Help! What Am I?
This was my favorite flower during my “English Garden Tour.” We saw it several times in many gardens, but no one was able to identify it. Can a gardener help me out? I loved the way it kept blooming on a single stem!
The Back Lawn of Luctons, West Hoathly, Sussex
The Back Lawn of Luctons, West Hoathly, Sussex
The Back Lawn of Luctons, West Hoathly, Sussex
It was so entertaining sitting on the terrace at the Cat Inn in West Hoathly watching the wedding guests stroll in for a wedding lunch. Such beautiful summer finery and oh the hats! Why don’t we wear hats anymore? I am always so envious of women in hats! So elegant looking in the smallest of fluff and feather!
Time to move on to the next garden, Luctons, just a short walk to the end of the street where the “newer homes” are. Talking with the owners, who have lived in their home for thirty years, we find there have been many adjustments and improvements to their 19th century home, green houses and two acre garden.
Herbaceous Borders at Luctons, Sussex
The Flower Garden at Luctons, Sussex
The Flowers of Luctons, Sussex
The Flowers of Luctons, Sussex
The Flower Garden of Luctons, Sussex
The Flowers of Luctons, Sussex
That is what I find so interesting about the gardens I have seen so far. You get a chance to talk with the gardeners/owners of the gardens and learn more about their garden plans, choice of flowers and involvement with other gardens and gardeners. This garden was designed in the Gertrude Jekyll style, which focused on a relationship between the house and its surroundings. Gertrude Jekyll’s style included foliage, color and texture to achieve a practical and beautiful view. To give a picturesque and natural appearance in the garden the use of stone walls, walkways, and natural partitioning of the garden, ensures a gentle flow. To quote the famous landscape gardener,” A garden is a grand teacher. It teaches patience and careful watchfulness: it teaches industry and thrift; it teaches entire trust.” At Luctons, we see the small box partere, yew topiary, shrubs and flowers that frame the front of the home giving it an inviting entrance. Won’t you join me for careful watchfulness?
The Front Entrance to Luctons, Sussex
The Front Entrance to Luctons, Sussex
The Front Garden at Luctons, Sussex
The Front Garden at Luctons, Sussex
The Front Garden at Luctons, Sussex
The Peacock Topiary, Luctons, Sussex
In the back is a large lawn with herbaceous borders centered in a large fruit and vegetable garden.
Leading to the Cricket Court at Luctons, Sussex
The Vegetable Garden, Luctons, Sussex
The wild flower orchard is not mowed revealing beautiful meadow flowers and spotted orchids. A tent has been set up where cream teas are served. Could there be anything more English? All I need is my hat!
Tea in the Garden, Luctons, Sussex
Looking at the Orchard at Luctons, Sussex
Spotted Orchids in the Meadow at Luctons, Sussex
The Lovely Unknown
PS This was hands down my favorite flower! I saw it in many of the gardens we toured, but could never find out the name of it. Can anyone identify it for me?
The Priest House, West Hoathly, Sussex
Map of Center of Village, West Hoathly, Sussex
Today we traveled to West Hoathly, in Sussex, to see the first gardens that I had chosen from the many offered this weekend on the National Garden Scheme. Driving well over an hour we arrived in the center of the small village of 9 homes, including the pub. The Priest House is our first destination. The only one of its kind open to the public, this 15th century Wealden hall house stands in a traditional cottage garden on the edge of the Ashdown Forest. Originally owned by Henry VIII it was given to Anne of Cleaves, wife number four, upon their divorce. The herb garden is planted with over 170 culinary, medicinal and household herbs. Today a special exhibition for the NGS, featured on the upper floor, built in 1600, reveals pictures of local children and their place in the workforce in the 19th century. Many children, as young as five and six, were farm laborers and chimney sweeps. It was not uncommon for the chimney sweep to get stuck in the chimney and die. The Priest House is maintained by the Sussex Archaeological Society and provides rotating exhibits, research, and other learning experiences.
