Dorset Country Pumpkins

10 October 2022

The Millers have farmed at Longclose for almost 80 years, but pumpkins were only introduced in 2020.
Since then, the truly rural pumpkin picking experience has become an annual fixture in many local family’s October calendar.
The farm’s lockdown diversification project has been such a success that this year the Millers have decided to grow even more varieties!
This year the decorative displays will be bigger and better, including the ever popular ‘Munchkin Patch’ – with mini pumpkins that children love! As well as the pumpkins, other attractions include a Craft Fair (15th and 16th October only), a display of modern and vintage tractors, plus the farm animal area. ‘Dorset Lamb’ will be returning to sell hot food and drinks every day, together with a number of other refreshment vendors.

A family team
Michael and Vicki Miller run the farm business alongside their sons Quenton and Justin and their daughter Georgina.
The pumpkins
The pumpkins have all been individually grown from seed in the farm’s greenhouse and planted in the pumpkin patch without the use of herbicides or pesticides. There is a mix of varieties this year, with different-sized orange and white pumpkins for visitors to choose from.
No booking is required and there is no charge for parking or entry. Pumpkins are priced according to size.
Dorset Country Pumpkins are open from 10am to 4pm on Saturday 15th and Sunday 16th October, then every day during half term Saturday 22nd to Sunday 30th October.

Richard The Second

Editorial team

10 October 2022

A nation is in turmoil. Three first cousins – Richard, Aumerle and Henry – battle for the supreme position of authority. Who will succeed in saving their country from a trail of ultimate destruction? And who will survive the challenge for the throne?
Tangle, in association with MAST Mayflower Studios, presents a radical and electrifying new adaptation of William Shakespeare’s ‘Richard The Second’ performed in its distinctive Southern African Township theatre style.
Tangle’s unique interpretation of one of the most compelling of Shakespeare’s history plays, exploring the politics of power and family alliances, will be performed by a multi-skilled ensemble of five. With an original score of Zimbabwean music and song, this new multicultural production offers a fast, powerful and fresh take on this state of the nation play, while celebrating talented artists whose multi-national voices are at the centre of Tangle’s work.
‘Richard The Second’ continues the company’s long-term commitment to championing African Caribbean artistic excellence, presenting classic plays in new and surprising ways to audiences of all kinds.
Continuing Tangle’s ambition to perform classic plays in new and surprising ways to audiences of all kinds, the play has been adapted for a multi-skilled ensemble of five actors, with three actors playing multiple characters across the show.
Aumerle will be played by South African actor and director Lebogang Fisher, while Richard will be portrayed by 2021 LAMDA graduate Daniel Rock, in his professional stage debut.
Sharing the roles of Henry & Scroop is Antiguan-born actor Raheim Menzies; Mowbray, York, Gardener will be played by the Eswatini/South African veteran Sibusiso Mamba; and Gaunt, Northumberland and Gardener, by Courtney Winston.

Suitable 12+ | 120mins inc. interval
Wed 2 November
Gillingham School Theatre, Dorset
artsreach.co.uk | 01747 213 203
Lighthouse, Poole
Fri 4 November
lighthousepoole.co.uk | 01202 280 000

What’s on at the Exchange

Editorial team

10 October 2022

What’s on at the exchange in sturminster Newton this winter – see the poster below.

The Band of the Brigade of Gurkhas set to play exclusive show in Salisbury

Editorial team

10 October 2022

The Gurkha Welfare Trust is delighted to bring the world-renowned Band of the Brigade of Gurkhas to the City for a concert on Friday 21st October.
The Gurkhas are soldiers from Nepal who are recruited into the British Army (or the Indian Army), and for the last 200 years have committed themselves to the service of the British Crown.
With previous Gurkha Band concerts being described as ‘a night at the proms – Gurkha style!’, the evening looks set to be an epic one. The performance will include a lively mix of Western and Nepali music, a selection of rousing military tunes, and feature the famous Kukri Dance.
Events and Community Coordinator Keta Hunt says: ’I am so excited to bring such a unique band here for what promises to be a fantastic event. What’s more, the proceeds raised will all go towards our vital work supporting veterans and their families in Nepal.
Although we’re known UK-wide and have a presence of over 500 staff in Nepal itself, not many people realise that our headquarters are actually in Salisbury. It feels really special to bring the Gurkha Band to our “hometown”. We hope as many people as possible will come out to this one-night-only event.”

