Innholdsfortegnelse for 16-Feb-2022 i Country Life

THERE are up to five times more mountain hares in the Peak District than previously thought, finds a GWCT study, which used a new counting method developed in Scotland, focusing on the creatures at night across 16 estates and using special equipment. ‘Mountain hares are predominantly nocturnal animals, so it makes sense that the night-time counts are providing more successful and reliable population estimates,’ explains Richard Bailey, the Peak District Moorland Group co-ordinator who helped arrange the surveys of England’s only stronghold of hares—which benefit from practices such as heather burning and fox and stoat control on grouse moors. ‘Preliminary results suggest that the numbers of hares recorded by gamekeepers may be equivalent to a population density of about 52–126 mountain hares per square kilometre. This is similar to the…

Getting on the property ladder The average house price has increased by 514% over the past three decades, whereas salaries increased by 64% Disposable fashion Globally, every 16 seconds, stacked-up clothing equivalent to the height of the Eiffel Tower is thrown into landfill (1,063ft); the top of Mount Everest is reached in seven minutes (29,032ft) and the moon in less than a year German cars Stone martens love them-and by that we mean they love to climb inside parked Audis, Volkswagens and Mercedes-Benzes and have a feeding frenzy on car parts. The problem has reached ‘endemic proportions' in Germany…

SOME eBay purchases aren’t quite as expected. Such was the case for Christophe Rousset (above), who bid on what he believed to be 18th-century published sheet music, only to discover a rare 17th-century harpsichord manuscript. The previously uncatalogued pieces by Jean-Baptiste Lully and notable contemporaries were dedicated to Madame de Théobon, a former mistress of Louis XIV. Mr Rousset has given the music its premiere recording, which will be released via French label Aparté this month. ‘The manuscript contains seven unmeasured preludes, which were typical of the time, but not many have survived,’ explains Mr Rousset. ‘I play an original French harpsichord [a newly restored double-manual Nicolas Dumont from 1704] on this album: double interest for me, and hopefully for listeners.’ Madame de Théobon, to whom the manuscript is dedicated,…

THIS week, in different family configurations, we have managed not one, but two visits to the Royal Opera House. It’s been exhilarating to be back in a thronged auditorium, even if we are invariably tucked away in its highest and deepest recesses. It’s also been marvellous to hear music performed on a grand scale again with the orchestra pit full. Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet (Interview, page 40 and Theatre, page 96) was a predictable delight, but the really memorable surprise was Handel’s Theodora, with singing that held the whole audience by the ears. Domestic life has been rather more mundane. After many months of procrastinating, we set to work last weekend to tidy the children’s rooms and, in particular, clear them of a spectacular superfluity of books. It was a…

In strictest confidence Q My wife and I are expecting our first child at a slightly more advanced age than might be considered the norm, which has come as a bit of a surprise. We are delighted, but I have taken to worrying in the wee hours. My parents—and my grandparents before them—were incredibly strict and I always swore that I would do it differently. However, we are quite set in our ways and I fear I am going to be just as bad. P. C., Somerset A Congratulations! What lovely news for a grey February day. Not news I would want to receive myself, you understand (just in case any deity happens to be eavesdropping), but lovely for you. The fact you haven’t asked a question makes me suspect…

Dishing the dirt THE article ‘Who is Maris Piper?’ (February 2) was most interesting, particularly as I once had a business in the old Birmingham Wholesale Fruit and Vegetable Market. At that time, potatoes were still under restrictions after the Second World War. King Edward and Majestic were almost the only varieties and there were no forklifts or pallets in those days—everything had to be done by hand. Strong men were needed to handle the spuds and the dust and dirt came through the hessian sacks and went down their necks. Now, with 99% of greengrocers swallowed up by supermarkets, we have pre-packed potatoes minus the dust and dirt, washing some of their wonderful flavours down the drain. Norman Stevens, Warwickshire Go fly a kite WILLIAM SYKES asks if anyone…

Favourite building? Temple of Bacchus in Baalbek, Lebanon Alternative career? High-school choir teacher or wildlife photographer Ideal dinner guests? Jesus, Mohammed, Buddha and Mozart—I want the scoop from the horse’s mouth! The book I turn to Golden: The Power of Silence in a World of Noise (Justin Talbot-Zorn and Leigh Marz, to be published in May). It’s the book we need in 2022…

