Snowfall report

Well, after a couple of days cut off from non-essential traffic, we've dug ourselves out and are now accessible once again!  I even managed to do some Christmas shopping in the increasingly well-appointed Bradford-on-Avon whose shops are positively ideal for Christmas gifts, all within easy reach of free car parks.

This recent snowfall wasn't the prettiest example of the white blanket, but here are a few photos from a couple of days ago.  We'll be hunting for a Christmas tree tomorrow, so crossing fingers for a bit of a thaw!

And there were in the same country...

...shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flocks by night.  Or so the story goes.

A recent arrival to the Iford nativity scene came courtesy of our very kind Bavarian cousins; on a recent visit to the Christmas market in Salzburg, and recalling our small collection of traditional, carved wooden figures, they rang up enquiring whether or not there was a pressing need for any characters from the story.  After a little thought, it was considered that the arrival of a shepherd might complement the ox and ass already assembled in the scene, awaiting the arrival of the key protagonists.  And so it was that a parcel arrived in the post a few days ago containing a small flock of beautifully carved sheep, along with their shepherd (to join the sheepdog which for a number of years had been keeping the ox and ass in line).

You might also wonder what the "stable" is formed from - it is in fact a piece of ivy, stripped of its bark, and sand-papered to give a very smooth finish akin to ivory.  Ivy forms the most wonderful shapes, often joining back on itself as it winds around a tree trunk or stump.  In a separate post I'll put up some images of other ivy creations from cuts taken off trees on the estate - anyone can make them (you just need to find some interesting ivy - ask the owner first though!) and they are wonderfully organic, tactile and engaging pieces when finished.

The last vestiges of Autumn

What a damp chill in the air today!  Autumn is most definitely losing its battle against winter's vanguard.  A couple of days ago I was out in the garden with the camera and I was lucky enough to enjoy a half hour's sunshine in the morning.  Light never ceases to amaze me.

[apologies for image quality - something went awry with the compression for web - if anyone's desperate, I can have another try]

Avon Valley Runners - Over the hills race

The public opening season has ended with the passing of October, and every year the valley seems to become a little quieter without the welcome patter of visiting feet and coach parties.  Now, walkers and cyclists, and the odd horse, potter through on lazy afternoons, and fishermen sit in morning mists under chilly willows as they drop their remaining leaves, waiting for that all important bite.

It can make for quite a sudden change of pace, which is why one of the highlights of November is the arrival of the over-the-hills race, organised by the Avon Valley Runners, and which takes its 300 or so competitors over a gruelling eight mile mud-fest, the spectatorial highlight of which (and perhaps the low point for the runners!) is the fording of the river at the Iford bridge.

This is always an interesting affair, and on occasion the river has been too high to allow safe passage.  This year however, the hardy annual runners were greeted by a supporting crowd some thirty strong, and a glorious view of the manor and bridge, with the river still very low through lack of rain.

It is common for one or two to take a dunking, usually through over-optimistic miscalculations of the safe velocity for making the crossing; however for any lucky souls that do make it across with incautious abandon, a steep eight foot climb up the opposite bank and a half mile haul up the Iford carriage drive to the top of the hill wipes away any remaining smug smiles.

It's always a very jolly event, and I understand that the organising club is regularly oversubscribed for entries.  If you'd like to run in the race next year, you'll need to get over to the Avon Valley Runners website for more details.  There's an interactive map with photos of the course.

Historic Houses Association - Hugh Shirreff Lecture

I spent a fascinating few hours at Westonbirt today - at the house, not the arboretum - attending the Hugh Shirreff memorial lecture for the Historic Houses Association. This is an annual event which moves around the country and which, since 2000, has been hosted by various of the HHA's member houses. 

This year the lecture was held in Westonbirt, and given by Dr Joseph Mordaunt-Crook, a pre-eminent historian who specialises in the lifestyles of the Victorian millionaires, and the rather personal idiosyncrasies of their individual styles. Dr. Mordaunt-Crook gave a fascinating and entertaining tour of the (in some cases quite ghastly) examples of Victorian over-spend by the industrial 'arrivistes' seeking to establish for themselves a level of credibility commensurate with their wealth, concluding that it was unlikely that a period would ever be seen again in the UK where such extravagance was displayed so widely.

I wonder whether the same can be said for India, China and the other developing economies though? A good time to be a luxury builder in those countries one might think!

