Harry, as we have named him, arrived at Cotswold Honeydale Farm on a grey, rainy day in March and we’ve not even started sowing the fields yet. He’ll be spending the next few months in the bar. But we’re very pleased to have him, as you can see from Sam’s smile!

Most farmers require maximum capacity combining, but since we will be growing research plots for our seed mixtures, we needed a combine capable of dealing with small areas. So when we saw this one advertised on EBay, we couldn’t resist having it transported up from Dorset.

‘I got a brand new combine harvester and I’ll give you the key.’ That song charted back in the record breaking hot summer of 1976. So here’s hoping for some sunshine soon, and a good growing season.