LandScape - Life at nature’s pace
www.landscapemagazine.co.uk
A feast of fresh flavours
The quail egg farmers Printing with ferns
Spring 2015
the soft buds of spring
Spring garden | Perennial violas | Containers for colour | Hot cross buns | Harp makers | Fox cubs | Castle wall walk | Cowslips | South-west Galloway
Issue 22 | Spring 2015 | £4.25
Spring 2015 £4.25
Life at nature’s pace
clouds of
colour
Drifts of ethereal flowers fill a Sussex garden
10
Frothy flowers of white cow parsley intermingle with self-seeded red campion and purple aquilegia beneath the horse chestnut ‘Hessa’. 11
26
fur-covered catkins Soft catkins of pussy willow on red and brown stems put on a simple, unaffected show
An unadorned container allows the catkin-covered, leafless twigs of Salix caprea – goat willow – to shine.
Flexible twigs of pussy willow are woven to form a simple circle of wood and catkins.
27
The unfurled petals of Viola x wittrockiana provide a vivid splash of colour.
young gardeners Heidi and Abigail create containers to brighten up a corner of the spring garden 42
T
He new growth of spring is a welcome sight after the dormancy of winter. Eager to enjoy the early sunshine, Heidi and Abigail decide to make creations with seasonal flowers. They choose flowers of white, yellow and purple. Half-hardy plants such as violas, narcissus ‘Tête-à-Tête’, grape hyacinths, Bellis perennis and ivy are included. To give the planting height, tiny pussy willow saplings covered with furry catkins are selected.
The girls find wide-top containers. Since these are temporary plantings, lasting six weeks at the most, the roots need only a small space to grow in. Large clay pots and baskets made of wire are appropriate. Other containers are transformed by wrapping them in brown paper, tied with raffia. These are then planted up. Which flowers are used in each container, and how, is dictated by where the pot will be placed. If it is to be set ›
43
A feast of fresh flavours Sweet and juicy gammon provides the centrepiece for a light spring lunch
Smoked salmon, apple and watercress salad Serves 6 For the salad
For the mayonnaise
300g smoked salmon
2 egg yolks
2 crisp green eating apples
1 clove garlic, crushed
lemon juice
Âź tsp English mustard powder
120g watercress 1 punnet salad cress
salt and black pepper 1 tbsp lemon juice 250ml cold pressed rapeseed oil finely grated zest of ½ lemon
Arrange the salmon on serving plates. Core and slice the apples, then toss in the lemon juice. Arrange on the plates with the salmon. Discard any thick stalks from the watercress and snip the salad cress. Toss together and pile into the centre of each plate. To make the mayonnaise, whisk the egg yolks in a large mixing bowl with a balloon whisk. Place on a damp cloth on the work surface to stop the bowl moving. Whip in the garlic, mustard powder, salt, pepper and lemon juice. Once combined, add the oil a little at a time. Beat until it is well blended into the egg yolk mixture before adding more oil. Continue adding the oil, whisking thoroughly between each addition, until the mayonnaise emulsifies and thickens. Stop adding oil when the mayonnaise has reached the desired consistency. Whisk in the lemon zest, taste and season. Drizzle lemon and garlic mayonnaise over the salad and salmon. Serve the remainder separately.
49
Walking along Lincoln Castle’s walls is to follow in the footsteps of royalty. In 1541 Henry VIII strode here to show himself to his people when he visited with his fifth wife, Catherine Howard.
WALKING the ramparts A stroll around the towering medieval walls of Lincoln Castle provides lofty views over historic landmarks
I
Observatory Tower South wall East Gate
Victorian prison Lucy Tower
Debtors’ prison Cobb Hall
Crown Court West wall
North wall
West Gate
Lincoln Castle walls cover half a mile. The cathedral sits to the east, with the best views from the East Gate.
62
n the warm spring sunlight, the limestone walls of Lincoln Castle glow gold. For nearly 1,000 years these imposing structures have stood proudly on top of a steep hill, towering over the flat fields of Lincolnshire. Today, for the first time, it is possible to walk a complete circuit on the castle’s walls. These stand between 21ft (6.5m) and 44ft (13.5m) high as they follow the rise and fall of the grassy banks they are built on. As defensive structures, access to the walls has always been possible, but due to their differing heights they were not all linked together. The lack of a complete circuit was also a feature of the castle’s defences. Now a project called Lincoln Castle Revealed has seen the installation of stairs and ramps to create a half-mile long circular walk along their tops. Moving anticlockwise, visitors can now take in lofty views over the city and countryside beyond.
The extent of the castle’s half-mile long walls can be seen encircling the grounds. At the left of the picture, one of the oldest remaining parts of the castle, the Lucy Tower, stands in the centre of the south wall. To the right of the castle walls is the red-brick Victorian prison and its semi-circular exercise yard, with the remains of the walls that divided the area. These were designed to prevent the prisoners from seeing each other while exercising. The small red-brick buildings in this semi-circular area, which were once toilets, indicate how high the original walls were.
