A day reviewing "Miss Wilmott's Ghosts "by Sandra Lawrence

Miss Wilmott's Ghosts is the biography of the extraordinary and wilful Ellen Wilmott, a Victorian gardener, botanical photographer and an award-winning and influential breeder of hundreds of plants.

So far, so worthy sounding, but this new biography by Sandra Lawrence is a riveting read about the life, loves and passions of a complex woman. 

Ellen Wilmott inherited her parents' house, inherited a separate fortune and was known as the “greatest of all woman gardeners.” Yet she lost everything and everyone she loved deeply. 

One of three sisters, Ellen was brought up at Warley Place, a grand house set in 33 acres near Brentwood in Essex.

The illustrated endpapers of the book

Her sister Aida was only seven when she died, but when Ellen reached her seventh birthday, she received a cheque for £1000 and the same amount every birthday from Countess Helen Tasker, her godmother.

  On her 21st birthday, Ellen’s father gave her the money to design and create a large alpine garden. This early success led to Warley being recognised as one of the most important gardens in the country and at one time there were 104 gardeners working there.

Meanwhile, when Ellen’s fairy godmother Helen died, she and her sister Rose each inherited £143,000. This really was life-changing as it was equivalent to more than £19 million today.

It’s all very well having a fortune to throw at establishing a number of gardens ( at Warley, at Tresserve in the French Alps and in Italy, a third garden, Boccanegra.

However, Ellen was gifted, clever and had the vision to create gardens which were greatly admired by her peers. She also became an expert in cultivating new species of plants which were sought after by other prominent garden collectors. 

 Over 200 plants are named after her. Ellen was a member of the Linnean Society and the Royal Horticultural Society and was well known in gardening and natural history circles.  

As Sandra Lawrence writes “ the more I found out, the more I wanted to know”

And this is exactly how I felt as I read further about the social mores of Ellen’s time and those perceived Victorian conventions which she managed to navigate as a woman.

Mind you, I was intrigued right from the introduction of this book where Sandra involves you in her journey to find the real Ellen Wilmott as she searched through rotting trunks found in the cellar at Spetchley Park in Worcestershire, the former home of her beloved sister Rose. 

The excitement of finding letters, artefacts and photographs led Sandra to uncover the mystery of why Ellen made the greatest faux pas and biggest error of her career. 

In 1897, Ellen Wilmott was awarded the prestigious and inaugural Victoria medal of honour by the RHS. She and Gertrude Jekyll were the only two women to be honoured in such a way, but why did Ellen not attend the actual ceremony?

Sandra reveals she found years worth of passionate love letters between Ellen and Miss Gian Tufnell, a lady in waiting for the Duchess of Teck. There’s transcripts of such ardent letters and yet Gian suddenly announces she is getting married to a much older man. Not only that, the wedding is the day after Ellen was due to get her medal.

Too distraught to go to the RHS ceremony, it wasn’t as if Ellen could explain why there would have been a huge scandal. Even so, her non attendance though was seen as a very public snub to the society and the whole horticultural community.

Sandra feels that Ellen’s reputation never recovered and afterwards there was a real sea change in her life.

As she got older, there’s no doubt she was an eccentric… one who carried a revolver in her pocket and even owned some knuckle dusters. She became known as difficult, a battle axe, a spendthrift and a miser.

Largely sympathetically written but with welcome dashes of humour and asperity, this is an engaging, fascinating, oh so lively biography of a remarkable woman whose wonderful world crashed around her. Highly recommended.

                                                      ...........................................................

Miss Wilmott’s Ghosts by Sandra Lawrence was published earlier this month by Blink Publishing and costs £25. I received a press copy to review.

Warley Place, her family home, is now a nature reserve run by the Essex Wildlife Trust and is open every day during daylight hours. The house was demolished in 1939.

A love letter to Thailand

 My husband and I have  just come home from Thailand. It's a country which we love visiting, every year if we can. Wonderful people, beautiful beaches, warmth, sunshine, excellent golf courses and delicious Thai food seduce us and ensure that every year we can't wait until we can book our flights for our next holiday.

