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Life at nature’s pace
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Drifts of daffodils | Primroses | Fritillaria | Beetroot | Crochet motifs | Lake District artists | Birds’ feathers | Damson blossom | North Berwick
Capturing a rainbow in wool Wild Scottish coast of rocks and ruins Red roots filled with sweetness
Mar / Apr 2016
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1 Issue 29 | Mar / Apr 2016 | £4.25
EARLY BEAUTY
WAVES OF SUNSHINE Resilient and versatile, daffodils bring welcome gold and white colour to the spring garden
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DRIFT OF RADIANT yellow daffodils spreads across a lawn, their massed ranks a bright reminder that spring is on its way. At a time when most leaves and buds are still tightly furled, these golden-headed beauties are a warmly anticipated sight. Distinctive, beautiful and often fragrant, daffodils have a long flowering season. Different varieties bloom from late winter until well into April. Most are extremely resilient, surviving frost or flood to hold their heads high, whatever the weather. There are countless forms, colourings and sizes of these versatile plants. They can be naturalised in grass or under trees, used to edge streams and paths or bring colour to beds and borders. Small varieties are equally at home in rockeries, alpine troughs or containers. With daffodils to suit almost every garden situation, more are planted than any other flowering bulb. ›
A picture of spring: a swathe of daffodils naturalised in grass beneath the boughs of a tree in blossom.
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CLOUD VALLEYS Mists of white shroud an area of south Cumbria as its damson trees burst into blossom
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N SPRING, THE countryside in the southern Lake District turns white with drifts of blossom from the damson trees that abound in Cumbria’s Lyth and Winster Valleys. For centuries this area, between Kendal to the east and Windermere to the west, has been famed for these trees. Damsons have been grown in what was the county of Westmorland since the early 1700s, if not earlier. Today, visitors flock there to marvel at the remarkable displays of annual blossom. Set among the imposing grandeur of the Lakeland fells, wild trees abound in the hedgerows, while old
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orchards surround the cottages and farmsteads. They thrive on the thin calcareous soils in the mild, damp climate. Sheep, with their newborn lambs gambolling about them, crop the old greensward beneath the sweet-scented damson flowers. Early flowering The damson, Prunus domestica subsp. insititia, probably originated from a crossing of the cherry plum, Prunus cerasifera, and blackthorn, Prunus spinosa. Its single white flowers appear on the bare branches in April. They are
Damson trees usually reach no higher than 16-26ft (5-8m), but occasionally make 32ft (10m).
The damson flower has only five petals but numerous stamens.
GROWING DAMSONS Damson
approximately 1in (2.5cm) across, borne on 3/4in (2cm) stems. These delicate blossoms are an early source of nectar for bees, the tree’s main pollinators. Damsons are self-fertilising, however, so isolated trees still fruit well, as long as there are pollinators. In close succession to the flowers, the elliptical or oval, finely toothed leaves emerge. These have a sharp point and are usually 2-4in (5-10cm) in length. The bark on young trees tends to be reddish brown or even slightly purple with horizontal striations. It becomes dark grey-brown and fissured as the tree reaches approximately 20 years. Some trees, particularly young suckers, may have long thorns ›
trees prefer a warm, sunny, sheltered situation, thriving in most soils, except heavy clays or peat. Planting of bare-root trees should be carried out in the winter months. This is also the time to transfer suckers to new sites. To do this, as much of the root system as possible is first carefully teased off from the parental roots before severing. Tree management is minimal, simply requiring the removal of dead wood when necessary. If pruning is thought necessary, it should be done in mid summer to avoid excessive bleeding. Pruning in winter is avoided as it leaves the trees susceptible to the ingress of disease such as bacterial canker or silver leaf fungi.
