Gorgeous gardens: Thames Valley

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Spring is here and now is the perfect time to see patches great & small in full boom. Liz Nicholls suggests some local favourites worth a visit…

Berks

Of all pleasures in life (and I’ve dabbled in a few), gardening has to be the most rewarding. I agree with my man-crush and fellow depressive Monty Don who says: “Being outside in every weather and every season connects you to something bigger than yourself; it connects you to a rhythm of life.” We’re surrounded by so many glorious outdoor spaces which are fertile breeding ground for inspiration. Whatever size plot you have to tend, get out and enjoy any or all of the following…

• Cliveden, Taplow, SL1 8NS

A magnificent formal garden overlooking the River Thames, Cliveden boasts stunning seasonal floral displays, a six-acre parterre, a 2m yew maze, an oriental style water garden and a play area. Follow the wondrous woodland & riverside walk for fabulous views. Call 01628 605069.

• Basildon Park, Pangbourne, RG8 9NR

The gardens at Basildon Park were designed by JB Papworth around 1839, for owner James Morrison. He took what was parkland right up to the house and laid out a pleasure ground to the north, which included stunning views out into the park and countryside framed by a variety of trees and evergreen shrubbery beds. Call 01491 672382 / nationaltrust.org.uk/basildon-park

• Greys Court, Nettlebed, RG9 4PG

The gardens were virtually derelict when the Brunners arrived in 1937. Lady Brunner was keen to make a haven of tranquillity. The kitchen garden has its roots in the Second World War Dig for Victory campaign and is still in good use today, thanks to volunteers. Admire the wisteria walk, rose garden and buy plants to take home. 01491 628529 or visit nationaltrust.org.uk/greys-court

• Stonor Park, Henley, RG9 6HF

The lush parkland of Stonor is set in a dramatic, sweeping valley deep within the heart of the Chiltern Hills. Visitors can explore, from the ponds and fountains of the 17th century Italianate Pleasure Garden to the old kitchen garden and the eclectically treed arboretum. There’s also the ancient stone circle and the Wonder Woods; perfect for little explorers!  Visit stonor.com or call 01491 638 587.

• Runnymede and Ankerwycke, Windsor Road, SL4 2JL (satnav TW20 0AE)

The ideal place to relax outdoors, the river scenery is home to rolling hills, open meadows and wildlife. Why not enjoy one of the most inspiring sights at Runnymede in spring: the swathe of bluebells lit up by the sun as it flickers through the native woodland trees. Join a guided tour of Coopers Hill Woods on Sunday, 26th April, 11am-12.30pm, to discover hidden places where bluebells form a carpet in the undergrowth. Learn and observe how the trees and flora acclimatise to the changing of the seasons. Call 01932 425686.

• The Vyne, Basingstoke, RG24 9HL

Two lakes, a walled garden, formal garden and meadow along with lawns and a herbaceous border sit neatly inside The Vyne. Rest and relax in the sprawling gardens and woodlands or follow a path to gaze on a tapestry of bluebells. The Summerhouse Garden has beautiful blooms & a 600-year-old oak tree which has enjoyed the company of Henry VIII, Jane Austen and Second World War evacuees. Call 01256 883858.

• Buscot Park, Faringdon, SN7 8BU

The pleasure gardens surrounding the late 18th-century house are glorious, comprising the Four Seasons garden which is stunning in spring, one of Britain’s finest water gardens and lovely woodland. Call 01367 240786 or visit buscot-park.com

• The Savill Garden, Egham, TW20 0UJ

The Savill Garden has earned its reputation as one of the finest woodland gardens in the country – not because it is the biggest woodland garden or that it has the largest collection of plants, but for a combination of all of these elements. Visit throughout the seasons and you will see there is always something new to discover. In exceptional years spring can begin as early as late February with the appearance of breathtaking magnolias, or it might be as late as April before we see the drifts of crocus followed by thousands of dwarf daffodils in the Alpine Meadow. Visit from spring onwards and you will be rewarded with a host of floral interest. Call 01753 860222 or visit windsorgreatpark.co.uk/savillgarden

• The Nature Discovery Centre, Thatcham, RG19 3FU

Packed full of interactive wildlife and natural history displays, there is a network of footpaths from small family-friendly toddles to longer yomps, surrounded by a mosaic of habitats. Call 01635 874381 or visit www.bbowt.org.uk

• National Garden Scheme – visiting many a garden near you!