Iford has been an HHA member for as long as I can remember. For anyone that doesn't know (and therefore should!), the Historic Houses Association is an organisation that represents 1500 privately-owned historic houses, castles and gardens throughout the UK. These are listed buildings or designated gardens, usually Grade I or II*, and are often outstanding. Many are considered to be iconic symbols of Britain's unique heritage. Interestingly HHA properties represent more than the sum of National Trust and English Heritage properties put together!

About 300 of these properties are open to the public and HHA Friends can enter for free. Friends membership is excellent value and offers a range of further benefits, including the opportunity to take part in exclusive tours of otherwise 'not open' HHA properties.

The joy of visiting an HHA property is that there is almost always someone 'there' - a resident, a presence, creating the soul which turns the house into a home. For more information, or to become a Friend, visit:

http://www.hha.org.uk/about-us.html

Salvator Rosa at Dulwich Picture Gallery

A little off-topic, but...  today we spent an enormously enjoyable afternoon on a rare day out to the Dulwich Picture Gallery in South London, visiting the current exhibition of works by Salvator Rosa, a Naples-born artist of not inconsiderable ability.  His story is an interesting one in itself, and Wikipedia offers a good distilled version.  


Although his own interests lay in at times bizarre depictions of witchcraft and associated imagery, the gallery curator, Xavier Salomon, explained to us that were it not for his landscapes, this artist would not be considered in such high regard.   

Details of the exhibition can be found here (http://bit.ly/aAnBl9) and I would urge you to visit if you get a chance.  The exhibition runs until 28 November 2010.


Images courtesy Wikipedia

Gardeners World... listen again

If you missed Joe Swift introducing us all to the delights of evergreens, you can now listen again on the i-player.

http://bbc.in/90gC9W

And don't forget that Iford is open for two more Sundays this year, on the 24th and 31st October, 2-5pm.

Iford on Gardeners World: Friday 22 Oct 2010 - 8.30pm

A little flurry of excitement, combined with a small dose of 'warm feeling inside'... Iford will appear on BBC Gardeners World this Friday 22nd October at 8.30pm.

We were delighted to welcome presenter Joe Swift, along with a charming crew and their lady Director a week ago, to film a piece related to evergreens, and their use in planting schemes.  Sadly the sun only came out for the BBC during their last hour of filming, but we're very excited to see how this experienced team has captured the essence of the garden during what has proved to be a colourfully dramatic autumn.

For the team at Iford, both for the residents but more especially for the gardening team, to be visited (completely unprompted really) by the UK's prime-time gardening programme, is a matter of no little pride and a lovely surprise too!

Thank you Gardeners World - you're always welcome.

For more information on the broadcast or to listen again (if you're busy on a Friday night...):
http://www.bbc.co.uk/gardening/

Before and after: putting the patio garden to bed

In Peto's patio garden at Iford, texture and scent are integral to the planting scheme through the use of pelargoniums and geraniums with their wonderfully textured leaves, which give off a range of smells from the peppery to the minty.  Peto's great maxim was that one should never allow either the structure or the planting to dominate, rather it is the balance between the two which ensures a pleasing balance to the design, and it is with this in mind that we maintain and design the planting in this area.

As winter approaches, it is clearly necessary to prepare the beds before the cold arrives.  With a potential light frost forecast for this week, Tuesday was tidying-up day.  Owing to the fact that it is nearing the end of the growing season and the plants are often somewhat due a haircut in any case, it is always something of a stark contrast in terms of a 'before and after'.

Cuttings are taken for next year's pots and bedding, and the rest goes off to the compost heap to be returned later in the winter as top-dressing.  So here is the before and after comparison.  Can you spot the difference?!  (sorry about the contrast... the sun came out today!)

Before

After

Autumn colour - a photo-montage

Autumn is one of my favourite times of year; there's nothing quite like the emotional hit you get from the shimmering of soft shallow light off yellowing leaves - melancholic perhaps, but ever so romantic at Iford!

Here are some images from this year, mostly taken this morning, some a week or so ago.  And don't forget, Iford's gardens are open for two more Sundays this year - on the 24th and 31st October, 2-5pm.

Bedding-up for the winter

Whilst people are getting their borders ready for bed in preparation for winter dormancy, it's a good time too to be moving those fruit and veg for next year.  In this little album, taken early last week, Robert and his team prepare new beds for asparagus and strawberries in the walled garden using an excellent load of manure from the estate's stableyard.

 The ground, marked out and aerated, is covered in manure.

Topsoil from alongside the bed is heaped over the manure to leave a clean, fertile bed.

