Pig farming: How Was a Farm Run 400 Years Ago? The BBC TV Series "Tales from the Green Valley" Shows How

How was a farm run in Britain 400 years ago? That's the key question behind a 12-part BBC documentary series, Tales From the Green Valley.As the start of a new agricultural year loomed in the autumn of 2003, five specialists attempted to turn back the clock to find out. They had to get to grips with a remarkable farm on the Welsh borders, restored to how it would have been in 1620, the reign of King James I. For the previous 17 years an historical group had worked to restore the site - farmhouse and outbuildings put up using periods materials, orchards planted with fruit trees from the era, and contemporary crop varieties sown. Now a team of archaeologists and historians took on the challenge of running it for a full calendar year (each programme follows one month), using only tools and materials available in the 17th century.It was my job to film them trying to turn theory into practice. From the outset I knew what I didn't want to do, which was to make another reality series, where the concerns would be 'could they survive without shampoo?' What I did want to make, were programmes that delved as deeply as possible into the social history of the time, and that highlighted the experts battling with period technology rather than with each other.Things didn't start simply. To plough the main field in September, we brought in a pair of English longhorn oxen, Arthur and Lancelot, all the way from Yorkshire. They're one of the only working pairs left in the country. Although horses are much faster than oxen, they are more expensive to feed and maintain (they need shoes for a start), and weren't traditionally eaten in this country, so period farming manuals recommended against using them."If any sorance [injury] come to...an ox, and he wax old...then he is man's meat...the horse, when he dieth, is but carrion. And therefore me thinketh, all things considered, the plough of oxen is much more profitable than the plough of horses." The Book of Husbandry William Fitzherbert 1534As far as possible we tried to follow contemporary agricultural texts. They were a great starting point but often left out vital bits of information, probably considered obvious at the time. That's where practice came in and history met reality. We had a replica plough built according to period descriptions and illustrations, but from the outset the team had problems making it work.The ground was pretty hard, and they couldn't get the plough to bite, it just skimmed the surface. When they finally did dig it in, there was a loud crack as the plough buckled under pressure. A few hasty repairs and they set to work again, finally producing their first glorious furrow. It wasn't long before they ran into more difficulties as the field stubble clogged up between the coulter (the sharp iron pin that cuts the surface) and the ploughshare (the blade that divides the earth). It was a foretaste of how the whole year ahead would turn out, an enthusiastic first attempt then back to the drawing board. By adjusting the coulter and adding more weight to the plough, their method seemed to click, and the team's faces broke into big smiles. Suddenly furrow mounted upon furrow. They were wonky, a bit shallow in places, and slow in coming - since an acre is the amount of land an oxen team is meant to be able to plough in a day, they were seriously behind schedule - but they felt like success.Technique was perhaps the main watchword through the year. For most of the specialists it was the first time they had actually got their hands on period tools. They had read about them and knew the theory, but putting them into practice was something altogether different - whether it be digging with one of the heavy wooden spades, using a breastplough, or threshing grain with a flail. I can remember the magical moments when Stuart, Alex, Fonz, Ruth, or Chloe stopped using brute force and let a tool do its job.One of my favourites was when Peter 'Fonz' Ginn was trying to winnow the chaff from the wheat. He was using a replica winnowing basket, a bit like a large wicker plate raised on three sides. The idea is to swirl the material around and give it a flick, allowing any breeze to blow off the light chaff. Unfortunately his grain started off flying all over the yard. Only after hours of practice, and with aching arms, did he crack it. His action became light, fluid, and easy and his satisfaction was obvious.Doing everything manually, without modern machinery, we all became painfully aware how much time was needed just to complete the most mundane of tasks - be it sowing wheat by hand, plucking pigeons, or building a dry stone wall. Winnowing was just one in a long line of processes required to make bread, and as Fonz poured his now clean grain into a sack, we realised that a farmer 400 years ago had to be a highly talented jack of all trades simply to get by.It wasn't just the farmer who had to