December has arrived and I am still totally unprepared for Christmas but one way to get into the swing of festivities is to catch Mustard TV over the next couple of weeks as the team can always be relied on for a good giggle and lots of tinsel. I was sent on my way around Norfolk to film some lovely Christmassy gardening themed pieces to be shown on the Mustard show through-out the run up to Christmas.
Hoping to give viewers a good idea of what can be done to make our homes and gardens festive in a fun, quick and cheap way, I met the lovely team at Taverham Nursery where we planted a huge pot full of gorgeous plants including Skimmia, Hellebores, Ivy and a mini glow in the dark Fir just for the kids. It took just a couple of minutes, its so easy just to pretty up a doorstep, patio or balcony.
Then Shaun from Mustard and Vision Vid, found our way down to Great Hockham where we discovered Manor Farm Christmas Trees expertly run by Vince Thurkettle with a background in forestry his passion for trees was infectious and we felt full of seasonal joy! I even managed to come away with my very own Christmas Tree. Vince then showed us how to make a wood fire, how to chop the wood and prepare it for a roaring festive fire to keep us warm during the cold Winter evenings. Vince has a superb book called ‘The Woodier Handbook’ which is a great Christmas present if you want your other half to learn how to build a fire (now my husband probably knows what is in his Santa stocking)!
Not ending there of course, I went to Swanton Morley House where I learnt how to make a Christmas Wreath guided by the lovely and talented Penny Nicholas from Crown House Flowers whilst Caroline the owner took some professional photographs whilst we were filming and allowed us to pick lots of gorgeous foliage from the gardens. Swanton Morley House is a beautiful setting for weddings and was decorated full of seasonal foliage and berries for the wreath making workshops held there with the Norfolk School of Floristry.
Now, Christmas just wouldn’t be right without the love them or hate them vegetable of the season – sprouts! So we put on our wellies and went to Bretts Farm in Aylsham to harvest a load of delicious sprouts before heading over to White House Farm where Charlotte expertly rustled up both a sprout and pesto dish in her lovely farmhouse kitchen.
Phew! Now that’s a lot of Christmas garden inspired films to be shown on Mustard TV, so don’t miss them! If you are unable to tune in, use the catch up service on the Mustard TV website and see them via both the Mustard and Ellen Mary Gardening YouTube channel after they have been aired.
So, enjoy the festivities and bring a little of the garden inside!
Watch Mustard TV from 6.30pm on:
Mon 5th December - Taverham Nursery - Planting Xmas Pots
Tues 6th - Manor Farm, Great Hockham - Choosing a Xmas Tree
Mon 12th - Swanton Morley House - Wreath Making (two parts)
Thurs 15th - Manor Farm, Great Hockham - Wood Fires
Mon 19th - White House Farm - Sprouts from Plot to Plate
Happy Christmas :-)