The concert will be at St Paul’s Church, Fisherton St on Friday 21st October and tickets start from just £15, available via the Trust’s website gwt.org.uk.

How To Slash Your Energy Bills While Being Kind To The Planet

Editorial team

10 October 2022

Advertorial

If – like many homes and businesses across Dorset – you’ve been negatively affected by energy bills rising significantly over the last few months, then keep reading as we bid to save you up to thousands of pounds on your energy bills over time. Sam Hughes, Head of Renewable Energy at The Unique Group has answered some of the most frequently asked questions that they are hearing from their customers as home and business owners look to go ‘off grid’ and switch to renewable energy sources that won’t continue to rise and aren’t harmful to the environment.

One of The Unique Group’s solar installations

Can I get renewable energy in a rural area in Dorset?
Yes, absolutely you can. Rural areas are prime locations for adding renewable products within your home or business. No longer do you have to suffer with power outages and high heating costs by adding solar panels, batteries, and heat pumps. All you need to do is speak to our friendly team of experts who will conduct a survey of your property (which only takes an hour of your time). This survey allows us to collect a detailed report and we would also need a copy of your latest energy bill for accurate return of investment calculations.

How much will I save by installing solar panels?
This answer is different for every customer – it depends on the size of your property and your budget. However, we can design systems that can drastically reduce your energy bills, often by over half! By also installing an air source heat pump, for example, you have the ability to reduce your heating costs by removing your oil, LPG or gas boiler and adding an energy-efficient system that is proven to reduce your heating costs too.

Sam Hughes, Head of Renewable Energy at The Unique Group

How much does the average solar panel installation cost a home/business?
Installation costs really do vary depending on the size of the roof or area we can install solar panels on. But a common house installation will start between £5,000 to £7,000 with an associated battery. With the current costs of energy, there is no better time to look at installing a renewable energy system in your home or business. As well as the potential £5,000 grant provided for by the government, it has now never been cheaper to go off-grid!
If you have a larger area of land, installing solar farms will give you the flexibility to host a large number of panels – but of course, they come at a greater cost. We can offer finance packages for businesses; our experienced team is on hand to give the best advice on the best route to becoming independent from the grid network as its stability hangs in the balance.

EXCLUSIVE OFFER for The BV readers, quote ‘BLACKMORE’ for a free virtual consultation with our friendly team of renewable energy experts, and see how much you can save on your energy bills while going green for good. Just call 01202 743231
or email [email protected]

Letters to the BV Editor October 2022

Editorial team

9 October 2022

On Patricia Miller
What a fantastic ‘Dorset Island Discs’ this month (‘The NHS has lost its way’, Sep 22)! The column is always an enjoyable read, and your varied guest range is particularly interesting – as a Dorset resident I’m rather ashamed to admit I hadn’t heard of Patricia Miller before.
Not only was hers an inspiring story of a woman rising up against the odds, but what a thought-provoking and insightful interview into our health.
I’m not sure I had ever grasped before that a mere 20 per cent of our health is actually about our physical wellness; the rest being all about where we live, our education, our jobs… Fascinating stuff – and I can only imagine the frustrations of this being your work, when set against so many obstacles.
And how can we not appreciate a woman in such an important, powerful role who proudly picks Cameo alongside the Greatest Showman and Bob Marley?!
Anne Grey
Nr. Verwood

