A FARMER whose 60-acre crop was destroyed by a fire ploughed up the edges of the field to help firefighters stop the blaze spreading.

The un-named farmer at Lane End Farm near Newington in South Oxfordshire worked with crews from four Oxfordshire fire engines and one Berkshire team to contain the inferno yesterday evening.

In the end they managed to save ten acres of crop, but also stoped the fire spreading into neighbouring fields, also full of crops.

Firefighters spent more than an hour battling the blaze in what they said were hot and strenuous conditions.

The blaze was spotted by several motorists just before 6pm on the A329 just past Newington, heading from between Warborough and Stadhampton.

Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue Service has now said the massive fire was believed to have been caused when a metal part of a farm vehicle hit a stone in the field causing a tiny spark.

Wallingford Fire Station manager Marcus Reay warned people: "The current spell of dry weather means that the fire risks in the countryside remain very high.

"Although this fire was thought to have been caused by a spark when a metal part of the farm vehicle has grazed a hard stone in the field -  I would still ask that people take extra care with naked flames or other sources of ignition, this type of fire can quickly spread out of control and have devastating consequences."

Passerby Jared Reabow, of ReabowRotors.com, captured the incredible scale of the fire from above using a drone.