Walkway to the Priest House, West Hoathly, Sussex
The Priest House, West Hoathly, Sussex
The Priest House, West Hoathly, Sussex
The Gardens at Priest House, West Hoathly, Sussex
The Gardens at Priest House, West Hoathly, Sussex
The Gardens at Priest House, West Hoathly, Sussex
Flowers in the Garden at Priest House, Sussex
Another Garden at The Priest House, Sussex
The Priest House, West Hoathly, Sussex
The Priest House, West Hoathly, Sussex
St Margaret’s Church, settled in 1090, records the names of the village from Hadlega, later standardized to Hodlegh, then West Hoathly. This Anglo-Saxon word signifies a heath covered clearing, or the dense woodland of the Ashdown Forest. In 1556, Ann Tree was burnt at the stake near here for refusing to renounce Protestantism, one of seventeen martyrs to suffer this fate in Sussex. A brass memorial in the church commemorates her.
St Margaret’s Church, West Hoathly, Sussex
St Margaret’s Church, West Hoathly, Sussex
The Gate to St Margaret’s Church, West Hoathly, Sussex
The Manor House was built in 1627 for Mrs Catherine Infield of Gravetye Manor, as a dower house. Her family was the wealthy owners of the local iron works. Later abandoned to smugglers the buildings and grounds were rejuvenated in 1884 when “the greatest English Gardener” William Robinson bought it. Upon his death it was turned over to the Forestry Commission. It now sits vacant and forlorn.
The Manor House, West Hoathly, Sussex
Looking Through the Gate to the Manor House, West Hoathly, Sussex
The Phlox and Rose Cottages are 19th century weather boarded over timber framed cottages. They were the newest houses in the village!
Rose Cottage and Phlox Cottage, West Hoathly, Sussex
Rose Cottage and Phlox Cottage, West Hoathly, Sussex
The Upper Pendent is a timber framed, tile-hung 17th century home which previously housed the village stores and post office in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Upper Pendent, West Hoathly, Sussex
The Cat Inn is the 16th century pub of medieval origin standing in the crossroads of the village. The name is derived from an emblem of the Sackvilles of Knole, which is a leopard. We will be learning a lot about the Sackvilles, a very prominent family in Kent. This is the pub I had picked to stop in for lunch after touring the village. It was highly recommended by the locals also. We sat in the lovely terrace and had a most agreeable meal. Now on to the next garden in the “burbs” of West Hoathly.
The Cat Inn, West Hoathly, Sussex
A Great Ride Awaits at the Cat Inn, West Hoathly, Sussex
P S For a good read about the wives of Henry VIII, I suggest, Six Wives of Henry VIII by Alison Weir. The author draws on early biographies, letters, memoirs, account books, and diplomatic reports to bring each woman to life. Very interesting!
Bulleign Barn
The Bulleign Barn
The Road to Bulleign Barn
As I stated in my previous post I like to research my vacation before I hit the road. I know, I know, a lot of you like to just “wing it,” but I would rather know all about places of interest, restaurants, and villages that I am am really interested in and then add to that, if something exciting turns up. For this trip, I was glad I started early and took the time to look-up the gardens I was keenly interested in, on the National Garden Scheme, (NGS) so I could co-ordinate going from one garden to the next, (since our plan was to see several a day) I also needed to know how much time it would take to get from one to another, and where we would want to eat between gardens. Although the gardens on the NGS are open on the weekends, for the most part, some had specific times they were open. We would have been quite dismayed to have arrived at a garden only to have to wait to get in. So when I had the gardens lined up I looked for a local pub close to the gardens we would be touring. This was when I realized most pubs are open from 12pm-2pm for lunch and then re-open for dinner, usually 6pm-9pm. So I had to make sure we were at a certain place on schedule.
The first thing I learned was that there were GPS co-ordinates listed, for all the gardens in the NGS and all the historic National Trust estates, in their books. This would make the driving so much easier, in theory. But to be on safe side, I printed out maps and directions from garden to garden, to also have with me. As you can see from my work sheets, I made lots of notes. I also printed out the pub or special interest I wanted to see near every garden. I put all my notes, maps, and directions in plastic sleeves and then when I was ready for a particular day I just pulled out the necessary pages to carry along in the car. SB took a look at all my notes and quickly put together a spread sheet for me, so we knew where we WANTED to be everyday at least!