‘Poetry that was diffused through the prose’ Leslie Stephen, Hardy’s editor ‘The details of the farming and sheep-keeping, of the labouring, the feasting, and the mourning are painted with all the vividness of a powerful imagination’ The Spectator ‘Everything human in the book strikes us as factitious and insubstantial; the only things we believe in are the sheep and dogs’ Henry James ‘Nicolas Roeg’s evocative cinematography transforms Dorset into what Hardy describes as “the part-real, part-dream country” of Wessex’ British Film Institute description of the 1967 cinema adaptation…

• The first recorded use of ‘bloodhound’ appears in the 1350 poem William of Palerne or William and the Werewolf • During the 16th century, if a man refused to let a trailing bloodhound in pursuit of a thief enter his house, he was held to be an accomplice • In 1888, two bloodhounds, Barnaby and Burgho, were trialled by the Metropolitan Police to assist in hunting Jack the Ripper, yet despite successful demonstrations, the hounds weren’t deployed in the case • Sherlock Holmes creator Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was greatly inspired by the breed's sleuthing potential, often alluding to it in his work-in The Sign of Four, Holmes himself is likened to a ‘trained bloodhound' • Queen Victoria owned and showed bloodhounds, as did the first patron of the…

you -draining as or , it's very important that the site for the tree should be thoroughly damp, so that moisture is instantly available to the tree's roots. Dig the hole in which you are going to plant the tree several days before the actual planting. Fill it with water-up to the brim-so that it drains into the soil over the next few hours. Cover the hole with something like old sacking, so it doesn't dry out in hot weather or freeze in cold. Repeat this two days before planting and, if the bottom of the hole is still muddy, delay until it is firmer. More trees are lost to inadequate watering than to any other failing-watering should begin before the tree is planted.…

Clean up the glasshouse Things are beginning to move in the various glasshouses now and not all of them are welcome. A good spring clean will enable you to get ahead of the pests and diseases before they go forth and multiply. Go through each bench and put all the plants on the floor, then clean up the bench surface. As each plant is returned, remove dead leaves, clean the compost surface and wipe the pot. Then grovel about under the bench, removing debris and brushing as you go. Finish by sweeping the floor and sluicing with water. Return indoors and adjust your halo.…

NOT all of us are ready to fling off our clothes and leap into a river this month, but spring and longer days beckon and, with this in mind, it is proposed that two popular swimming spots become official bathing water sites—of which there are currently 419 in England. Defra is seeking opinions from residents, landowners, swimming groups and anyone else on potential official designation for Wolvercote Mill Stream (above) on the River Thames at Port Meadow, Oxford, and the East Cowes Esplanade on the Isle of Wight. If the applications are successful, the Environment Agency would be obliged to keep the public informed by regularly monitoring the sites for damaging bacteria, particularly intestinal enterococci and E.coli, during the bathing season (May 15 to September 30), classifying the water quality…

A SPECIAL hallmark has been created by the Goldsmiths’ Company to commemorate The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. Unlike previous hallmarks for her Diamond, Golden and Silver Jubilees and Coronation, this design—by Thomas Fattorini, the Birmingham-based family firm that has been designing hallmarks and civic emblems since 1827—does not feature a bust of the monarch, but a simple royal orb (above) with the initials E. R. and a II in the centre above the number 70. ‘Hallmarks are Britain’s oldest form of consumer protection,’ explains Goldsmiths’ Company librarian Eleni Bide. ‘With their series of symbols that tell of the quality of the metal, who made it, when and at which Assay Office they were hallmarked [there are only four, London, Birmingham, Sheffield and Edinburgh], they represent an ancient system that began with…

1) Zorro is the Spanish name for which common animal? 2) Which river is spanned by the Clifton Suspension Bridge? 3) From which plant did the Egyptians make the first paper? 4) Which potent drink was known in France as the ‘green fairy'? 5) Hibernia is the Classical Latin name for which country? Word of the week Nostopathy (noun) A morbid fear of returning home Time to buy Sugar Bowl with Spoon in Lime Green Glaze, £38, Peter Bowen Art (0117–370 6381; www.peterbowenart.co.uk) Gold Hildr Hoops (18-carat gold plate), £27, Solvi (www.solvijewellery.com) Mucky Pup Dog Shampoo, from £4.95, Poochiful (www.poochiful.co.uk) Unmissable events Until March 27 ‘Hubert Arthur Finney: Out of the Shadows’ exhibition (below), The Lightbox, Woking, Surrey. Previously unrecorded works from the artist's studio (01483 737800; www.thelightbox.org.uk) Until April…