Unfortunately, sometimes holidays and life don't go according to plan though.

The first three weeks were idyllic, as we met up with old friends in Hua Hin, about three hours south of Bangkok. We've been going there so long that we know all the staff at the Hua Hin Golf Villa where we stay, and we enjoyed a friendly, wonderful start to our trip. It's the base where my husband organises a golf tour from, so the first week was spent with him playing a couple of rounds, going out for lunches by the beach, swimming and in the evenings, lots of leisurely meals with friends.

Then we took ourselves off to Dolphin Bay, in the National Park of Sam Roi Yot. This is the third time we've stayed there....it's so unspoilt, and even quieter than previous years.  We spent 14 long days, swimming in the bay and the pool, reading, cycling around and enjoying being completely relaxed.

Then we headed north again, about thirty minutes up the coast to Sanae Beach Resort at Khao Tao, where we were due to stay for three nights. The first day, overlooking a sheltered little bay, we lounged by and swam in the pool, went out for dinner and had an early night.

That's when our holiday plans derailed and fell off track completely.

I woke up the following morning and could hear Rob moaning as if in pain. I ran around to his side of the bed  - he was giddy, feeling sick and needed to sit up,. He couldn't without help though, couldn't stand and was cold and clammy. I knew by his speech something was seriously wrong, and ran to the club reception and asked for an ambulance. One arrived very quickly and after a brief examination, we were off to Hua Hin about 25 minutes away with blue lights flashing and the siren blaring.

He was seen immediately in recuss and within an hour was being given an MRI scan. I was shown the results quickly and kindly. This was a major stroke plus smaller pea sized one in the cerebullum. The words "life changing" won't be forgotten in a hurry.

The care Rob received at Bangkok Hospital in Hua Hin was marvellous, but after thirty six hours in the intensive Care Unit we were told he was being moved to the world renowned Bumrumgrad Hospital in Bangkok for further treatment at Specialist Stroke Unit.

Bumrungrad sent their own mobile ICU to collect Rob, and within ten minutes of a doctor and two paramedics arriving from Bangkok, we were both on our way north for 120 miles once again accompanied by blue flashing lights and sirens.

For the next seven days, our world became very small, but very focussed. Rob was in ICU first and then onto the stroke ward on the tenth floor of this huge hospital. 

He was confined to bed at first, more scans, numerous tests and procedures and another MRI scan which showed another three little bleeds, again in his cerebellum. 

Our world revolved around that room, and the constant visits of nurses, a neurologist, a cardiologist, haematologist, an orthopaedic doctor, and physios who were all so focused and encouraging, giving us such confidence.

Our window on the world from the hospital room

In time, he could walk a little with a rollator and the support of two nurses or physios. Each day brought a new joy, a new achievement like the first time he was allowed to shower on his own or to leave his room and walk down the corridor with help, then on his own. The nurses made him laugh, the hospital food was excellent, and after a week [yes a week] Rob was ready to leave but would need further tests and examinations before being allowed to fly home. His consultants called him the miracle man, as he shouldn't have been able to walk or talk properly according to the MRI scans.

Some of the wonderful nurses who looked after Rob

We went back to Hua Hin, where more of his friends had arrived for a few weeks of golfing. Hell would have frozen over before Rob would be allowed to play, but being back at a place we call home when we're in Thailand, with lots of banter and support from our friends was such a boon. 

Nearly two weeks later Rob was allowed to fly home. I found out I had COVID and that's when you wonder what's next. The Four Horsemen of the Apocolypse perhaps?

Since we've been home, there's been time to rest, reflect, and realise how lucky Rob has been. 

Lucky that he's survived, lucky that we had such wonderful health insurance and a company that pulled out all the stops to help right from my first call from the hospital foyer in Hua Hin. It was about 2am UK time when I called the Collinson Group Medical Ops, yet the warm, capable voice of Kerryn reassured me that everything would be done to get Rob the best treatment care and I eould be looked after too. She kept in touch, and her colleagues too ..always at the end of the line, with information and plans, fixing me up in a hotel just across the road from the hospital in Bangkok. Handholding over the phone from nearly six thousand miles away was such support during those first nerve racking days.