Just a quick note to thank you for your feature on Patricia Miller – though disguised as a fluff piece (rude! – Ed) her interview was insightful, intelligent, thoughtful and thought-provoking.
And as a bonus it reminded me how much I used to enjoy
Anita Baker!
Charlotte B
Blandford

On the waste of Wool
I was interested in your article on the modern wool industry (‘We need more woolly thinking’, Sep 22).
There have been some amazing innovations in the wool industry – but there are so many more opportunities still to be taken advantage of. British wool is unique because, unlike many other breeds of sheep like merino, British fleeces tend to make coarser, scratchier wool. This was once a competitive advantage, when our carpet industry was booming. But as carpet sales slumped and the fashion for hard-wood floors arrived, wool prices began to plunge.
From being a prime trading product, a decade ago wool had become a simple by-product and farmers began burning fleeces because it was no longer economically effective to lug them to market.
Of course we can wear it (though for a ‘waste’ product it seems to be remarkably expensive to buy pure wool clothing) or use it for building insulation, but some entrepreneurs have really started exploring its potential. Solidwool is a sustainable alternative to fibreglass.
Woolly Shepherd make sound absorbers.
ChimneySheep make rolls of gardeners felt (perfect mulch, plants love growing in it and it biodegrades within a year)
Woolcool make felt liners for insulating boxes to transport food – anyone who has one of those meal subscriptions from HelloFresh or Abel&Cole will know them. Far more importantly they’re also used for vaccine transport.
On top of all this, it’s also used for cleaning up oil spills, it is fully biodegradable and 100 per cent renewable.
WHY is it still seen as a waste product? I cannot understand it.
John Farrer
Shaftesbury

Having left school in 1946 I worked in London for a Belgian Wool Merchants with strong connections to the Wool Futures Market, representing company branches from around the world. London having suffered and survived the Blitz was an exciting place to work, especially for a young girl having just left school, with rationing and ration books the mainstay of our lives.
I was fortunate in that we received gift aid parcels from the firm’s American connections containing nylon stockings and nylon material (which made wonderfully luxurious underwear!), together with parcels from Australia containing skeins of wool. I particularly recall some beautiful soft green merino wool. While sitting on the steam train travelling into London every day I knitted it into a long sleeveless cardigan – which after 74 years, still being as good as new, I am wearing today! Oh happy days!
Della Jones MBE
By email

A note from Canada
I write from Canada, where the Blackmore connection to the Queen is that my father in law was Lieutenant Governor of Ontario. In other words he was Her Majesty’s representative for the province.
I met her twice, and she was such a wonderful lady. Hard to imagine a world without her.
My grandfather Wallace Blackmore left school at a very young age and joined the White Star line (I believe his father or grandfather was a millwright in the Devonshire area). After a few years he jumped ship in New York in 1912 and hitchhiked to Windsor here in Ontario and eventually opened his own bakery under the Blackmore name.
If he had not jumped ship in New York his next assignment for White Star was to be on the maiden voyage of the Titanic… I was hoping to take my wife back To the UK last year but COVID got in the way.
Hopefully we will be able to make the trip next year.
All the best from Canada!
Tom Blackmore
Ontario

Variable bills
It seems very few people know about Variable Direct Debits.
If you are good at budgeting, it is a much better way to pay for your utilities. You send in your monthly meter readings, and get the bill a few days later. A week after that, the exact amount you have used is taken from your bank.
Definitely no need for an astronomical monthly direct debit. My bill for August was less than £25. My whole year’s usage was less than £600.
Use less and you pay less.
(Excellent magazine – keep up the good work!)
C. Willment
By email

