Author Archives: stevetomlin

Scything at Preston Park on Teesside

Posted on July 30, 2019 by stevetomlin

It was lovely to spend the day with the new rangers team at Preston Park, near Middlesbrough in the north-east as they learned how to scythe. The team are looking to start managing their wildflower meadow by hand to increase … Continue reading →

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Scythe improvers course feedback

Posted on July 28, 2019 by stevetomlin

Hi Steve, It’s Chris from the Improvers scything course here.  Wanted to say I had the most enjoyable day.  You tweaked my technique which had a huge positive impact on my self taught ‘skill’.  You also respected the fact that … Continue reading →

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Scything in Yorkshire Dales

Posted on July 21, 2019 by stevetomlin

Just a couple of photos from a terrific scything course at Malham in Yorkshire as part of the Bee Together project for the Yorkshire Dales Millenium Trust. A great group of people, fantastic scenery and wonderful venue at Hill Top … Continue reading →

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Scythe course in Northampton

Posted on July 21, 2019 by stevetomlin

A few weeks ago I travelled down to Northamptonshire to teach a group how to scythe at Rushden Lakes, a nature reserve managed by the Wildlife Trust. The reserve is on the edge of a retail park which made for … Continue reading →

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Bell Sykes Farm: wildflower meadows, haymaking and scything

Posted on July 13, 2019 by stevetomlin

It’s great to see my friend Peter Blackwell and his family getting the recognition they deserve for their work managing the hay meadows Bell Sykes Farm at Slaidburn in Lancashire. The meadows at Bell Sykes are wonderful wildflower habitats and … Continue reading →

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Private scythe course in Nantwich

Posted on July 12, 2019 by stevetomlin

Toni & Ken look after a couple of acres near Nantwich in Cheshire. Toni contacted me wanting to learn to scythe so they could cut their meadow and make hay by hand for their donkeys. I travelled to meet them … Continue reading →

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Scything and making hay by hand

Posted on July 10, 2019 by stevetomlin

I love hearing from students and their progress and successes after one of my courses. Rob came on my Learn to Scythe course at the beginning of June and set to making hay and hand baling it. Visit my Learn … Continue reading →

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Old Trafford scything workshop 2019

Posted on July 6, 2019 by stevetomlin

It was National Meadow Day today and I had a fantastic day teaching a group how to scythe at Hullard Park in Old Trafford, Manchester. The park has a fabulous wildflower meadow which is in need of some cutting so … Continue reading →

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Learn to scythe feedback from Nottingham

Posted on July 5, 2019 by stevetomlin

Some lovely feedback from Kevin Tone, Wellbeing Team Co-ordinator at the Wells Rd Centre, Nottingham. Hi Steve We all agreed that it’s the best couple of days training we have had, we loved it and are completely hooked! We spent … Continue reading →

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The Power of Peening

Posted on July 3, 2019 by stevetomlin

Peening is a process of cold-forging and used with an Austrian scythe to thin the blade at the edge so that the bevel angle is finer. It’s a maintenance task that lots of people don’t enjoy or are nervous of … Continue reading →

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