neither root nor chute.
42:24It's the bit right in the middle
42:25and when we store it
42:27we remove the top, the chute
42:28and we remove the root, the bottom
42:30and store just that modified hypocotyl
42:32in the middle.
42:34That hypocotyl is alive still.
42:36We want to put it into a dormancy phase
42:38and we want to keep it alive.
42:40If we suffocate it, it dies
42:42and then it rots.
42:45So Celeriac in this store
42:47we're trying to hold it
42:49as though it's just in a winter scenario
42:51in the field
42:52with a bit of soil around it
42:53with the CO2 flushed out
42:55temperature controlled
42:57so we keep it totally dormant
42:59and asleep basically.
43:01If we retain 80 to 85% of the crop
43:05we think we've done really well.
43:07There were times where we lost 80% of the crop
43:09and we didn't have any new crop
43:11until the following August
43:12so that hurt.
43:14That really hurt that year.
43:17Because we introduced Celeriac into the UK
43:20all those years ago
43:21we take real ownership for the product
43:23we're all very proud
43:25of what we've achieved with it.
43:27It's very satisfying
43:28seeing the Celeriac
43:30at the end of its journey with us
43:32we've grown it
43:33we've stored it
43:34we've washed it
43:35we've packed it
43:37now it's heading off
43:38to the end customer
43:39for their enjoyment.
43:41Life without Celeriac
43:43work on our business
43:43would be really
43:44very boring I think.
43:46My wife says
43:47you're just obsessed
43:48every time you see it
43:49anywhere on a menu
43:50you start talking to the chef
43:52and you must stop it.
43:54Now you can't come to Lincolnshire
44:08and go home without potatoes
44:11particularly when there's such a bargain
44:13but oh
44:14look
44:15what a surprise
44:16another bargain
44:17it's the Countryfile calendar
44:19Wild Encounters is the theme
44:21and it's sold in aid of BBC Children in Need
44:24if you would like to get your hands on one
44:26here's John to tell you how.
44:30It costs £11.99
44:32which includes UK delivery
44:34you can go to our website
44:37bbc.co.uk
44:39forward slash countryfile
44:40where you'll find a link
44:41to the online order page
44:43or
44:45you can call
44:460-330-333-4564
44:50to place your order by phone
44:52standard geographic charges
44:55will apply
44:55to both landlines
44:57and mobiles.
45:00The phone line
45:00will be available
45:01from Monday to Friday
45:029am to 5pm
45:04and Saturdays
45:06from 10am to 4pm.
45:09If you prefer to order by post
45:11then send your name
45:13address and a check
45:14to BBC Countryfile Calendar
45:16P.O. Box 25
45:18Melton Mowbray
45:20LE 13 1ZG
45:23and please make your checks payable
45:25to BBC Countryfile Calendar.
45:28A minimum of £5.50
45:31from the sale of each calendar
45:33will be donated
45:34to BBC Children in Need.
45:44Well the wind has really got up
45:49here in Lincolnshire
45:50and honestly
45:50it's quite cold
45:52but as we've heard
45:53what the farmers here
45:54really want
45:54is some rain.
45:56Are we going to get any?
45:57Here's the Countryfile forecast.
46:07Hello.
46:07I think one of the main features
46:10of November so far
46:11is how very mild it's been.
46:13Indeed widely across the UK
46:15we've seen temperatures
46:15around 4 or 5 degrees Celsius
46:17above the seasonal average
46:18but often with that mild air
46:20it's come a lot of cloud
46:21and outbreaks of rain
46:22like today.
46:23It's been pretty wet
46:24across western areas
46:25some low cloud here
46:26along with the rain
46:27in Saundersfoot in Pembrokeshire.
46:30Now looking at the satellite picture
46:31we've got areas of cloud
46:32working from the southwest
46:34to the northeast.
46:34These are going to continue
46:36to bring pulses of rain
46:37across the UK overnight tonight.
46:39It's quite misty as well
46:40around western coast
46:41and hills of England and Wales.
46:43Those misty conditions
46:44spread to eastern England
46:45later in the night
46:45and could well turn quite murky
46:47for a time in northwest Scotland.
46:49There will be some rain around
46:50it's going to be quite a mild night
46:51though for November.
46:52Temperatures around 8 to 12 degrees.
46:55Now looking at the weather picture
46:56over the next few days
46:57low pressure is going to stay
46:59to the southwest of the UK
47:00with these mild southwesterly winds
47:02continuing to bring temperatures
47:03well above average for many of us
47:05but continuing to bring
47:06quite a lot of rain
47:07and over the next few days
47:08some of our western hills
47:09could pick up over 100 millimetres
47:11of rain.
47:11Could be enough to bring some areas
47:13of localised surface water flooding.