A wonderful ecumenical Evensong took place on Thursday, 16th September
at The Sacred Heart Church in Tisbury. Father Robert is not one who likes a fuss but thought this
would be a rather good idea. And he was right!
The Revd. Juliette Hulme kindly led the service. Father Robert sat by the font where he could see
and then speak to all as they came by.
It was a splendid farewell, the church was filled with our
parishioners, our Dean, Father Anthony, those from St John’s, the Methodist church and Tisbury community.
Mark Shuldham welcomed everyone; Teresa Frost and Mark read the lessons. The choir sang from the gallery in the west end and consisted of members of the Hindon & Chilmark Choir and those of Wardour and the Sacred Heart, led by Felicity Pattenden.
The BCP Evensong, which was at the request of Fr Robert, opened with the choir singing a four-part round of a Taizé Gloria. The canticles of the Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis were sung to settings by Smart and Monk. The anthem, Schubert’s Ave Maria, was performed beautifully by Soprano Iuno Connolly. Organist Douglas Stevens accompanied us all as proficiently as ever.
Father Robert joined us all afterwards for refreshments in
the Parish Room.
A collection was taken for Stella Maris, a charity for seafarers which is dear to Fr Robert’s heart.
He has written several books about seafaring and One Firm Anchor includes the history of this organisation, Apostleship of the Sea, now Stella Maris.
Thank you to all those who took part, to Revd Juliette Hulme and to Felicity and the Choir,
Douglas our organist, readers, helpers and the Social Committee for refreshments.
Catherine Vaux
Tisbury

A resurgence after the rain : The Voice of the Allotment

Editorial team

9 October 2022

After the hot dry summer, three inches of rain in September made a noticeable difference to the plot, never achieved by the watering, says Barry Cuff.

Barry continues to harvest beetroot as required

The much-needed rain arrived on 5th September, and by the 26th we had recorded about three inches. After a few days there was a marvellous revival of plant growth – rain can do wonders which are never achieved by watering alone. Growth was very noticeable on our carrots, leeks, parsnips and brassicas.
As well as the vegetables, there was an amazing emergence of weed seedlings on bare areas of the plot, the majority of them being chickweed. These will either be dug in with the green manure beans or hoed before they become too large.
The brassicas remain under netting because of the pigeon problem. Our brassicas are also suffering from the worst infestation of Whitefly in 30 years – looking at other allotment sites online this seems to be a common problem. Hopefully, a few autumn frosts will deal with the problem. Strangely there is very little caterpillar damage from the cabbage white butterflies – plenty of eggs have been laid, but they have not hatched.

Still harvesting
Both our runner and French beans put out new flowers this month, which has given us a second crop of fresh beans. We continue to harvest carrots and beetroot when needed. We have enough carrots – Early Nantes – to last till at least February. They will suffer a little slug damage over the winter but will still be usable.
So far we have cut four Cheesy cauliflowers of a reasonable size.
Three of our Crown Prince winter squashes were harvested on the 20th as the stalks were turning yellow. The rest, together with the butternuts, will be ready in early October.
The celeriac have been mulched and fed to encourage large roots. These will be ready in December.
As our first sowing of oriental mustards was wiped out at the seedling stage by flea beetle during the drought, a second sowing was made on the 8th and is now looking well.
Both our autumn raspberries (Joan J and Autumn Treasure) are now cropping well.
In the greenhouse the hot chilli peppers are turning colour and we have picked Hot Scotch and Habanero Orange.

Planning ahead
Now we have to start planning for 2023. A phone call to the farmer has secured our delivery of well-rotted horse manure in November. Seed catalogues have been ordered, and Kings has already arrived. Belonging to the South West Counties Allotment Association, we are eligible for a 50 per cent discount on all seeds from both Kings and Suttons.

