Chris Rooke
After the floods at Beeches
Chris Berry talks with Chris Rooke at Newton on Ouse
» YOU MAY HAVE SEEN A news story on television and all over social media earlier this year about a school bus getting stuck in the floods in January after it tried to get pupils destined for Easingwold School through waist high water. It took place on the road where Chris Rooke’ s Beeches Farm is situated near Newton-on-Ouse after the River Kyle had broken its banks.
Much of Chris’ farm was still under water seven weeks later but thankfully the students were shaken but not stirred by their driver’ s Bond-like exploits.
‘ It was 8ft deep where the bus went through,’ says Chris.‘ Keith, who works for me, had to go on a 22 mile round trip to get to work. Normally his journey is just a couple of miles and takes him a few minutes. It was the worst flooding we’ ve ever suffered and occurred because where the Ouse and Kyle meet is at one of our fields in Newton on Ouse. When the River Ouse rises there are big doors that stop the River Kyle from flowing into the Ouse. When
the doors have been shut previously they have been closed for 2-3 days, but this time they were shut for 14 days while heavy rain came down continuously from Husthwaite and up on Kilburn. The water went above our flood banks and we had some land under water for 7 weeks.’
‘ 50 acres of our land was under water and we lost 20 acres of winter wheat as well as having our beautiful wildflower meadows decimated. We’ re currently getting some help towards restoring it from the government.’ Beeches Farm runs to 320 acres. This year their arable operation, having been somewhat reduced since winter’ s flooding includes 70 acres of JB Diego winter wheat; 40 acres of Cassia winter barley; 25 acres of Propino spring barley and 11 acres of oilseed rape, with 30 acres of potatoes being rented and grown by another farmer. Oats are grown on rotation but
‘ 50 acres of our land was under water and we lost 20 acres of winter wheat as well as having our beautiful wildflower meadows decimated’
50 Aug / Sep 2016 www. farmers-mart. co. uk