PUBLIC PLACES
M
eeting the needs of the organisers of major public events alongside a commercial farming operation and a historic
house, gardens and park is quite some balancing act. It’s a task which grows year on year for the team at Ragley Hall in Warwickshire, home to leading country sports event the Game Fair, the APF Forestry Show and, from 2020, the Grassland and Muck farming demonstration. A full calendar of smaller public events, private functions and Ragley’s own programme of hall and garden attractions means that there is rarely a quiet spell. “It’s a question of thorough forward
planning and taking the opportunity of any quieter times, such as the winter months, to do major renovation and restoration work,” explains farm manager Hamish Stewart, who has responsibility for the estate’s 3,500 acres of arable and grass farmland as well the parkland, and has to draw up his grazing plan up to twelve months ahead. Ragley recently celebrated sixty years of being open to the public, after the current Marquess of Hertford’s father began to look at ways of generating income to help restore and maintain the estate in 1958. “There was tremendous public interest, with reports of cars queueing back along the drive and the local roads,” explains head gardener Mark Morrell. “However, there is a lot more competition these days, with a
number of historic properties locally, so events and private functions have gained in importance.”
He adds that, like many historic properties, Ragley has had a chequered history, with significant work required to restore the estate when Lord Hertford took over in the middle of the 20th century. With a growing demand for outdoor events, concerts and festivals, the 500-acre grounds have proved to be a significant asset. “We have to manage the grounds as broad acres, using machinery that can maintain the grass efficiently and quickly rather than having a member of staff dedicated to grass cutting,” explains Hamish. “We also have 1200 ewes and can graze it
PC October/November 2018
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