From the first morning Rob was whisked off to the hospital from Sanae Beach, the staff kept in touch to see how Rob was. In Hua Hin, the owners and staff of the Golf Villa went out of their way to help. A visit to Bangkok to see Rob in hospital with flowers and cards all gave us comfort. At the Best Western Hotel in Sukamvit where I was staying, the maitre d'hotel would greet me every night as I returned from the hospital, with a warm welcome and chat as I sat alone to eat, asking how my husband was.

And as for everyone who was involved in Rob's care in both hospitals, you have our most sincere thanks, You don't forget things like that, the kindness, courtesy and support of strangers and friends.

We can't forget how much we love Thailand too. That's why Rob is already planning another trip for us next year, to see our friends, to visit our favourite places and new ones, to relax once again.

In the meantime, Rob continues to make progress and is hoping that it wont be too long before he's playing golf. He is taking the tablets he now needs daily, exercising each day and eating healthily. One thing he won't be forgetting to do under any circumstances is organising our health insurance  for next year.....

Diary days with Sarah Raven

Gosh, December arrives tomorrow which can mean only one thing. I need to get my skates on when it comes to Christmas. I've actually started buying presents, which is early for me, and even Christmas cards and stamps have been are bought and are in a drawer ready to write.

But there's more. I really am being even more organised, thanks to a mystery parcel which arrived last week from sarahraven.com 

Sarah Raven grow, cook, eat diary 2022

 I was thrilled to see it contained a diary and a calendar for 2022, which I've already put to use. 

I always had a work diary of course, but would wait until what I call the fag end days of the year between Christmas and New Year to buy a personal one. I won't be doing that this year though! Not with this little beauty...

I've been a fan of Sarah Raven for years...she is a botanist, garden expert, cook, and writer who from sowing and growing her own food for years, has developed a lifestyle business selling seeds, bulbs and, homewares that you just have to buy. Sarah also runs cookery and gardening courses.

Back to the glossy diary, which is A5 in size. Perfect for me, easy and light enough to carry in a handbag.  Anything smaller is far too fiddly and piddly -  I need space for important dates and notes, so like the fact there is a generous two-page spread for each week of the year. 

At the beginning of each month in the diary, there are beautiful shots of flowers and plants by photographer Jonathan Buckley, who is a long-time collaborator with Sarah Raven. 

Also, there is a list of jobs to do in the garden at the beginning of each month as well as a seasonal recipe to try. I won't be waiting until August to make the delicious-sounding blackcurrant and almond cake featured though....luckily I've still got a few pounds of blackcurrants in my freezer, so will make that fairly soon.

Another feature of the diary I like is the sowing and planting guide for each month, whether you're growing flowers, fruit, vegetables, herbs, or bulbs, and the best techniques to do so. There's even a flexible ruler to help with sowing and planting too. So handy for measuring the right depths and spacings to plant seeds, bulbs etc.

I know more and more people rely on their electronic diaries, but they are not for me. I prefer the sense of order and calm as I write in a paper diary., there's more of a connection between my thoughts and what is on the paper.

Sarah Raven's garden and cookery year calendar 2022

I adore this cover of Sarah Raven's wall calendar for 2022. If ever there was a photograph to fill you with hope and motivation for the coming year, this is it.

Last year I didn't buy a wall calendar...well, with so many lockdowns, we weren't going out much, and there weren't as many parties, outings or dates to remember. 

Now though, I will be more organised as the calendar is up on the kitchen noticeboard. 

I'm not one to wish my life away, but it's nice to think of a new year, a fresh start, more flowers and fruit and vegetables to grow, new recipes to try and holidays to plan isn't it? 

Before I get too carried away, there's Christmas to concentrate on though, and I can't think of a nicer present to give to receive than a good, practical paper diary or an attractive wall planner for anyone who wants to be more organised next year.

