The Mystery of Crop Circles

Crop circle that appeared opposite Longwood, Owlesbury on 11th June 2019

This crop circle appeared in a field at Owlesbury near Winchester in 11th June 2019 and its photo was shared on Facebook, causing me to look again at a phenomenon that I had long wondered about. Indeed I remember being greatly intrigued when a crop circle appeared on a field at Stocks Farm in the 1980s but I didn't follow it up.

Crop circle, Littleton, Winchester 3rd June 2019

Unfortunately, when talking to people about crop circles, most reach for their mental 'David Icke' button and after an initial lukewarm expression of interest, switch off. However, I happened to mention the most recent one to a friend in Lincolnshire who had a deeper interest and he kindly sent me a book written by Lucy Pringle that goes into considerable scientific detail and conclusively rules out the possibility that the majority are man-made (though a few undoubtedly are).

There is added fascination for me in that the area where I live in Hampshire appears to be the epicentre of crop circle activity. Lucy Pringle's book pictures them in Chilbolton (next to the radio telescope), and many nearby in Wiltshire.  In fact, one of her observations is that they appear in places of known power and significance, which encourages those who believe that their origin must be extra-terrestrial.

The 'Stonehenge Fractal' (1996) - one of the very few formations to have appeared during daylight hours.

A crop circle known as 'Ribbons' appeared opposite Stonehenge on 4th July 2002

The astonishing complexity of most of the crop circles coupled with perfect geometric and mathematical accuracy make it impossible for these structures to have been created by pranksters or even by some peculiar human agency in a few hours of darkness.

Crop circle in Froxfield, Wiltshire (22nd July 2003). This herringbone lay of the wheat is most unusual. No seed heads have been damaged in the process, a feature of all genuine crop circles. 

The extraordinary formation at the Chilbolton Observatory (14th August 2001) is apparently in the form of a computer chip. 

Crop circle at Hackpen Hill, Wiltshire (4th July 1999). The farmer reported that when he sprayed the field the day before, there was no formation. (The blurred area at the top right is caused by me removing some writing from photo). 

The most recent crop circle was found at Danebury in 1st July 2019 and appeared overnight, with the characteristics typical of all genuine ones.  

Some crop circles exhibit such unbelievable complexity that it would be difficult to achieve their design on paper using laser-printer technology, let alone in a field at night under the cover of darkness.

Crop circle near Avebury, Wiltshire (29th July 1996) 

This formation consists of 189 circles and shows incredible mathematical precision. A series of perfect equilateral triangles extend to the perimeter.

A crop circle appeared on the 1st of June in 2008 in a barley field near Barbury Castle in Wiltshire, England, measuring 150 feet in diameter and correctly representing the first 10 digits of the irrational constant pi. If you look at figure 1, you will notice that the grooves in the circle spiral outwards with steps at various points along the way. Taking a look now at figure 2, you will see that these steps occur at particular angles — the circle is divided into 10 equal segments of 36 degrees each. Starting at the centre, you can see that the first section is 3 segments wide. Then there is a step and underneath this step is a small circle. This is the decimal point. The next section is 1 segment wide and then there is another step. The following section is 4 segments wide, and so on until the final number encoded is 3.141592654. Michael Reed, the astrophysicist who first decoded the image, is quoted on earthfiles.com as saying:

"The fact that the Pi decimal point is included and there is rounding up to 10 decimal places is to me a little mind boggling!"

Since the beginning of July 2019, many more crop circles have been reported in this immediate area, but I have not reproduced their photos as they all share the same characteristics namely: 

1. They are geometrically perfect. 

2. The stalks have not been bent by mechanical means but heated from within and laid. 

3. There are no broken heads of grain to be found, meaning that no one has trampled them. 

It would be best if every each crop circle report to be accompanied by an analysis of these factors before we get too excited and are disappointed by another seeming hoax.

Old Swan House Garden Open for the NGS June and July 2019

Old Swan House Garden What's New 2019

The summerhouse catches the eye from the shade of the orchard

Gardens are constantly evolving, even if the gardener does nothing more than cut the grass, but most gardeners make small incremental changes - which they hope will be improvements - each year. It's surprising how long it takes for new ideas to take root. Gardening is a slow process, and one can sometimes wake up with an idea fully formed, while others take years to come to the surface. Winter is usually the time when new ideas germinate, which then take root in spring as the light reinvigorates our imaginations.

