Country diary: A little madness contained in the crop | Kate Blincoe

Caistor St Edmund, Norfolk: This nodule of ergot looks innocuous, but it contains a powerful substance that isn't to be messed withHarvest is complete. It's a smaller, quieter affair than when this farm grew acres of wheat and barley. Now, instead of grain, new hay fills the barn ready for the horses. The more unusual crops of yellow rattle and foxglove seeds are being sieved by hand.The nearby meadow offers the next harvest of the year, but this one does not require humans. Here, a mix of seeds including teasels, cereals and sunflowers will instead be foraged by birds as the days shorten. Continue reading...