Here staff member Dulcie describes our recent outing to Jordan’s Mill:
‘On Thursday 26th September, 11 gardeners, along with support staff and volunteers visited Jordans Mill just over the border in Bedfordshire. Given the severe flooding in Hitchin in the week leading up to our outing, we knew it was important to be prepared for all weathers. However, our Growing Ability sessions run outside all year round, so this isn’t new to us!
Most of us met at Hitchin station and boarded the train to Arlesey. We were delighted to find that sunglasses were more necessary than waterproofs at this point! One stop on the train and we arrived at Arlesey station, where we took a small fleet of pre-booked taxis to Jordans Mill and joined other members of the group.
We started our visit with a hot drink in the autumn sunshine at the picturesque riverside café, keen to spot the kingfisher we had been told about. We quickly came to a consensus that we would have to save exploring the meadow area for another day (very soggy!). But there was plenty to see and explore in the beautiful Mill Gardens, prior to our pre-booked tour of the mill itself.
The Mill Gardens were designed by Chelsea Flower Show winners Ian Kitson and Julie Toll who took inspiration from ancient field layouts, hedge patterns and the flow of the River Ivel. We meandered along the winding path that emulates the flow of the river, enjoying the last of the summer colour from the Rudbeckia, Echinacea and towering Verbena and admiring the abundant apples and pears growing on trained fruit trees.
We spotted vegetables that we recognised having grown before, including huge healthy crops of kale and beetroot. We also saw some veg that we would like to grow, such as peppers in small glass houses, and celery. We admired the metallic stripes on what we thought were rosemary beetles (purple and green or red and gold depending on the light), and enjoyed the many aromas of the plentiful herbs including the bubble-gum like chamomile. The gardens use small plots and well thought out rotations to demonstrate how cereals, including barley, wheat and clover, can be grown alongside vegetables in a way that not only protects but also enriches the soil. One technique they use at Jordans is to sow clover as a green manure. This is something we have used on our own plots, but with Forage Pea.
After a brief look around the gift shop, it was time for our tour of the old mill. The 19th century mill has been divided in two by a spectacular floor-to-ceiling glass screen, with the working part of the Mill on one side and a contemporary display area on the other. We watched the turbine below our feet powering the crown wheel inside the mill and heard about how the belts and shoots moved the wheat and flour from place to place.
We then headed to the cafe together, where we had a big table reserved and enjoyed a lovely meal before heading home. These trips mean a lot to our gardeners and provide very special memories.
We use funds raised at our monthly Growing Ability stalls (first Thursday of every month outisde the allotments), to subsidise these trips (paying for taxis, extra staff, etc). So we hugely appreciate all of the wonderful support these stalls have been getting.’