The Detailed Itinerary, Research, Research, Research
Now for reality. As Americans driving in the UK, it takes us at least three days to get used to, what is for us, a steering wheel on the wrong side of the car and driving on the wrong side of the road. We knew what to expect in that area. What we didn’t expect was that once off the M25 we would be on a village road that got smaller and smaller as we got closer to our destination. These were roads meant for horse and buggy and then pony and trap, but were now meant for a two-car highway. We were rear view mirror to rear view mirror! When we came to a village, the road narrowed even further in front of the stores, where the cars would be parked higgly-piggly in front of them. (I wouldn’t exactly call it parking) Cars were just pulled up at any angle, as long as the car would fit in (or not), and the car abandoned. Now this makes the road even smaller and one must wait your turn to go around and sometimes the car coming towards you is in a very big hurry so you have to creep past all the cars, zigging in and out at a crawl. SB’s habit as we came to a village, was to roll down the window and pull in the rear view mirror saying, “Do you know how close you are to that car?” My reply every time, “I didn’t hit it did I?” This is not the best of ways to start a vacation meant for relaxation, but after three days I could move along with the best of them. I am a terrible navigator, even with a map, so it is best that I drive and SB keep me on the correct side of the road and upon entering a traffic circle tell me which turn-off is the one I want, because I would be just carousing that circle in total chaos.
Also, using the GPS in the car, as it was originally set up, to get from Point A to B in the fastest time, did not prove to be helpful. The GPS, in order to save a mile or two, would take us off the main road and into a tiny lane (and I mean tiny lane) to get to our destination. Now I can truly say I saw some lovely cottages and gardens, that were not on any of my maps, in extremely small clusters of village life, that I am sure the average American tourist does not get to see. I am ABSOLUTELY sure I am the only American who knows that the Swim Club in Sevenoaks is reached by going off the main road onto a 180 degree turn, after you have gone through a section of newly landscaped cottages found on the opposite side of the road to the one I was looking for, then up a steep hill into what had to be the Sherwood Forest, on a road that got narrower and narrower as we came to our supposed destination, Knole. Arriving at the back entrance, I think, where no one could get in, yes the GPS got us there, kind of. It was Knole, but not the proper entrance. But hey, like I said, I know now where the Swim Club is, the drive was nice and shady, it only added a half hour to our trip time, and I AM ON VACATION RIGHT? We did that on a lot of days to various destinations. You just have to go with the flow! We reverted to looking at my printed maps for extra guidance.
After much grumbling, and some hysteria about my driving, we arrived at our first destination near Tenterden. I have to say, also, that we had planned to stop at a local vineyard on the way, but under the circumstances that didn’t seem prudent, as I don’t think SB’s heart could have taken it, so we saved that for another day.
Main Home Section of Bulleign Barn
The Back Side of Bulleign Barn
Bulleign Barn, a find on Air B&B, was perfect after our harried day. Turning off onto a narrow one-lane graveled road we poked along for a mile or so following the canal to one side and the rabbit warrens on the other. The lodging, near the hub of Tenterden, (a large village compared to others we had been through that day) was clustered in old hop fields, at one time belonging to the Boleyn family. The long black barns were used for storing the hops. Our Air B&B accommodation was one of the long barns converted into a home with several bedrooms off the main section of the home. Our room was very spacious and modern with WI-FI, located on the main floor, with a private entrance, and set in a small walled courtyard near the old stone horse pool. There was a fridge for our trips to the vineyards too.
Our Room at Bulleign Barn
Our Room at Bulleign Barn
Our Room at Bulleign Barn
Every morning we were served a delicious breakfast of fresh yogurts, fruits, home made jams, along with croissants and specialty breads, warm from the oven. The outdoor table was set to our time-table and it was nice to talk to the other guests, and watch the playful dogs, chickens and a duck named Jemima.
Jemima
Breakfast Every Morning!
AirB&B, Bulleign Barn, near Tenterden
There was also a family of white barn owls, who nested in the eaves, and one morning we got to meet a baby owl, which had fallen from the nest overnight. Our hostess skillfully set about to replace the fallen chick.
Baby White Owl
It was so nice to have found this country accommodation and start our day in such a relaxing way before we set off on our daily adventures to the gardens. We looked over the listings for quite some time, since there were so many varied spots to choose from. If you haven’t thought of using Air B&B you should give it a try. We had choices of garden sheds, gypsy wagons, tents, rooms in big estates homes, or entire homes in both rural and city settings. It’s just fun to see all the offers available out there and we have never been disappointed with a listing we have stayed in. To top that off it is much less expensive and if you like true interaction with your host and other guests, Air B&B will be for you. See you in the garden tomorrow!
PS
Before leaving on our Tour of the Gardens, in the spirit of things, I decided to name my little house, The End Cottage. Every proper cottage in England has a name, most likely used prior to streets and house numbers, so why shouldn’t our place have a name I say? The Star was placed in my yard because I was selected for the Garden of the Month by my neighbors! Thanks !!!!!!
