A Week on the Estate: Weather Talk, Walnut Wisdom & Cheese Named

Late summer means there’s plenty to do all over the Estate. Clint, Kitty and George were glad of cooler weather and a bit of rain when it came time to turn over the Walled Garden’s compost heap. Hard as they work, there always seems to be a bit more spadework to get through before snack-o-clock comes around!

Our readers are country-wise and full of passion and knowledge when it comes to the great outdoors. Last week, we reported on our bumper crop of walnuts and this prompted a social media celebration of this seasonal treat.

While the walnut is treated as a nut by cooks, it doesn’t meet the botanical definition. It is instead the edible seed of a drupe, and so has more in common with stone fruit. At South Ormsby Estate, we tend to collect them from the ground right after they’ve dropped when they’re perfectly ripe. We have to be quick off the mark to beat our Lincoln Reds; they’re partial to a fresh walnut and they’re the trees’ favourite customers, helping to spread the seeds all over our land complete with organic fertiliser.

Judith Currah reminded us of the old rhyme; ‘a woman, a dog and the walnut tree / the more they’re beaten, the better they be’. It was believed that vigorously tapping the trunk in the spring would encourage the sap to rise and result in a bigger crop.

Many readers suggested delicious ways to eat walnuts. Derek Oldfield picks his when they’re green and soft enough for a pin to go through both skin and shell. He pickles them in port and enjoys them with a good, strong cheese. Caroline Sedgley’s late father loved pickled walnuts and knew he’d always get a jar as a Christmas treat. In the early 1960s, Jenny Bayley accompanied her father to gather walnuts for pickling from a friend’s farm. Carmel Kirby tried pickled walnuts as a delicacy in the South of France, picked early enough to be pierced by a needle.

Marie Chapman suggested another use beyond fine dining; walnut cases are useful for dying wool or homespun fabrics. Tony Coucom pointed out that it’s been a bumper year for many fruiting plants. He takes his grandkids out picking acorns and conkers in the autumn, plants one each in old onion buckets over the winter and in March finds a mini-woodland shooting up.

Thanks to everyone who shared their insights into walnuts and all things countryside. We always love to hear from you.

Finally, the poll to name our new cheese was nip-and-tuck to the end. ‘Oester Dale’ won by 51 votes to 50! Congratulations to Paul Gertner for his excellent suggestion, and thanks to everyone who suggested names or voted for their favourite. Your enthusiasm is appreciated.

Oester 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. ‘Oester’ rhymes with ‘toaster’.

If you loved ‘Bluestone Red’, don’t be downhearted. Mark Vines may well develop a blue cheese in the future, and a name combining red and blue could be a good fit. Watch this space.

If you’d like to share your opinion on anything you’ve read here, we’d love to hear from you. Just head to our Facebook page HERE and comment beneath the latest blog post. As ever, thanks for your support.

*Single walnut image by Erik Forsberg via Flickr CC