Last weekend, the 27th-28th July, the St Buryan Rally was held. This is an important event in the local calendar, particularly for the farming community as it brings together vintage and modern agricultural machinery with displays of skills such as threshing. It is also a great family event, with lots of crafts and activities, including a dog show.
Being such an important local event we were very pleased to be able to attend for the weekend, and as we had a very generous marquee we put on a range of activities for families to get involved with, all related to various aspects of our work. This included a mini archaeological dig- where budding young (and not so young!) archaeologists could try their hand at discovering some genuine historic items in our sand pit; and a craft activity, where guests could learn how to make their own bug hotel- which they could then take home and place in their own garden. And sticking with a wildlife theme, we also had a pond display where visitors could see pond creatures commonly found here in Penwith, and the benefits that ponds have for improving biodiversity.
On the farming side we were pleased to be able to have on display our new seed harvester, which is helping us to gather seed to help create wildflower meadows- something that was unique even among all the other amazing farm equipment present at the show! And of course visitors got to meet Patrick the Calf, whose shed illustrated the importance of good drainage and guttering on farms to prevent pollutants getting into the water system. He also received 
many pats from younger visitors to the marquee, and more than a few curious sniffs from dogs too!
We were very lucky to be in a spot overlooking the main ring, where we could see the many wonderful displays of vintage vehicles- from tractors to motorbikes. And two of our team even had a go at driving a steam powered vehicle (the rest of us are only a little bit jealous...).
In case you missed it, here is a short video tour of our marquee in action! You will also catch a glimpse of the table manned by St Buryan Parish Council who shared the marquee with us.
A big thank you to the St Buryan Agricultural Preservation Society for having us out for the weekend.