The castle Work first started on a castle here in 1068, on the orders of William the Conqueror. Two years after the conquest of 1066, he was busy consolidating his control over the country. Building castles was one way to impose his dominance on the native population. The original castle buildings were made of wood. The present stone walls date from approximately 1100. In the centuries since then, the castle site has remained in continuous use. It contained as a prison for criminals until the end of the 19th century. Today it remains the home of
Lincoln Crown Court. One of the four remaining original copies of Magna Carta, whose 800th anniversary is celebrated this year, can also be found there. The east wall Entering the castle by the main East Gate, access to the wall walk is found to the left of the twin Victorian entrance lodges. A curving spiral staircase clad in rusted steel comes out on the southern end of the east wall. At the top, the view is dominated by the west front of Lincoln Cathedral. This ›
A historic document Lincoln Castle is home to one of four original copies
of Magna Carta, the famous charter of liberties. Two copies belong to the British Library, one to Salisbury Cathedral and one to Lincoln Cathedral. Magna Carta formed the basis of a truce between King John and England’s rebellious barons in 1215. Lincoln’s copy is the centrepiece of a new vault built as part of a £22 million restoration project over the last three years. The castle is also home to one of only two original copies of a 1217 document called the Charter of the Forest. A companion document to Magna Carta, it re-established access to the royal forest for free men whose rights had been eroded by the application of Norman forest law. The other copy is owned by Durham Cathedral.
The imposing East Gate entrance to Lincoln Castle.
63
68
Pressing pictures Artist Nicola Elstone uses an antique letter press to create her vibrant designs, with patterns inspired by nature
A
n old singer sewing machine sits surrounded by fabric swatches and design sketches in Nicola Elstone’s studio in the Rutland countryside. A small iron staircase in the converted stables leads to a mezzanine floor above stacked with images, books and portfolios. Downstairs and next door to the studio is the print room, home to Nicola’s 180-year-old Albion letter press. Wooden-handled cutting tools hang on the whitewashed walls. More work surfaces are covered with tubes of ink and hand rollers. Nicola’s passion for printing emerged when she was at university. She initially studied scientific illustration, but felt stifled by the demands of the intricate, detailed work. As a result, she transferred to an illustration and design course where she found her vocation. “As soon as I walked into the print room, a light went on in my head,” she says. “I loved everything about it from the smell of the ink to the huge scale of things I could now produce. Lino printing became the focus of my degree. I relished the physicality of cutting and rolling.” ›
69
Wildflower eggs
materials needed • Hens’ eggs • Needle • Bowl • Cling wrap • PVA glue • Ball of twine • Teaspoon
• Scissors • Greaseproof paper • Pegs • Wooden skewer • Small paintbrush • Pressed wildflowers and leaves
Twine eggs decorated with pressed flowers and leaves create a bright display
77
96
Braving a new world Young fox cubs venturing outside for the first time learn survival skills through play
O
n a fine spring morning, as the sun begins to illuminate the ground, there is a movement in the undergrowth, followed by another, and another. A flash of orange-red and white is revealed to be an ear, followed by a whole head. A fox cub emerges from its den. It stops to sniff the morning air, but is soon pushed out of the way by one of its siblings. Within a few minutes the whole litter is outside the den, eager to explore their new and unfamiliar world. Born in early March, these cubs have spent the last five to six weeks underground. Their parents mated in January, at the start of the breeding season. After a gestation period of 53 days, the cubs are born completely blind, deaf and helpless. Weighing between 3 and 4oz (80 to 120g), they cannot regulate their body heat for the first two weeks. Instead they rely on their mother’s warmth, and she remains with them continuously. The male fox brings food for her at this time. On average there are four or five cubs to a litter, although as many as 10 have been recorded. The male and female cubs are born with short black fur and small, floppy ears. Their eyes open after 11 to 14 days, and are initially blue. They start to hear at this time as their ear canals open. Their mother suckles them for the first four weeks of their lives, before she starts to wean them. By this time, their fur is changing to the familiar reddish-brown of the adult and their ears are erect. ›
With ears pricked, the young fox cub is ready to hunt. He will learn to move each of his ear flaps separately to pinpoint the slightest rustle of prey.
97
coast of
learning
On the rolling Plains of Galloway, between the sea and the mountains, landscape and history come together to create an area of both beauty and interest 122
N
estled between the sea and the Galloway Hills in south-western Scotland, lies an undulating landscape of green hills and woodland. This is the Machars peninsula, or Plains of Galloway. Its name comes from the Gaelic for coastal plain, machair, an apt description of the rolling sea-fringed countryside. The Machars peninsula points south-east like an arrowhead, with Wigtown Bay to its east. Its shores are washed by the warming waters of the Gulf Stream. This, and its southerly latitude, means it is one of the first parts of Scotland to respond to the coming of spring. Seasonal showers and brightening days encourage spring squill and sea pinks to bloom on the coastal fringe. Bluebells flower in the wooded glens and hawthorn blossoms in the peninsula’s hedgerows. For centuries it played an important role in Scotland’s religious history. Today, it is the ruins from that past, combined with more recent attractions in its vibrant communities, that bring visitors here. ›
newton stewart A75
A714
wigtown
A75
A746
wHIthorn isle of whithorn
123
Coming next issue
May / June issue on sale 22 April
the border rideout the taste of elderflowers garden bumblebees creating dyes from petals
A message to new
Photography: Ray Cox
fragile beauty of meconopsis readers from the Editor
Dear reader... Taking out a subscription will ensure you don’t miss future issues of LandScape. Or perhaps you know someone who might like a subscription as a gift? Either way, we are offering you a special price if you visit www.greatmagazines.co.uk/landscape or call +44 (0)1858 438884 (UK and overseas).
June Smith-Sheppard Editorial Director