47:16Now for Monday
47:16low pressure is with us
47:17and we start off with rain
47:19in Northern Ireland and Scotland
47:20probably turning a bit brighter
47:21here into the afternoon.
47:23Further southwards
47:23yes there will be some bands
47:24of rain working across England and Wales
47:26interspersed by spells of sunshine.
47:28Some of the rain here
47:29could be quite heavy
47:30maybe an odd rumble of thunder
47:31and there'll be some fairly brisk
47:33southwesterly winds.
47:34It will though be another mild day
47:35temperatures 12 to 14 degrees.
47:39Heading into Tuesday
47:40we've got another dollop of rain
47:41on the way.
47:42This time the rain is going to be
47:43accompanied by some stronger winds
47:45with gusts of around 40 or 50 miles an hour
47:47extending up through Irish Sea coast
47:49so gales around
47:50with the rain eventually working
47:52into parts of Scotland
47:53come the afternoon.
47:54The far north of Scotland
47:54probably staying just about dry
47:56as will probably parts of eastern England.
47:58It's mild again
47:59temperatures 11 to around 15 or 16 degrees.
48:03Middle part of the week
48:04and Wednesday
48:04we've got some stronger winds
48:06this time affecting northern Scotland
48:08where gusts of wind
48:09around 40 or 50 miles an hour.
48:11Some rain further southwards
48:12across England and Wales
48:13with lighter winds expected here.
48:15Our temperatures for most of the UK
48:17still running above average
48:18for the time of year.
48:1916 in London
48:20well average for this stage of November
48:22it's 12
48:23so about 4 degrees above.
48:25Thursday we start to get
48:26these northeasterly winds blowing in
48:28across the far north of Scotland
48:29and with that
48:30will come some cooler air.
48:32I say cooler air
48:32because actually temperatures
48:33across the far north
48:34will just be coming down
48:36closer to average
48:37for the time of year
48:38whereas further south
48:39across England and Wales
48:4014 to 16 degrees
48:42it is still very very mild.
48:44But those northeasterly winds
48:45will make further inroads
48:46across Scotland, Northern Ireland
48:48and Northern England
48:48by Friday
48:49dropping the temperatures
48:50closer to average.
48:51Get this band of rain
48:52between the cooler air
48:53to the north
48:54and the milder air
48:55that continues to affect
48:56the far south of England
48:57and Wales
48:58where again we'll see temperatures
48:59of around 14 to 16 degrees.
49:02Now this week
49:02the jet stream pattern
49:03looks something like this.
49:05A big ridge in the mid-Atlantic
49:06we get a trough
49:07to the southwest of the UK
49:08that's generating low pressures
49:09bringing us the southwesterly winds
49:11the mild air
49:12and the rain
49:13but the jet stream pattern
49:14changes in about 10 days time.
49:16The ridge gets more extensive
49:17across Greenland
49:18and this configuration
49:20of trough over the UK
49:21will start to draw in
49:22some colder air
49:23from polar regions.
49:24So about 10 days time
49:25you might hear mention
49:26of hill snow
49:28in the weather forecast
49:29with the return
49:30of some November frost
49:31but before then
49:32most of this week
49:33it stays mild.
49:34We're in Lincolnshire
49:44seeing how this summer's drought
49:46has affected the vegetable harvest
49:49and learning how farmers
49:51are preparing
49:52for the harvests of the future.
49:53You know, I love to see
49:58a beautiful display
50:00of perfect looking vegetables
50:02but this year
50:03in Lincolnshire
50:04the harvest
50:05has been a bit of a mixed bag.
50:07Not everything
50:08is looking perfect
50:09but in the right hands
50:11even the wonkiest
50:13of vegetables
50:13can shine.
50:14Back in 2018
50:18a study revealed
50:20that more than
50:21a third of farmed
50:22fruit and veg
50:23was discarded
50:24before it reached
50:25a supermarket shelf
50:26just because it was deemed
50:28misshapen
50:29or discoloured.
50:31But attitudes
50:32have been changing.
50:33Over the last few years
50:34imperfect produce
50:36has been gradually
50:37accepted by consumers.
50:39Award-winning chef
50:41and local food campaigner
50:43Rachel Green
50:44comes from 14 generations
50:47of Lincolnshire farmers.
50:49She's seen good harvests
50:50and bad.
50:52And with some of this season's veg
50:53being more irregular
50:55than normal
50:55she's making sure
50:57nothing goes to waste
50:58by preparing
50:59some special dishes.
51:02This is my wonky cauliflower.
51:04I say that
51:04because it's actually
51:05quite discoloured here.
51:07It's very creamy
51:08and actually people
51:09don't like buying
51:10creamy cauliflowers.
