Ploughing

A scientific approach to ploughing produces a work of art.

Ploughing done scientifically produces a work of art. A young woman takes on the challenge of a field that has a ridge and furrow, a steep slope and wet patches. She marks it out with poles which enable her to plough it in the most efficient manner. This film, part of a series, was produced during WWII by the National Institute of Agricultural Engineering, based at Askham Bryan, near York, to train members of the UK-wide, county-based War Agricultural Executive Committees.

NIAE originated as the Institute of Agricultural Engineering at Oxford University in 1924, undertaking machinery trials and research into e.g. haymaking, crop drying, wind power. During WWII - in 1942 - it became a branch of the Ministry of Agriculture and moved, temporarily, to quarters at Askham Bryan, where it became a national institute. Research and testing carried on but training (as per the films) was the priority. After the war - in 1947 - the institute moved to very attractive quarters at Wrest Park in Silsoe, Bedfordshire, and by 1991 was known as the Silsoe Research Institute, functioning until funding cuts forced its closure in 2006.