The most obvious change that has been made to the garden at Old Swan House in 2019 is the painting of the summerhouse. It took a long time and many trial pots of paint to settle on the colour and even now it will probably be finished off with varnish sometime next year.

The summerhouse in its new livery - May 2019. It may get a varnish next year. 

Another change is the result of the old dead cherry tree beside the summerhouse coming down in a storm.  It had been completely covered by honeysuckle (Halliana) and its windage became too great. It has been replaced with an iron obelisk which the honeysuckle (after being cut back to the ground) is now scrambling up and which will again provide much-needed shade as well as scent when sitting outside the summerhouse.

The two new large box balls next to the summerhouse and the 'Halliana' honeysuckle scrambling to the top of the new obelisk 

More box balls have been added to the already crowded field in the shape of two large ones placed in terracotta urns either side of the summerhouse. These 'anchor' it and already look as if they have always been there.

The two new urns and their box balls on 'Venky's Terrace'

'Venky's Terrace' in the orchard has also had two large urns and box balls added to make it more of a room. The urns are of the beautiful pressed brick which unfortunately will no longer be available. A  Trachelospermum has been planted on the apple tree and trained up it. The terrace is now much better shaded than last year. 

The black bamboo behind the cut down hebe.

Less successful has been the chopping down of the hebe next to the wildflower area. It had become very leggy and overgrown but by flopping in front of the wildflowers, it provided a necessary air of mystery, which is now lacking. To counteract this, a black bamboo has been planted, but it will be some time before that is large enough to provide a barrier.

Another black bamboo has been planted beside the summerhouse, that one day will throw its plumes over the roof 

The black bamboo next to the summerhouse (it's almost invisible) 

The granite horse - 'Khan' - has been given boxes of alchemilla to froth at this feet 

Finally, at the other end of the garden, more box balls have been added to the pond area - one in the middle and another on the plinth at the side. I had hoped to put a small statue on the plinth to match the horse's head, but haven't yet found a suitable one. 

The box walk and the armillary sphere are well settled in

The line-up of box by the pond is now complete

Needless to say, there are more plans afoot, but nothing further is likely to be done this year.  

The Therapeutic Power of Gardens - Oliver Sacks

As a writer, I find gardens essential to the creative process; as a physician, I take my patients to gardens whenever possible. All of us have had the experience of wandering through a lush garden or a timeless desert, walking by a river or an ocean, or climbing a mountain and finding ourselves simultaneously calmed and reinvigorated, engaged in mind, refreshed in body and spirit. The importance of these physiological states on individual and community health is fundamental and wide-ranging. In forty years of medical practice, I have found only two types of non-pharmaceutical “therapy” to be vitally important for patients with chronic neurological diseases: music and gardens.


I cannot say exactly how nature exerts its calming and organizing effects on our brains, but I have seen in my patients the restorative and healing powers of nature and gardens, even for those who are deeply disabled neurologically. In many cases, gardens and nature are more powerful than any medication.


Clearly, nature calls to something very deep in us. Biophilia, the love of nature and living things, is an essential part of the human condition. Hortophilia, the desire to interact with, manage, and tend nature, is also deeply instilled in us. The role that nature plays in health and healing becomes even more critical for people working long days in windowless offices, for those living in city neighborhoods without access to green spaces, for children in city schools, or for those in institutional settings such as nursing homes. The effects of nature’s qualities on health are not only spiritual and emotional but physical and neurological. I have no doubt that they reflect deep changes in the brain’s physiology, and perhaps even its structure.


Oliver Sacks 'Why We Need Gardens,' found in Everything in Its Place: First Loves and Last Tales


See also my video for Macmillan 2018

Chelsea Flower Show 2019

The Facebook garden

For more photos, click here 

Favourite Gardens - Rotherfield Park

Rotherfield Park

Rotherfield Park was built from 1815 - 1821 and has been lived in by the Scott family since 1860. The current owners, James and Judy Scott and their gardeners have made much of tbe trees and avenues and the walled garden, using the landscape to the best effect and fashioning the old yew hedges into some of the most powerful shapes I have seen.

Yew buttress walk

One of the dramatic yew walks

The new amphitheatre designed by Kim Wilkie

Orchard and rose garden 

Beech walk with box urns

For more photos, click here