Heron Nest Wood, East Dorset

2010 : Cutting wheat for thatching

Uploader's Comments

A gentleman gongoozling nearby from a landrover told me this was an old variety of wheat known as flat head (or flathead) grown for thatching. The ears are shorter than modern varieties with a poorer yield, but it is grown for the straw, which is much longer and hollow. The gentleman in the straw hat sitting on the back is the thatcher and was there to supervise the cutting.

Uploaded to Geograph by Maurice Pullin on 19 July 2010

Creative Commons License Photo © Maurice Pullin, 19 July 2010. Licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons licence

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