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The Nature of Farming Award Tour of the best entries in the East this year is now in full swing- starting last week with RSPB Eastern England Regional Director, Paul Forecast presenting the Award to the Regional Winner... read about the winner and the other events in the tour below- and then why not...

Mention the word 'farmer' in a sentence and most people would understand that you that you were talking about someone who produces food of some description. That's a farmer's job, right? Hmmm. What if that same person was described as a 'multifunctional rural resource manager'...

Spotted on my way home from work – a 100-strong mixed flock of buntings and yellowhammers , with the odd tree sparrow thrown in for good measure. Tweeting, jangling hissing and popping away, they are restless, exuberant and full of spring energy, torn between winter flocking behaviour and breaking...

I've been in celebratory mood since last week, and after a few computer-free days away am back on line and keen to share the good news with you. You may have seen that last week we reported a huge increase in reed buntings at Fowlmere , one of our reserves in Cambridgeshire. We estimate that over...

I know, it’s Friday 13 January, you’re skint, you’re cold and the Summer Hols seems a long dark way away. I’m sure you don’t need to be depressed any further. However, with the Twelve Days of Christmas just recently come to an end (and most of us still struggling to shift...

Happy New Year! There's nothing like a good debate to get you back in the swing of things after Christmas! As seems to have become tradition for me and several others, 2012 kicks off with a trip down the A43 to spend a couple of days at the Oxford Farming Conference . It’s a great opportunity...

In my office, I'm often mocked for my eternal optimism. Even when asked the question "What can we do about farmland bird declines?" my answer would be 'Lots!" I'm positive that the future could be much brighter for many of the specialist birds that depend on farmland for survival...

We are now well into the second year of the Great Crane Project – and have spent the spring and summer hatching and rearing another batch of cranes to joint the eighteen birds that were released last year. This brings the number out on the Somerset Levels and Moors to 34. After three weeks of ‘anchoring’...

Back in the Wilkinson years, before Batty turned England Captain, before Kamara turned Sky pundit, and before Eric turned Red, I was a Leeds fan. Me and Dad had season tickets in the East Stand and never missed a home game. Eventually the endless 0-0 draws under George Graham put me off football altogether...

Welcome to my office. I reckon it’s one of the biggest in the UK. Vaguely speaking, the ‘walls’ are the A14 to the south, the Cambridgeshire border to the west, the start of the sandy Brecks to the east, and to the North... Well I haven’t quite decided but it’s somewhere...

Last V&FA Diary of the year: Surveyor – Marcus Nash – North Norfolk , 31st July 2011 I have cut this right to the wire, but I just manage to squeeze in a fourth survey on the farm in the village. Finally, we are getting some warm, dry weather. Sunrise is 5.22am, so the sun has just...

Blogger: Niki Williamson, Fenland Farmland Bird Adviser How do you enjoy your new potatoes? I like to keep it simple – get them as fresh as possible, boil them till they’re just cooked, and eat them piping hot, with British butter and mint from the garden – a perfect combination...

Well, the wait is over and we finally have our Nature of Farming Award finalists - and I just about have some fingernails left! After much deliberation, our expert panel of judges have announced Robert Law , David White , Robert Kynaston and Somerset & Carolyne Charrington as this year's top...

This time of year is always quite exciting for me – lots of things to see and do in the countryside and hopefully the odd sunny day here and there... But for the last four years there’s been something else to get excited about – finding out who our winners are in the RSPB Telegraph...

Have you ever wondered why flowers make people smile? Many things that make us happy are things that promote our survival - a good square meal, a thirst-quenching drink on a sunny day. But what about flowers? Sure they’re nice to look at, but you can’t really live off them, or use them...

The signs from the EU in the last few days are that the President of the European Commission, José Manuel Barroso, is considering major cuts to pillar two of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). An essential fund that amongst other things pays farmers and landowners to manage their land in wildlife...

The agricultural team are busy getting ready for Cereals next week (15th and 16th June, in Boothby Graffoe, Lincolnshire). It will be my first time at the show, and I'm really looking forward to seeing the spectacle, checking out the latest developments, and of course the chance to talk to lots of...

Remember this splendid if somewhat sentimental 80’s film?! It’s about a farmer who responds to a voice telling him to plough up his wheat and build a baseball pitch, which is then visited by celebrated figures from the past. He is mocked by his neighbours for destroying the crop, but it...

I’m excited at being the first person to contribute to this brand new blog. I hope you enjoy reading it, and want to come back for more. You’ll be hearing from many of us here in the RSPB agricultural team in the future, including our farm advisors with practical advice, our policy team who...