Almond Croissants – so so worth it

Editorial team

9 October 2022

I recently found out that almond croissants are one of our brilliant BV Editor’s faves (true fact – Ed) so I thought they might be a nice recipe to include as the nights draw in and readers might be looking for
something a little special for their Sunday brunch (you may also enjoy Heather’s breakfast pasties).
This recipe is a little time-consuming (it involves repetitive steps and a double prove) so it’s not a last-minute option. But it isn’t complicated, and freshly baked croissants are simply impossible to beat.
To make these as traditional plain croissants, simply remove the nuts and marzipan; the recipe works just as well without them. You can also switch up the added ingredients – I have been known to add jam instead of marzipan to the centre! It’s messier (it tends to squidge out the sides) but wonderful if you are looking for a sweet bake.
If you are feeling adventurous, this recipe can be made vegan. Use Stork baking block instead of butter. It softens much faster than butter so keep an eye on it and perhaps leave it longer in the fridge between folds. It does give you gloriously crispy vegan croissants though! Heather.

Ingredients (makes 12 small (WHY? – Ed) croissants)

120g cold butter
40g melted butter
160ml of warm water
250g strong white flour
30g caster sugar
7g salt
1 sachet of fast-acting yeast (8.5g).
marzipan
flaked almonds
a beaten egg to egg wash
a little icing sugar

With a rolling pin (or something heavy), bash the cold butter into a flat rectangle about 1cm thick. Cover this in cling film and replace in the fridge.
In a jug, mix together the warm water, caster sugar, melted butter and yeast. Leave to sit for five minutes – the mixture will begin to froth.
In a large bowl (or the bowl of your stand mixer), add the flour and salt and mix. Then pour in the liquid mixture and mix together, either with a wooden spoon or the dough hook of the stand mixer. Once the mixture has come together, knead for 5-8 minutes (either with the dough hook and your stand mixer or by hand). If the mixture is very wet, add a little more strong flour and if too dry, then a little more water.
Leave the dough to prove in a lightly oiled bowl in a warm place, covered with a clean tea towel or oiled cling film, for one hour until it has doubled in size.
Once the dough has risen, place it onto a lightly floured surface and roll it out until 1cm thick. Place the cold, flat butter square into the centre of the dough and fold the dough around it so that the butter layer has been fully encased.
Roll out the dough with the butter inside until it is again about 1cm thick. Now fold the lower third of dough up to cover the central third, and then fold the top third over the top (like a letter going into an envelope). Cover with a tea towel and leave to rest for five minutes.
Rotate the dough 90º and repeat (roll out and fold into thirds).
Leave to rest again, then repeat one more time.
Cover the dough with cling film and return it to the fridge for 30 minutes for the butter to get hard again.
Now repeat the above folding, rotating, resting process (steps 6-9).
Back in fridge with the dough for 30 more minutes, and then repeat steps 6-9 for a third time.
Once you have reached this stage, you can leave the dough in the fridge overnight. If you are not going to do this, it needs at least an hour in the fridge.
Once the dough and butter is thoroughly cold again, remove from the fridge and roll it out until it is 0.5cm thick.
To make a croissant, you need to cut tall triangle shapes out of the dough. The easiest way I have found to do this is to cut the rolled-out dough into strips about 10-15cm high. Then cut these rectangles into triangles by cutting diagonal lines corner-to-corner. This means there is very little wasted dough.
Now you have triangles, do the following with each one:
Take the base of the triangle (the shortest side) and place a small ball of marzipan so that it covers the bottom third of the triangle.
Starting at the base, roll up the triangle, encasing the marzipan inside. This should give you the familiar croissant shape with the small point of the triangle at the centre on top.
Place the croissants on a lined baking sheet. Cover loosely with a clean tea towel or cling film and leave in a warm place to rise for 90 minutes.
Pre-heat the oven to gas 6/180º fan.
Beat the egg and lightly brush over the tops of the croissants. Don’t be too liberal with the egg as it can seal the dough a little and stop some of the rise in the oven. Sprinkle with flaked almonds.
Bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown and risen.
Finish with a glamorous sprinkle of icing sugar if you wish.