LAST week, the Gothic glory of the chapel at Jesus College, Cambridge, served as the backdrop of an ecclesiastical hearing or consistory court. Facing each other were two particularly Rumpolean barristers, pleading before further bewigged figures on the bench. Hanging high up on a wall overlooking them was the accused; in this case, it was not a person, but a monument in the dock. This is a 9ft-tall marble cartouche, richly carved with putti, drapes, a festoon of flowers and a portrait in high relief of a moustashio’d gentleman in (another) wig: this time with cascading curls. It is a beautiful thing and is securely attributed to the great carver Grinling Gibbons, whose tercentenary was celebrated last year. The principal charge being argued over was whether to suffer the on-going…

THE Coward family is bristling with pride. Sales of its 3,000-item brush range, manufactured in slumberous Mere, Wiltshire, under the Hillbrush name, have been so stratospheric as to turn this former back-yard business into Britain’s biggest in the sector. An empire built on brushes for sweeping, scrubbing, cooking and construction, the no-nonsense, hardworking objects that emanate from the Hillbrush stable turn up all over the world in the factories of global brands (Coca Cola and Heinz, to name but two), in royal households, parks, schools, supermarkets, restaurants and hospitals, on farms and in incalculable homes. One such residence belongs to MD Charlie Coward, who shares the helm of Hillbrush with his cousin, Andy. ‘I live on a farm with my family. We have horses and, occasionally, I help with the…

What’s your favourite hotel? The Hotel Kirchenwirt, Kirchberg, in the Austrian Tirol. It is owned and run by a charming Austrian family, whose patriarch hunts in the mountains for deer and wild boar, which he then prepares for the hotel restaurant. In autumn, there’s a mushroom festival and fungi are gathered from the surrounding pine forests. Kirchberg itself is a pretty and delightfully unspoilt working village, a couple of miles from the cachet of glamorous Kitzbuhel. Have you had any travel disasters? Several—all in service stations between Venice and Milan. The first disaster was a mere jammed window, but the second time, €8,000 was stolen from our car as my husband stood by the boot, unaware. It is extraordinary how thieves have such a nose for cash. The third time,…

What is the secret to the successful transformation of a house in the 21st century? The mark of any successful transformation is the uplifting feeling you get when walking through a beautifully refurbished house. It isn't merely the decoration, but also the way the space flows and light enters. the practical and efficient use of the layout, the services coming into the house and how they are delivered. Choosing the right path is always a leap of faith and working with the right team is probably the most important decision a client can make. Involving Janine Stone in the journey offers a solid foundation with the significant benefit of strong creative, management and practical skills, as well as years of experience across a wide range of projects. When do you…

Search online or locally for a nursery that offers the trees and the services you need. The following are well regarded Barcham Trees, Eye Hill Drove, Ely, Cambridgeshire (01353 720748; www.barcham.co.uk) Chew Valley Trees, Winford Road, Chew Magna, Bristol (01275 333752; www.chewvalleytrees.co.uk) Majestic Trees (right), Chequers Meadow, Chequers Hill, Flamstead, St Albans, Hertfordshire (01582 843881; www.majestictrees.co.uk) Practicality Brown, Swan Road, Iver, Buckinghamshire (01753 652022; www.pracbrown.co.uk) Wykeham Mature Plants, Scarborough, North Yorkshire (01723 862406; www.wykehammatureplants.co.uk)…

Roasted carrots with lentils and harissa-marinated halloumi Serves 4 ‘Sweet carrots will enliven winter dishes’ Ingredients 250g halloumi1tbspn harissa350g carrots2tbspn olive oil1 red onion, cut into wedges2 sprigs rosemary3 sprigs thyme250g Puy lentils (cooked in chicken stock until soft and drained, or you can use a sachet or tinned ones)30g spinach For the dressing 2tbspn honey1tbspn wholegrain mustard1 lemon, juice of2tbspn Greek yoghurt Method Preheat your oven to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4. Cut the halloumi into slices and cover with the harissa. Leave to marinate. Toss the carrots (topped and tailed and sliced in half lengthwise), in olive oil and spread out on a baking sheet. Stir the onion wedges into the carrots, add the sprigs of herbs and roast for 30 minutes. Add the lentils to the tray and stir…

