Veg Plotting

As well as plenty of heritage apples to explore, Rufford Old Hall had a scarecrow trail when we visited. The volunteers on welcoming duty were anticipating hordes of visitors during half term and made sure we had a leaflet in addition to the estate walks one. They sprang up in all kinds of places, including the Hall's vegetable garden, so naturally I grabbed this shot for my occasional  Allotment Folk strand. The sign says 'A Lady Gardener'. She wasn't the only woman toiling the soil in scarecrow form. The orchard area had a Land Army Girl too. She - and me as a bystander - was being bombarded by hundreds of ladybirds at the time. I wonder how many of them settled down for winter in her straw?

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Here's my favourite scarecrow from the fun staff competition held at Mr Fothergill's trials field* last week. I've spared you the picture of Incy, the huge spider lurking in the opposite corner of the field, as I know some of you are of a nervous disposition. It couldn't be missed no matter where you were standing at the time. When I posted my first Allotment Folk from Chippenham in early June, I had no idea I'd find some more in Yorkshire whilst we were on holiday. I'm on the look out for more now, as this is developing into a fun series. * = OK, I know I'm stretching the concept of allotment by including a trials field, but you'll spot the similarities in a later post.

The journey from our holiday cottage to the market town of Helmsley proved a favourite one over the past couple of weeks. It took us up Clay Bank (as shown on Sunday's Postcard ), then over Bilsdale and Ryedale moors through the most exquisite of upland scenery and a scattering of stone-built villages and farmsteads. Our main objective for the first of these trips was to visit Helmsley Walled Garden - a blog treat reserved for another day - which I've wanted to visit for quite some time. A stroll around town afterwards proved equally rewarding, especially when I found the Yorkshire version of the Allotment Folk I wrote about recently. I particularly enjoyed seeing the chap on the left. Evidence of May's Tour de Yorkshire  greeted us in most places we visited or travelled through, with all kinds of brightly painted yellow and blue bicycles, oodles of bunting and proud Yorkshire flags providing evidence of the route taken by the race's cyclists. They may have ...

Last weekend saw Chippenham's main event of the year, the Folk Festival  and I'm delighted to find a couple of allotment folk appeared at the same time up at the plot. Coincidence? I don't think so, let's consider the evidence... With that stance and style of hat, our first character has to be a folk dancer of some sort, and with a stick in her hand, I'd wager she's of the Morris persuasion. At first glance our second character seems to have a more Cavalier attitude, but those dangling bells are a giveaway. It's another Morris dancer for sure. I love the ribbons used - they say, "You are my sunshine". I wonder which folk dance fits that tune?