Surrey Homes | SH30 | April 2017 |Gardens supplement inside
The lifestyle magazine for Surrey - Inspirational Interiors, Fabulous Fashion, Delicious Dishes
The lifestyle magazine for Surrey - Inspirational Interiors, Fabulous Fashion, Delicious Dishes
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WT Garden Supplement<br />
Course Work<br />
The newest member of the WT team,<br />
Rebecca Cuffe, tracks down a handful of<br />
the best gardening tutorials around<br />
For all you readers out there oohing<br />
and ahhing over the gorgeous images<br />
in our gardening <strong>supplement</strong> this<br />
month before quickly sinking into a sigh<br />
over the daunting prospect of how to recreate<br />
something like that for yourself, you are<br />
not alone. Like gardens themselves, often a<br />
gardener needs a little nourishment before<br />
their real talent blooms into life. Whether<br />
you’re an experienced gardener interested in<br />
learning something new or a complete novice<br />
who just wants to know where to begin,<br />
there are options out there for everyone.<br />
Wisley Gardens in <strong>Surrey</strong> (rhs.org.uk/<br />
gardens/wisley) have myriad options for all<br />
skill sets, interests and levels of expertise with<br />
courses and tutorials covering everything<br />
from photosynthesis to botanical cocktails.<br />
These courses are often run by the RHS team<br />
but others feature guests and experts such as<br />
the gardens’ curator, Matthew Pottage, and<br />
renowned plantsman Noel Kingsbury. Claire<br />
Brown will also be tutoring on The Perpetual<br />
Herb Garden in October, and runs talks<br />
and workshops herself through her business,<br />
Plant Passion (plantpassion.co.uk), which<br />
focuses on locally grown flowers. This is<br />
a great option for those who love local<br />
and are interested in arranging bouquets<br />
for their homes or as gifts to others.<br />
Meanwhile, Kew Gardens (kew.org)<br />
and Painshill in <strong>Surrey</strong> (painshill.co.uk)<br />
both have a number of courses and<br />
lectures which you may find helpful if<br />
you’re interested in capturing the beauty<br />
of the garden in photography or illustration,<br />
as well as their courses on gardening itself.<br />
Jo Arnell’s comprehensive year long<br />
course at Hornbook Manor in Woodchurch,<br />
Kent (pictured) (hornbrookmanor.co.uk), is<br />
run in small, informal groups, so there’s<br />
plenty of chances to ask Jo any questions<br />
you may have over some homemade cake.<br />
The course lasts a full year but you can<br />
also book an individual course if there’s<br />
a particular field you’re interested in.<br />
Godinton House is also well worth a visit,<br />
as they run gardening events throughout the<br />
year (gardeningworkshops.co.uk/godintonhouse.<br />
co.uk). You may have noticed in our own<br />
<strong>April</strong> Notebook that they are holding a<br />
topiary workshop this month, but there<br />
is more to learn with head gardener Viv<br />
Hunt, who has combined forces<br />
with professional gardener Fiona Abrahams<br />
in monthly workshops since November.<br />
For the foodies of the Weald there are some<br />
invaluable learning opportunities at Brogdale<br />
Collections (brogdalecollections.org). As the<br />
home of the national fruit collection, there<br />
are few better places than Brogdale to learn<br />
about fruit, food and foraging in the British<br />
countryside, with courses on grafting, pruning,<br />
orchard design or cider making, to name a few.<br />
One last tutor worth a try is Steve Edney,<br />
who is head gardener at The Salutation<br />
in Sandwich (the-salutation.com) and runs<br />
classes limited to only eight people. These<br />
courses include light lunch and refreshments<br />
in their £80 price as well as demonstrations,<br />
practical work, tours and invaluable advice.<br />
Make a Scarecrow Competition<br />
Take part in Harpers & Hurlingham’s charity competition at<br />
Wealden Times Midsummer Fair for the chance to win £250 for your child’s school<br />
Harpers & Hurlingham in Cranbrook<br />
are inviting schools and children’s<br />
organizations to take part in ‘Making a<br />
Scarecrow’ competition. All entrants will be<br />
displayed in the Harpers & Hurlingham stand<br />
at Wealden Times Midsummer Fair at Hole<br />
Park, Rolvenden on 8, 9 & 10 June <strong>2017</strong>.<br />
The general public will be invited to judge the<br />
winner, whilst at the same time raising money<br />
for Breakthrough Breast Cancer. The winning<br />
school/organization will also receive £250. To<br />
participate please call Jane at Harpers and<br />
Hurlingham on 01580 715400 and join in<br />
the fun! The competition is open to children<br />
aged 10 and below, who must enter as part<br />
of a school or children’s organisation, rather<br />
than as individuals.<br />
how to make a scarecrow<br />
• Build the frame. Begin by centring a 5 foot<br />
(1.5 m) stick near the top of a 6 to 8 foot (1.8<br />
to 2.4 m) stick, rake handle or garden pole.<br />
This creates the shoulders of the scarecrow.<br />
Fasten the shorter stick in place using a<br />
screwdriver and screw, some twine, or hot glue.<br />
• Put the shirt on. Button up the front,<br />
then tie the arm ends and bottom<br />
of the shirt using twine or wire.<br />
• Stuff the shirt with straw, hay, leaves,<br />
grass clippings, wood chips and rags.<br />
• Put the overalls on. Make a hole in<br />
the seat of the overalls for the vertical<br />
stick to pass through. Stuff the legs.<br />
• Give him hands.<br />
• Give him feet.<br />
• Make the head using burlap or a pillowcase<br />
• Give your scarecrow facial features. Ideas<br />
include using a pen to draw them on, cutting<br />
out felt shapes, using buttons for eyes, nose<br />
and mouth, and<br />
bits of black<br />
plastic or pipe<br />
cleaner to make<br />
eyebrows.<br />
• Give your scarecrow<br />
some hair.<br />
• Accessorise. You can personalise your scarecrow<br />
by accessorising it any way you like. His most<br />
important accessory, however, is a straw hat.<br />
Use any old hat you have lying around and<br />
secure to his head with hot glue. Here are<br />
some other (optional) accessorising ideas:<br />
- Tie a red bandana around his collar, or<br />
leave a bright handkerchief peeking out of his<br />
pocket.<br />
- Jazz up his hat using some brightly coloured<br />
plastic flowers.<br />
- Stick an old pipe in his mouth.<br />
- Tie reflective or shiny ribbon to your<br />
scarecrow to add movement and reflect light.<br />
wealdentimes.co.uk<br />
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