A Year on the Estate: 2022 in Review

APRIL

 The east-front of South Ormsby Hall received a lot of intense TLC in 2021 which left the interior looking sound but somewhat unfinished. In spring 2022, the dining room was re-laid and its skirting boards refitted. We then worked our way through a long job list including cleaning, filling small cracks, painting, hanging wallpaper, general touch-ups, re-laying carpet and moving the furniture back into place.

With the weather improving and the Lincolnshire Wolds Outdoor Festival due to run from 30^th April to 5^th June, we devised a programme of free guided tours to showcase our wonderful corner of the Lincolnshire Wolds.

Tours would get underway at The Walkers’ Hut where guests would be treated to slow-roasted Lincoln Red beef baps with our brand-new frozen custard for dessert. Suitably refreshed, guests would take a three-mile walking tour of our historic parkland and rolling countryside with one of our knowledgeable Estate team. The last port of call would be the Massingberd-Mundy Distillery for a behind-the-scenes tour and complimentary samples of our award-winning artisan gins.

MAY

With our spring tour programme well underway, we profiled new tour guide Pete Staves. “The guiding job at South Ormsby Estate seemed tailor-made for me”, said Pete. “It combines being outdoors with walking and chatting about natural and local history. We’ve also been blessed with fine weather and lots of positive and enthusiastic guests.”

New life abounded all over the Estate. Richard Doan returned and in one area on 7th May he counted: “5 x red kite, 14 x whitethroat, 26 chaffinch, 2 x lesser whitethroat, 13 x yellowhammer, 10 x linnet, 6 x lapwing, 1 x marsh harrier, 9 x reed bunting and 21 x skylark”.

Elsewhere, our owl boxes hosted healthy broods of both tawny and barn owl chicks. The Keal Yard team turned out this year’s Lincoln Red calves and their mothers onto our fresh spring pastures.

At the Massingberd-Mundy Distillery, Tristan’s reputation was further burnished by a commendation from The Gin Guide Awards. At the Creamery, Mark Vines briefed us on exciting new developments, including milk soap, frozen custard, mature cheese and plant-based drinks.

JUNE

The success of our Lincoln Red herd owed much to veteran cattle-man John Crutchley, who retired in the spring. We profiled John’s successor, Richard Lakin, and found out what it takes to run a rare-breed, regenerative herd. “As a manager, I lead from the front,” said Richard. “If there’s a dirty job, I’ll tackle it. I want my staff to see that I’m willing to do it and learn to do it right.”

We also caught up with Poultry Manager Cameron Aldin who gave us surprising insights into the character of pasture-raised, heritage turkeys, and their potential usefulness to gardeners and smallholders.

We marked World Environment Day and took stock of what we’d achieved thus far in celebrating, restoring and protecting the natural environment. To find out more, click HERE.

JULY

July brought a stubborn spell of high pressure with exceptional heat and aridity. The first six months of 2022 were the driest in England since 1976, and these conditions intensified in July and didn’t abate until late summer. At 4pm on 19th July, a record high of 40.3C was recorded at Coningsby, 17 miles from our doorstep.

Out on the land, we were obliged to bring the harvest forward and make sensible adaptations, including swathing the oilseed rape. Swathing is the process of cutting and forming crops into distinct windrows so that they can exploit hot weather and dry before being harvested.

Our regenerative and responsible approach to land management helps us deal with adverse weather all-year round. Clear and well-maintained water courses and drainage ditches are important in both dry and wet weather. Kilometres of thick, healthy hedgerow and stands of mature trees provide shade and shelter for livestock and wildlife. Soil that is minimally disturbed and protected by cover crops establishes strong root networks and resists both wind erosion in summer and wet run-off in winter.

AUGUST

After July’s heatwave, we were grateful for somewhat cooler weather and a few precious rain showers. Eastern England remained starved of useful rain for the rest of August even while Western England was soaked by Atlantic frontal systems, and this pattern didn’t decisively change until October.

