Thirty firefighters spent more than an hour tackling a blaze in a field of cut corn.

Crews were called to Pound Lane in Brabourne Lees, near Ashford, just after 3.30pm.

They were there until just before 5.30pm.

A fire service spokesman said: "Six fire engines attended and crews worked to bring the blaze under control.

"There were no reported injuries and the cause is not yet known."

Resident Michael Fry noticed the plume of smoke from the Wye national nature reserve when he went to his field in Brabourne to check on his horses.

"Once we got to our field, we noticed the scale of the fire with numerous tractors and firefighters working extremely hard to contain the fire," he said.

"Luckily it turns out the crop had just been harvested and it was apparently the straw that had caught fire."

The fire is the latest in a string of call-outs to grassland and fields.

On Sheppey, crews were called to a blaze on the canal embankment in Sheerness this afternoon where grass was alight.

That followed a larger fire at nearby Barton's Point Coastal Park on Saturday, where a model aircraft fireworks display was blamed for more grass going up in flames.

And on Friday last week, six fire engines were called to Higham, near Gravesend, where a corn field was on fire.

Kent Fire and Rescue Service area manager Leanne McMahon said: “We will always be there and ready to respond in times of need, but we’re asking the public to do their bit and take care to reduce the risk of fires starting in the first place.

“Grass fires often require a large amount of fire service resources and can take hours or days to fully extinguish.

"We want to work together with people living, working and visiting the county to reduce the chance of accidental grass fires, keeping people safe and freeing up our crews to respond to other, less-preventable emergencies.”

She added: “If you see a grass fire, move to a safe place and call 999 - please don't try to tackle it yourself.

"We also ask everyone to check in on loved ones and neighbours who may struggle in the heat, to make sure that they are safe and well, and have everything they need to stay as cool and comfortable as possible.”