The diary costs £12.95 and the calendar costs £9.99 - I was sent these for review.

A Foodie Friday reviewing and cooking from "Green" by Elly Pear

 There's nothing more annoying than a friend recommending somewhere good to eat, and the cafe closing down before you can visit. 

That's what happened a few years back when I really wanted to visit The Pear Cafe in Bristol, run by Elly Curshen, who is otherwise known as Elly Pear. Sadly, I didn't get the chance to taste her food, but now I can.

I've recently been cooking some of her recipes from this book which was published in 2019 but has only just come on my radar.

Although I do eat some meat, I  love eating and making vegetarian and vegan meals, and am always looking for something new to try. Boy, do I have some new favourites after reading and rereading "Green"

It's set out in two parts...weekday recipes and weekend food, which works out very successfully.

Let's face it, many of us want fresh food, cooked quickly or easily at the end of a weekday, and Elly Pear delivers recipes that can be frozen, or cooked in one pan and some which are ready in 20 minutes.

Rose Harissa Chickpeas with Za'atar baked feta is easy peasy and tastes divine, and so is the baked two cheese, three greens, four herb frittata. I've never cooked a frittata in a cake tin before but this was full of flavour and perfect for supper or lunchtime.  My "Writers what lunch" gang doesn't know it yet, but this is what they're going to have at our December meet up at my house. and it's perfect for cooking in advance.  

Also on the must list to make in the very near future is Elly's recipe for Roasted Beetroot, Horseradish and Amontillado Pearl Barley risotto. What a combination of punchy,  sweet and savoury ingredients ...

The second part of the book features ideal weekend food. Ideas for what to prep for the weekend and brunches, lunches and suppers that hit the sweet spot for a lazy day, alone or with friends. Recipes that ooze freshness and make you feel that they not only taste good but by golly make you feel good too. Spiced Paneer, Spinach and Pea Grain Bowl with mint yoghurt sauce anyone?

These are all arranged seasonally, but even though this cake is suggested for Spring, it's ideal for right now.

Ingredients

140g plain flour

125g ground almonds

2tspn baking powder

Half a tsp salt

225gm salted butter

200gm caster sugar

3 eggs

zest and juice of a lemon

2 tbsp raspberry jam

4 tbsp almond flakes, toasted lightly in a dry pan

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180C fan/ 200C/400F or gas mark 6

2. Mix together flour, ground almonds, baking powder and salt in a bowl. In a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugar together, then beat in the eggs one at a time, adding a tablespoon of the dry ingredients along with each egg.

3. Fold through the remaining dry ingredients and then mix in the lemon zest and juice.

4. Grease a 25cm loose-bottomed cake tin. Pir the cake mixture into the tin for 25 minutes or until the top of the cake is light golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean.

5. Remove the cake from the oven and leave it  to cool completely in the tin. Only then remove the cake from the tin, spread the jam over the top ad sprinkle with almond flakes and serv

6. Grease a 25cm loose-bottomed cake tin. Put the cake mixture into the tin for 25 minutes or until the top of the cake is light golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean.

Remove the cake from the oven and leave it to cool completely in the tin. Only then remove the cake from the tin, spread the jam over the top, sprinkle with almond flakes and serve,

* I used my homemade raspberry and gin jam in the recipe (such a good move!) I may also have overdone the amount of flaked almonds ...actually I know I did, so will use more sparingly next time I make this delicious cake.

Elly Pear is right when she says this cake keeps well, even it is very moreish. An absolute winner according to those of us who ate it.

For me "Green is a winner of a book too, and one which I will keep cooking from.

"Green" by Ellie Pear is published by Ebury Press  and costs £22

Her previously published books are "Feast Days and Fast Days" and "Let's Eat"

A day of visiting Chatsworth House Gardens , Derbyshire

Why you should visit or revisit Chatsworth House 

 

As I drove down into the valley past the sheep grazing in the parkland, I caught sight of  Chatsworth. Built of local limestone, honeyed in the September sunshine, with gold tips on the roof glistening, I felt a shiver of excitement. 

