A COUNTRY STATE OF MIND Ideas for

A country STATE OF MIND

The benefits of a rural way of life and being closer to nature are both plentiful and accessible. We ask the experts to share their advice about how to experience a slice of country lifestyle, wherever home may be

The mere idea of country living has enduring appeal, and conjures up images of meadows and streams, rolling hills and wildlife. The promise of a slower pace of life and relative peace, combined with healthier habits and cleaner air is tempting – especially given the last year and its many challenges. In addition to a sense of space and appreciation of the natural landscape, there is the positive impact on well-being to consider – just looking out of the window and onto open fields or a leafygreen hedgerow can help lower stress levels.

Glorious as this sounds, escaping to the country is not a reality for everyone, but this does not mean it is not possible to enjoy the many advantages a rural setting has to offer – the countryside can be a state of mind, as opposed to a geographical location.

From keeping chickens to growing vegetables, foraging for food to letting the wildflowers grow free, there are plentiful ways to adopt country style whatever the setting.

Large seagrass tote bag, £52, Nordic House

PERFECT PRESERVES

There are few things better than homemade botanical-based food and drink, especially having taken the time to grow the produce or forage for wild treats – the more unusual and interesting, the better. After all, why not make the sort of delicacies that are hard to buy in the shops as a treat or a gift for friends and family. However, when it comes to picking ingredients, what should be top of the list?

“I wouldn’t be without lemon verbena for cocktails, syrups and cordials,” says Mark Diacono, writer, photographer, grower, cook and owner of Otter Farm nursery. “Its bright lemon sherbet leaves bring zing and freshness that nothing else can match. The zest of four lemons, two stems of lemongrass and a handful of lemon verbena leaves, infused in a litre of vodka for a couple of weeks, topped up with sugar syrup (500g sugar dissolved in 400ml simmering water) makes the best limoncello; a sprig or two in boiling water makes a refreshing tea.”

“Whatever I’m fermenting, say, sugar snaps in brine or perhaps pickling cucumber, bay is essential,” he continues. “The flavour is so special, but it also releases tannins that help keep the firm, crunchy texture of vegetables. If you place a couple at the top of the ferment, tucked in under the shoulders of the jar, it helps keep the vegetables submerged in the brine.

“Similarly, if I’m making a chutney or jam, my fingers head to the Szechuan pepper or the rose-scented geranium; if I’m using plums or nectarines, perhaps even both. The citrus zing and peppery punch of the Szechuan pepper livens whatever it goes with, fruit or vegetable, and the soft warm rose of the scented geranium takes a jam or chutney somewhere delightfully, gently floral.”

CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT Mark Diacono’s delicious limoncello recipe from his latest book, Herb: A Cook’s Companion, £26 (Quadrille); Home Made 1.9l clear traditional glass demijohns, £8.99, Kitchen Craft; Home Made 200ml glass terrine jar, £3.49, Kitchen Craft; Strawberry beeswax wrap, available as part of the Vegetable Garden Fruits Pack (from £20 for three wraps), Emma Bridgewater; Large early 20th century French earthenware pot, £132, The Kairos Collective

HEN HAVEN

Whilst keeping pigs, goats and sheep might stretch resources when it comes to living the country dream, chickens will make themselves at home in a good-sized garden, whether it is a rural idyll or city-based sanctuary. Compared to larger livestock, they are relatively low-maintenance and easy to care for, and will of course provide reward with the perfect breakfast or baking ingredient every morning.

Arthur Parkinson, gardener and poultry keeper at Emma Bridgewater’s garden at her pottery in Stoke-on-Trent, knows a thing or two about how to get the best from your girls. “The most important thing is to give hens as much space as you can provide,” says Parkinson. “If possible, make your garden entirely fox-proof, too, using a high-perimeter fence planted with tough plants like rosemary and roses, or house your hens in an aviary-like run complete with a roof to ensure they are out of harms way.”

It is also worth adding a few extra touches to make their environment as chicken-friendly as possible, which will make them relaxed and happy layers. “The best thing for hens is a dust bath,” says Parkinson. “Mix dry soil with louse powder and scatter somewhere sunny and dry, and you’ll soon see them preening and powdering themselves. My girls love to peck at the red millet seed heads I grow.”

Parkinson also recommends the stylish recycled-plastic coop designed by founder of Ham Street Hens, Libby Syddall, which uses metal and is groove-free, making it resistant to the troublesome red mite; and the PestOff Rat Proof chicken feeder by RoamWild if for city chickens. When it comes to the best layers, Parkinson says, “Hybrids are good for beginners, because they have been vaccinated – I like the Bluebells and Speckledys the most. Burford Browns and Copper Black Marans are the best for the adored brown eggs, however they are far from garden friendly, but you’ll get plenty of beautiful eggs!”

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP Rustic Hen sculpture, £20, National Trust; Chicken gardening gauntlets, £27.95, Annabel James; Kate Black Framed Chicken Collage, £345, The Shop Floor Project; Recycled Plastic Coop, from £495, Ham Street Hens

FOOD FOR FREE

What could be more evocative of country life than finding seasonal goodies whilst enjoying a walk along a hedgerow or in a wood? “People ask me where they might start their foraging career,” says foraging expert, John Wright. “My answer is ‘almost anywhere’. A back-garden, a hedge, a churchyard, a park, a seashore. Each of these places will have their own ecology, their own collection of plants, some of which may be edible. Hairy bittercress, stinging nettles and ground elder in the garden, elderberries (or flowers – seasonality is king in the foraging world), sloes, rosehips in the hedge, and so on. With perhaps a thousand edible species – plants, fungi and seaweeds – in our corner of the world, there is so much to explore.