be multi-skilled. I was surprised to learn about the vital importance of the farmer's wife. Theirs was an essential partnership. Without a wife, operating a farm was nigh on impossible. Period records show how a farmer who had been widowed, usually had another woman by his side in next to no time. It was a simple matter of time, labour, and economics. From running the dairy, brewing the beer, and managing the essential kitchen garden, the housewife was certainly no lady of leisure. Being the farm doctor was another of her roles. Since professional medicine was so expensive, she looked after the household's health with homemade salves, pills, and brews made from herbs and plants from the garden.And for you, M. Apothecary, alas, I look not once in seven year in your shop...but for myself, if I be ill...I take kitchen physic; I make my wife my doctor and my garden my apothecary's shop. Robert Greene, A Quip for an Upstart Courtier 1592.Of course, nothing went to waste on a 17th century farm. The waste product from one process became the fuel for another. Ashes from the fire were used to make lye, the period equivalent of Persil, a homemade washing liquid to do the laundry. Any leftover food went to the pigs, the perfect 'green' disposal unit. Animal waste as today was spread on the fields, even human waste was reused. Human faeces composted in a privy were used as fertiliser, and a household's urine was stored to make ammonia, an excellent stain remover for laundry. In fact urine was collected on a massive scale; piss-pots were placed outside pubs and the urine used to make saltpeter, a vital ingredient in making gunpowder, a burgeoning industry at the time. At a time when 'organic' and 'recycling' are key environmental issues, it's fascinating to take a step back and learn some lessons from our past.We filmed through torrential rain, snow storms, and blazing sunshine, watching the farm change through the seasons. Away from our cosseted urban lives it became apparent how much the farmer then and now is governed by the elements. Not just short term, but year after year, from the September ploughing to the August harvest, the farmer's life is mapped out by the natural cycle. For a farmer in 1620, planning, ingenuity, and aptitude were essential for survival. Watching our experts' hard graft, we wondered how long any modern people would survive if they found themselves in this environment. Although the Valley team came in from the fields sweating, bruised, and exhausted, they felt an overwhelming sense of pride in what they had achieved, a closeness to nature, and a very different degree of satisfaction from a job divorced from the soil. [EXTRACT] What was a farm in Britain 400 years ago? That's the key question behind a 12-part documentary series for the BBC, Tales of the Green Valley.As the beginning of a new agricultural year came in the fall of 2003, five specialists tried to turn back the clock to find out. They had to get to grips with a remarkable farm on the border with Wales, which would have been restored in 1620, the reign of James I. During the past 17 years a historical group had worked to restore the site - and cottage units support the use of materials periods, gardens with fruit trees of the time, and current varieties are sown crops. Now a team of archaeologists and historians accepted the challenge to run for a full calendar year (each program follows a month), using only tools and materials available in the century. It 17 was my job to make movie about the theory in practice. From the beginning I knew what I wanted to do, he would do another reality series, where concerns' could not survive without shampoo? What I wanted to do, are programs that delved deeply as possible into the social history of the time, and highlighted the struggle with technology experts period rather than with each other.Things not just start. To plow the main camp in September, we brought a couple of longhorn steers English, Arthur and Lancelot, all the way from Yorkshire. They are only a few pairs left in the country. Although horses are much faster than oxen, which are more expensive to feed and maintain (you need shoes to begin with), and is traditionally eaten in this country, so the manual cultivation period is recommended not to use them. "If any sorance [injury] reached an ox ... And the old wax ... then it is the flesh of man ... the horse, when I die, no more than carrion. And so I think, ultimately, the oxen plow is much more profitable than the plow horses. "The Book of Husbandry William Fitzherbert 1534As far as possible we have tried to follow the agricultural contemporary texts. It was a great starting point, but often left bits of vital information, probably considered obvious at that time. That is where practice occurred in the history and reality met. We had a replica built plow according to the descriptions and illustrations period, but from the beginning the team had problems making it work.The soil was very hard, and