January 31st.

Wednesday January 31st. 1923

Fine
At home
E. Mayes Clearing up Stackyard & helping me to dress Barley & Peas
J. Howe trimming road fence by Back field


Champion Beast at London Smithfield Show

1872 James Bruce Aberdeen-Angus-Steer

January 30th.

Tuesday January 30th. 1923

Fine
At home
E. Mayes Clearing up in Stackyard

Champion Beast at Smithfield Show

1871 Joseph Stratton Shorthorn Ox

January 29th.

Monday January 29th. 1923

Fine
At home
Threshing, Barley 41 Co, Beans 11 Co, Oats 57 Coomb
E. Mayes threshing
J. Howe 1 day
J. Friston 1 day at 1 / 3 Pr Sc
F. Pearl 1 ..

January 28th.

Sunday January 28th. 1923

Fine
All at home

From "Farm Work for the Year"
Exceptional Crops: Osiers may be planted, the sets being 2 or 3 feet long, off three-year-old shoots; fix them 1 foot deep in the ground, 2 feet apart, in rows at 8 feet intervals. Water meadows are "drowned" at intervals with periods of rest. - Marketing includes sales of wheat and other grain, straw, hay, and potatoes; also sales of fat cattle, sheep, pigs, milk etc.

January 27th.

Saturday January 27th. 1923

Fine
At home
E. Mayes cleaning up in Stackyard.
F. Reynolds at home

Memoranda
Jan. 27th.
E. Mayes full week 30 / 0
F. Reynolds ---------
Calf died 26th. which was bought on the 10th. at Scots, Bury for 67 / 6

January 26th.

Friday January 26th. 1923

Fine
At home
E. Mayes finish Carting muck out of Barn & start clearing up Stackyard
F. Reynolds at home

from "Agricultural Review of the Year 1922"
Mixed Corn yielded 32.9 bushels per acre, and the total production of 509,000 quarters is some 60,000 quarters less than last year.

January 24th.

Wednesday January 24th. 1923

Fine
At home
E. Mayes Carting muck on to Hill
F. Reynolds at home

January 23rd.

Tuesday January 23rd. 1923

Fine
At home
E. Mayes Carting muck on to Hill.
F. Reynolds at home

January 22nd

Monday January 22nd. 1923

Fine
At home
E. Mayes finish Ploughing for Peas
Mr. Kerry & myself putting top on Horse shed
F. Reynolds at home

January 21st.

Sunday January 21st. 1923

Fine
All at home

British Wool Prices
(Printed in diary)
Price per lb. for Washed Hogg Wool

Breed of Sheep 1914 -1921
Lincoln 11 3/4 d (1914) 18 1/8 d (1915) 19 d (1918) 23 1/2 d (1919) 21 d (1920) 6 3/4 d (1921)
Southdown 14 3/4 d (1914) 21 5/8 d (1915) 23 d (1918) 44 d (1919) 52 1/2 d (1920) 14 1/2 d (1921)
Hampshire 14 1/2 d (1914) 21 5/8 d (1915) 23 d (1918) 40 1/4 d (1919) 51 3/4 d (1920) 13 d (1921)
Shropshire 14 3/4 d (1914) 21 5/8 d (1915) 23 d (1918) 44 3/4 d (1919) 47 d (1920) 12 d (1921)
Half-bred 13 1/2 d (1914) 20 3/8 d (1915) 21 1/4 d (1918) 36 1/2 d (1919) 38 1/4 d (1920) 9 1/2 d (1921)

January 20th.

Saturday January 20th. 1923

Fine
At home
E. Mayes Ploughing for Peas
F. Reynolds at home
myself getting Beet home & littering

Memoranda
Jan. 20th.
E. Mayes full week 30/0
F. Reynolds ______

January 19th.

Friday January 19th. 1923

Fine
At home
E. Mayes ploughing for Peas
F. Reynolds at home
myself and Mr. Kerry putting up horse shed


Champion Beast at London Smithfield Show
1870 Thomas Pulver Shorthorn Ox

January 18th

Thursday January 18th. 1923

Showerey (sic)
At home
E. Mayes jobbing about in morning
Ploughing for Peas in the afternoon
F. Reynolds at home
myself take 3 Combs of Oats & 3 Combs of beans to Mr. Harress.
bring 9 Galv Sheets back

January 17th.

Wednesday January 17th. 1923


Fine
At home
E. Mayes Ploughing for Peas
F. Reynolds at home
Mr. Kerry helping me with horse shed

January 16th.

Tuesday January 16th. 1923

Fine
At home
E. Mayes Ploughing for Peas in the morning, help me to put post in for horse shed in the afternoon
F. Reynolds at home

January 15th.

Monday January 15th. 1923

Fine
At home
E. Mayes Ploughing for Peas
F. Reynolds at home

from "Champion Beast at London Smithfield Show" printed in diary

A Piece of Plate value £105 to Exhibitor of the best BEAST in the Annual Show at Islington (sic)

1869 Earl of Aylesford Shorthorn Steer

January 14th.

Sunday January 14th. 1923

Fine
At home


from "Agricultural Review of the Year"
The yield per acre of oats, 34.4 bushels, is 4 bushels per acre below the ten-years average. This yield per acre is also slightly below the lowest previously recorded. Yields were relatively the worst in Norfolk, Shropshire, Derby and Stafford, but in hardly any counties were they up to average. The total production of 9,281,000 quarters is the smallest since 1912, 750,000 quarters less than in 1921.

January 13th.