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Beetroot pickle Makes 1kg 1kg baby beetroot 2 red onions 2 cloves of garlic 1 tbsp coriander seeds 500ml white wine vinegar 550g sugar sea salt and black pepper
Mini orange-glazed beets Serves 4 as a side 600g baby beetroots 2 oranges 2 tbsp rapeseed oil sea salt and black pepper 50g sugar 1 tbsp brandy 1 tbsp white wine vinegar flat-leaf parsley, to garnish Preheat the oven to 200°C/gas mark 6. Trim the beetroot, then toss in a bowl with the oil and the juice of half an orange. Zest and juice the other orange, setting it aside, then cut the remaining half orange into quarters and add it to the beetroot. Transfer the beetroot and orange quarters to a roasting tin, season, then roast in the oven for 1 hr. In a saucepan, mix together the reserved orange juice and zest, the sugar, brandy and vinegar. Simmer for 3 mins, while stirring. Bring to the boil and stir on a rolling boil to thicken, then pour over the beetroot and serve, garnished with parsley.
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Trim and peel the beetroot and slice the onions and garlic thinly. In a large saucepan, combine the coriander seeds, vinegar and sugar with 250ml of cold water. Bring to a simmer to dissolve the sugar. Add the beetroot, onions and garlic, and season, then bring a boil. Simmer for 1½ hrs, until the mixture is glossy and syrup-like and the beetroot is tender. Pour into sterilised jars and seal with a lid. Store in a dry, cool place for up to three months. Once opened, store in the fridge and eat within a week.
Beetroot corned beef hash Serves 4 2 beetroot 2 x 340g tins corned beef 500g King Edward potatoes 2 tbsp vegetable oil 2 tbsp butter 1 onion, chopped 1 clove of garlic, chopped 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce 2 tbsp chopped capers black pepper
Preheat the oven to 190°C/gas mark 5. Dice the potatoes, then trim the beetroot and chop to a similar size. In a large saucepan, cover the potatoes with cold water and bring to the boil, then simmer for 2 mins. Refresh with cold water, then drain. In a large frying pan, heat the oil and fry the potatoes for 10 mins, until browned, stirring as they cook. Mix with the beetroot and set aside. Now melt the butter in the frying pan. Add the onion and garlic and sauté for 5 mins, until the onion is soft and golden. Roughly chop the corned beef, then add it to the pan and fry for 2 mins. Add the Worcestershire sauce. Season with lots of pepper, before mixing in the capers. Mix in the potato and beetroot and divide between four small ovenproof dishes. Bake for 15 mins, garnish and serve.
flat-leaf parsley, to garnish
Beetroot and goat’s cheese dip Makes 375g 125g beetroot 250g goat’s cheese 1 tbsp thyme leaves ½ lemon sea salt and black pepper crackers, to serve Trim and chop the beetroot into small chunks and transfer to a food processor. Blend until smooth, then transfer to a large bowl. Blend the goat’s cheese into the beetroot with the back of a spoon until smooth and combined. Mix in the thyme, zest and juice of the lemon and salt and pepper. Chill for 30 mins. Serve with crackers.
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OFF THE PEG
MATERIALS
This simple project creates an attractive coat rack
• Old plank of wood • Coarse and fine sandpaper and sanding block • Six porcelain lids, from old teapots, jars and coffee jugs • Tape measure and pencil • Remnant wood, for discs • Drill and core bit • Wood drill bits • Wood screws • Wood glue • Wall-mounting hooks
using mismatched lids from old teapots and jars
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HEN A FAVOURITE jar or teapot breaks, the lid can be put to good use in an unexpected guise. Several such lids, attached to a recycled wooden plank, form eye-catching hooks for a coat rack.
MAKING THE RACK 2.
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Step 2: The apertures inside each lid are measured. Using the drill and core bit, circles of wood are cut from the remnant wood to match each lid aperture. A hole is drilled through the centre of each disc, so it can be screwed into the plank. Step 1: Using a sanding block, the old plank is smoothed to remove sharp edges or splinters. Starting with a coarse grade sandpaper and moving on to a finer grade enables a smooth finish to be attained.
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4. Step 5: Using the wall mounting hooks, the finished coat rack is hung on the wall in the desired spot.
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Step 3: The plank is measured to find its centre line. Six equally spaced points are marked along it where each lid will be attached. Holes are pre-drilled at each point. Once the order of the lids is decided on, the corresponding wooden discs are screwed into place. ▯
Project Living4Media
Step 4: Glue is spread on the top and sides of the wooden circles. Each lid pressed firmly into place. The rack is left overnight to allow the glue to thoroughly dry.
