Northern scythe festival 2021

Posted on July 5, 2021 by stevetomlin

Congratultions to Peter Backwell and Sarah Robinson, champions of this year’s Northern Scythe Festival mowing competition. The event took place in the beautiful meadows of Bell Sykes farm which Peter farms and is the donor meadow for many other meadows under a Forest of Bowland AONB project managed by Sarah so they are worthy champions on many levels.

Like many of the competitors, Peter and Sarah spent the morning peening their scythe blades ready for racing. Sarah is well used to working with the peening jig and I was happy to give her some help and instruction on freehand peening the edge of the blade to get an extra level of sharpness. I am teaching a peening workshop at Bell Sykes on 10th Oct 2021 if you’d like to come and learn these skills yourself – email me for details.

Racing really isn’t my thing as I always get too nervous so I was pretty disappointed by my own efforts but it’s always exciting to watch and I managed to redeem myself  a little by being part of the winning group in the team competition.

Mainly though, it was a chance to meet up with friends and enjoy being out in the beautiful meadow, working together and talking about our passion for scythes and meadows.

 

 

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National Meadow Day 2021 scythe training

Posted on July 5, 2021 by stevetomlin

I spent National Meadow Day 2021 in south Cumbria teaching a group some peening and scything improvers skills during a course organised by Arnside & Silverdale AONB and Plantlife. Several of the group had previously attended my Learn to Scythe course so it was great to see them again and know that they’re still enjoying working with the scythe.
We focussed the morning of peening the scythe blade to refine the edge for optimum sharpness. Recently I’ve been showing my students how, rather than a simple maintenance operation, peening is used to improve the cutting of their scythe for even easier cutting.
If you’d like to learn to peen your scythe for super sharpness, I am leading a peening workshop at Slaidburn in Lancashire on 8th Oct 2021 – please email me for details.

After lots of hammering and sharpening of the edge, we went out into the meadow and cut a huge amount of grass. Cumbria Wildlife Trust and Lesley, the meadow owner, are hoping to form a scything group to assist each other with work in the future – if you’re interested, you can contact Helen Rawlinson

 

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Spoon carving workshop at Harrogate

Posted on July 5, 2021 by stevetomlin

What could be nicer than spending a day in the woods, making something and chatting with lovely people in between breaks for coffee and homemade food? My most recent spoon carving workshop was hosted by Kith Homestead, just outside Harrogate who have a beautiful setting and are wizards with a dutch oven!

We started the day with a fresh silver birch log and, using axes and knives the group turned it into a fabulous set of cooking spoons while learning the safe and effective skills to carve and create.

A wonderful setting with wonderful conversation, people and spoons. If you’d like to join me and learn to carve your own unique wooden spoon, visit my courses page or sign up to my newsletter for future dates.

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Scythe training in Cumbria for wildflower plantsman

Posted on July 5, 2021 by stevetomlin

Martin contacted me wanting to learn to scythe at his site in Cumbria where he has started to grow wildflower meadow plants in a nursery at his home. Meaburn Wildflowers is based up in Dufton where Martin has a beautiful nursery setup along with several acres of meadow in the family.

We spent a brilliant day together while Martin learned to mow, honing and peening the scythe blade for super sharpness and easy cutting. This will allow him to not only manage his own meadows but also advise his wild flower customers about the benefits and use of the scythe for managing meadows.

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York Gate Garden scything course

Posted on July 1, 2021 by stevetomlin

I’ve been in Leeds teaching the team of gardeners at York Gate Garden how to scythe in their wildflower meadow.

I’d never heard of the garden but it’s a beautiful, hidden gem in the north of Leeds and absolutely immaculate which is testiment to the passion and expertise of the gardeners and volunteers. Like the formal garden, the wildflower meadow was looking fantastic with a healthy crop of yellow rattle well-established and the first orchids showing their heads.

I was there for two full days of training meaning we had plenty of time to look at sharpening and mowing as well as for the team to peen their own blades which they were keen to do once I’d demonstrated how much better they would cut afterwards.

Brilliant days working with terrific guys who really worked hard and developed their skills so they were all mowing and peening well. I look forward to seeing how the meadow develops under their care, it’s sure to be stunning in the future.

 

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Learn to Scythe in Yorkshire – extra date for 2021

Posted on June 30, 2021 by stevetomlin

Learn to scythe course

Due to demand, I have added an additional Learn to Scythe course date for 12th August 2021. Based at Broadrake bunkhouse in the Yorkshire Dales with views of Ingleborough and the Ribblehead Viaduct, come and learn to use a scythe for managing your wildflower meadow or orchard as well as many other circumstances.

To book your place, please email stevetomlin8@gmail.com

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Spoon carving workshop in Yorkshire Dales

Posted on June 7, 2021 by stevetomlin

A fantastic afternoon yesterday in Wensleydale, Yorkshire teaching some spoon carving skills to a lovely group of people. The event was organised by Emma’s Dale who wanted just a short course for a group to follow a morning of mindfulness. So I axed out a set of cooking spoon blanks and we spent a few hours together looking at different techniques using the Mora carving and hook knife to finish them off. A beautiful location, great carving, delicious cake and lots of laughter – a perfect way to spend time together.

 

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Belbroughton scythe factory film

Posted on June 5, 2021 by stevetomlin

Here’s a fantastic short film about the Belbroughton scythe works which made scythes for the Nash company. I visited the village in 2012 and sadly there is little left of the works but lots of evidence of its importance in the form of street names, the local pub and decorative ironwork around the village.

https://player.bfi.org.uk/free/film/watch-belbroughton-forge-1965-online

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Scything a community orchard in Manchester

Posted on May 31, 2021 by stevetomlin

What  better way to spend a sunny bank holiday than going out to cut the grass? I offered to go and mow a community orchard in Levenshulme, Manchester as the regular volunteers were finding it difficult to cope with the long grass using strimmers and lawnmowers. These are ideal conditions for a scythe and it was in surprisingly good condition and a pleasure to cut.

People often tend to think of scything as a purely rural thing but it is ideally suited to the city too: quiet, safe and capable of working in small areas. We’ll let the cuttings dry for a few days before raking them off and then wait to see what comes up later in the year. Hopefully, as we reduce the fertility of the soil, there’ll be less of the coarse grasses and more wild flowers and grasses.

If you’re involved with a community orchard or meadow, I can come to teach a bespoke course for your group at your site. Details of group courses, private tuition and my regular courses are all on my Learn to Scythe page or email me steve[at]stevetomlincrafts.co.uk

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Shropshire Hills Hay Meadow Festival 2021

Posted on May 26, 2021 by stevetomlin

The Shropshire Hills Hay Meadow Festival 2021 is taking place on Saturday 24th July at the Discovery centre, Craven Arms. Celebrating Wildflower Meadows and their Wealth of Wildlife.

  • Scything competitions/ have a go.
  • Wildlife discovery activities
  • Rural arts and crafts
  • Eco talk tent
  • Music, merriment and refreshments

Advanced tickets available in advance from the Discovery Centre. Please call: 01588 676060 https://www.shropshirehillsdiscoverycentre.co.uk/

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