This great initiative gives visitors access to more than 3,700 private gardens in England and Wales and raises thousands for charities through admissions, tea and cake. The team are passionate about the physical and mental health benefits of gardens, too. To highlight this, Gardens and Health Week runs from 9th to 16th May. Whatever type of garden you favour or whatever type of gardener you are you’re sure to find some inspiration.

• Opening dates, locations and times vary. To find one near you, please visit www.ngs.org.uk

Oxon

• Blenheim Palace, Woodstock, OX20 1PP

Sir Winston Churchill proposed to his future wife in the gardens at Blenheim Palace, which are renowned as the finest the land, from the Herb and Lavender Garden to the Marlborough Maze, started in 1705. Blenheim Lake, created by Lancelot “Capability” Brown and spanned by Vanburgh’s Grand Bridge, is the focal point of over 2,000 acres of landscaped parkland. Call 01993 810530 or visit blenheim.org

• Basildon Park, Pangbourne, RG8 9NR

The gardens at Basildon Park were designed by JB Papworth around 1839, for owner James Morrison. He took what was parkland right up to the house and laid out a pleasure ground to the north, which included stunning views out into the park and countryside framed by a variety of trees and evergreen shrubbery beds. Call 01491 672382 or visit nationaltrust.org.uk/basildon-park

• Greys Court, Nettlebed, RG9 4PG

The gardens were virtually derelict when the Brunners arrived in 1937. Lady Brunner was keen to make a haven of tranquillity. The kitchen garden has its roots in the Second World War Dig for Victory campaign and is still in good use today, thanks to volunteers. Admire the wisteria walk, rose garden and buy plants to take home. Call 01491 628529 or visit nationaltrust.org.uk/greys-court

• Stonor Park, Henley, RG9 6HF

The lush parkland of Stonor is set in a dramatic, sweeping valley deep within the heart of the Chiltern Hills. Visitors can explore these, from the ponds and fountains of the 17th century Italianate Pleasure Garden to the old Kitchen Garden and the eclectically treed arboretum. There’s also the ancient stone circle older and the Wonder Woods! Visit stonor.com or call 01491 638 587.

• Kingston Bagpuize, OX13 5AX

Grace Charlotte Raphael set about creating the beautiful gardens here in 1939, influenced by her travels to China, Japan, Canada and South Africa. Thanks to notable plantsman Harold Hiller (later Sir), the gardens are planted with an impressive collection of trees, shrubs, perennials and bulbs giving year-round interest including magnolias in spring. Visitors can enjoy the formal garden and terrace walk, woodland garden, shrub border and adjacent copses. Visit kbhevents.uk or call 01865 820259.

• Nuffield Place, Nuffield, RG9 5RY

The gardens surrounding the former home of Sir William Morris are a sight to behold, especially for their bluebells and foxgloves at the end of April, pony paddock and vegetable garden. Book in for a garden tour with one of the volunteers. Visit nationaltrust.org.uk/nuffield-place or call 01491 641224.

• Buscot Park, Faringdon, SN7 8BU

The pleasure gardens surrounding the late 18th-century house are glorious, comprising the Four Seasons garden which is stunning in spring, one of Britain’s finest water gardens and lovely woodland. Call 01367 240786 or visit buscot-park.com

• Harcourt Arboretum, Nuneham Courtenay, OX44 9PX

Open daily 10am-5pm from April, the university-owned arboretum boasts the county’s best collection of trees, including some of the oldest redwoods and finest conifer collections in the UK, within 130 acres of historic picturesque landscape. Look out for the peacocks, too! Call 01865 610305 or visit obga.ox.ac.uk

• University of Oxford Botanic Garden, Rose Lane, OX1 4AZ

The University of Oxford Botanic Garden has probably the most compact yet diverse collection of plants in the world. Its caretakers say there is even more biological diversity here than there is in tropical rain forests and other global biodiversity hotspots. The gardens include the glasshouses, walled garden with a water and rock garden and innovative black border. Call 01865 286 690 or visit botanic-garden.ox.ac.uk

• National Garden Scheme – visiting many a garden near you!