I was here to see the biggest garden transformation of Chatsworth for 200 years designed and created by three well known and respected landscape architects and garden designers. 

Dan Pearson, Tom Stuart Smith and James Hitchmough have all worked with  Steve Porter who is Head of Gardens and Landscape at Chatsworth to create an area of 15 acres known as Arcadia, and carry our major changes to a further 10 acres in the rock garden and elsewhere.

First though, a quick visit to the kitchen garden, where fruit, flowers and vegetables are grown for the house, the cafes and for wedding events.

As well as being decorative with lovely views, I liked the informative and decorative signage.

From the kitchen garden, you walk, higher to where the old trout stream has been remodelled by Dan Pearson. based on his Chelsea Flower Show design of 2015.

 You follow the stream as it snakes half a mile from herbaceous borders into grass. It's shady, welcome on a hot afternoon as you walk into Arcadia.

Arcadia , a new garden at Chatsworth House

 It's based high on the ridge behind the main house, there was a wilderness that had never been gardened. 200 trees were felled to create light and space, and the area is divided into four glades.

In one there's an impressive sculpture by Laura Ellen Bacon. I've not heard of her before but I do like this "Natural Course" and the way the 100 tons of stone connects so well with the landscape.

The meadow glades delight in shades of dusky pink, cream, white and blue as you wind your way through the pathways. There are huge drifts of perennials, and in the wet glade, over 8,000 camassia, ferns and persicaria have been planted.

your senses are heightened too in this special place.  Birdsong seems louder and scents stronger .....with major plantings of daphne and actea "Pritchard's Giant".which I have decided is a new favourite.

 Pretty arches of white glisten and its heady scent take my breath away.

A quick chat with Tom Stuart Smith

I speak to Tom Stuart Smith who has overseen this project, adores this plant too..., using 50 of them at a time throughout both Arcadia and the rock garden.

More walking through Arcadia, and you enter an area that was cleared of beeches oaks and limes to create a wonderful moment, of seeing how this garden connects with the rest of the formal gardens. There in front of you, newly planted bulbs and perennials line the steps leading you down ....but your eyes are caught by the majestic maze, with green parkland beyond.

Stepping downwards, Tom Stuart Smith leads us to the three-acre Rock Garden which has also been remodelled with the introduction of new paths and heavier planting of perennials than before, some echoing those up on the ridge.

Now, this is one of the earliest and largest rock gardens in the world, designed by none other than Joseph Paxton. So how does it feel to be asked to redesign some areas? Tom smiles and agrees it's a challenge...but you can see by the smile in his eyes and his love of the gardens here, he's happy with what has changed here over the last three years.

Meanwhile, the more formal gardens, designed by gardening greats such as Capability Brown and Joseph Paxton are waiting to be explored. 

The Maze itself and the newly planted entrance are on the foundations of the Great Conservatory designed by Paxton. It took 4 years to build and was the largest glasshouse in the country in 1840 - an elaborate and stunning place to grow plants and to visit. 

According to Steve Porter, the Head of Gardens and Landscape though, after the First World War, it became a huge extravagance and the 9th Duke of Devonshire decided to demolish it. It was blown up, and apparently, it took several attempts to do so. Steve says that even now, his team are still digging up pieces of glass. 

By now, it was time to walk back to the Stables near the House.

 Families were still sitting by the water, entranced by the sight of the Emperor fountain shooting water up to 90 metres high, but it was nearly closing time.

I've spent the last week constantly thinking about my visit to Chatsworth House and the hugely ambitious garden transformation commissioned by the current Duke and Duchess of Devonshire. They wanted an exciting contemporary and sustainable garden.

It takes a leap of faith to radically remodel, and institute change on such an expensive and expansive scale in a much loved and admired garden.

Supported by Gucci, after three years of hard work by the designers, the gardeners and a team of volunteers, and even mucking in themselves to help during the Pandemic, the Duke and Duchess's vision  "Arcadia", a pastoral paradise, in harmony with nature has been realised.

