Why are the roofs of houses on the east coast of Britain so often laid with red pantiles?
Pantile roof materials started to appear in Britain during the 17th century, imported from Holland. But surely British craftsmen could have made the tiles? It turns out that ships exporting goods from this country to Holland would be full to capacity. On their return journey to e.g. Whitby they would be empty and required ballast. The pantile tiles were used for that purpose and became a feature of houses in seaports along the coast.
Gradually their use spread further to surrounding districts as merchants and farmers trading through the ports admired this effective roofing method. I expect the success of pantiles was in no small part due to the ease of use compared to thatching and the weight associated with the heavier sandstone flags primarily used prior to their introduction.
Thursday 30 June 2011
Thursday 23 June 2011
Bracken - Controlling the Dinosaur Plant
Prior to owning our farm in Farndale on the North York Moors I never knew bracken was the problem it clearly is! The Moors and uplands in general are covered with the stuff. It is considered to be one of the most successful of the fern family of plants, growing on every continent except Antarctica. It is also one of the oldest, with fossil records stretching back over 55 million years.
I had thought it was just part of the hill environment, surely there is nothing sinister about it. However it turns out that bracken grows at an incredible rate, smothering heather moorland and invading grass grazing areas.
Growing to three foot high or more in our fields the plant has a root system that can weigh up to 50 tonnes per hectare, so it is quite difficult to eradicate. Professor Rob Marrs of Liverpool University offers the the comparison that 'a good wheat crop would yield just six tonnes per hectare'.
And the situation gets worse:
1. The spores of bracken are carcinogenic, causing cancer in animals and people
2. The plant itself is poisonous to sheep and cattle
3. It's one of the preferred habitats for ticks that suck the blood of sheep, bird chicks, deer, dogs and cats
4. Tick bites can transmit Lyme Disease to humans!
Clearly it is vital that we remove/control/eradicate bracken to prevent it taking over our land and sneaking over to our neighbours. It would be great if there was a grazing animal that would eat it, but as noted above it is poisonous. Using a safe herbicide appears to be the only economic solution in terms of cash, time and effort.
The only bracken specific product available is Asulam (Asulox). Until very recently there was some doubt as to whether or not it would be banned by the EU. The Farmers Guardian reported on 17 May 2011 that scientists have recommended a reprieve. A final decision is still pending however...
Hopefully sense prevails and a replacement is developed prior to the only solution being eradicated more effectively than the bracken itself. The key has to be a safe, effective agent deliverable by spray or weed wipe. And helicopter spraying has to be a factor when the nature of the terrain bracken enjoys is considered. Many quad bike equipped contractors will not entertain our steep hillsides (why a bruiser or basher is not a solution) and the large local estates have thousands of acres to manage.
Hopefully we will see a helicopter spraying the bracken on our farm this summer, unless of course we find something else to do with the stuff..!
Background (thank you) courtesy of: http://www.liv.ac.uk/researchintelligence/issue24/brackencontrol.html
Farmers Guardian: http://www.farmersguardian.com/home/livestock/livestock-news/mep-praises-eu-asulam-reprieve/39009.article
I had thought it was just part of the hill environment, surely there is nothing sinister about it. However it turns out that bracken grows at an incredible rate, smothering heather moorland and invading grass grazing areas.
Growing to three foot high or more in our fields the plant has a root system that can weigh up to 50 tonnes per hectare, so it is quite difficult to eradicate. Professor Rob Marrs of Liverpool University offers the the comparison that 'a good wheat crop would yield just six tonnes per hectare'.
And the situation gets worse:
1. The spores of bracken are carcinogenic, causing cancer in animals and people
2. The plant itself is poisonous to sheep and cattle
3. It's one of the preferred habitats for ticks that suck the blood of sheep, bird chicks, deer, dogs and cats
4. Tick bites can transmit Lyme Disease to humans!
Clearly it is vital that we remove/control/eradicate bracken to prevent it taking over our land and sneaking over to our neighbours. It would be great if there was a grazing animal that would eat it, but as noted above it is poisonous. Using a safe herbicide appears to be the only economic solution in terms of cash, time and effort.
The only bracken specific product available is Asulam (Asulox). Until very recently there was some doubt as to whether or not it would be banned by the EU. The Farmers Guardian reported on 17 May 2011 that scientists have recommended a reprieve. A final decision is still pending however...
Hopefully sense prevails and a replacement is developed prior to the only solution being eradicated more effectively than the bracken itself. The key has to be a safe, effective agent deliverable by spray or weed wipe. And helicopter spraying has to be a factor when the nature of the terrain bracken enjoys is considered. Many quad bike equipped contractors will not entertain our steep hillsides (why a bruiser or basher is not a solution) and the large local estates have thousands of acres to manage.
Hopefully we will see a helicopter spraying the bracken on our farm this summer, unless of course we find something else to do with the stuff..!
Background (thank you) courtesy of: http://www.liv.ac.uk/researchintelligence/issue24/brackencontrol.html
Farmers Guardian: http://www.farmersguardian.com/home/livestock/livestock-news/mep-praises-eu-asulam-reprieve/39009.article
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