This great initiative gives visitors access to more than 3,700 private gardens in England and Wales and raises thousands for charities through admissions, tea and cake. But more than that, they are passionate about promoting the physical and mental health benefits of gardens, too. And to highlight this, Gardens and Health Week runs from 9th to 16th May. Whatever type of garden you favour or whatever type of gardener you are you’re sure to find some inspiration.

• Opening dates and times of the thousands of gardens vary. To find one near you to enjoy in all its glory, please visit ngs.org.uk

Wilts

• Avebury Manor & Gardens, Marlborough, SN8 1RF

Parts of Avebury Manor may date back to the 12th century. It’s well worth a visit to see the ancient stone circle, museum and manor house in the heart of this world heritage site. The friendly garden team are always on hand for advise, but on the last Friday of every month March to October, enjoy dedicated gardeners’ questions time, 2-3pm in the Monk’s Garden. Call 01672 539250.

• The Abbey House Gardens, Malmesbury, SN16 9AS

Once part of the Benedictine monastery founded about 666AD, the site was cultivated by monks for medicinal herbs and also as the Abbot’s garden. Since the dissolution by Henry V111 in 1539, it has been privately owned and recently developed for garden-lovers from all over the world. There are 2,000 roses and 2,000 herbs which give a great display in the summer. In the spring borders are a mass of colours with thousands of tulips and daffodils. Walk along the river including St Aldhelm’s Pool where you might be lucky to see kingfishers and yellow wagtails. Call 01666 822212 or visit www.abbeyhousegardens.co.uk

• Lydiard Park, Swindon, SN5 3PA

The 260-acre country park at Lydiard Tregoze (its formal former name) and walled garden are well worth a visit whatever the season. In the 1740s, the St John family created the latter, a rhombus-shaped garden behind the coach house and stable buildings to grow flowers and fruit and provide a pleasant place for a post-prandial stroll. Spring is great for bird watching and to admire the vibrant bluebells before the azaleas and rhododendrons burst into life in May. Jungle Parc, with its aerial adventure zone within the woodlands, is a great place for children to let off steam. Call 01793 466664 or visit www.lydiardpark.org.uk

• The Scotchel, Pewsey, SN9 5NY

This small but lovely but nature reserve is a lovely place to meander and let children or pets paddle. Seated areas in the gladed woodland for a sit down. Search “the Scotchel” on Facebook.

• Buscot Park, Faringdon, SN7 8BU

The pleasure gardens surrounding the late 18th-century house are glorious, comprising the Four Seasons garden which is stunning in spring, one of Britain’s finest water gardens and lovely woodland. Call 01367 240786 or visit buscot-park.com

• Monpesson House, Salisbury, SP1 2EL

The garden tea room is a tranquil place for a break, with the cathedral spire beyond and beautifully restored borders. there’s a family trail and Cadbury Egg Hunt from 10th to 13th April. Call 01722 335659 or visit www.nationaltrust.org.uk/mompesson-house

• Town Gardens, Swindon, SN1 4EN

This Victorian garden is set in an old quarry which was used to produce Portland stone. Sip a tea and admire English formal gardening at its best with beautiful colours in spring, borders of polyanthus, tulips and pansies among the flowering cherries. There’s a formal pond and seating near the aviary. Call 01793 490150 or visit twigs community gardens.org.uk

• Bowood House & Gardens, Calne, SN11 0LZ

Set within 100 acres of beautifully landscaped parkland designed by Lancelot “Capability” Brown (some of the best preserved of its type), Bowood is also recognised for its award-winning walled gardens. These include an Italian-inspired terrace garden, ever-changing herbaceous border, gorgeous woodland gardens and arboretum, too. Open to the public from the start of April. Call 01249 812 102 or visit bowood.org

• Cricklade Fritillaries

Mid April, North Meadow, half a mile from the Cricklade town centre, erupts into a blaze of colour thanks to snakeshead fritillaries blooming on this ancient meadow. Flooding has badly affected the site this year but keep an eye on www.crickladecourtleet.org.uk for updates.

• The Nature Discovery Centre, Thatcham, RG19 3FU

Packed full of interactive wildlife and natural history displays, there is a network of footpaths from small family-friendly toddles to longer yomps, surrounded by a mosaic of habitats. Call 01635 874381 or visit www.bbowt.org.uk

• National Garden Scheme

This initiative gives visitors access to more than 3,700 private gardens in England and Wales and raises thousands for charities through admissions, tea and cake. The team are passionate about the physical and mental health benefits of gardens, too. Gardens and Health Week runs 9th-16th May. Whatever type of garden you favour or whatever type of gardener you are you’ll find inspiration.

