|| Harvest in, sowing crops in a different way and 'the rut'

Seasons of change || The shift in season is creating lovely Autumnal light on the turkey paddock and reflecting off their bronze feathers. We've also enjoyed seeing the beautiful Harvest Moon beaming bright in recent weeks, have you seen it too?

Up the glen, the 'rut', is underway. This is the annual mating season, when the stags compete to be seen as the finest choice for the female herd. As part of this, their roar can be heard echoing around the hills, a distinct sound - like the geese flying overhead - that signifies that Autumn is here.

As with the turkeys, the deer are reared with the natural rhythm of the year and allowing for them to display their natural behaviours and habits of the wild which results in a healthy, robust herd.

Although harvest is in, the work goes on as Grandpa Ewan works away on the grain dryer getting the barley and wheat dry enough for going to the maltsters and distillers. Luckily the timing of the sun and wind this year means the elements have done alot of the job already but there's still a few weeks' work in it to go.

For the year ahead, we are trying something different on the farm. Traditionally when sowing wheat in the autumn we would plough the fields after harvest and then cultivate and sow the crop as a separate second operation. This year to reduce costs, save time and to improve soil health, soil biodiversity and potentially reduce carbon emissions we now sow the wheat seed directly into the previous crop stubble, going over the field just once.

The machine in the photograph lifts up the soil at depth to create a suitable seed bed and tilth for the seed to be slotted into. This form of "direct drilling" is popular in many parts of the world but due to climate and soil types ploughing is still favoured in many parts of Scotland. We will still use the plough at other times of year for other crops but we hope for wheat this will be a new way of doing things.

A new cookery book with inspiring recipes with venison The Venison Kitchen by Anona Gow

A very special safari lodge in Kenya Lewa House - Wild Experience, Wild Landscape, Wild Life