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.

Welcome to Susan

We're very excited to welcome Susan who has joined us as our new housekeeper.  She brings an entourage of Alan and Louis[e!], a bosc monitor and a red tegu respectively (photos to follow), and partner Su.

Susan is a proud local lady, with strong Wiltshire roots, having been brought up in in Hilperton and Holt.  We're particularly looking forward to the advent of local Wiltshire-style cakes - recipies passed down through the family.  In preparation for the summer season, experimental biscuits have so far proved a hit with the usual suspects around the kitchen table.

Small world that it is, Susan reports that her Auntie Joan worked at Iford from 1925-1928, as part of Harold Peto's staff - it is quite extraordinary how circular life can be.  However Susan joins a much changed environment from Peto's day - and we all know that 'housekeeper' is a mere title:  the job is far more challenging and varied than any name could it justics (and she has to keep us under control for starters!).  The manor kitchen is the societal engine-room for the team, the family and visitors alike, and Susan has already made it her own.  The perfect start, I'd say.

We look forward to a long and fruitful relationship for many years to come and hope that Susan will settle into and enjoy the challenges facing not only the tearoom and the house, but also the integrated development of the estate business and everything that goes on to keep the valley in the condition we strive for.

Vale: Wini Brierly

Co-incidentally to Michael's departure, we are also losing Wini and her family (see picture of Wini and Michael).  The Brierlys moved away last week to live in their house in Devon now that the family are all launched and independent - a new life at the seaside.

Wini arrived with us some eight years ago as housekeeper.  She rapidly became an integral part of the fabric of Iford, looking after residents, employees, friends and visitors alike - with Wini in the house, there was always a warmth (and a flapjack!) in the kitchen - and the kitchen at Iford is the heart of our little community.

As many readers of this post will know, Wini's arrival was also a treat for our tea-consuming visitors and Opera-goers in the summer.  She has raised both the standard and the volume of cream teas at weekends, cakes for visiting coach groups, and has even initiated 'cake of the day' teas during the week.  Thanks to her organisational skills we have a young, enthusiastic and efficient team of tea-helpers, and they in turn have Wini to thank for their universally good mental arithmetic (as she refused to let them use a calculator when working on the till!).  All these things have augmented the flow of visitors and contributed to the overall good will in Iford, above all sustaining the Iford community in a profoundly human manner.

It is impossible to write all the things Winnie has done or to convey how she has looked after everyone, with so much warmth - welcoming everyone with charm and good humour and so we'd just like to say:

Dear Winnie, thank you, thank you.