• Opening dates, locations and times vary. To find one near you, please visit www.ngs.org.uk

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Happy bunnies…

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You’re never too old to enjoy an Easter egg hunt which is lucky for you as there are some cracking ones to enjoy!

You could take part in the egg-stravaganza at more than one spot – it just depends how many you want to shell out on!

BERKS

RHS Garden Wisley, GU23 6QB

Celebrate the launch of The Secret Garden starring Colin Firth and Julie Walters (in cinemas from Friday, 10th April), by visiting the garden trail experience and many other family activities.

BUCKS

Hindhead Commons, GU26 6AG

Hindhead Commons and the Devil’s Punch Bowl are home to abundant wildlife and a great place to explore the natural world. Pick up the Cadbury Easter Egg Hunt trail as you explore the countryside and claim your choccy treat at the finish.

OXON

Hindhead Commons, GU26 6AG

Hindhead Commons and the Devil’s Punch Bowl are home to abundant wildlife and a great place to explore the natural world. Pick up the Cadbury Easter Egg Hunt trail as you explore the countryside and claim your choccy treat at the finish.

WILTS

Hindhead Commons, GU26 6AG

Hindhead Commons and the Devil’s Punch Bowl are home to abundant wildlife and a great place to explore the natural world. Pick up the Cadbury Easter Egg Hunt trail as you explore the countryside and claim your choccy treat at the finish.

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Spring clean your bathroom

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The Great British Spring Clean has been postponed until September but while you can’t do your bit for the outside it doesn’t mean you can’t focus on the inside so how about giving your home a spring clean instead?

Be realistic about it, don’t try tackling it all at once – especially if you’ve got other things that need your attention – do it room by room, perhaps even enlist the help of other family members at home with you and make it fun for the children to help out, after all many hands make light work!

Over the next week, we’ll share advice on all those essential tasks that can help give your house a new lease of life.

Let’s start with one of the most used rooms in the house:

Bathroom

Fresher smell

Make your bathroom smell fresh by simply adding a few drops of essential oil to the inside of your toilet roll.

 

Remove tile mould

One of the best ways to revamp your bathroom is to get rid of the mould and discolouration on tiles, try a mixture of baking soda, distilled white vinegar, salt and essential oils. Mix them up, spritz on to your tiles, wait 10 minutes and wipe off.

Clean the toilet

Baking soda and vinegar are also essential ingredients if you’d rather not use toilet bleach to clean the loo effectively. The soda and vinegar combination are effective at removing hard-water marks, and rust stains. More unusually, you can pour cola down the toilet – it’s thought to work well at removing rust rings.

 

Clean the shower head

Keep the baking soda and vinegar handy for this, fill a sandwich bag with the mix and tie it around the shower head with an elastic band, leave it overnight to soak. In the morning, use an old toothbrush to remove the scale and debris and you should find your next shower will be a much better, more refreshing one.

 

Wash shower curtains and bathroom mats

Shower curtains can get pretty nasty and are prone to mould. Put your shower curtain in the washing machine (along with the bath mat), then hang it back in the shower to dry – simple as that!

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Guildford Jazz Fest

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The team behind Guildford Jazz are getting ready to hold their first festival this month
with a variety of jazz –as well as funk and Latin – on the bill

Guildford Jazz are getting ready to blow their own trumpet as the first Guildford Jazz Fest is set to take place between 20th and 22nd March.

The three-day event at Guildford’s Electric Theatre will feature music from leading UK jazz, Latin and funk artists and begins on 20th by putting some of the best young jazz musicians from across Surrey in the spotlight, from small ensembles to big bands.

Ease yourself into Saturday with a New Orleans jazz brunch with live music from clarinet maestro Duncan Batchelor and his quartet. Follow that with a wide choice of jazz styles including rising star of the British jazz scene Nicolas Meier who is influenced by his love of Middle Eastern and Turkish music; funk and world-music roller coaster from renowned trombonist Dennis Rollins Velocity Trio and Sandy Burnett reliving The Age of Jazz.

