We asked our readers to send in their best pictures on the theme of “agriculture”. Here is a selection of the photographs we received from around the world.
Robert David
Robert David sent in this picture of a flock of gulls following a tractor.
Bobby Ford
Bobby Ford: “A farmer waiting his turn to show his classic tractor at a the Welland Steam & Country Rally.”
Olesia Komarova
Olesia Komarova: “I climbed up the Giant Hill at Cerne Abbas to do a few sketches, when it turned out nature was as interested in me as I in nature.”
John Uttley
John Uttley: “Geese on their early morning walk from the farm in Leicestershire to their field where they will stay until dusk, and then walk back to the farm for the night. This is a daily occurrence for them and they know their way and which gateway to turn into.”
Zuzana Hájková
Zuzana Hájková: “This photo I took at a farmer’s market in Prague. I admired the beautiful orange colour of these yummy carrots.”
Marianne Wever
Marianne Wever: “Sheep farmers are taking care of their sheep and lambs.”
Duncan Holmes
Duncan Holmes: “Celeriac, fennel, courgette, quince and red onions. Without agriculture we would just have amorphous green stuff, not all this colourful variety.”
John Hughes
John Hughes: “Curious cow in a field on the Caithness coast near John O’Groats.”
Martha Padovani
Martha Padovani sent in this picture of a farmer in Italy.
Clare Keegan
Clare Keegan: “Nature’s gold.”
Mark James Andrews
Mark James Andrews: “Lone sheep trying to join my flock in the Yorkshire Dales.”
Sean Corlett
Sean Corlett: “I got lucky with this shot of a young lamb jumping over its mother.”
Tracey Godsmark
Tracey Godsmark: “Just waiting for the driver! Horses pulling an early plough. Ploughing match, West Berkshire.”
Diane Patrick
Diane Patrick: “Out on a spring dog walk, I found myself walking across the end of this beautifully ploughed field. I love the contrast of colours.”
Luke Jones
Luke Jones: “Diana Houlton “calling” her cattle on the Coed Mawr smallholding in South Wales. “Calling” or “coaxing” is the now largely forgotten traditional practice of building trust with livestock to single-handedly manage them with minimal stress to the animals.”
Sally Renner
Sally Renner: “Drilling this year has been a real challenge, and my husband at one point wasn’t convinced we would manage to get any crops in the ground at all, which would be devastating. Thankfully, this didn’t come true and all the fields were drilled in the end, after many tractor hours and sleepless nights.”
Nathan Sowerby
Nathan Sowerby: “I saw this scarecrow doing its job near Eastrington, East Yorkshire, and thought this piece of traditional “tech” was in stark contrast to the wind turbine behind it – they seem to be facing away from each other in disgust.”
Anna Archinger
Anna Archinger: “The Danish Jutland Horse is a rare breed – with only around 800 horses remaining worldwide – which used to play a significant role in Danish agriculture. Today, a handful of breeders are fighting to preserve the breed, but numbers are decreasing.”
Nicola King
Nicola King: “I am privileged to live in one of the only areas in the country where we still have working hop farms, and regularly see the workers training the hops up the trellises.”
Paul Micallef
Paul Micallef: “It’s amazing to see how much agriculture is still performed manually around the world. These workers were cultivating young crops in flooded paddy fields near Hoi An, Vietnam, working long days in searing temperatures.”
Julie Charles
Julie Charles: “All is safely gathered in as a tractor crosses the bridge over the River Usk at Brecon, Mid-Wales.”
Sharon Alvey-Ball
Sharon Alvey-Ball: “The hazy Richmond Ranges in Marlborough, on New Zealand’s South Island, are a lovely backdrop to these clambering sheep.”
Robert David
Bobby Ford
Olesia Komarova
John Uttley
Zuzana Hájková
Marianne Wever
Duncan Holmes
John Hughes
Martha Padovani
Clare Keegan
Mark James Andrews
Sean Corlett
Tracey Godsmark
Diane Patrick
Luke Jones
Sally Renner
Nathan Sowerby
Anna Archinger
Nicola King
Paul Micallef
Julie Charles
Sharon Alvey-Ball