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A RAINBOW IN WOOL Amanda Perkins creates beautiful works of art from her many-coloured crocheted motifs
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RECAPTURING THE WIND For the past 35 years dedicated volunteers have been reconstructing a historic windmill in Oxfordshire
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N THE EDGE of an Oxfordshire village at the foot of the Chiltern Hills, an 18th century wooden windmill is being recreated. Four white sails contrast with the dark wood-clad body. This is Chinnor Windmill, the only surviving six-footed postmill in Britain. It stands on six wooden legs, which themselves sit on brick columns. Built in 1789, the mill served the community for more than 130 years. It only ceased to be used in 1923 when a steam mill proved more efficient. The windmill was left to decay, until in 1967 it was dismantled to make way for houses. Today, relocated to a new home 150 yards down a country lane from its original site, the windmill is rising phoenix-like. Since the 1980s, a dedicated group of volunteers have spent more than 15,000 hours rebuilding it. “Chinnor is a postmill, designed so that everything moves around the central post,” says Adrian Marshall, the project manager. “The buck, the main top part, is mounted on the central post around which it rotates. Because our weather changes direction so much, the sails need to face different directions. “The purpose of any mill is to harness energy and use it to overcome laborious, backbreaking work. It can take a large percentage of the day to grind grain and create enough flour to make bread. That’s a lot of drudgery for a lot of people. On a good day a windmill can produce up to 30 horsepower, the equivalent of 90 men.” Living in the nearby village of Haddenham, Adrian has been involved with the project since 1992 after visiting
local windmills during a treasure hunt car rally. “As an engineer I like to see how things work,” he says. “This is the ultimate challenge. Restoring Chinnor Windmill is about adding to the place. Villagers see it as an asset.”
Adrian uses wooden patterns to test the cast-iron worm gear drives the windmill’s fantail system. This automatically keeps the mill pointing into the wind.
Rescuing the pieces When the mill was taken down, two enthusiasts took ownership of the surviving parts. They stored structural timbers and wooden gears at their homes in Norfolk and Saffron Walden with the intention of rebuilding the mill. In the end, these components remained untouched until a team headed by professional millwright Chris Wallis from Little Marlow intervened in 1980. “The original volunteers – local enthusiasts – had just finished the restoration of nearby Lacey Green Windmill and were looking for their next challenge,” explains Adrian. “They brought the parts back and created working drawings from old photographs.” Approximately half the mill survived. “We had one corner post and a lot of roof, which was well defined. These gave us the windmill’s height of 37ft 9in,” says Adrian. By overlaying old photographs it was possible to estimate the remaining dimensions. The buck is 12ft 2in wide by 20ft 8in long and 24ft 3in high (3.7 x 6.3 x 7.4m). Pictures of each face of the mill were scanned onto a computer. This generated working drawings and a virtual three-dimensional model. At the same time Chinnor Parish Council agreed to support the restoration. Councillors allowed the mill to be built on their Whites Field site. ›
The light by the barn that shines all night pales at dawn when a little breeze comes. A little breeze comes breathing the fields from their sleep and waking the slow windmill.
This is the second windmill volunteer Geoff Giles has worked on, having finished restoring Lacey Green smock mill in 1980.
William Stafford, ‘The Light By The Barn’
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WONDER OF FEATHERS Complex in form and function, feathers protect birds, are used in courtship and, most striking of all, allow them to fly
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ARRIED ON A sprightly breeze, a bird soars high over the British countryside. Its flight is powered by one of nature’s lightest and most delicate creations, feathers. These provide birds with camouflage, let them perform courtship displays and, perhaps most wonderful of all, leave the earth to fly fast, silently or even under water. A bird’s feathers are known in their entirety as its plumage. The number of feathers within this plumage varies significantly depending on the size of the particular species. It ranges from approximately 1,500 on a small passerine or perching bird such as a robin, to 25,000 on one of Britain’s largest birds, the swan. Soft downy plumage, close to a bird’s body, traps warm air against the skin, helping keep the bird warm in winter. In summer, the feathers can be fluffed up in a breeze, allowing circulating air to reach the skin, keeping it cool. At the other extreme are the stiffer
A bird will preen its feathers daily, rubbing its beak and head against a gland that produces oil. It then rubs the oil on its body and wing feathers to keep them in good condition.
