Lunchtime musings from a flower farm

I was sitting outside having my lunch, making the most of the autumn sunshine, watching the finches feed on the sunflower seeds and listening to the crickets chirruping in the grass. After lunch I was about to head back to my task in hand when I felt the urge to go the long way around the meadow, a mindful meander, to let my lunch go down before tackling anything too strenuous. There were crows and jackdaws overhead and numerous dragonflies purposefully patrolling the site. Ahhh, I was feeling calmer and more relaxed already. As I got to the far end something caught my eye, perched on the rusty old trailer that has ended it’s days in the long grass – a thrush-sized bird with barred, mottled and spotted grey-brown plumage – it was a nightjar! Usually, as the name suggests, it is a night bird, hawking for insects and moths. By day they hunker down perfectly camouflaged on old tree stumps. This one was only visible as it had chosen the rusty bit of the trailer to have a sleep. I’ve never seen one before and when I texted Lionel he said- “Wow, that’s Rare!”. It is probably the rarest bird I’ve seen (or at least the hardest to find). If I hadn’t chosen to take that nature walk I would never have seen it. Also, I feel it is testament to the farm’s working practices of no chemicals, a more relaxed approach to weeding and a no-dig policy. The farm must support a huge number of insects to attract this particular bird. By doing less we can encourage more nature into our lives.