The End Cottage
A Garden in Kent UK
Of all the delectable islands, the Neverland is the snuggest & most compact…… not large and sprawling, you know, with tedious distance between one adventure & another, but nicely crammed.
J. M. Barrie, author of Peter Pan.
The Yellow Flowers
When it comes to gardens I like nothing better than to stroll, admire the collections of beautiful flowers, and imagine the inhabitants of the house and how they like to garden. I especially like the messy, scattered garden with vines dripping over the garden gate, and paths that invite you to explore. It’s even better if there is a flower box of riotous color haphazardly framing the window ledges of the small cottage, nestled in the garden, as if just plunked in, as an after thought. Pieces of art and sculpture placed in a specific spot draw your eye and add to the charm of the garden. I have just returned from several weeks in the United Kingdom, specifically in Kent and Sussex, traipsing through local gardens and visiting magnificent estate homes with acres and acres of gardens. Whew! We lodged in a barn in the middle of the weald, down a mile-long gravel road, wide enough for one car at a time, passing by the field of rabbit warrens and watching for the hop of a bunny on our daily treks into the countryside.
Planning our adventure was one of the fun “bits.” I love the “planning” part! Where to go, what to see? One thing leads to another. First, I looked for places I knew would be of interest. What about the Chelsea Flower Show? No, too crowded and I wanted more rural. Hever Castle during Rose Week? Closer, but not quite right. Then I read a wonderful book, called A Fine Romance, by Susan Branch. It’s about falling in love with the English countryside and her adventures when visiting England.
A Fine Romance
I loved it and the more I read the more I was drawn to Kent and the village of Tenterden. So, I set out to learn all about Kent and especially Tenterden. I also learned more about the National Trust. The National Trust, since 1895, has been preserving the countryside and hundreds of historic properties in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. I first heard of it when reading all about Beatrix Potter and her home in the Lake District, which was left to the National Trust. The properties restored include huge estates to the small and quirky. Just right up my alley. So our first priority was to join the National Trust, (it’s called the “Royal Oak Society “ in the U.S ) which allowed us to receive a handbook with maps of all the places to visit with the National Trust and a pass to get in all of them for a year and a pass for parking at the different locations.
National Trust Book 2015
What a must this is! You don’t realize all the places available to visit until to see them on the maps! So that was a reference point to start with. Where could we set up our “base camp” closest to the sites we wanted to see? Well it still remained Tenterden for us. Then I heard about the National Garden Scheme. What in the world was that? Had to research it before final decisions were made!
The National Garden Scheme was founded in 1927 to open “gardens of quality, character and interest to the public for charity.” Originally the admission fees raised money for district nurses. This was changed in 1948 with the formation of the National Health Service. The National Gardens Scheme has given more than 43 million pounds to nursing and care facilities since the time it opened. Since I am a retired RN this was near and dear to my heart. These are “local” gardeners and their gardens. No big estates, (but some seemed to me like they were!) One woman I was chatting with on our walk through a local garden invited me to her garden, as well, which was not on the list, but exclaimed, “it’s only 12 acres, of course.” So as you can imagine, we visited the “potager,” snuggled behind the small cottage, to large landscaped gardens with “rooms” of flowering blooms. All gardeners were proud of their gardens, more than willing to tell you about them and happy that they were able to do their “bit.”
In 2013 there were over 3700 gardens open, which were all vetted to make sure they are all of sufficient interest. Each gardener opens his garden (usually on a weekend), one or two days during the year. I was so excited! But, it takes some planning! “The National Garden Schemes, “Yellow Book”,” can be purchased each year, which lists all the gardens and when they will be open.
The Yellow Book 2015
Maps, directions, type of garden, and particular interest are included. We were really in the thick of the countryside when directions would reveal, “just go down the gravel road for a mile and then when you get to the yellow mailbox turn right on that gravel road and proceed on to the canal road and windmill place. Light refreshments offered.”
The Countryside Garden
Tea In the Garden
This as going to be one of our best adventures! So after months of looking up gardens and coordinating them with places on the National Trust we were ready to make our way to the “Garden of England,” Kent. We were about to set off on a gardener’s dream! See you tomorrow on our way to the garden!