Rounding off Saturday, Pete Churchill sings jazz before headliner Iain Ballamy performs 21st Century Pastoral, an arrangement for big band of music by Ballamy spanning his 30-year career.

Sunday brings Alan Barnes and Dave Newton before a Creole jazz lunch spices things up ahead of the afternoon offerings featuring a tribute to the music of Henry Mancini from The Mark Nightingale/Alan Barnes/Steve Waterman Sextet before a showing of classic Buster Keaton film Steamboat Bill, Jr featuring live musical accompaniment by Gareth Williams, one of the country’s leading modern jazz pianists.

Photos from left: Ian Ballamy, event poster, Marianne Windham

The festival finishes with Latin jazz salsa 
courtesy of Heads South combining Cuban and other Latin rhythms.

Founder of Guildford Jazz which is behind the festival, Marianne Windham is excited about the first for the community-based arts organisation.

She said: “The festival represents a celebration of all that Guildford Jazz is about: bringing the finest UK jazz musicians to Guildford to play a wide spectrum of accessible music in a friendly-club like atmosphere. There is something for everyone in the programme whether you are just looking for great live music or are a committed jazzer.”

Guildford Jazz has been running regular events since 2011, has organised more than 250 gigs, holds two outdoor concerts a year as well as hosting a monthly jam session.

All profits from the festival will go the local charity partner Guildford Philanthropy which helps local people disadvantaged by disability, poor education, mental illness or caring responsibilities.

Find more details

For more details and to book tickets click below or call 01483 501200.

Click here

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Barry the pig

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Barry the pig needs your help – his home is flooded and he can’t swim!

He lives with dogs, cats, sheep, alpacas, ponies, parrots and tortoises at the Berkshire branch of the National Animal Welfare Trust at Trindledown Farm, in Great Shefford, near Hungerford.

The ten-acre site is a rescue and rehoming centre specialising in the care of elderly animals and needs your help to stay open after being hit by flooding.

Barry hates water and the branch has launched a Just Giving campaign called Barry Can’t Swim with the aim of raising £5,000 to build ditches along the boundary to enable the flood water to drain away naturally into the flood alleviation stream further down in the village.

The centre is totally self-funded and receives no help from anywhere except its fundraising activities and relies on being open to the public for events as well as the income from the café and onsite charity shop.

Ellie Humphreys works for the charity and says: “We are flooded and on the verge of having to close the centre to the public until the water subsides.

“The rehoming of animals does not cover the cost of vets bills, accommodation or maintenance of the 20-year-old farm.

“Not only is this impacting on our funds, all of our field animals have been put on higher ground which is not ideal for elderly animals and their joints.”

And it’s far from ideal for Barry in particular. He lives with a sheep called Bjork who has special needs and was rejected by the other sheep, but now their area is becoming inaccessible.

Ellie adds: “The last time we flooded was 2014 where our fields were out of action for three months.

“Unfortunately we are in the Lambourn Valley so we receive the overflow of water from the higher ground which then runs through half our grazing land, our dog exercise areas and our car parking field.”

Not having the fields also means they cannot rotate the field animals to eat the grass so the centre is forced to buy hay and feed adding to the costs.

Help Barry

The Just Giving campaign aims to raise £5,000 to pay for the ditch work, to help click below

Barry's Just Giving page

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Make your own garden for wildlife 

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Photo credit: Adam Cormack

A new campaign launched today by The Wildlife Trust and RHS is asking you to pledge some garden space for butterflies and moths

This year’s Wild About Gardens campaign is calling on gardeners to get growing to help the UK’s falling numbers of butterflies and moths.

The new campaign draws inspiration from a new film adaptation of the Frances Hodgson Burnett classic, The Secret Garden, starring Colin Firth, Julie Walters and newcomer Dixie Egerickx as Mary Lennox. The film will be bringing the magic of wildlife, childhood and gardening to the big screen this spring when it blooms in cinemas across the UK from Good Friday, 10th April.

The Wild About Gardens campaign, run jointly by The Wildlife Trusts and Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), looks at butterflies and moths as important pollinators, who, along with caterpillars, are vital food for birds like robins and blue tits as well as bats. However, their habitats have faced catastrophic declines and once-common species like the small tortoiseshell have dropped by up to 80% in the last 30 years in some areas.

