Photo-a-Day  (Saturday, 4th October, 2008)

Where's Ivy Brow

On Wigan Road Aspull, top of the hill coming up from New Springs, the big house on the right hand side was once a pub called The Ivy Brow, or so I was once told.

It was The Ivy Mount pub or so i'm told by mi fatha

Doesn't it say Ivy Brow on the front of the house? I seem to remember that.

happened to drive past earlier, Ian is right - wall plaque on front says 'Ivy Mount'. Anyhow a good photo of the local farmer gerrin is silage in for winter feeding whilst the sun shone, as weather now back to normal. [;(]

Nice photo Harry in what is a dry field considering all the rain we have had. And sorry to correct you ayrefield but Harry is correct when he says HAY making, silage is green fresh grass, hay is cut and dried grass, hence "making hay whilst the sun shines".

Hello Honk I understand what you are saying but, hay bales are not totally enclosed in polythene, the ends are left open so as to ensure ventilation and thus preventing fermentation. Silage or haylage bales are totally enclosed in polythene so as to ensure a fermentation, thus providing a natural preservative within the product. The bales of hay in this photo are being totally enclosed in polythene, that is the reason why I said silage. But 'hey' I don't want to start an argument.

Hello ayrefield, please accept my apology, you are correct the bales are indeed totally enclosed and are definitely for silage. Also, you explanation is spot on.

Best regards Honk.

Thanks ayrefield & Honk I didn't know the difference, I do now, thanks for the info.
H.

is there a reason that some of the bales are wrapped in blue and some are wrapped in black ?

hello kesh no reason as far as I know, probably the last bit of film on the roll that was used up, unless someone knows different. Never seen blue before as black is usually used in the UK because it absorbs heat a lot better which is needed for the fermentation.

Hello Honk, no need to aplogise marra, at this time of the year you would expect the farmers to be gathering in the last of the hay, but there doesn't seem to have been much in the way of hay making weather this summer at all.
Regards, C.

when we did haymaking upstandish in the 60s the bales were oblong and tide with string and when they were wet they were bloody heavy great times them wer