Preparing the Hot Cross Buns
Spring time offers foods which are rich in history and symbolism. These foods can be broken down into three groups: 1. Food specifically related to Christ, such as ( lamb, for “the lamb of God.”) Easter was the time to start eating the season’s new lamb. 2. Food related to pagan rites of spring (eggs for re-birth) (ham for luck), (lamb for sacrifice) and (cake/bread for fertility) 3. Modern foods such as candy and the Easter basket.
Eggs are traditionally connected with re-birth, rejuvenation and immortality. This is why they are celebrated at Easter. In the early Christian times eggs were forbidden during Lent, so this made them bountiful and exciting, forty days later. They were dyed or decorated in bright colors to honor this celebration. Red eggs brought to the table on Easter Sunday symbolized life, and were given as emblems of friendship. Eggs with the pattern “XV” etched on them stood for “Christ is Risen”, a traditional Easter greeting. We hunt for eggs during an Easter Egg Hunt to identify with riches. Eggs were a treasure, a bounty of nature, and the treasures were deposited by hens in unsuspecting places. To find such a hidden nest was equal to finding a hidden treasure.
The Baked Hot Cross Buns!
The word “Easter” came from the name for the anglo saxon goddess of light and spring, Eostre. Special dishes were cooked in her honor so that the year would bring fertility. Most important of these dishes was a tiny cake or small spiced bun. The association of protection and fertility, birth and re-birth, became a Christian tradition, especially in English society. During Tudor times, the English custom of eating spiced buns on Good Friday was established when a London by-law was introduced forbidding the sale of such buns except on Good Friday, Christmas and burials. Issued in 1592, the thirty-six year of Queen Elizabeth I, by the London Clerk of Markets the proclamation read: That no bakers at any time or time hereafter make, utter or sell by retail, within or without their houses, unto any of the Queen’s subjects any spice cakes, buns, biscuits or other spice bread except at burials or on the Friday before Easter or at Christmas, upon pain of death or forfeiture of all such spiced bread to the poor. A cross was etched or decorated on the bun to represent Christ’s Cross. “One-a-penny, two-a penny, hot cross buns”, was the call of the day. Superstitions regarding bread that was baked on Good Friday date back to a very early period. In England particularly, people believed that bread baked on this day could be hardened in the oven and kept all year to protect the house from fire. Sailors took loaves of it on their voyages to prevent shipwreck and a Good Friday loaf buried in a heap of corn kept away rats, mice and weevils. They also hung hot cross buns in the house on Good Friday to protect them from bad luck during the year and finely grated bread, mixed with water was sometimes used as medicine.
The Hot Cross Buns for Gifts!
Bath buns, hot cross buns, spice buns, penny buns, Chelsea buns, ( hot cross buns sold in great quantity by the Chelsea Bun House in the 18th century) and currant buns; all small, plump, sweet, fermented cakes that are English institutions! Join me today as I bake my hot cross buns! To enjoy this recipe too see, Hot Cross Buns on the King Arthur Webpage ! My favorite place for baking needs! Happy Easter!
Today’s theme is Glass, for Photography 101. I love to take pictures of shop windows, but alas when I get too close to the glass all I get is glare! Or a rather strange picture of me!!!! Any tips to remedy this? Anyone?
So here we are outside the Christmas Shop in Broadway, UK. Enjoy, looking through the glass! From far way!
The Christmas Shop in Broadway, UK
My Teddy Bears
Landmark: a very important event or achievement. Have you ever wondered why teddy bears are left at memorials by grieving mourners? I have. I think we repeat gestures that we no longer know the meaning of or never knew the meaning of, we just follow tradition. It gives us comfort and is meant to give comfort to others.
As many of you know, I have been studying a free online course with FutureLearn called WWI, Trauma and Memory. Although the war was very grim and the aftermath devastating for many men and their families, there have been enlightening moments as well. So, today on Veteran’s Day I am going to share a positive story. For many children I am sure it is a landmark event. This story is about Harry Colebourn, a veterinarian from Winnipeg, Canada.
Harry Colebourn, enlisted in the Canadian Army as a surgical veterinarian and soon was shipped out to Valcartier, Quebec, the mobilization point for 35,000 volunteer troops. He was with the Fort Garry Horse, the 34th Regiment of Cavalry, and would be taking care of the horses, an amazing feat in itself. Along the way the train stopped for supplies, and Harry got off and noticed a chained small black bear near the tracks. A hunter, who had killed the cub’s mother was trying to sell it. Harry paid twenty dollars for the cub and got back on the train with it. He named his new best friend, Winnie, after his hometown, Winnipeg. When Harry reached Valcartier, he trained Winnie, in his spare time, how to play and be gentle, with treats of condensed milk and lots and lots of apples.
