October 2020

Below are several photographs and an update by Marion Hearfield (Garden Volunteer and Cowle Trustee).

The last two weeks of September were harvest time in the Walled Garden. Our apple trees - all local heritage varieties for baking, eating and cider-making - have produced some beautiful fruit this year. Sarah also picked a quince, and a football! The apples are now displayed on the pavilion terrace.

It was also time to cut the meadow and a big thanks to Francis and Dominic (pictured below), who volunteered to help us out by scything the area. Last Monday, Graham and Geoff raked it into heaps for Ann to barrow away. Geoff also cut the lawn that morning, ready for the Museum's very first Covid-secure event - the launch of Howard Beard's new book. Thanks to Abigail's careful planning this was a very successful gathering of invited members of Stroud Local History Society (the publishers) and old Friends of the Museum. The book is on sale in the Museum shop.

The great iris move has started too. Since one iris looks much like another at this time of year, Caroline and Ann made a map from earlier photographs, and each block has been carefully identified. Some plants have been put back in the same place, others are being moved to the new iris bed in the museum's courtyard, and the rest are being potted up for sale on the table next to the volunteers' shed. As of last Thursday (1st Oct) there were four varieties on sale; more will be added as clumps are lifted and split. The white borders are still looking lovely, and the autumn colours of the other beds glowed in the sunshine.

Marion H