Giant Hogweed control with a Scythe
The following is an account of my attempts to control the invasive alien weed Giant Hogweed in a small nature reserve I manage in Norfolk – using a scythe as a key component of an integrated management strategy
Author: Richard Brown
Scottish Scything Festival Results 2019
The last weekend of July 2019 saw the first ever Scottish Scything Festival take place at Blackhaugh Community Farm in Perthshire. 120 people, including 20 or so children gathered for a day of talks, demonstrations, taster sessions, scythe sales and of course a scything competition. The afternoon’s competition had 29 entrants and in spite of Read more about Scottish Scything Festival Results 2019[…]
Northern Scythe Championship Results 2019
Overall Northern open champion Time Quality (mins.secs) Andy Coleman 0.52 7 1st George Montague 1.53 7 2nd Kevin Austin 1.52 6 3rd Quality and veteran mowing champion Jim McVittie 2.23 8 Northern local champion Peter Blackwell 4.06 6.5 Ken Jaquiery 5.07 7.5 Local Read more about Northern Scythe Championship Results 2019[…]
Eastern Counties Scythe Competition Results 2019
5 x 5m Eastern Counties Trophy Time Quality Placing (min.secs) /notes Chris Riley Read more about Eastern Counties Scythe Competition Results 2019[…]
Green Scythe Fair Championship results 2019
Mowers faced typical Somerset level grass at the Green scythe fair this year: lush and heavy! The grass cut easily enough, as shown by the decent times recorded by mowers in the 5 x 5 metre plots. The main challenge competitors faced was partially laid grass pushed in a variety of directions by the Read more about Green Scythe Fair Championship results 2019[…]
New generation scythers
A regular topic of conversation at scythe meetings is how to engage more of the younger generation in scything, and indeed in practical rural activities generally. It is not difficult to see why the demographic for scything is biased to more mature users. It’s a fact, for example, that active participation in voluntary conservation and Read more about New generation scythers[…]
Peening day review 2019
As a postscript to this year’s International Peening day (April 7th) I have been reviewing the wonderful diversity of peening pony designs. A number of scythers have kindly sent me photos of their many and varied set ups, (and I can add more if you want to send me your photos). Arrangements for peening of Read more about Peening day review 2019[…]
Peening Days
International Peening Day, on the first Sunday of April, is a perfect opportunity to prepare and test blades on newly awoken grass in the meadow in readiness for the coming season. This is a personal blog post account of International Peening Day 2018. It was indeed quite a personal event for me, falling as it did Read more about Peening Days[…]
Monty Don “Scythes cut grass very well”
In his new book ‘Down to Earth’ Monty Don has commented: “You don’t have to use a machine – scythes cut grass very well.” This observation has sparked a surprisingly reactionary response from fellow gardening correspondents and garden machinery representatives. Monty’s assertion that scythes cut grass very well is factually true; it is indeed quite Read more about Monty Don “Scythes cut grass very well”[…]
European Scythe Championships , Switzerland 2017
The European Scything Championships held near Shwytz/Brunnen in Switzerland was a first for any British competitors as Kevin Austin and Nigel Adams found themselves rather surprisingly entered. Here is their story. With Richard Brown and Simon Damant heading for Estonia this summer the other half of the Romania 2015 crew decided they had better find an Read more about European Scythe Championships , Switzerland 2017[…]