Despite the drought, many crops large and small did well this summer, including naked oats. These oats are ‘naked’ because they naturally part company with their hulls without the need for threshing, saving us time and energy. At a smaller scale, apple trees, walnut trees, brambles and all manner of shrubs produced abundant and early fruit this year.

Mark Vines has been developing a Lincoln Red cheese in the Alpine Tomme style since 2021, and it should be fully matured and ready for sale by spring 2023. We let our discerning readers suggest names for our new cheese, and then held a run-off between the favourites. ‘Oester Dale’ beat ‘Bluestone Red’ by a single vote.

Oester (to rhyme with ‘toaster’) Dale is the valley to the west of South Ormsby Hall which lends its name to the beck which flows through the Estate and feeds our lake. Thanks again to Paul Gertner for this suggestion.

 SEPTEMBER

We had another catch-up with Richard Lakin who briefed us on a visit from cattle ranchers from South Dakota, USA, and plans to keep the Lincoln Red herd outdoors full-time.

“The big change this winter is that the whole herd will stay outdoors on the land,” said Richard. “We’ll keep a close eye on them and make sure they’re safe, healthy and well fed. There’s been careful planning and there are plenty of forage crops to go at. The winter plan will work a treat and the herd will keep on rolling from strength to strength.”

We celebrated two years of the Saturday Club, whose 10 young workers from all over the region were making a real difference. “Our young workers have contracts and get paid monthly like any other staff member,” said Clarice Weston. “Each Saturday morning, they tackle jobs that are genuinely important for the running of the Estate, as well as getting enrichment talks from professionals keen to share their skills.”

We also profiled Hall Steward Clint Coughlan and found out what it takes to look after the Hall and its grounds from dawn till dusk every day.

OCTOBER

Inspired by the success of our spring tours, we launched an expanded series of autumn tours to run from 28^th October to 4^th December. We kept our popular Country Walk and added the Park & Garden Tour and the Hall Tour.

“It’ll be lovely to show the public the Walled Garden with its old fruit trees and many memories and secrets,” said Pete Staves. “For many years, only the Massingberd-Mundy family saw it all.”

Graduate trainee Abbie Baldock briefed us on the Pulses & Grains Project. “We want to grow our own organic, arable produce for sale to the public directly,” said Abbie. “I’ve conducted a trial using South Ormsby Estate staff and tenants to see which crops would be most useful and popular.”

NOVEMBER

Inspired by genealogical research by reader Dot Monts Trakas of South Carolina, USA, we began November with a deep dive into our 17^th-century origins. For a story of revolution, inheritance, a spare heir, trans-Atlantic heartache and debtors’ gaol, click HERE.

We profiled a few of the new team members helping to make our autumn tours a huge success, including Freya, Kathryn and Farmer Mike.

Our Lincoln Red team asked for volunteers via our Facebook page to help with a herd move. We had an enthusiastic response and our new team of cattle-drive irregulars relished the experience. They also seemed to enjoy the breakfast of champions provided by Mark Vines by way of thanks.

DECEMBER

We ended the year much as we began, with a new round of hedge-laying. Besides planting, we also need to prepare the ground, which includes removing a lot of wood and wire from old fencing then laying a weed-suppressant mat. A few weeks later we plant the hawthorn saplings that will form the core of the hedge. Each sapling is protected by a spiral to protect it from hungry deer and livestock until it’s established. Used canes and spirals are recovered and re-used on new plantings.

We announced a brand-new range of Lincoln Red leather goods and Finn Bracey, our very own leather-maker, gave us fascinating insights into this ancient craft.

In keeping with our official organic ethos, we took advantage of the mid-December cold snap to roll volunteer beans. In essence, we used frost rather than synthetic chemicals to selectively inhibit growth.

Our final profile of the year went to former graduate trainee and new Graduate Placement Officer and Saturday Club Manager, Georgina Routh. She gave us the low-down on making soap, planting vines, working with teenagers, scheduling graduates and getting things done outdoors

We hope you’ve enjoyed our brisk gallop through  2022. If you’d like to share your views on anything you’ve read here, do say hello via our Facebook page. We’ll see you next year as we continue to write a bright new history for our corner of the Lincolnshire Wolds.