Harry With Winnie, Picture Courtesy Colbourn Collection
Harry With Winnie, Picture Courtesy Colbourn Collection
Winnie soon found she had many soldier friends to play with and she was made the mascot for the regiment. The men were very fond of Winnie and wrote to family and friends about her and sent pictures too. Before long the regiment shipped out (literally) to Salisbury Plains, Britain, where all of Britain and her colonies were trained for war. Winnie went with the men. When orders arrived for Harry to go to the front lines he knew this was not a place for Winnie to go and sadly left her at the London Zoo, on the condition he could return after the war and take her back to Canada. On his rest and recuperation from the madness of the war, Harry always went back to the zoo to visit Winnie, who was doing quite well. The keepers were amazed at Winnie’s gentleness, which they predicted could not last. But, it did and Winnie became a star with the children, who visited her at the zoo. She was so gentle, the children were allowed to touch her and feed her. One of the children enthralled with Winnie, was Christopher Robin Milne, the son of A. A. Milne. After the war Harry Colebourn, realizing the children adored Winnie and with Winnie thriving, decided it was best to leave her at the zoo and went back to Canada, where he practiced veterinarian medicine for the rest of his life. A. A. Milne, inspired by Winnie’s gentleness and comfort, went on to write the Winnie the Pooh books, so beloved by children and children at heart.
Pooh in an Illustration by E. H. Shepard.
The first Winnie the Pooh story was published in the London newspaper The Evening News on December 24, 1925. It has been suggested this may be one of the reasons that teddy bears are left at memorials. Winnie brought so much comfort to soldiers during a trial of death, horror and despair and then went on to bring comfort and love to children all over the world.
Winnie the Pooh Monument, Winnipeg, Canada
For the anniversary of WWI, Ryerson University has put together a collection by the Colebourn family titled, Remembering the Real Winnie: The World’s Most Famous Bear Turns 100. They have graciously shared the archives and collection online for those of us who can not travel to Toronto, Canada for the exhibit. It is a must see and will make your day! Enjoy!
A few weeks ago I wrote a post for the genealogy section of Dominic’s blog, Flibberatic Skreebles. He also writes at A Wiltshire Garden. This is a post that he so thoughtfully wrote for me about gardening. Enjoy! Thank you Dominic!
Growing up in a small Wiltshire village amidst the rolling hills of south-western England, I had what most would call a typical childhood relationship with our garden. That is, the edges of the garden borders became havens for my various wild animal toys. The lawn was turned into prairie, savannah or – more prosaically – farmland. Camp outs, snail hunts, hedgehog spotting and somewhere to play and be free. I can’t say that I consciously took a great deal of notice of what was around me.
I did, however, notice that not everybody had such a garden as mine, that not everybody’s mother spent hours in a greenhouse or would spend hours in a garden centre (or carried a small penknife with her when she went on trips to public gardens so she could ‘appropriate’ cuttings). I also noticed that not all of my friends ate vegetables fresh from the garden. I began to taste the difference between a tomato picked fresh from the vine not more than 10 minutes before and one that was taken from a plastic box out of the fridge. It was then that I realised I didn’t have what other people necessarily had: a constant and early exposure to horticulture.
“My Mother’s Garden, 2005.
Of course, gardening isn’t something new. As soon as humans ear-marked permanent homes then the local environment was altered – beneficial plants collected and protected, undesirables eliminated and foreign species introduced. The enclosure of outdoor space began around 10,000 BCE – and the words garden and yard both come from the Old English term geard which means fence or enclosure.
The Romans may have imported their own views on gardening – a separation of the aesthetic beauty from the pragmatic fruit and vegetable (i.e. kitchen) garden – but I can’t imagine pre-Roman Britain devoid of domestic spaces that yielded produce for the household. This produce would’ve been primarily limited to plants with culinary, medicinal or other practical uses (violas were often strewn on the floor to release their aroma when stood upon, for example, as well as their leaves being used as a potherb to flavour soups and stews).
