16/08/2026
We imagine the estates and farms that resisted the call to rip out their networks of spinneys, copses and shaws, those little pockets of woodland tucked in amongst the fields, are feeling rather grateful this summer of heatwaves.
Shade like this is vital for keeping a herd healthy, as you can see with the wonderful Black Angus Harewood Estate. It’s a lovely reminder that small is sometimes best. The focus here is on older, traditional Angus stock, the smaller native breed, managed across tree lined field networks where the grass has been carefully kept long. Those deep root systems are exactly what help it ride out the lack of rain and hold onto some of its nutrients.
This summer, like the last few, will be a big wakeup call for anyone still running the old postwar “bigger is better” playbook, the one that gave us ever larger continental herds and ever larger field systems, with ponds, hedges and snickets torn out to make way. That high input, high output thinking never really went away, but its day is passing. Those who instead took a step back, who slowed down from the same agenda (similar profit in the end) pushed onto so many of our farmers, are the ones who now look genuinely modern.