A robin fluffs its feathers up in a breeze to allow air to circulate around its body.
primary and secondary flight feathers that create an aerofoil shape on the wings. These are there to create speed and lift, letting the bird attain flight. Types and purposes Feathers are made of keratin, a fibrous protein found in the hair and nails of humans and animals. Each feather has a follicle, which is a socket-like pit in the bird’s skin. In each follicle is a group of cells. These produce feathers, normally once a year, throughout the lifespan of a bird. New feathers form completely within just a few days. While they are growing a bird is said to be in pin. This term comes from the newly growing feathers being housed in a keratin sheath. This serves as protection for the feather as it matures. At this stage the developing feathers look like stiff stalks and are consequently called pin feathers. Each feather has a rachis, the shaft that runs through the middle of the feather. ›
On the flight feather on the left the rachis has individual barbs each side that link together to form a flat vane. The barbs on the down feather on the right are separated and designed to trap warm air.
The most primitive form of domestic sheep, Soay have strong, curving horns. Nearly a third of Soay ewes have horns, like this one, although these will not grow as long as the rams’.
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Natural mountain climbers, Soays can negotiate unforgiving terrain, including the roofs of abandoned cottages, in pursuit of low-growing meadow or poa grass.
A CURIOUS BREED Intelligent and inquisitive, ancient Soay sheep wander freely, braving the harsh weather of remote and wind-swept Scottish isles
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PRING HAS ARRIVED on the isle of Soay, but the wind bites as a ewe and her lamb traverse the clifftops, gulls shrieking and whirling overhead. The ewe has survived the harshest of winters on this bleak island. Nimble and sure-footed, she guides her newborn over weather-worn rocks to rich new pastures, where she can graze in the nascent sun. Remote and isolated, Soay is one of four volcanic islands that make up the tiny archipelago of St Kilda, 110 miles off the west coast of Scotland. Only a mile across, in most weathers it is completely inaccessible, its sheer cliffs rising 1,300 feet from the turbulent waters that separate it from the main island of Hirta. Because of this seclusion, the sheep that roam wild on Soay have had little opportunity to mix with other breeds. The oldest surviving breed in Britain, to all appearances, they are the same as those tended by Bronze Age shepherds more than 4,000 years ago. Horn of plenty Soay, Ovis aries, are small, approximately a third of the size of many commercially reared sheep. A full-grown ram stands 24-27in (60–70cm) at the shoulder and weighs approximately 80lb (36kg). Ewes are 22lb (10kg) lighter and reach 19-24in (50–60cm) at the shoulder. Adapted to navigating the fearsome cliffs and ›
The 239 acres of Soay is separated from Hirta by the 547yd (500m) wide Sound of Soay. 115
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OF ROCKS AND RUINS Scotland’s North Berwick coastline is a place of imposing monuments, both natural and manmade 99
Bring every season to life in your home with LandScape
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issues a year
GORGEOUS GARDENING We celebrate the beauty and diversity of the British garden and its plants. You’ll find inspiration and advice as we invite you into gardens where nature and nurture flourish.
INSPIRATIONAL COOKERY Every issue has tempting recipes that make the most of the season’s produce. You’ll find new ways to enjoy traditional favourites for every meal.
EXQUISITE CRAFT Enjoy discovering how to create beautiful decorations using seasonal flowers and foliage. Follow our step-by-step guides to creating simple crafts for home and garden.
CELEBRATING HERITAGE
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Read about the craftsmen and women who are keeping Britain’s traditional skills alive. Visit towns, villages and countryside that encapsulates the country’s proud history.
CHANGING COUNTRYSIDE Learn about the animals and birds that inhabit our fields, rivers and seas. And we explain how there’s more to many of our farm animals than meets the eye.
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