Tayview September 14th 2012 North Fife

Tayview September 14th, cloudy and windy day drying the grain fields and then the sun came out fully.

The same field earlier this year.

Combine coming up to the turn at Ballinbreich Farm, North Fife.

Shredding the straw, rather than lay the straw for collection and future use as bedding etc. This way humus is restored back to the soil maintaining a more healthy balance on a bacterial micro-organism level.

Every couple of cuts the barley is off-loaded into trailers. My feeling is the yield is a good one in weight though the malting quality maybe marginal.

North Fife August 10th

Fisherman at Lindores Loch, on his phone, too bright, not in the right spot, wrong bait, sorry darling it's baked beans tonight.

Potato fields North Fife. It has rained and rained throughout the summer, most crops have so far benefited, not it seems this 20 acre or so, the brown vegetation on these potatos left, lifeless and dead. Just too much water. Climate change has affected crops worldwide, corn in America, tea in India..... How fragile our existence is, it seems to becoming a bigger issue each year.

Abdie Lindores North Fife

Today I wandered across to Abdie churchyard to have a look. It so happened that along the way I noticed that the Gean (bird cherries) were ripe and beginning to fall. Indeed they are of such profusion this year that there are far too many for the birds to consume, I too was well satisfied with the unexpected mid morning snack. Nice Eh!

Gather ye rosebuds while ye may,
Old Time is still a-flying;
And this same flower that smiles today,
Tomorrow will be dying.


Abdie Looking across Lindores Loch to Normans Law.

TO THE MOST FAIR AND LOVELY MISTRESS
ANNE SOAME, NOW LADY ABDIE.
by Robert Herrick

SO smell those odours that do rise
From out the wealthy spiceries ;
So smells the flower of blooming clove,
Or roses smother'd in the stove ;
So smells the air of spiced wine,
Or essences of jessamine ;
So smells the breath about the hives
When well the work of honey thrives,
And all the busy factors come
Laden with wax and honey home ;
So smell those neat and woven bowers
All over-arch'd with orange flowers,
And almond blossoms that do mix
To make rich these aromatics ;
So smell those bracelets and those bands
Of amber chaf'd between the hands,
When thus enkindled they transpire
A noble perfume from the fire.
The wine of cherries, and to these
The cooling breath of respasses ;
The smell of morning's milk and cream,
Butter of cowslips mix'd with them ;
Of roasted warden or bak'd pear,
These are not to be reckon'd here,
Whenas the meanest part of her,
Smells like the maiden pomander.
Thus sweet she smells, or what can be
More lik'd by her or lov'd by me.

Factors, workers.
Respasses, raspberries.
Pomander, ball of scent.

What sentiment,
as penned by, Robert Herrick, poet.