What an end to the week! The line on our barograph has continued to follow an unwavering route, but Thursday night proved that even in its becalmed state the weather can suddenly change.

The lightning and thunder plunged us into darkness so many times that we resorted to candle light for a few hours, rather than resetting the trip switch.

It was, however, the torrential rain that amazed us. We measured 17 mm in the first three hours, followed by a further 20 mm overnight. Stowell Farm measured a staggering total of 77mm.

When I called in to see Melissa the following afternoon, I was sad to hear three ewes had been killed by lightning. I was also amazed to see the water still flowing like a river along the roads and out of the fields. The force of the water was so powerful it carried hedge trimmings in one field along with it, smashing through a fence at the other end.

Kevin does not yet know if the oilseed rape, recently germinated, has been uprooted or if any of the planted winter barley seeds have been washed out of the rows.

It was an unbelievable sight. Kevin had also prepared seed beds for winter wheat, but may now have to go through the ground once again, when dry enough, to lift the panned-down soil prior to planting.

On Manor Farm, prior to the storm, we managed to harvest our forage maize. The contractors arrived first thing Tuesday morning, with a forage harvester accompanied by four or five tractors and trailers (I was never quite sure of the exact number).

Our 50 acres of maize was cut and chopped, during which time an innoculant of bacteria was added to encourage the right fermentation process to begin. It was then transported back to the farm, where it was put into a large, plastic-lined silage clamp. It was continually compacted during the ensiling, to exclude the air, then covered with a plastic sheet weighed down with large round bales of straw.

We now have a full clamp of maize, which should produce good quality forage for the cows. It made a real change to be able to complete maize harvest without bringing any mud onto the roads.

Early in the week I accompanied Melissa to check some of the sheep. This has to be done every day, always hoping that none have got out of their field, become sick, lame or caught up in brambles. We wandered through all the sheep currently grazing Bowood, using a vehicle to travel from one area to the next. We had to walk to all corners of each field, as it can be difficult to see a distressed sheep from even a short distance if the fields are not flat.

We did find one with its head stuck through one of the fences, but it managed to release itself when we approached. There were a few lame sheep in one field, which were examined and treated the following day.

We also met Mark, who was doing some topping, and with his help – plus two of the collies we brought with us – moved one of the groups of sheep onto fresh pasture. Doing this was not problem-free as the leading sheep took the rest of the flock a little off-course, but with the help of the dogs we managed to get them all safely through the right gate,which we soon shut behind them. The walk through the parkland was most enjoyable, especially seeing some of the resident fallow deer.

Richard and I recently visited Mounstephen Farm near Cullompton, Devon, a visit organised for members of The Royal Bath and West Society. We were shown the dairy herd, milked using three robotic milkers and a section of the farm where the rearing of free range broiler chicken takes place.

These chicken are housed in large sheds, each with access to a grass paddock.

We were also shown the farm’s anaerobic digester, which is fed on slurry from the dairy herd, broiler chicken litter and maize. The gas output of the digester produces enough electricity for the farm, with surplus fed into the grid.