Into this were planted asparagus plants - they always look so weedy like this, don't they?  But what a vegetable, especially the first young sprigs of the year, briefly fried off in olive oil and peppercorns, with a squeeze of lemon and slithers of parmesan... mmm.

With the final dressing of manure over the top, and it's done.

Planted next door, the strawberries will of course become next year's jam for the tearoom, and after Susan's triumph at the fête this year, who knows what heights next year's bottled delights will bring!  But you can only get it at Iford with a warm, just-from-the-oven scone or inside a Victoria Sponge.

Autumn leaves

Well, you certainly know it's autumn when...

Apples are falling, ripe damsons soften on the tree (looking forward to 'jamming' those), a misty 5 degrees greets you when you get up, and the first colours start to change in the garden.  And yet, summer seems somehow to be clinging on, for when the sun is out, it's fairly warm.  Still, it won't be long before we're raking and blowing the leaves off the lawns daily - a broadly thankless, but crucial task to avoid damage to the sward.

Mowing day again

The near perfect combination of sunshine and rain, with moderate temperatures has meant the lawns are putting on a lot of late summer growth this year.  Today was mowing day again, generally a Thursday at Iford, and the full team was on the case.

Here Tom (pictured), who is currently studying at Lackham College and undertaking part of his practical training within the team at Iford, creates some excellent 'lines' on the rear terrace.

We're jammin'...

Around this time of year we have what has become a tradition where we wander out to look at the orchard and despair at "the amount of fruit which will no doubt once again go to waste and wouldn't it be nice if we could do something with it, but we're a bit busy this year what with the farm harvest etc. so we'll have to plan better for next year".  Well, whilst not entirely ready to embrace full fruit harvest usage from the orchard on site, I have this year tried to break the pattern, experimentally at least.

Jam. 
It all started a couple of years ago when my now-mother-in-law Pauline gave us some delicious raspberries from her own production and since we were unable to eat them all (and boy, did we have a go at it!) we decided to make them into jam.  It proved so easy that I concluded even a novice like me could do this, and so now, two years on, I have cleaned out our local Sainsbury shelves of jam sugar and I'm experimenting with the harvest at Iford.

What has surprised me the most, I think, is discovering the variety of what we have growing not only in the orchard and kitchen garden but also elsewhere around the estate, in hedgerows, thickets and the like, trees, shrubs and vines which I had never really stopped to appreciate for their full potential.  Mulberries (excellent coulis for lemon sorbet), whitecurrants, shropshire bullace... One such group of trees was pointed out to me by my own mother, Elizabeth, as being suited to jam production - cherry plums - I had, perhaps to my discredit, never even heard of or seen a cherry-plum fruit!

And so Claire and I collected around a kilo and a half of these ripe over-sized cherries, all dangly-down on the branches.  The roe deer had browsed the shelves somewhat, up to about four feet or so, but there were plenty left at loftier heights.  We got them home and being "rather busy"(!) we put them in the freezer.  Today, I got them out (yes, okay, no need for innuendo-filled comments...).

I'll tell you what I did, because the results were reasonably good - anyone with any tips, feel free to chip in with comments.  After removing the grottier ones, they weighed just about 1.3kg.  There's supposed to be a fair amount of pectin in plum-like fruit, and this being prunus cerisifera I supposed we were dealing with the same, so rather than use only jam sugar (i.e. added pectin), I used 1kg of jam sugar with 300g demarera.

The cherries went into the saucepan with a little water.

Over a medium heat they were boiled and broken down (squidging them on the side of the pan with a wooden spoon so they pop can provide endless fun!)...

They were then seived to remove stones and skins first through a [literarily confusing] collander...

...and then a finer seive.  The resultant liquor was an astonishing colour, and went back into the pan with the sugar and a knob of butter.  Apparently this gives a nice shine to the jam when finished (is this right??).

A squeeze of lime seemed a good idea at the time too, both because of the flavour of the mixture and because something told me the citric acid would act as a preservative (Any thoughts??)

The mixture was boiled for about 4 minutes, until the back-of-the-teaspoon trick suggested it was ready, and then poured into sterilised and pre-heated kilner jars (with a bit of overflow... for my breakfast).

Fingers crossed it will set nicely!  I'll report back once we've tried it on a few people.

[UPDATE]
So, the result was that despite positive indications, it was a bit runny.  Re-boiling it was the answer and had I not been over-zealous with the reboiling (which took out a good mug's-worth of water) we'd have had an excellent jelly/jam.  Amazingly clear, which was nice, and of good flavour (especially nice on toast), but unfortunately the consistency of gluey quince cheese... oh well, there's always next year!