51:14So if you've got
51:15your wonky veg
51:15and it's really
51:16not looking that perfect
51:17or might just be
51:18slightly discoloured
51:19when you add the spices
51:21like I'm going to
51:22it makes no difference
51:23whatsoever.
51:24The cream colour
51:25is caused by
51:26too much sunlight.
51:27The taste is unaffected
51:29but Rachel
51:30can make it look
51:31more appetising.
51:32A smoked paprika
51:33a little tiny bit
51:34of the coriander
51:36some ground cumin
51:37and some chilli powder
51:39and there
51:40you can't even see
51:41the discolouration
51:43or the colour
51:43of the cauliflower.
51:44It's now taken on
51:45the colour of the spices
51:46and it's also taken
51:48on that lovely flavour
51:48as well.
51:49So we're starting
51:50to build on having
51:51a beautiful dish here.
51:55Already I'm smelling
51:56those lovely herbs.
51:59To help this wonky
52:01cauliflower dish
52:02look even better
52:03she's adding
52:04the purple sprouted broccoli
52:06grown by David
52:07and Richard
52:08who I met earlier.
52:12There's nothing like
52:13the taste of
52:14purple sprouted broccoli.
52:18So this is actually
52:19done now.
52:20Let's just tray up
52:22this lovely dish.
52:23Let's get the yoghurt
52:24on there first.
52:24This is just
52:25literally Greek yoghurt
52:27so I'm just going to
52:28put it on the plate
52:29like that.
52:31Well the dish
52:32certainly looks delicious.
52:34Cauliflower and all.
52:36Hello Rachel.
52:37What's on the menu?
52:39I hope you'll like it.
52:41There's a fork for you.
52:41Right.
52:42Have a little taste
52:43and see what you think.
52:44Yeah.
52:46Wonky vegetables dish.
52:48I'm a bit worried now.
52:49How's that?
52:52Lovely.
52:54Might be wonky
52:55but it tastes A1.
52:57It certainly is.
52:59I mean I don't mind
53:00wonky veggies myself
53:01but do you think
53:02we have too high
53:03an expectation
53:04of what vegetables
53:05should look like?
53:06I think we have
53:07actually been moulded
53:09to look for perfection
53:10from the retailers
53:12and not for taste.
53:14From a farmer's
53:15perspective
53:15we spent a lot of time
53:18growing those vegetables.
53:19And we want people
53:19to eat it
53:20whatever shape it might be
53:22because it's there
53:23for the taking
53:24and nature isn't perfect.
53:26So is there
53:27any vegetable
53:28that's doing okay
53:29at the moment?
53:30Brussels sprouts
53:30are doing okay
53:31at the moment.
53:31Really?
53:32They certainly are.
53:33Yeah.
53:33Because they actually
53:34are planted quite early
53:35and they like cool conditions
53:37so in March
53:38they're able to
53:38establish themselves
53:39so when it becomes
53:40summer and it's dry
53:41their roots are plenty
53:42well down
53:43towards the water table
53:44and they can suck
53:44a lot of water up themselves
53:45so they have suffered
53:47a bit with whitefly
53:48and they're a little bit shorter.
53:49Yeah but what they also
53:49suffer from
53:50is a lot of people
53:51don't like them.
53:52What can you do about that?
53:53Are you going to say that?
53:55Well I'm going to show you
53:56a really magic dish.
53:58I'm intrigued
53:58by what you're going to do
54:00with these
54:00because most people
54:01think of sprouts
54:02as something that's
54:03boiled at Christmas.
54:04What I'm going to do
54:05is actually I'm going to do
54:05a sort of quickly
54:06warm shredded salad
54:07so what I did
54:08with these sprouts here John
54:10is I just literally
54:11made sure some
54:13of the outside leaves
54:14were off
54:14and I just literally
54:16shredded them
54:16and people don't
54:17shred them very often
54:18but they make
54:19great coleslaw
54:20and things like this
54:21and you can stir fry
54:22them with leeks as well.
54:23What you're saying
54:23is sprouts
54:24are not just for Christmas
54:25they can be
54:26an all year round
54:27treat really.
54:29I'm going to
54:29just fry some of these
54:31bacon lardons off
54:32in this pan
54:33and the bacon
54:34will help flavour the sprouts.
54:36Put that in first
54:37like that.
54:37Sprouts are very divisive
54:40aren't they?
54:41I personally like them
54:42but I know Charlotte
54:43doesn't.
54:44Hopefully with this
54:45you might change
54:46people's minds.
54:46Well I think people
54:47have had them
54:47boiled to death
54:48at Christmas
54:48probably grandma
54:49has put them
54:50on in two hours
54:50before they're
54:51juicy eaten.
