Herb Society News 2008

The Herb Day held at Garden Organic in Ryton in association with the Herb Society was so successful that we'll be working with Ryton next year and in subsequent years to make this a yearly event, so if you couldn't make it this year, keep an eye out for next years date! Sophie Grigson, Caroline Holmes and Judith Hann were there to offer support and in Sophie and Caroline's case do demonstrations and talks.

For those who couldn't get to Herb Day there is a page about Herb Day with photos of the day, and Sophie Grigson's recipes. A big hello to all the new members who joined us on the day, we look forward to seeing you at future events soon.

Sophie Grigson & Judith Hann

Obituary Natalie Hodgson (1911 - 2008)

16th May 2008

It is with the greatest of sadness that Council have to report the death of one of its dearest friends and long standing members of the Herb Society. Natalie Hodgson 'The Lavender Lady of Astley Abbots' passed away on January 6th 2008 aged 97 from a heart attack. She was admitted to hospital on December 30th after suffering a minor stroke and had returned home on the 4th Jan.

Natalie started her pick your own lavender farm at the grand old age of 80 with only a few plants. She contacted the UK's leading commercial lavender grower for advice on setting up her own pick-your-own business, she was told that her location, climate and soil were all wrong, and that in any case, the market was already over-supplied, undeterred she opened Astley Abbots Lavender Farm which now covers over 4 acres.

Natalie kindly donated the lavender plants that form the border of the central bed of the Herb Society Garden at Sulgrave Manor. Members who attended the 2005 conference will recall the entertaining talk that Natalie gave on Growing Lavender and her beloved bees.The last time Natalie was at Sulgrave was to attend the President's Day event in August 2007, where she lunched with the Earl of Clanwilliam.

Natalie enjoying lunch with the earl of Clanwilliam in 2007

Natalie Hodgson 1912 - 2008
Natalie Hodgson
(1912 - 2008)
In 2006 at the age of 95 Natalie became an author when she had her first historical novel published ‘Fateful Beauty'. You can read a lovely interview with Natalie that she gave to the NFU on their Countryside website in 2004, in which she described how the lavender farm came about and gives her tips for growing and using lavender. Natalie will be sadly missed by the society and we send our heartfelt condolences to her family.

Filming For BBC1's Countryfile.

8th April 2008

Jenny Jones and Debs Cook went to a location in Hereford this week to film a piece for BBC1's Countryfile about the dandelion and its many uses.

Jenny chatted about the medicinal uses of the dandelion with the presenter Ben Fogle. Debs made a dandelion soup and a salad, and chatted about all the other things you can do with dandelions.

The programme is to air on Sunday 27th April at the usual Countryfile time (around 11am).

Jenny with the Countryfile crew

Debs Writes About Herbs For The Guardian

5th April 2008

Debs Cook contributed to the herbs section of the Guardian and Observer weekend 'Grow Your Own Guide'. The guide covered the growing, maintenance, problems and benefits of 13 herbs which are chives, parsley, rosemary, basil, mint, sage, thyme, oregano, dill, coriander, tarragon, chervil and bay.

Also in the herb section of the guide is a guided tour of Raymond Blanc's culinary herb garden at Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons.

Debs Grow Your Own Herb Guide In The Guardian

Herb Society Launches Online Shop!

15th February 2008

The Herb Society is pleased to announce that you can now buy some of our merchandise direct from us online, via our new Herb Society Online Shop.

You can pay for your purchases using paypal. Please note that postage is only calculated for UK shipping, if you live in an overseas destination and are interested in purchasing any of the items below from our shop, contact the webmistress for a quote, stating the country you live in and the items you wish to purchase.

Inside Bruton Street

Volunteers Needed - The Herb Society Needs You!

13th February 2008

It’s an exciting time for the Herb Society, with plans to grow the membership and involve the members in future plans. There are a number of ways that you can help. We are looking for volunteers to:-

• Help at events such as Gardeners World and the AGM at Sulgrave.

• Set up local groups.

• Partake in projects to increase the knowledge and profile of the Society.

• Help tending the gardens at Sulgrave, we need volunteers to help prune, weed, paint fencing and other routine maintenance of the Herb Society gardens.

If you think you can help the Society with any of the above or you have other skills to offer, please see our Volunteers Information Page.

Volunteers at the Herb Society Stand at BBC Gardeners World Live

Two of our members helping out on the Herb Society stand at BBC Gardeners World Live in 2007

Take Out A New Subscription, Or Renew Your Existing Subscription With PayPal.

5th February 2008

It's now possible to pay for your exisiting subscription, or take out a new or subscription to the Society with PayPal. For further details see our Join Us Page. Paying with Paypal your subscription will be automatically renewed each year, until you cancel the subscription.

Herb Society Become Amazon Associates

21st January 2008

The Herb Society have become Amazon Associates, this means that if you use the link to Amazon on our Home Page or use a direct link from the book links that are placed around the site promoting new herb books, the Herb Society will then get approximately 5% of your Amazon purchase price! This also applies to the purchase of CD's, DVD's and Gift Cetrtificates.

Meet The New Webmistress

1st January 2008

We have pleasure in announcing that our very own Debs Cook has taken on the role of Herb Society Webmistress. Some of you may be familiar with Debs already if you've read the Herb Of The Month articles she's been writing for us for the past few years, or seen her contributions to the forum.

Debs takes on the job of updating and editing the website for us, and also moderating the forum.

If you have any comments, queries or suggestions you can email her via the email link on the contact page.