An ideal butterfly garden has a wide variety of plants throughout the year to support their life cycles – for butterflies and moths emerging from hibernation, egg-laying females, caterpillars and then as adults. Early-flowering species such as dandelions, aubretia and native bluebells are good sources of nectar; these could be followed by buddleia and red valerian and, finally, ivy flowers which are a great late-season asset in the autumn. Many wildflowers and long grasses are also excellent larval food-plants. Whether your garden is large or small – or simply a flowering window-box – it could throw these declining insects a lifeline, especially in urban areas.

The Wildlife Trusts’ gardening champion, horticulturist and TV presenter Frances Tophill said: “Our garden flowers and plants provide a rich source of rejuvenating nectar for these much-loved garden visitors as they emerge from hibernation to herald the start of spring.

“Go wild in your garden and leave the dandelions and daisies in the lawn to provide a meal, aim for year-round flowers and include a wildflower area for egg-laying females as well as gardeners’ favourites like lavender, nasturtium and verbena.

“The Wild About Gardens website is packed with information and easy actions we can all take to support butterflies and moths throughout their impressive life cycle.”

The Wildlife Trusts and RHS believe every butterfly garden counts and want to know about every new wild area, box or border that’s being grown for butterflies. Each garden contributes towards the network of green spaces that nature needs to survive and they ask you to pledge a bit of garden for butterflies and put it on the map here www.wildaboutgardens.org.uk. 
In the story of The Secret Garden, the garden eases grief, heals rifts and brings the joy out in all who experience it. Make a special place for wildlife – your very own Secret Garden where you can replenish your soul, reconnect with nature and help wildlife to thrive. You’ve probably noticed how spotting butterflies or birds, or walking through woodlands, or alongside rivers and streams can help to lift your mood. Make some time for nature today and enjoy the restorative benefits!

Download or pick up a booklet 
The Wildlife Trusts and RHS have published a beautiful – free – booklet with colourful advice and easy tips designed to make our outdoor spaces more attractive to butterflies, moths and their caterpillars. Available here https://wtru.st/butterfly and on the Wild About Gardens website from today, 12th March. 
These will be available at special events during the spring including the Chelsea Flower Show and promoted through Wildlife Trust events, visitor centres and community action groups including the In Bloom network.

Find more

Find the full range of wildlife gardening booklets, advice and inspiration here 

Click here

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Mum’s the word

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Here are some present ideas ahead of Mothering Sunday on 22nd March.

1. Rose expression gin & other gifts, Silent Pool Distillers

2. Cashmere socks & rose quartz face roller, The White Company

3. Card with gold flake detail, Juniper Stone

4. Geometric terrarium, www.theurbanbotanist.co.uk

5. Sleekster Luxe chocolates, Hotel Chocolat

6. B******* tankard, part of a rude & funny range from www.outlandishcreations.com

Enter our competition

We also have this amazing set from It Won’t Cost The Earth to win this month!


Click here

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Garden Re-Leaf Day 2020

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Plans are blooming for the ninth annual Garden Re-Leaf Day, which takes place on Friday, 13th March.

This year, Chilton Garden Centre will be the central hub for fundraising activity, as it hosts the fifth Garden Re-Leaf Sponsored Walk and Cycle Challenge.

Members of the gardening sector and hopefully local residents will trek across the Chiltern Hills to raise money for the children’s hospice garden charity, Greenfingers Charity.

Gardeners young and old are invited to take part in fundraising events – either a gentle 10-mile stroll or complete a more challenging 20-mile route through the Chiltern hills. There will also be a Garden Re-Leaf Cycle Challenge for bike enthusiasts. With a 25km route through the Oxfordshire countryside entrants are invited to complete as many rotations around the course as they can throughout the day.

Garden Re-Leaf Day is to celebrate the start of the garden year with fundraising events to raise money for Greenfingers, a charity dedicated to improving the lives of children in hospices through the creation of magical gardens.

In total, 58 Greenfingers gardens have been built since the charity’s creation in 1998 with many being funded by monies from Garden Re-Leaf Day.

In 2017, a new Oxfordshire based garden was opened at Helen & Douglas House, enabling children who call this hospice ‘home’ to find a moment of calm away from the hustle and bustle of daily hospice life. The Kaleidoscope Garden, designed by Oxford garden designer Nicola Wakefield and built by local landscapers GreenArt Garden Design and landscaping, features a colourful and protected garden pavilion that is now being enjoyed by patients, their families, friends, carers and hard-working hospice staff.

