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On a breezy mid-June morning at High Ash Farm, Chris Skinner and Matthew Gudgin stand among towering foxgloves in dappled woodland — spectacular spikes of purple, pink and white, buzzing with bumblebees. Chris explains their biennial life cycle, vast seed production, and the important heart medicine (digitalis) derived from them.
Nearby, a sobering discovery: the fresh remains of a little owl, plucked by a peregrine falcon near a busy road — a stark reminder of the raw predator-prey balance on the farm. They then admire a vibrant stand of sainfoin (wholesome hay) in the wildflower field, its pink blooms alive with bees and its deep roots fixing nitrogen in the light soil.
Listener letters add warmth: a rescued spotted turtle dove in Tasmania, sweet cicely’s aniseed burst, and more.
This episode captures high summer’s beauty and its sometimes brutal realities — ideal for savouring the tall foxglove spires, nitrogen-rich meadows, and the unfiltered dramas of life at High Ash Farm.
https://www.buzzsprout.com/2432378/episodes/19360959-episode-2-78-foxglove-spires-and-peregrine-kills.mp3?download=true
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Chris@highashfarm.com
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