Gardener’s Cuttings New herbal healing garden walk at Sudeley Castle
Plans are in place to launch a new herbal healing garden walk at Sudeley Castle this summer, which is being overseen by new design consultant Sir Roddy Llewellyn. This walk will inform visitors on the wisdom of nature and will see hundreds of plants introduced.
Sudeley plans new herb garden walk for 2011
Sudeley Castle, the Cotswolds leading garden, has added Sir Roddy Llewellyn to its team as design consultant. The gardens are the work of Lady Ashcombe who developed their world class status, winning the HHA Christie’s Garden of The Year Award in 1996. Sudeley’s intriguing history is illustrated in the nine gardens and none more so than the Queen’s Rose Garden, designed by Jane Fearnley-Whittingstall – and the original Tudor parterre. Other
acclaimed garden designers such as Rosemary Verey and Charles Chesshire have added their visions to the gardens. Lady Ashcombe said she is, “thrilled that Sir Roddy Llewellyn has agreed to take us on a new gardening adventure.”
Sir Roddy said: “The fact that they (Sudeley’s gardens) already qualify for worldwide fame makes it more of a daunting task. A visit to the Cotswolds, therefore, would be incomplete without a visit to these gardens. After all, they do constitute a horticultural jewel in the British crown. It is rare to work in a place haunted by the ghosts of Henry VIII, Elizabeth I, Queen Katherine Parr, Lady Jane Grey and Thomas Seymour, some of the most intriguing Tudor characters in British history. It was at Sudeley Castle that they lived, frolicked, romanced, schemed and died and now an inspired garden echoes that epoch.” Sudeley Castle opens on 26th March for the 2011 season.
Perennial hopes for Kidlington Question Time
Exeter Hall, Kidlington in Oxfordshire is to host a Question Time for Gardeners organised by the national charity Perennial. The doors open at 7.15pm for 7.45pm start. The event will be chaired by Janet Cropley, an experienced plantswoman and the panel of experts will be: Val Bourne, the UK’s leading natural gardener, Bob Brown, founder of Cotswold Garden Flowers, and Walter Sawyer, Superintendent of Oxford University Parks. The event is supported by NFU Mutual. Perennial is the national charity for those who work or have worked in horticulture and their spouses/partners when they face adversity or need. Tickets £12.50 to include refreshments and a glass of wine.
For tickets contact Susan Bowers:
sbowers@perennial.org.uk Tel: 0845 676 0630.
West Country farm shops to offer reward incentives
The number of consumers who buy from farm shops could be set for a steep rise with leading farm shop names, including Bristol’s Farrington’s Farm Shop and Gloucester’s Over Farm Market, joining together. They have come together under a new rewards scheme, called Ice, which allows consumers not just to buy their products online, in- store or via phone but also offers a reward incentive similar to schemes offered by the major retailers.
The farm shops which have already joined up believe this could be the start of activity which revolutionises the sector and are calling on other farm shops, food delivery companies and artisan food producers to come on board. Paul Castle, COO of Farrington’s, one of the UK’s largest farm shops, says, “This is about all the ‘little guy’ farm shops co-ordinating together for the first time and could have a massive effect on consumers as they will now be rewarded on a national level; none of us could ever do this alone.
“We know there is a huge public appetite for farm fresh food, and by coming together in the Ice loyalty programme we can begin to persuade significant numbers of consumers to buy their food direct from their local farm shop.”
Historic discovery of Batsford Arboretum archive
Trustees and staff at Batsford Arboretum in Gloucestershire are celebrating following the discovery of important historical documents and photographs, including original glass photographic plates, dating back 100 years.
James Gardner had been head gardener at Batsford
The archive, which includes over 50 original photographs
dating from 1910 until 1917, articles on Batsford written in the top gardening magazines of the day, letters, estate records and even details of the wages paid to Batsford’s gardeners during the Edwardian era, has been in the possession of Mrs. Frances Toovey.
Mrs. Toovey, who lives in Cambridgeshire, is the granddaughter of James Gardner who was head gardener at Batsford from 1910 until 1918.
“I’m a keen gardener myself,” said Mrs. Toovey, “but it was only by chance that I saw an article on Batsford in the Royal Horticultural Society’s Journal The Garden and it reminded me that my father had told me when he was a child he had lived in the gardener’s cottage at Batsford. This was because his father (James Gardner) had been head gardener there. I knew I had inherited some of my grandfather’s things, so I searched them out and started to look through them, I was amazed when I came across all the old photographs and so much more.”
Mrs. Toovey made contact with staff at Batsford Arboretum and she showed the archive to Batsford Director of Operations Stuart Priest and foundation trustee Tony Russell.
“We were astonished to see such a wealth of historical material relating to Batsford,” said Stuart Priest, “it is really exciting and couldn’t have come at a more appropriate time, because we are beginning to plan all the interpretation and displays for our new Visitor Centre, which will be opening to the public at Easter.”
Country Gardener 5
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