MRS CECIL FOLJAMBE was lucky in the timing of her wedding, July 22, 1869, which happened to coincide with the short-lived Kildonan Gold Rush. Small amounts of gold had long been found in the Strath of Kildonan, which runs west and north from Helmsdale in Sutherland, but, on returning from the Australian goldfields, Robert Nelson Gilchrist was authorised by the Duke to pan along the river, where he found worthwhile amounts, causing the rush. In April 1869, the Duke issued licences at £1 per month for 40sq ft claims and two shanty villages sprang up, with a saloon offering meals and bunk beds. The Scotsman reported that gold ‘can now be got at £3 10s (about £444 today) per ounce, and when buyers are not plentiful, sales are being effected…

OUR daughter took refuge with us as builders invaded her London flat. I found her in the kitchen one dark morning having a meltdown. Nelly, her cleaner, who had gone in to zap some of the builder mess, was broadcasting a description of the carnage on speakerphone. ‘Semen in kitchen sink, there is semen in sink,’ she said, repeating it like a final boarding call in case we hadn’t caught it the first time. They switched to video. My daughter’s eyes extended to their widest available aperture as Nelly held up a Marigold with a white smear on it. Gasps of outrage and horror. To rub it in, Nelly filmed a close up of the sink that revealed the awful truth: cement has a silent ‘t’ in its Filipino pronunciation.…

The beautiful game Last week, a cat found its way onto the pitch at Hillsborough stadium during a Sheffield Wednesday vs Wigan Athletic game; Topsey's owner is overjoyed-she'd been missing since June A right royal shindig A special-edition Platinum Jubilee sparkling wine has been released by the Royal Collection Trust, made from grapes grown in Kent and Sussex (£39 per 70cl bottle) Phoenix from the flames Villagers of Beachamwell, Norfolk, are thrilled that insurance will cover restoration to the roof of their 11th-century church, destroyed by fire Aspiring foresters A degree-level paid apprenticeship has been launched by the Forestry Commission, University of Cumbria and Institute of Chartered Foresters, the first of its kind Post-walk washes We spend three days a year cleaning up after our dogs and a study by…

IN terms of the house build and our wedding, we look as if we are about to turn into the home straight. We have employed Minty Moore, Rachel’s goddaughter—who, almost as importantly, is a wedding planner—to get us to the church on time. She has been a godsend and has caught several balls that would have been dropped. The biggest surprise so far is that a first-class stamp costs 85p. Still, we have stuck to tradition and are sending proper invitations. The house requires almost constant decision-making, from where lights and plugs should go to cellar doors and bath taps. Meanwhile, I have been distracted by planning the garden and the wildflower meadow. The hedges have all gone in, but I am desperate not to miss this year’s brief opportunity…

I HAVE a tame budgerigar which I have reared myself. He is very clever and can talk quite well. He says, ‘Pretty boy, Joey,’ ‘Kiss pretty Joe,’ ‘Come on and kiss me quick,’ ‘Poor Joey’ and other similar phrases. The other day he was sitting on his water tank saying ‘Come on’ very loudly. I did not take any notice at first, but as he went on saying it, I went to his cage and found that he had no water. He has a small bell in his cage which he plays with during the day. He sleeps on a table near my bed and a few nights ago I was awakened by Joey ringing his bell violently. I turned on the light and a mouse ran out. Was Joey…

Apple-crumble complexity Kutjevo, Graševina, Slavonia, Croatia 2020. £11.99, Laithwaites, alc 12% Founded in 1232, this ancient estate's hillside vineyards give its Graševina grapes a tart, fresh character. Spiky lemon scents with baking-spice notes are joined by apple-crumble complexity on the palate. Leesy richness and sweet spice hints contrast with fresh apple, peach and lemon-zest flavours. Eucalyptus edge Sainsbury’s, Taste the Difference Château Tanunda Cabernet-Merlot, Barossa, South Australia 2019. £13, Sainsbury’s, alc 14.5% Cracking value for money. A minty, eucalyptus edge to black-fruit aromas, ahead of a juicy palate that's packed with dense black fruit and sweet spice. A perfect winter warmer A cut above Fiol, Extra Dry, Prosecco, Veneto, Italy NV. £15.50–£18.95, Amazon UK, ND John, The Great Wine Co, alc 11% Fiol was founded by three friends,…

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JOYCE DIDONATO is almost ludicrously aptly named—she is both joyous and in possession of a god-given (donato di dio) voice, a warmly expressive, agile and richly coloured mezzo-soprano. She also has what appear to be boundless supplies of stamina and engagement. The day after singing in the opening night of Handel’s Theodora at the Royal Opera House, she is perched atop the bar in the Floral Hall, posing good naturedly for photographs. Hopping down, she grins, thanks everyone and plunges into conversation. Where does she get her energy? ‘From the music, from working with amazing colleagues. Also, however difficult it may have been, I’ve been able to profit from the past two years by taking a lot of rest. More than I’ve had in my entire life! I think I…

