It only seems like yesterday that I was writing my last update to you and the sun was shining. As I write this now, there is a definite chill of Autumn in the air. Thinking back, it seems like we had the hottest June, wettest July and driest August in a long while! Not to mention the ups and downs of September, the seasons really are all over the place! Let’s hope for a fairly settled Autumn.

Once again, our sunflower fields were as popular as ever over the summer. It was great to see so many people of all ages enjoying the great outdoors and supporting our charity appeal. This year, we partnered with Cash for Kids and raised a tremendous £1661.52. Thank you to all who donated, it really does make a difference.

Since we last caught up, Jenny and I enjoyed a trip to the States. We had a wonderful time and I was able to reconnect with some friends from my Nuffield Scholarship days some 35 years ago. The joy of modern technology means we are now able to talk fairly often. You may call me old fashioned, but nothing does quite beat a face-to-face conversation!
During our stay, we visited Lake Michigan and the John Deere museum. They were both incredible, but the farmer in me tells me I preferred the museum!

Shortly after my return from the States, I was flying back out to Zambia. My youngest son, Liam, has been facilitating agricultural shows across Southern Africa for a significant number of years. For the past 10 years he has been asking me to go but for one reason or another, I have never had the chance to support him there in person. Needless to say, both parties were impressed – he, that I had managed to get out there for the show and I, as to what an incredible event he had put on. I certainly was feeling incredibly proud, as I feel with the successes of all my children (and grandchildren!).

We stayed at a local farm for the weekend, and I was surprised to see how many vultures there were on the farmland. The locals told us that having the vultures meant that they didn’t have a problem with litter, quite simply because the vultures eat it all!

As we look forward to these final few months of the year, our events team are busy preparing for our family Halloween event. The event will take place between 27th October and 3rd November and proved a real hit with lots of families last year. If you’d like to come along, advance booking of tickets is essential and can be done here.