A year in the Victorian Kitchen Garden

In today's world of liberalism and freedom (not to mention over-zealous labour laws) it's hard to imagine running a garden or gardening business in the same strict way as Victorians ran their estates and walled vegetable gardens.

The head gardener was a much revered man who would command the utmost respect and demand military discipline that has long since been forgotten.

Most working class people went into service during the Victorian era; some within the confines of the big house and others into the gardens and woods: estates were a factor of efficiency bringing wild and farmed meat to the table, managed woodland to fuel the fires and cut flowers and fresh produce from the garden to brighten up the house and feed its privileged occupants.

I am beginning to sniff a return to traditional values; both in a sense of how we conduct ourselves as well as how we grow our gardens.

I have been rather fortunate in my career; first as an amenity gardener and latterly as a landscape gardener. I got to visit some very fine houses and gardens around southern England and I got to glimpse and sense a wonderful era of yesteryear.

A head gardener was not only a very skilled man who learnt his trade as an apprentice to fine gardeners before him, he was also a shepherd, mentor and father figure to those who worked under his command.

Many of you will remember the Victorian Kitchen garden from the 1980s - Peter Thoday and Harry Dodson share traditional Victorian gardening from the walled garden at Chilton Foliat near Hungerford in Berkshire.

Take a nostalgic look back in time and enjoy the gardening year through these ten minute snippets on You tube: although not from the Victorian era, Harry Dodson learned his gardening skills from gardeners who were, and passes on his skills to viewers in the BBC series about the Victorian Kitchen Garden.

Harry Dodson holds a little significance for me personally; not only would I have loved to have worked with him but he worked for Lord Selborne on the Blackmoor Estate, just a mile from my boyhood home.

Gardeners' World producers..please take note of how a gardening programme should be made.

The first video (above) is January in Chilton Foliat.

February in the Victorian Kitchen Garden.

March in the Victorian Kitchen Garden.

April in the Victorian Kitchen Garden.

May in the Victorian Kitchen Garden.

June in the Victorian Kitchen Garden.

July in the Victorian Kitchen Garden.

August in the Victorian Kitchen Garden.

September in the Victorian Kitchen Garden.

October in the Victorian Kitchen Garden.

November in the Victorian Kitchen Garden.

December in the Victorian Kitchen Garden.

Comments

[Stacy Tuttle]

So lovely to see Harry Dodson again. In these days of so called celebrities he was some one with a real gift and full of knowledge. He was my hero and inspired me to take up gardening. Living in Hungerford I often saw him round and about the town, a quiet man going about his business, with the occasional tooty grin. I would say Morning Mr Dodson, but I so wish I had spoken to him at length. Miss him so much. Thanks Mr Dodson

[Philip Voice]

Thanks for your comment Stacy.

I would love to have met Harry too.

[Bob]

Six weeks after leaving school I started work at Chatsworth House and whilst there was no one working there from Victorian times there were a few older guys who had worked with such people and as a garden boy these were the guys you got sent to work with and although things in the garden of the big house had already changed for the worse they were more than willing to talk about and teach you how things used to be done many of which couldn't be done today and you wouldn't want to do today like for instance spending all winter knocking nails in to a brick wall in order to tie in fruit trees but what I think is as important today as it was back then is the way of thinking. Everyday I could get by doing half the work I do but for me the disipline and the aim for perfection, two of the things the old gardens pracised day in day out are as important to me today as they were for them back then.

[Steve Jeffries]

Hi Phil,

You normally have the pulse of our industry, but I'm sorry your have lost the plot on this one.

Lets all go back to being serfs then, with no Labour protection, a right for bosses to do as they please, with no "over zealous Labour laws" which you choose not state, perhaps for your own protection?

If Landscape Juice is just a "bosses organisation" I for one want no part of it, nor I am sure would many Designers, Landscapers, Nursery Workers or other land based industries that you seek to represent.

These poxy Victorians, with their two-bit queen, like any other two-bit queen, took on 6 land workers from Tolpuddle in Dorset after taking away their rights, and got their arses kicked!

Perhaps you should firstly explain to all Land-based workers what protection you want them to lose, and then apologise to them should you wish to continue to receive their support.

I would urge all Land Based workers, join your Trade Union, protect yourself from this attack on your hard earned rights, for which people died. After all, your bosses organise, so why shouldn't you?

And Phil, be careful what you wish for, a new association would never get the backing it deserves with stupid comments like this, get yourself together.

Best regards,

Steve

[Philip Voice]

Goodness me Steve...where did this post deserve that kind of comment?

I think you've read a lot into this post that was never said nor implied.

But since you've raised some points, and I'm never one to hide in greenhouses!

I've employed a lot of people over 21 years and I can safely say that if a trade union existed for land-based industries, many good, hard working and entrepreneurial businesses would fail.

There are a great people in our industry and I can see from LJN membership that quality shine through on a daily basis - but, there are so many more who want something for nothing and they are prepared to cheat and lie to get it.

The point of the post was about the discipline of how Victorians ran their business and especially their walled gardens and the respect the head gardener demanded - human rights (something that didn't get a mention) is another matter.

A related response here: http://www.landscapejuice.com/2010/03/trade-union-for-landscapers-and-gardeners.html

[Stephen H]

That was a great series and I have been paying quite close attention to it and Mr Beetons book for that last 2 years and have found them fascinating.

[Sean James Cameron]

Nice to see that my hours of transcoding the videos and putting them onto youtube is appreciated.

I am currently working with the producer Jennifer Davies who created the Victorian series on a new series about The Flower Show. I will give you further details once I'm given the go-ahead from the big bosses above.

[Blabber]

As we sit here amidst the post-war liberal decay, with CCTV spying on us twenty-four hours a day The BBC full of Jimmy Savile type Paedophiles, the country totally bankrupt. It is a sort of escape to try and recreate the the splendor and pride the Victorians had. I wonder if the pioneers of Communism, Organized Jewry, will stay a war with Iran in the coming months in their quest for WMD's that never existed? Ah, ah, what joyous times we dwell in.