A fallow year is a farming term where a field is left unseeded during a growing season. Its goal is to give the land a break, and the soil a chance to replenish nutrients.
The term is also being used to describe how the Glastonbury festival will have a fallow year in 2026. It’s fitting because Glastonbury takes place at a place called Worthy Farm.
Although I’m sure the fallow year does the land a lot of good, there’s also value in scarcity. An in-demand cultural event that takes one year off every handful of years returns to insatiable demand. It’s similar to the artist who is forever touring and releasing music; they don’t give their fans a chance to miss them. Conversely, there’s a reason why we get so excited for the Olympics and the World Cup.
Scarcity sells.