Tasks for January

Make the most of 'indoor days' to plan for next season, with seed and plant catalogues, and a layout of the garden.

Cover rhubarb crowns with straw and a forcer to grow early stems.(This cannot be done every year as it weakens the plant).

Dig over the veg patch on sunny dry days, and add manure if not growing root crops.

Prune back grape vines.

Ensure tools are clean, oiled and ready for next season.

Book machinery in for a service early in the new year.

The New and Old Year

2007 has been a very rollercoaster year, with so many highlights and disasters. The rain is something that I will not forget, when the melon houses flooded, the lake burst its banks and the major concert of the year was cancelled after the organisers went into receivership.

However, there were also high moments, that have included the renovation of the conservatory, the development of the kitchen garden, a visit from the Sealed Knot, the interesting experience of being followed by a film crew for the series on Sky TV, and of course the Illuminated Trail which is another event that I have always really enjoyed.

Talking of the Trail, the weather was so crisp and starry for the later half of the ten days that the lake froze. This meant that at the end of the trail we were unable to remove the lights from the island. The ice was too thick to launch the boat, and too thin to walk across. So the lights stayed put until boxing day, when we were finally able to launch our canoe and recover the equipment!

During a visit to my daughter in London just before Christmas I took to opportunity to pop into the Museum of Garden History,
(www.museumgardenhistory.org) just next to Lambeth Palace. (It is shut on Mondays as I found to my cost last time I tried to visit!) It was fascinating and I was sorry only to have an hour before I was due to meet up with my daughter. As I browsed the exhibits I noticed a plant stand previously owned by Ellen Willmott (Mr Berkeley's great aunt).
After a long and very interesting chat with one of the historians I discovered that Miss Willmott had purchased blank Minton tiles that had pictures impressed into them. Miss Willmott then painted the tiles and sent them back to be fired, as was a popular hobby of the day.(See pic.) These tiles were then used to decorate the plant stand. Each tile has Miss Willmott's name on the back. I was also very interested to discover that 2008 is the 150th anniversary of Miss Willmott's birth, and that the museum are thinking of putting on a dedicated display in her honour.