On October 6th Mrs Francine Blake founder of the Wiltshire Crop Circle Study Group gave a talk, on the Transformative Power of Crop Circles, at the Rufus Centre in Flitwick. It was organised by the Gentle Touch Healing Centre.

Henry and myself decided to go along .......

As far as the media and general public are concerned crop circles seem to be a closed case. Mention crop circles and fake is the next word that enters most people’s minds. What is meant by that, of course, is that they are man made rather then the product of something alien or paranormal. In fact it’s quite common for people to say simply - I don’t believe in crop circles.

Yet as Francine Blake pointed out - belief in crop circles is not required. “Belief is what people have when they have no proof,” she said “However crop circles are a fact. They can be seen, photographed and measured. Furthermore scientific research has shown, in many cases, changes in the plant and soil physiology down to cell level.”

Mrs Blake was referring to research done mainly by Dr Levengood which is well documented and makes interesting reading. In particular he noted that the fibrous protuberances known as nodes on the plant (these allow it to stay upright) were unnaturally grossly enlarged and expanded in samples taken from crop circles. He also found changes in the bract tissue -the thin membrane supporting the seed head that enables nutrients to enter the developing embryo. Here, abnormal enlargement of tissue cell walls pits, “blow holes”, were found-as if internal liquid had been forced out from inside the plant. These changes were attributed to water inside the plant having been boiled by an electromagnetic energy originating from the microwave region.

Baring this mind it is not surprising therefore that samples examined from young plants showed stunted seeds in the seed heads or none at all compared to samples from outside the circle. Nor, that when these seeds were planted they either failed to germinate or grew and developed poorly.

What is surprising is seeds from mature plants not only grew quickly, 40% faster than normal, but the plant it was also more robust.

Tiny iron spheres have also been found embedded in both plant and soil samples inside circles. Plus Mineralogist Sampath Iyengar found crystals in the soil samples which he concluded were normally found in sediments affected by heat and pressure and buried for thousands of years -not on surface soils.

Mrs Blake said crop circles seem to leave imprints in the soil as the next year’s growth of plants in the circle area are often a different colour and texture to those around. She also reported strange anomalies sometimes occurring on photos such as strange blurred patterns which she felt was the electromagnetic forces affecting the film.

When visiting the circles she said she often felt energised while there but drained later stating that it was not uncommon if she had gone to several circles in a day to sleep for 24 hrs after particularly if she was viewing from a helicopter.

As well as the physical aspect, The Wiltshire Crop Circle Study Group was also set up in 1995 to study the metaphysical or meaning of the symbolic designs and the spiritual or transformative effect.

Thus the actual site where crop circles appear is also important. Most, observed Mrs Blake, are near ancient sacred sites and this is the case all over the world. “Many actually touch ancient sites. It’s as if people are being encouraged to visit them. Often we find people visit the crop circle and then go on to the site or go to the sacred site and then realising there is a nearby circle go and have a look”.

The Wiltshire Crop Circle Study now have data base of over 6,000 -some a few feet in size and some miles long -the longest being a 13 mile site in America. Some designs seem simple others are so big and or complex they can only be seen properly from the air. All circles tend to appear very quickly, usually but not always, at night and at all times of year. Some appear in stages but mainly they appear complete.

There have also been reports of people flying over a normal field only to return half an hour later to find a large pattern had appeared there. Visitors to circles have also stated, in some cases, that patterns have actually been added to or changed, unnoticed at the time, during their visit.

According to Mrs Blake the formations fall into families. Spirals, flowers, snakes, winged disks, shells, pendulums, sun/moon to name a few. The same pattern is never repeated although different versions appear different countries. “It’s as if the land affects the pattern. A spiral that appears in England will look different from a spiral that appears in, say, Germany or Japan” she said.

It may also be of note that some patterns seem similar as if produced by the same artist. Most people tend to think of crop circles to be a new phenomenon originating in the 1970s. There is some pictorial evidence to suggest otherwise. A woodcarving from 1678 depicting a devil mower (see left) to name one, thus many now believed that crop circles may have been around for centuries and are what previously was referred to as a fairy ring or devil mower. There is even a suggestion that Stonehenge may be modelled on a crop circle.

The image is of the Devil mower, Hertfordshire 1678, woodcut from an article in a local newsheet describing the apparition overnight of a strange design in a field of oats, so neatly laid by the devil or some infernal spirit that “no mortal man was able to do the like”.

Although Mrs Blake did not go into the history of crop circles patterns she did state that their designs had become and were becoming more complex in their physical size and structure and patterning. Many, she says, relate now to ancient symbols and profound knowledge - Mayan in particular. She also said that picture symbols were as much a language as maths -which is after all used by our scientists all the time to create models of the universe etc.

To quote a few examples -a square represents the material world, a circle the spiritual. The moon the female aspect the sun the male, a pendulum is about time. She gave several interpretations -mainly extremely complex ones that seem to suggest simply the male and female was out of balance on this planet, we should change our ways, be less materialistic and that a new age was about to begin.

In some cases she feels that crop circles interact with the people who study them and told of an experience she had in June this year. Together with a group of friends she had watched Venus cross in front of the sun. This had taken 8 hrs and during this time the group had chanted Indian mantras. Next day in the field a formation was discovered hat looked “musical”, (see below).



Some time later friends camping in the same field reported hearing music through the night which seemed to come from the ground.

Mrs Blake also said that the night before a Mayan elder visited England to see both her and local circles - a formation of the Mayan calendar appeared in Wiltshire. So is something or someone trying to communicate with us? The evidence suggests yes, said Mrs Blake but refused to give an opinion as to whom but suggested that rather then alien forces it could be universal or spiritual intelligence.

“People live a mundane, materialistic existence -the messages in the circle’s patterns are saying we need to remember the spiritual. That what goes on earth is not good and things need to change here.”

“People who study crop circles find their lives are profoundly affected. “ We need to listen to the message and not the messenger. People need to be open minded and realise sometimes, because you have no understanding, you can’t take something in. You literally cannot visually see something because you do not understand what it is.” “In looking for answers people usually find that studying crop circles raises more questions then answers”.

Henry and I both felt the lecture was thought provoking - so much so I wondered about how authentic the photos were on display after all Mrs Blake said she had a background in fine art and photography. Also, if a message, why Mayan and not modern picture symbols or something obvious. But then maybe I just can’t take it all in - after all I have never been to a crop circle.

Wiltshire Crop Circle Study Group can be reached at PO Box 939 Devizes, Wiltshire, SN10 1XD or tel 01380 739 966 (weekdays 9am-5pm) e-mail WCCSG@ukonline.co.uk