Last weekend we made gorse flower rum. High up in the hills and woodland, the gorse bushes were blanketed in bright, canary-yellow petals. The individual blooms have a fragile scent that echoes a combination of coconut, vanilla and pineapple. And the collective fragrance of a whole gorse bush, amplified by the warmth of sunshine, reminds…
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Keeping Geese Part 1: A Rickety Lawnmower, a Buttercup Meadow and a Shoebox of Goslings
We inherited an old, ride-on lawnmower with our cottage to help us manage the grass in the orchard and paddock. A temperamental, somewhat rickety machine, it regularly conked out mid-mow and refused to restart without a lengthy rest period and some careful engine tinkering. Keeping the grass in check soon became a full time job…
Wild Garlic, Nettle, Dandelion and Goose Egg Tart
Spring is fully under way here in the hills of rural Somerset. Everything is fresh, green and hopeful. The first of the orchard blossom is decorating the plum and cherry trees, swathes of wild garlic line the stream, and masses of feathery young nettles have appeared along the hedgerows.