There is a row of hills north of the Black Mountains, close to the English-Welsh border, that is full of wildflower meadows. If you lie down among the yellow rattle and the bird’s-foot trefoil and gaze across the sward, you can see marsh orchids poking above the grasses like mini pagodas. Down in the valley, the River Monnow cascades east, and above is the Cefn, a boggy old drovers’ road that follows the ridge.
It was on the Cefn that several marbled white butterflies hurtled past me like a peloton of cyclists, then appeared to swerve around the ghosts of old drovers. The upper sides of the adults wings are a vivid pied pattern of embroidery. The undersides are more hazy, and Joan Miró-like. I know the farmers, Simon and Anita, whose land they danced over, and I was excited to tell them.
Their farm is an upland holding where rare breed pigs, such as Sandy and Blacks, turn over the bracken to release dormant seeds. White park cattle, carefully managed, perform a similar task, stirring up the ground without over-poaching. They also have a lowland farm, which I had visited earlier that day. Here, the fields are planted with heritage cereals, and instead of spraying off anything that is not the crop, Simon lets it all grow together. Consequently, the fields are full of herbs such as common vetch, with its deep roots, and the lanky blue flowers of chicory, which fixes nitrogen. It all helps to maintain the soil’s health.
Soon the crop will be harvested, and the heritage grains will be separated from the herbs and grasses by an ancient French grain cleaner. It’s a wonderful old contraption. When Simon flicked a switch, it came alive, a great, grumbling drum with chutes coming off the side for the different sizes of seed. The grains will then be milled for flour which goes out to small-scale bakeries across the country.
By treating the soil with affection, they are building up a rich humus for future generations, not degrading it. This is food production as a liberating, creative act, giving natural systems the freedom to flourish.
• Under the Changing Skies: The Best of the Guardian’s Country Diary, 2018-2024 is published by Guardian Faber; order at guardianbookshop.com and get a 15% discount