Whilst gardening trends came and went with the owners of large houses – Italian Renaissance, French Baroque, English Romantic – the general population, predominantly rural in nature, continued with their own home gardens. These were used to grow fruit and vegetables that weren’t available elsewhere – after all, there were no supermarkets and no greengrocers conveniently around the corner stocking all foods in all seasons! These spaces also included animals such as poultry and often a pig or two (my mother remembers quite clearly her grandparents fattening up a pig each year in a sty at the bottom of the garden and then sending it to slaughter).
Of course, as the Industrial Revolution and Enclosure movements* came about, more and more people were migrating into urban areas and these towns and cities exploded. There wasn’t the space for people to grow their own produce or the leisure time to dedicate to these pursuits. However, as the 19th century continued, the Victorian philanthropists realised that the poor would benefit both physically and spiritually from having outdoor areas in which to grow their own food.
(*It’d be a bit outside of this post to discuss the Enclosure movement in England – but suffice to say that it changed the face of the British countryside by chopping up the open field system, and allowed the wealthy landowners to own more land and accumulate more wealth at the expense of their tenant farmers.)
“Allotments in Bath, England.
Areas given over to growing produce for private use (as opposed to areas used for growing food to sell – market gardens) were nothing new in England. These allotments were parcels of land rented from a central local authority and each individual is responsible for his or her own patch – and often include a shed of some kind. (This aspect of one parcel of a much larger area being managed individually makes them different from community or victory gardens – more on which later!)
Allotments have gone in and out of fashion over the years – with the most recent peaks being during WWI (1,500,000 plots) and WWII (1,400,000 plots) – but over the last few decades the numbers have started to grow again with demand outstripping supply. This is seen to be a reaction against growing food prices and modern agricultural practices, as well as consumers demanding a greater awareness of where their food comes from.
“Dig For Victory, UK WWII Poster”
Victory gardens sprang up on both sides of the Atlantic during WWI, with household yards, parks and public areas being turned into vegetable and fruit gardens in USA, UK, Canada and Germany. In America alone over 5 million gardens were created during WWI. In WWII England’s gardeners were exhorted through the “Dig For Victory” campaign – and waste ground, railway verges, lawns and sports grounds, even areas of Hyde Park in London, were requisitioned for the purpose. After WWII the majority of these English victory gardens reverted back to their pre-war state. In America it was common to see vacant lots and apartment building roofs as gardens – something that has come back into vogue with not only the guerilla gardening movement but also the rise of urban gardening and food production.
Guerilla gardening is a global movement, defined as “an act of gardening on land that the gardeners do not have the legal rights to utilize”. This includes such diverse areas as verges, roundabouts/traffic islands, tree pits, bus stops or even potholes in roads! This is often done to highlight the neglect of certain areas of land, but also to foster a sense of community or to raise a smile on passersby.
“The Work of UK Pothole Gardener Extraordinaire, Steve Wheen”
Of course, along side this guerilla gardening is the increase not only of urban greening but also of the regeneration of the community gardening movement used to change not only the inner city landscape but also the mental health of people using them – one community garden based in the UK is being used by local doctors to help patients with depression and anxiety disorders.
One thing that the rise in the number of these activities highlights is that gardening isn’t going anywhere. Its been part of the British landscape for as long as there have been people around to pull up an unwanted plant and replace it with something else, and despite the rapid urbanisation of the country around us, the desire to plunge your fingers into some loam and watch the beauty that follows is still with us. And long may it last!
For more information on any of the in the UK, please visit some of the links below!
Guerilla Gardening – http://www.guerrillagardening.org/
Groundwork – community greening charity – http://www.groundwork.org.uk/
Project Dirt – social network for green communities – http://www.projectdirt.com/
The Edible Bus Stop – from one community garden to an entire scheme – http://www.theediblebusstop.org/
Landshare – social network connecting growers to those with land to share – http://www.landshare.net/
Federation of City Farms & Community Gardens – https://www.farmgarden.org.uk/home
National Society of Allotment & Leisure Gardeners – http://www.nsalg.org.uk/
Kabloom Seedboms – a mixture of compost and seeds – http://kabloomshop.co.uk/products
Yesterday I posted a photo for the One Word Photo Challenge: Grey. I have soooooo many great pictures of GREY in Scotland I thought I would share some here and HERE. Enjoy!
The Grey of Edinburgh, Scotland
Grey Houses and Castles
Grey High up on the Hill
The Grey of Edinburgh, Scotland
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