Thomas Hardy (1840–1928), the son of a stone mason, first trained as an architect. Moving to London in 1862, he worked for Arthur Blomfield, a distinguished Victorian architect noted for his churches. Back in his native Dorset by 1867, Hardy's first published novel was Remedies (1871), but only the success of Far From the Madding Crowd (1874), his fourth novel, enabled him to abandon architecture to concentrate on writing full time. In 1878, he wrote The Return of the Native, another of his great Wessex novels. Others include The Mayor of Casterbridge (the titular town being based on Dorchester, in 1886), The Woodlanders (1887), Tess of the D’Urbervilles (1891) and Jude the Obscure (1895), the latter pair causing uproar in their day for focusing on society's hypocritical attitudes towards women.…

‘And hark! and hark! the deep-mouthed bark Comes nigher still, and nigher! Bursts on the path a dark Bloodhound, His tawny muzzle tracked the ground, And his red eye shot fire.’ From ‘The Lay of the Last Minstrel’ by Sir Walter Scott STRIKINGLY handsome and with an unmatched sense of smell, the bloodhound is a remarkable working dog, both in appearance and ability. The noble expression of this tall, muscular, long-eared hound, ‘characterised by solemnity, wisdom and power’, as worded by the Kennel Club (KC), befits a breed with such a rich and ancient heritage. Recorded in Britain as early as the 14th century, the bloodhound has been an esteemed hunting companion to nobility, a formidable tracker of poachers and criminals and a lofty muse, its dignified countenance and trailing…

• The British Museum houses one of the oldest brushes ever found —a scrubbing brush unearthed in Egypt that dates from 25BC. Cave paintings show that brushes were being used 16,000 years ago • There is evidence of brushmaking in Britain in 200AD, but the methods and materials were crude, often involving the use of twigs and rushes. The industry expanded immensely over the 18th and 19th centuries, with communities often boasting multiple brushmakers, but it would be transformed again from the late 1800s onwards with the advent of mechanisation • Animal hair, often horse and goat, as well as hog bristles, was used extensively in brushmaking before the 1800s • The National Society of Brushmakers and General Workers, which became the Brushmakers' Trade Union, originated in 1747, making it…

• Scholars of King’s School, Worcester, may graze their sheep on College Green • At Harvard in the US, grazing rights were established, in 1721, by London merchant Thomas Hollis as part of the Hollis Professorship. In 2009, retiring divinity professor Harvey Cox briefly resurrected the practice with a Jersey cow • The centuries-old tradition of grazing cows on the city-centre commons of Cambridge came under threat last year [2021], but the ‘penny-pinching’ move to remove overnight guardianship from ‘pinders’ was defeated • In Beverley, East Yorkshire, ‘pasture freemen', headed by a ‘pasture master', may graze livestock on the commons of Westwood, Swinemoor and Figham • Summer grazing of cattle is key to the maintenance of Sudbury Common Lands in Suffolk, where 16 trustees carry on the ancient practice on…

DO you believe in ‘Old Wives’ Lore’? I hesitate to give offence to those senior members of the distaff side, but I am unaware of any neater, more concise way of summing up those snippets of gardening wisdom that are encompassed by the term: the aphorisms and saws that have been handed down through the generations as rural wisdom and which, in spite of our obsession with modern technology, still possess rather more than a grain of truth. I would never dream of describing my late mother as an ‘old wife’, not least because, during the period in which I was at the mercy of her proverbs and prejudices, she was in her thirties. What’s more, I have reason to be grateful for many of them. Growing up in Yorkshire,…

Roasted carrot, sweet potato and garlic soup Mix 350g each of chopped carrots and chopped sweet potatoes in a roasting tray. Add fresh herbs and a whole garlic bulb sliced across. Drizzle with olive oil and roast in a hot oven for 30 minutes. Once cooked, remove any twiggy herbs before tipping the carrots and sweet potato into a blender, squeeze the garlic flesh from the bulb and add some thyme. Pour in 500ml vegetable stock and process until smooth. Add a swirl of double cream and serve. Carrot bhajis Coarsely grate three large carrots. Leave to sit for half an hour then squeeze out the excess water. Sprinkle over half a teaspoon each of ground ginger, ground coriander, ground turmeric and salt. Toss. Add 100g flour and toss again.…