Cow Poo (manure)
Don’t turn up your nose! Manure is packed with fibre which is great for soil – though it’s also got intestinal cells and snot in it too which is probably why it can be a bit whiffy. Cows also have four stomachs which their food goes through at different stages before digested food ends up in the cow’s udder and is turned into milk.
Here are some other funky farming facts to impress your friends and grown-ups:
Smelly Cure
Onions contain a mild antibiotic that fights infections, soothes burns, tames bee stings and relieves the itch of athletes foot.
Sheep parade
There are 914 different breeds of sheep
Corny or what?
There are about 600 kernels on each ‘ear’ of corn.
Popcorn ‘pops’ because water is stored in a small circle of soft starch in every kernel, when heated the water turns to steam which builds in pressure until it explodes, turning the kernel into something many times its original size.
Yellow Lettuce
Did you know that the Lettuce is the same family as the sunflower.
Carrot-tastic
The orange colour of carrots or the pigment, is called Beta-Carotene. Our bodies change Beta-Carotene into vitamin A which is an important vitamin that is good for eyesight, keeps your hair and skin healthy and also helps your body fight infection.
No Sweat
Pigs can't sweat. Pigs have no sweat glands, that is why they roll around in mud to cool off.
Pigs are pregnant for 3 months, 3 weeks and 3 days!!!
Why did the chicken...
Chickens are not able to sustain flight. Originally back in the days of cavemen they could fly but they found that they were better off pecking food from the ground and so over time their muscles have changed meaning they can no longer fly. They are now too top heavy for flying.
AND…
The longest distance flown by a chicken was 301 1/2 feet.
AND THERE’S MORE....
There are chickens in the world who lay eggs which are blue, green and even pink!
Bean there, done that
Broad beans are the oldest of all the beans, dating back to stoneage times.
Veggie wedding list
Broad beans used to be offered in marriages as people used to believe that would mean the couple would have a baby son.
Too much of a good thing
During the Second World War, so many people grew and ate large quantities of swede that it became an unpopular vegetable after the war was over – people were literally fed up of it.
Turnip factoids
Turnips are often considered a "poor man's food", because they are easy to grow, even in poor soils, and store well.
Can't keep a good thing down
The "roots" provide slow release, complex carbohydrates and are rich in vitamins and minerals. The leaves (turnip greens) are an excellent source of vitamin C and calcium.
Romanus Tunipus
They were cultivated by the Ancient Romans and there is evidence of them in India dating back to 1500 BC.
AND ....
Did you know...? The "root" of a turnip isn't actually the root - it's actually a swollen stalk
You say tomato, I say termato
The tomato is the world's most popular fruit. More than 60 million tons of tomatoes are produced per year, 16 million tons more than the second most popular fruit, the banana. Apples are the third most popular (36 million tons), then oranges (34 million tons) and watermelons (22 million tons).