Accessibility information for the Gardens at Chatsworth House

You can download an access map from the Chatsworth House website.

There is free admission for carers (don't book a ticket for one)

A 28 seater trailer which is fully wheelchair accessible,  offers tours of the garden on certain days. Garden buggy tours are also running for visitors to book at a small additional charge. 

I visited Chatsworth House as a member of a press trip with the Garden Media Guild

Days of harvest and a heatwave

So, September sunshine came at the weekend, bringing almost tropical temperatures.

It meant meals in the garden after watering the tomatoes and sweet pepper plants in the evening. Glasses of wine whilst watching the swallows pirouette, soar and swoop around us until the skies became dark.

No so relaxing though for our local farmers. They’ve been harvesting at full pace when there’s a tight window between having lots of sunshine and the storms forecast. 

Farmers Phil and Mark were hard at work in the field at the end of our garden on Monday. Our dogs Boo and Eric had a grandstand view, following their progress with interest as they circled the field.

After a couple of hours it was time for the hard workers to have a drink and a chat …

Meanwhile on the other side of the village, I stopped to watch as they were working on another field, with a cloud of dust  trailing behind them …..

On the other side of the road, all was safely gathered in as I walked through one of my favourite fields.

As I got closer, I realised just how huge this tower of bales was. It looked so majestic in a commanding position on the ridge, pale gold surrounded by bright blue skies.

I know storms have been appearing already  elsewhere in the country but here in our little village, all is still dry. This  warmth and sunshine have given us a glimpse of the summer we didn’t have. A small bonus as the year marches on and the nights draw in…..

A reading day: a review of Big Veg by Gerald Stratford

Ah, the beginning of September - heralding the beginning of autumn and the big bonanza of newly published books, all shiny new and ready for the Christmas market. 

One of the first books to arrive through the door with a satisfying whack on the mat is Big Veg by Gerald Stratford.

Gerald Stratford has been growing vegetables since he was taught how to as a small boy by his father but had never thought about writing a book about it.

He's a grandfather in his seventies, a retired fisherman and gardener but that's just what he's done.

His book "Big Veg",was published last week and I think it's going to sell very well for a number of reasons.

Firstly, Gerald is an internet sensation. Despite not being on social media for long, he has already made his mark, attracting over 308,000 followers on twitter alone.

I'm one of them, and I know all is well in the world when there's a post and video from Gerald.

"Good morning" or "Good evening "he says in his lovely Oxfordshire lilt, and I'm transported to a happy place where there are outsize vegetables to admire which Gerald has grown, and to hear little snippets about his life. Nothing earth-shattering takes place in his videos, they're not slick there's no fancy, frenetic, over the top presentation either, but they are surprisingly addictive.

So what about his book?

In the words of a famous Ronseal catchphrase from yesteryear "it does what it says on the tin."

It's about the outsize veg he grows in his garden and allotment, and how to grow them in simple, understandable terms.

Split into sections, the book has lots of tips for beginners to both grow and show big vegetables. His advice is encouraging and he understands that when growing veg, anything ..good or bad,  can happen despite your best efforts.

He only grows he likes to eat though, an important commandment really for any grow your own fan. After all, what's the point?

In his chapter on what its like to show your vegetables, Gerald is spot on as he describes the anticipation, the sheer thrill and the fun to be had whether you're exhibiting at your local village show or a more prestigious one. In the world of big veg mind you, size matters and his friendly, inspiring approach will enable you to grow some whoppers.

The last part of the book guides us month by month through Gerald's year of growing vegetables, both for showing and for supplying him and his family with meals in every season.

It's a charming glimpse into a land which is forever England. A gentle land of sheds, greenhouses, allotments and vegetable and flower shows. This book takes into Gerald's likeable world of retirement, family, growing food for his family and above all, humour and contentment.

Mind you, his world is already changing with a book,  even modelling, plus appearing at a literary festival next month, but I suspect that nothing will change Gerald.  

Cheers Gerald!

Big Veg by Gerald Stratford is published by Headline Books and costs £14.99.

My copy was sent for review.