Last year in 2019, the charity’s 20th anniversary, four sensory and therapeutic gardens were built in London, The Wirral, Sunderland and St Austell, offering children and families the perfect out door space in which to make memories.

More gardens are in the pipeline to be built this year and this is where Garden Re-Leaf Day comes into its own, raising much–needed funds.

Linda Petrons, director of fundraising & communications at Greenfingers said: “Each year, Garden Re-Leaf Day helps over 350 life-limited children to enjoy a quiet place of relaxation and contemplation away from the hustle and bustle of hospice life, something that is so incredibly important for them and their families. 

“Being able to do offer this for seriously sick children and their families is only possible due to the fundraising activities that our supporters undertake.

“Garden Re-Leaf Day offers a great opportunity to get involved – it’s just one day of the year where you can help make a difference. Whether you raise £10 or £10,000, every single penny counts. We hope that the people of Oxfordshire will get involved on March 13th!”

More info

To find out more about Garden Re-Leaf Day and the work that the Greenfingers charity undertakes visit

Website

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World Book Day

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Thursday is the annual worldwide celebration of books and reading that is World Book Day. 

The registered charity is on a mission to give every child and young person a book and champions authors, illustrators and books generally. 

This is the 23rd year of World Book Day which promotes a love of books and reading and gives children the opportunity to have a book of their own. Book tokens are sent to schools along with age-ranged World Book Day resource packs full of ideas and activities for book-related fun. 

Children just take their tokens to a bookshop and can use it for one of the new and completely free books or to get £1 off any book or audio book over £2.99.  

Among the £1 books you can choose from this year are Meet Amelia Fang, the tale of a young vampire by Laura Ellen Anderson; Evie in the Jungle by Matt Haig – meet Evie who can hear what animals are thinking; Chris Smith and Greg James’s Kid Normal and the Loudest Library; a murder most unladylike mini mystery The Case of the Drowned Pearl by Robin Stevens; teen super spy Alex Rider returns in Anthony Horowitz’s Undercover: Four Secret Files and Beth Reekles’s story of young love in The Kissing Booth – Road Trip among others for all ages. 

More info

To find out more visit

Website

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British Pie Week

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Never has the saying ‘nice as pie’ been so apt – who doesn’t love a tasty pastry pie and what better time to indulge than in British Pie Week. 

With so many great recipes to choose from all you need to do is decide whether it’s savoury, sweet, crumble or pasty – why not make a different one every day this week and get all members of the family involved in the cooking too? 

According to the most common internet search results, here’s our top 10, love them or loathe them:- 

1: Cottage Pie 

2: Fish Pie 

3: Shepherd’s Pie 

4: Chicken & Leek Pie 

5: Chicken and Mushroom Pie 

6: Steak and Ale Pie 

7: Meat and Potato Pie 

8: Pork Pie 

9: Steak and Kidney Pie 

10: Corned Beef Pie 

We asked our star baker Christine Wallace to share a pie recipe with us so why not put this on the menu this week? 

Left over turkey, leek and mushroom pie 

 

• You will need an 8” (20cm) Pie dish.
• 500gm block of butter puff pastry.
• 1 large leek – cut into large chunks
• 120g button mushrooms
• 300g cooked turkey meat
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tblsp oil
• 50g butter
• 50g plain flour
• 1 pint milk
• ½ tsp onion salt
• White pepper
• Beaten egg for glaze

Method 

• Place the oil and butter in a pan and add the leek, gently sweat for 5 minutes but do not brown.

• Add the mushrooms and thyme, cook for a minute.

• Stir in the flour and gently cook for a minute.

• Slowly add the milk until you have a nice thick sauce, add the turkey meat and cook for a couple of minutes.

• Add the onion salt and a little pepper then pour into your pie dish

• Roll out the pastry and cover the pie, sealing well and fluting the edges.

• Brush with beaten egg and cook for 30 minutes or until the pastry is well risen and golden brown.

N.B. If you are making the pie to freeze, do NOT add the turkey meat until the leek and mushroom sauce is completely cold. Use fresh puff pastry if you are freezing, not frozen! 

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