A January Harvest
In the virulent controversy aroused by the threat of satellite towns, one detail is worth picking out. A branch of the Farmers' Union has put in as an objection to the Hemel Hempstead scheme that it would destroy the village industry of watercress farming. This crop, whose season begins in January, chiefly flourishes in valleys where springs are frequent. The best beds are fed not by the central stream, but by adjacent springs. These are the origin of the many flourishing beds along the valley of the Lea. The river has been basely poisoned by ill-controlled effluents and urban carelessness, but the springs remain pure ; and a great advantage is that they can be easily controlled. In the most beautiful of all villages, as I hold, Ewelme in Oxfordshire, one of the crowning attractions is the interpellation of the watercress beds and the little ancillary streamlets. It would indeed be a sad loss if Hemel Hempstead lost its beds ; and it is to the honour of the National Farmers' Union that they have organised a special Watercress Branch.
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