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FARM LIFE

Is farming life really as heavenly as it seems?

Living off the land on one of the South East's sprawling farms may seem idyllic, but for the farmers whose livelihood depends on the yearly harvest, this has been the busiest time of the year. Inside Out goes country to find out how this year has been for our farmers.

Around three quarters of the South East is farmland, which makes it one of the most scenic places in the country.

It also makes it one of the busiest places in the country as farmers work around the clock during the harvest.

Harvest can be a success, or it can be a failure, and it is almost entirely dependent on the weather.

Inside Out South East finds out which it was this year.

Life on the farm

There's no such thing as a typical farm in the UK.

Some owners occupy just 100 acres of farmland, which they use as hobby farms.

At the other end of the scale are farms that cover thousands of acres where farmers grow crops or breed animals.

The different uses of farms are almost as diverse as the size variations, with people using their land for anything from the traditional crops and cows, to the contemporary llamas or camel breeding.

Today, Inside Out visits Bank Farm near Ashford in Kent, where cropping vast fields of wheat keeps the Wanstall's busy during harvest.

Doug and Stephanie Wanstall share the workload

The Wanstall family have run Bank Farm for generations. Doug and his wife Stephanie are the current caretakers of the property that is about the same size as Ashford.

"My great grandfather bought the farm in 1918," explains Doug.

"We've got 4,500 acres and thousands of animals. It keeps us busy."

Doug and Stephanie both work on the farm and the fifth generation has just arrived in the form of Alexander and Isabel.

Stephanie is in charge of the administration of the farm from their bijou office.

"He's the boss in the field," she says of husband Doug as she puts the kettle on, but you can't help think she's the boss in the office.

Bank Farm's biggest crop is wheat, which is time consuming to crop and harvest.

Whether the weather helps

As the middle of June arrives, preparations are getting underway for the most difficult time of the year.

A lot hangs on the success of this harvest so there are plenty of anxious people about.

"Harvest is the busiest time for us, and the most worrying. It could all go right or it could all go wrong," comments Doug.

The UK produces around 13 million tonnes of wheat every year

Unfortunately for Doug the weather has been going all wrong. The summer has been a bad one with little sunshine and plenty of rain.

It's bad news for the crops.

"We grow crops to sell at a profit obviously. But if the weather's bad we could make a loss, in which case the whole thing was a failure.

"I will be able to tell you on the last day you visit here after the harvest whether it's been a success or a failure," Doug explains.

For farmers, the success of their yield is almost always in the lap of the Gods.

Weather can help or hinder the growth of just about everything on the farm.

For Doug, it's the wheat that's at risk, although it seems this is one crop that can be unfortunate no matter what the weather dishes out.

Excessive wet weather can damage the plant, floods often ripping them out of the ground, and planting seeds in waterlogged soil is impossible and doesn't encourage growth.

On the other hand, a lack of rain water causes dry, brittle leaves and stalks, and in extreme cases can stunt the plant's growth.

It seems hitting the right mark can be due to good fortune as much as good management.

Fall back

Doug doesn't have all his eggs in one basket though; in fact he has his chickens quite independent of the crops.

Doug breeds chickens - lots of them.

He uses them to produce eggs and, although they are parked in a huge shed, Doug maintains they are in fact free range.

Bank Farm's chickens are RSPCA monitored and approved

"They've got access to outside, 20 acres, but they'd rather be in here," says Doug as he scans the 7,500 squawking chickens.

Rob Clayson is the man in charge of the egg process, which he explains is carried out in a highly mechanised fashion.

"The chickens lay their eggs in the nesting boxes and then the eggs roll down onto a conveyor belt," Rob explains.

The eggs are then examined, graded and boxed ready for sale.

The chickens at Bank Farm are rather tame, as reporter Paul Ross proves by picking up a chicken called Henrietta. But then, they're all called Henrietta聟

Doug also has some four legged stock to keep the money coming in.

Bank Farm has around 450 sheep, which are useful income earners as the money is reasonably reliable.

Since new regulations were implemented in February 2003, all sheep have to be tagged with an origin mark and an identification number.

Doug's father Richard is set the task of tagging some of the lambs before selecting them for market.

It's another long, hard process and makes you wonder if the farming life is such a rosy one.

Time is right

By August 27, 2003 almost all farm crops had been harvested. By the same time in 2004 only 35% of farmers have been able to harvest.

It's now September and Doug overlooks the farms and considers if today could be the day.

The decision is touch and go, due to the weather, but Doug decides to go ahead and begin the harvest.

The crop must be dry before harvest so it can be stored without rotting, but with the wet summer months it hasn't been easy.

As the mammoth job of harvesting the wheat comes to an end and Doug evaluates the season the big question is - was it a success?

Unfortunately 2004 won't be a year Doug and Stephanie remember fondly - they calculate they have lost around 拢80,000 on this year's wheat harvest.

Weighing it all up

There's no doubting that working on the land, free from the hustle and bustle of city life, is something that appeals to many people.

And the fact that farmers such as Doug and Stephanie are subsidised by the EU makes for some rather jealous onlookers.

But the realities and of having to earn your livelihood on the land can be very different.

The relentless workload, combined with the uncertainties thrown in by the weather, can be too much for many.

But for Doug and Stephanie the effort is worth it, and planting for next year's crop begins in earnest.