54:52I like mine roasted
54:53because it completely
54:54changes flavour
54:55so I always say
54:56to people
54:57try a different
54:58sprout recipe
54:58don't just boil them.
55:00We need to eat
55:00more sprouts
55:01because they're
55:02very sustainable
55:02they're very local
55:03and they're usually
55:05good for you
55:06they're full of
55:06antioxidants
55:07vitamins C and K
55:09and they're good
55:10for your gut
55:10so they actually
55:11have a lot going
55:12for them
55:12but they're not
55:13very trendy
55:14and I think
55:14that's the thing
55:15they're not
55:15a hero veg
55:17and they should be
55:18so I'm going to
55:18add some honey
55:19John
55:19Oh right
55:20Well this is
55:21like local honey
55:22to me
55:22we're going to
55:23keep it as
55:23British as we can
55:24little tiny bit
55:26of pepper
55:27in there
55:27and some nice
55:29English apple
55:30vinegar
55:30because we're
55:31going to put
55:31some apples in
55:32as well
55:32so it's all
55:33the kind of
55:33things that go
55:34together
55:34my specks
55:41are steaming
55:42up
55:42so are mine
55:44so I'm going
55:47to take this
55:47lovely Spartan
55:48apple
55:48which I got
55:49off my tree
55:50shall I put
55:51those in
55:52for you
55:52your little
55:53sushi
55:53and then
55:55in goes
55:56the vital
55:57ingredient
55:57the sprouts
55:59well you're
56:00taking the
56:01humble sprout
56:02seriously
56:03aren't you
56:03to another
56:04level
56:04what do you
56:08think
56:08I do
56:09and you know
56:09it's actually
56:10a relatively
56:12cheap dish
56:13isn't it
56:13it is
56:13and I think
56:14we're all
56:14kind of
56:14looking
56:14for that
56:15let's see
56:16what you
56:16think
56:16all right
56:17that's a big
56:19plateful
56:19I don't think
56:22I'll finish
56:22this but it
56:23looks lovely
56:24have a try
56:25it's got that
56:27sweet and sour
56:28flavour
56:28do you like that
56:30I do
56:30to be honest
56:31it doesn't
56:32taste of sprouts
56:33no that's
56:34the whole point
56:35really
56:35and as I say
56:36sprouts are not
56:37just for Christmas
56:38they're for life
56:38so I've got
56:40another surprise
56:40for you actually
56:41John
56:41and this is my
56:42swede
56:43brownie
56:44never
56:45swede
56:46brownie
56:47absolutely
56:48you can't
56:48believe it
56:49can you
56:49I can't
56:50they look
56:50so delicious
56:51no one's
56:52going to know
56:52what's in there
56:53John
56:53if you ask them
56:54I bet Charlotte
56:54won't guess
56:55can I take them
56:56of course you can
56:57and see if she knows
56:58what's with the chocolate
57:00I think she'll be
57:01guessing for a long time
57:02I think she will
57:02thank you very much
57:03lovely to see you
57:04thank you very much
57:05thank you
57:06Charlotte
57:12come and sit down
57:13rest your weary legs
57:15after a hard day
57:16but once I have
57:17done some work
57:17you have cake
57:18I have indeed
57:19I've got a special
57:20treat for you
57:21really
57:22chocolate brownie
57:23but guess what else
57:24is there apart
57:25from the chocolate
57:25I don't know
57:27beetroot
57:30pretty near
57:32locally grown
57:34swede
57:35would you believe
57:36I would never
57:37have guessed that
57:38that's about it
57:39from us here
57:40in Lincolnshire
57:40but do join us
57:41next week
57:42when we have
57:42another treat
57:43Hamza will be
57:44in the Highlands
57:45releasing one of
57:46Britain's rarest
57:47animals into the wild
57:49looks like she's
57:56about to hunt
57:57you can see
57:58those eyes
57:59she's really
57:59focused in on
58:00something at the
58:00moment
58:01oh this is
58:02fantastic
58:03you're the first
58:06person who is
58:07in staff
58:08who is releasing
58:09a wildcat
58:09really
58:10that's at 5.25
58:19on BBC1
58:21hope you can join us
58:22then bye bye
58:23bye for now
58:23it's lovely to be
58:25in front of a fire
58:25with a piece of cake
58:26isn't it
58:26yes
58:27maybe we should do
58:28this every week
58:29I'll suggest it
58:30join me for an
58:36unforgettable night
58:37of television
58:38and some heartwarming
58:39stories from some
58:40incredible kids
58:41BBC Children in Need
58:44Friday night at 7
58:45on One and iPlayer
58:47and not to be missed
58:50next tonight
58:51David Attenborough's
58:52new series
58:52takes us
58:53into Zambia's
58:54animal kingdom
59:00and not to be
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