Countryside Magazine February 2024

As we enter the new year, we look at how to make a living from the land with a 20-page special highlighting ideas for smallholders, courses, events, plus the best machinery and kit on the market. Regular writer Clare Hunt focuses on the pros and cons of keeping sheep and goats – as she says, they might be similar, but they’re definitely not the same!
Meanwhile, farmer Joe Stanley looks ahead at the prospects for British farming plc – from the impacts of the weather to the need for food security and innovation.
Then, in the start of a new, regular series of articles, we look at the scourge of rural crime and what’s being done to resolve it. Plus, we go behind-the-scenes at the Rural Policing Unit of Essex Police as Sergeant Ben Felton explains how they tackle rural crime, from fly-tipping to hare coursing and dog theft.
• 5 ideas for delicious meat dishes and marinades, plus, a scrumptious winter pudding from Miranda Gore Brown
• 20-page smallholder special
•Win a stylish Schoffel jacket, worth £249
• Learn more about the beautiful South Downs in West Sussex
• Top tips for keeping your topiary in good shape
• Three things author Ann Cleeves, can’t live without
• Gardening jobs for February