On the hunt for good turkey

Editorial team

9 October 2022

If you think your traditional turkey is a dry, under-flavoured, over-rated bird, then you might want to change where you buy it, says Rachael Rowe

Chilcott turkeys are free ranging
Image: Golden Turkeys

It’s that time of year when thoughts turn to plans for the festive season – and the food. For many people, a turkey is the centrepiece of a Christmas dinner. But what goes into rearing the best quality turkey? And how do you know yours will be good? Our local turkey farmers are gearing up for the busiest time of the year and spoke to us about their work.
Alban and Helen Harris are seventh-generation farmers at Brunsell Farm in Stourton Caundle. ‘I’ve been doing this all my life,’ says Alban, ‘I can remember Grandma on the farm. There’s a lot of heritage with this farm, and lots of things continue here, so the traditional ways of doing things affect the quality of the turkeys.
‘The turkey industry has been industrialised, and costs have had to be cut. However, we have stuck with our traditional methods. We feed the birds the best quality wheat, soya and cereal. And the whole process is carried out on the farm, so there is less stress to the turkey.’
That’s something that Mark Chilcott of Chilcott Turkeys in Owermoigne also emphasised when talking about quality. He has 30 years experience of producing turkeys. ‘Everything is done here on the farm from start to finish to monitor quality and reduce stress on the turkeys. We’re free range, and we have bronze turkeys. When our birds are slaughtered, they are hung whole-bodied so they mature and the flavour improves.’

Dry plucking
Alban explained more about the difference between wet plucking and dry plucked turkeys. ‘With wet plucking, the birds are slaughtered and then scalded so the feathers can be removed faster. In mass turkey production, wet plucking can take five seconds to do. However, when you do that, the case is compromised, and the bird has to be refrigerated immediately. Here, after slaughter, all our birds are dry plucked by hand. It is intensive work to pluck a bird manually – usually 20 minutes. So that adds to the cost. We then hang the birds for ten days, so they mature on flavour and tenderise. Turkeys are a game bird, so they need a chance to mature before they are dressed. This is why some mass-produced turkeys are drier, because the meat hasn’t had a chance to tenderise. Also, most of our birds are hens which put down more fat, and that also adds to the flavour.’

Alban and Helen Harris provide the best of everything for their barn turkeys

Plumpy Whites and Roly Polys
Chicks arrive from June on the farms, and both farmers select from the best strains. The breeds have delightful-sounding names such as Plumpy Whites and Roly Polys (a bronze variety). While the Chilcotts have free ranging birds, Alban’s turkeys are raised in the barns where they have lots of room to stretch their wings and nestle on straw. ‘We’re very wary of risking bird flu by having them outdoors.’
But what about the cost?
Both Alban Harris and Mark Chilcott have experienced significant increases in the cost of quality food this year, which will inevitably affect prices. However, a turkey is a large and versatile bird; there is a lot people can do with leftovers to make it more cost-effective. Helen Harris advises: ‘With a fresh turkey, you can freeze the cold meat in portions and use it later in the year. Soups, curries, and pies are good for using leftovers, and you can freeze them, too. Some people buy a whole turkey from us and cut it in half. Then they eat half the bird at Christmas and freeze the other side for later in the year.’

Local turkeys
Alban and Helen sell turkeys to 17 butchers locally. ‘Julian and Roger Else come here and pick out the turkeys they want.’ Chilcott Turkeys also supply several local butchers and sell at the farm gate.
So what is the customer looking for?
‘People want smaller turkeys,’ says Alban, ‘but are increasingly wanting only breast meat.
‘We need to be realistic on pricing because there is more work in jointing the turkeys. And with crowns, you need a bigger bird, so that affects the price.
‘Sometimes we bone roll ours. One year we bone rolled the turkey and had a piece of venison through the middle, which was really lovely.
I don’t advertise it too much because it’s so fiddly and everyone will want them! It’s one of the last things I do before Christmas, mainly for a few friends, and as I’m doing it, I think, “We’re there now. The turkeys have gone, the work is almost done, and it’s Christmas”.’

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