Saturday January 13th. 1923

Fine
At home
E. Mayes Ploughing for Peas
Myself fetch wood from Stowmarket
Brought 4 Pieces to Mr. Harress
2 x 21 ft
1 x 22 ft
1 x 12 ft
F. Reynolds at home


Memoranda
Jan. 13th.
E. Mayes full week 30/0
F. Reynolds ----------

January 12th.

Friday January 12th. 1923

Fine
At home
E. Mayes Ploughing for Peas
F. Reynolds at home

January 11th.

Thursday January 11th. 1923

Fine
Go to Stow Buy Wood 18/0
E. Mayes Carting muck out of Horse yard
F. Reynolds at home


Daisy Calved H. Calf

January 10th.

Wednesday January 10th. 1923

Fine
Go to Bury. Buy one calf 67/0
E. Mayes Carting manure out of horse yard
F. Reynolds at home


from "Agricultural Review of the Year 1922"
The total production of barley 5,060,000 quarters, is 250,000 quarters less than last year and, apart from 1915, is the smallest recorded since official returns were first collected in 1885. The yield per acre is estimated at 29.7 bushels, or practically the same as in 1921, and about 1 1/4 bushels per acre below average. Counties in which fen land predominates secured better crops than usual, but under-average yields were the rule in practically all other counties.

January 9th.

Tuesday January 9th. 1923

Showerey (sic)
At home
E. Mayes Carting muck out of Horse yard.
F. Reynolds at home

From "Agricultural Review of the Year 1922":
Wheat is the only corn crop to give an over average yield, the yield per acre being estimated at 31.1 bushels, or nearly half a bushel above the average of the ten years 1912 - 1921, but more than four bushels below the record crop of last year. Most eastern counties obtained appreciably heavier yields than usual, Norfolk being an outstanding exception. The total production is etsimated at 7,649,000 quarters, or 1,070,000 quarters less than in 1921, but 700,000 quarters greater than the pre-war average.

January 8th.

Monday January 8th. 1923

Showerey (sic)
At home
E. Mayes clearing up boulder in Stackyard
F. Reynolds at home


From "Farm Work for the Year"
Hop Garden: The work is carting dung on to the field. Collecting old bine and carting it into yards for litter. moving the poles, etc, re-sharpening them, and setting them up in conical piles for use when needed. Grubbing old abandoned gardens. Attending to plantation for hop poles.

January 7th.

Sunday January 7th.

Wet
All at home

from Farm Work for the Year
Stock Farm: There is still generally more milk from long-calved cows than from the few already come to the pail. The dairy milk is thus confined to butter making. Feeding is regulated by the produce required or obtained from the cow. When milk-selling prevails the cow receives grains, Indian meal, and oil cake along with mangels, or carrots, or parsnips, with hay. Steers or down calvers receive chaff of hay and straw with a few turnips and mangel-wurzels. Cows as they calve sometimes get steamed roots mashed up with their straw and hay chaff. They get better food as their produce comes on and increases. Barley, sprouted and given as green malt, is wholesome food. Bean meal and Indian corn meal are a good mixture.

January 6th.

Saturday January 6th. 1923

Fine
At home
E. Mayes F. Reynolds Ploughing for Peas

Memoranda
Jan. 6th.
E. Mayes full week 30/0
F. Reynolds 4 1/2 days 19/0

January 5th. 1923

Friday January 5th. 1923

Frosty
At home
E. Mayes Ploughing for Peas.
F. Reynolds at home in the morning
Ploughing for Peas in the afternoon

from "Agricultural Review of the Year 1922", printed in the diary

The season of 1922 proved another disastrous one for the grain growing farmer. The corn crops for the year are according to the Ministry of Agriculture less favourable both as regards yield per acre and condition and quality of the grain. The unsatisfactory yields are due mainly to the spring drought, although the cold, wet summer also had a bad effect. Autumn-sown crops came through the winter fairly well, in spite of a rather severe check occasioned by cold weather in March and April, which also caused spring corn to germinate slowly. Spring crops where sown late, suffered most from the dry weather, and frequently came up thin plants, while in some districts frit fly and wireworm damaged the oats severely. Crops ripened slowly and unevenly, and, with unfavourable weather at harvest, the ingathering was very protracted, and a fair proportion of the crops was harvested in rather damp condition. Wheat, however, is of very fair quality, and winter oats are generally satisfactory, but spring oats are of inferior quality, the grain being light. Much barley is discoloured, with a poor sample where there were two growths, and the proportion fit for malting is less than usaul. (sic)

January 4th.

Thursday January 4th. 1923

Fine
Go to Stow
E. Mayes F. Reynolds finish Rattlesden meadow


from Farm Work for the Year
January:
Live Stock:
Feeding sheep in field on swedes, or scattered over the pastures. Fattening cattle in boxes or in feeding stalls and houses or yard, or in fields with open sheds.

January 3rd.

Wednesday January 3rd. 1923

Fine
Go to Bury buy two Calves 32/6 7/6
E. Mayes F. Reynolds Ploughing in Rattlesden meadow

from "Farm Work for the Year" printed in diary:
January:
Arable land: Finishing stubble ploughing. Carting manure from yards and boxes, either on stubble to be ploughed in at once or to the manure heap, for which a bed of earth should have been prepared. Road mending. Grubbing, mending and making fences. Carting lime: digging and spreading marl. Threshing corn of all kinds for market, or as straw is needed for use or sale. Executing works of drainage, road-making, building.

January 2nd. 1923

Tuesday January 2nd. 1923

Showerey (sic)
At home
E. Mayes ploughing in Rattlesden meadow.
F. Reynolds at home.

January 1st. 1923

This is the actual diary of an East Anglian farmer, working a mixed arable and livestock farm.

Monday January 1st.
Fine
At home
E. Mayes F. Reynolds ploughing in Rattlesden meadow