Open Farm Sunday is coming up and as part of the activity at the Ecocentre we are putting on a Scarecrow Competition.

More details are now available on the new Scarecrows page. We also have a new Scarecrow History page and a new Competition page.

There are classes for schools, youth groups and individuals, including groups and individuals with learning difficulties. You can either enter physically or send us in a photograph for the photo competition – so all of you in America and the Antipodes have no excuse for not nagging  children, friends and neighbouring teachers into participating.

Prizes will be as miserly as I can get away with, because that’s the sort of man I am, Prizes in the Spoon competition are likely to be better because Julia is organising them.

We already have one entry ready from Quercus Community, though there’s no point in us winning as we don’t want a free trip to the farm, we’re already here. If you look at it closely you may notice on other pages that the jockey’s head and arms are visible as parts of other scarecrows on last year. That accounts for the bloodstains you may have noticed…

I’m not actually sure whether recycling old scarecrows is easier than building new ones but it is a satisfying way to go. Take Sid, for instance. He’s the one on the right in this picture. He’s been on a sponsored walk (though he actually rode on Dave’s wheelchair) and donated his head to several bodies over the last four years. The overalls on the other scarecrow have seen similar multiple use, though I’m not sure Sid has ever worn overalls. (Those of you thinking “That scarecrow on the left looks uncommonly like local farmer David Rose” are right by the way – we are no respecters of person once the building urge strikes).