could not get the plow to bite, only scratched the surface. When they finally did dig into it, there was a loud crack, like the plow yielded to the pressure. A few hasty repairs and set to work again, finally, the production of their first glorious grooves. It was not long before he met with more difficulties, as the stubble field between the gate obstructed (iron pin sharp cutting surface) and the ploughshare (the blade that divides the earth). It was a foretaste of how the whole year ahead of his time outside, a first attempt of enthusiasm then back to the drawing board. By adjusting the fence and adding more weight to the plow, the method seemed to click, and the faces of the team broke into a grin. Suddenly mounted groove groove. Were wonky, a bit shallow in some places and slow in coming - from an acre is the amount of land means a team of oxen to plow in a day, were far behind - but I felt like it was perhaps success.Technique The main slogan throughout the year. For most of the experts was the first time we actually have in their hands the tools of the period. They had read about them and knew the theory, but its implementation was something completely different - whether the excavation with a heavy wooden paddles with a breastplough, or threshing grain with a whip. I can remember the magical moments when Stuart, Alex, Fonz, Ruth, and Chloe stopped using brute force and a tool do job.One of my favorites was when Ginn "Fonz" Peter was trying to winnow the chaff from the wheat. I was using a winnowing basket reply, a bit like a wicker plate raised on three sides. The idea is to shake the material around and give it a spin, allowing any light breeze blowing straw. Unfortunately, its grain began flying around the yard. Only after hours of practice, and with aching arms, made him crack. His action became light, fluid and easy and satisfaction was evident. Doing everything by hand, without modern machinery, all became painfully aware of how much time is needed just to complete the most mundane of tasks - whether sowing wheat by hand, plucking pigeons, or the construction of a retaining wall dry stone. Throwing was one in a long list of processes required to make bread, and as Fonz poured his now clean grain in a bag, we realized that a farmer 400 years ago had to be a cat of great talent of all trades just to survive. It was not just the farmer who had to be versatile. I was surprised to learn about the vital importance of the farmer's wife. Theirs was a partnership that is needed. Without a wife, who operates a farm was almost impossible. Period records show how a widowed farmer who had generally had another woman at his side in no time. It was a simple matter of time, work and finances. The implementation of the dairy, brewing beer, and management of the orchard essence, the housewife was certainly not lady of leisure. As Dr farm was another of his papers. From a medical professional was so expensive, she looked after the health of the family with homemade ointments, pills and concoctions of herbs and plants garden.And for you, Mr. Apothecary, unfortunately, do not look every once in seven years in his workshop ... but for me, if I get sick ... I take physical kitchen, I make my wife to my doctor and my garden, my apothecary shop. Robert Greene, a joke for an upstart courtier 1592.Of course, nothing was wasted on a farm in the 17th century. The waste product of a process became the fuel for another. The ashes of the fire were used to make lye, the equivalent period of Persil, a household detergent to wash clothes. Any food left over was to the pigs, the perfect "green" waste. Animal waste as now extended into the fields, including human waste was reused. Composted human waste in a latrine is used as fertilizer, and a home urine is stored for ammonia, a stain remover for an excellent laundry service. In fact, urine was collected on a massive scale, piss-pots were placed outside the pubs and urine used to make saltpeter, a vital ingredient in the manufacture of gunpowder, a booming industry at the time. At a time when "organic" and "recycling" are the main environmental issues, it is fascinating to step back and learn some lessons from our past. We shot through the torrential rain, blizzards, and the hot sun watching the farm change through the seasons. Far from our coddled urban lives became clear how much the farmer then and now is governed by the elements. Not only the short term, but year after year, from September to plow the August harvest, the farmer's life is traced by the natural cycle. For a farmer in 1620, planning, ingenuity and skill are essential for survival. Viewing hard graft of our experts, we wonder how long any modern person could survive if they are in this environment. Although the Valley team came from the fields of sweating, bruised and exhausted, he felt an overwhelming sense of pride in their achievements, a closeness to nature, and a very different degree of satisfaction of a job separate from the land.