“No-one would wish to destroy the habitat in which they forage, so it comes naturally (most of the time) to pick with care and to pick only what you need. If you feel the urge to fill your car’s boot with wild mushrooms, resist. It is good for your karma. Foraging is allowed by default almost everywhere, but do make sure you have free access and obtain permission if you haven’t. Being challenged is always embarrassing, as I know all too well!”

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP Forage Bric bag, £34, Wearth London; Bolga market basket, £55, Lola & Mawu; The Forager’s Calendar by John Wright, £12 (Profile Books); Summer Seasonal Foraging Illustration, £18, Rhubarb & Hare

TAKE A WALK ON THE WILD SIDE

Recognising that carefully manicured lawns and borders might look beautiful but do not provide the right habitats for wildlife, conservationists and ecologists are hoping to encourage gardeners to change tack and let things go a little. Known as rewilding, this approach to helping the environment has become more popular in recent years and is not difficult to achieve.

Whether reducing how often the lawn is mown, or allowing an area of the garden to become overrun with weeds, it is easy to create new habitats for all sorts of animals. “Allowing a space for wildlife to use, live in and flourish in our gardens is not only a wonderful and fascinating thing to do, but also offers an invaluable lifeline and safe haven for many species that are struggling in the wider landscape,” explains BBC Gardeners’ World presenter, Frances Tophill. “Choosing nectar-rich varieties that flower for as much of the year as possible is key for attracting insects, which, in turn, will encourage the larger birds and mammals. If you don’t have a lot of space, go for plants that flower for a long time, like lavender and catmint – two easy plants that come back each year and take hardly any looking after, even in a window box.”

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP Teak garden chair, £745; Jodhpur Stripe large cotton seat cushion with tassels, £59; Megha linen cushions, £58 each; metal chandelier, from £78; hand-painted candles, from £3.75 each; vintage wooden crate, from £39, all Susie Watson Designs. Mr Fothergill’s seed selections, £2.80 each, Robert Dyas; Ornate Zinc planters, £175 each, Cox & Cox; The Balcony chair In Sao Paolo Cream, £189, Denys & Fielding

Electra Loft 7i EQ Step-Thru Ladies Bike, Green Tea, £800, Electra Bike

TAKING THE SLOW LANE

“Riding allows you to take in your surroundings and reach points of interest that may be too far to walk,” says Graham Clark, active outdoors lead at the National Trust. “We have cycle hire at a number of our sites, with child trailers and bikes for all ages, and e-bikes. With the increase in availability of e-bikes, hills and distances are now not barriers to riding.”

“With the longer evenings and warmer weather, there’s no better time to get out and explore the National Cycle Network,” says Xavier Brice, CEO of walking and cycling charity Sustrans. “As the custodian of the National Cycle Network, Sustrans is proud to maintain and celebrate the 12,739 mile network of traffic-free paths and quiet on-road cycling and walking routes across the UK.” For more information, visit sustrans.org

CYCLING AT THE NATIONAL TRUST

• For easy-to-follow, family-friendly trails, visit

Blickling, Norfolk; Calke Abbey, Derbyshire;

Dudmaston, Shropshire; Kingston Lacy,

Dorset; Nostell Priory, Yorkshre; Osterley,

London; Plymbridge Woods, Devon; and

Wallington, Northumberland. • For mountain bike trails head off to

Lanhydrock, Cornwall. • For multiple routes of interest try

Clumber Park, Nottinghamshire and

Wicken Fen, Cambridgeshire. • Hire cycles at Blickling, Clumber Park,

Lanhydrock, Low Wray Campsite, Osterley,

Wallington, and Wicken Fen. Visit nationaltrust.org for more cycling routes and information. PLANT LIFE

It is hard to resist the appeal of The Good Life for those lucky enough to have a bit of space for a vegetable patch. Just as Tom and Barbara grew their own fruit and vegetables in the heart of suburbia in the popular 1970s BBC television sitcom, it is not necessary to have acres and a stunning rural view to give it a go.

There are several varieties that are equally happy to grow in the ground or in medium- to large-sized containers, like courgettes, tomatoes, beetroot and carrots. It is also worth considering perennial fruits and vegetables, or rather vegetables that require sowing once and will crop year after year with the smallest amount of care and attention, which means less time spent digging, sowing and weeding. There is a huge choice on offer, from salad leaves to unusual, exotic crops, and seed companies, such as The Real Seed company and Otter Farm, even flag up perennial vegetable varieties so that deciphering what can be left in the ground from year to year will not require a certificate from the Royal Horticultural Society.

There are also more and more vegetable-box schemes appearing, selling a range of seasonal produce grown in both country and city farms. To find out where the nearest organic box scheme is, visit soilassociation.org/take-action/organic-living/buy-organic/find-an-organicbox-scheme, or visit findlocalproduce.co.uk for details of local producers, farm shops and pick your own. ■

LEFT Bicycles leaning by a gate at the National Trust’s Marloes Sands, Pembrokeshire BELOW, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT Slate plant tags (large) with soapstone pencil, £12, Garden Trading; Hinged herb planter, £69.99, Robert Dyas; Architectural cloche, £34.95, Annabel James; Salome cane armchair, £248, Rowen & Wren