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THE LATEST NEWS - 

January and February 2008

We keep saying "This will be the last dirty job". We hope the renovation work to the NE chamber is the last time we have to use the expression. The work proved more messy and more prolonged than we expected - one of the joys of living in an old house! A long term overflow in a valley gutter had rotted a couple of joists in the NE corner and these and part of the ceiling needed replacing. The dampness had weakened plaster on the walls in the corner and more needed replacing than we had thought. By pouring a slurry of lime plaster behind the damage material we were able to keep much of the old plaster in place.

Removing gloss paint from some areas proved to be another challenge and a cause of delay and frustration. We also had to tackle the awful black gunge that had been smeared on a pine beam and an ancient oak window lintel; the result is not brilliant, but at least we managed to reveal the grain of the wood. The old lintel we found in November had not suffered the same fate as it had been covered by plaster.

All that remains now is to paint the room. We found an attractive tint in lime wash on one of the walls and will try and have it replicated.

March and April 2008

After finding the water damage in the NE chamber we had the roofs of the hall and stables examined. It was just as well, for much of the lead in the valley gutters at the hall needed replacing (according to the roofers lead had tripled in price in a year!) and we found a leak in the stable roof. All the work is finished.

We have had a major sorting out in the barn, into which we have stored all sorts of odd bits over the years. A great deal went into a large skip. Tucked away in the eaves of the hay loft we discovered a number of ancient oak floor boards, which we shall put to good use. Also pine floor boards, numerous pine joists and two "Road Closed" signs came to light from under the cobwebs and filth. We need to do a bit of re-wiring and will paint the downstairs walls and ceiling.

A perennial excuse for not tackling the garden is the state of the weather. We have made a few attempts to tidy it, but as we write snow is falling and we are destined to have another weekend indoors.

May 2008

Oh dear! One of the main drains from the house to the sewer became blocked and we had a few days of The Big Stink! It seemed the blockage had built up over a few weeks and eventually we decided to locate the smell. Clearing the drains was not too much of a problem, but we do caution anyone using a high pressure hose to take precautions to guard against the result of the back spray of the water!

June 2008

We had a lovely group of children from the Lowerhouses J & I school for a visit to the garden and a short talk on local history. We didn't plan an agenda, which was just as well for they set their own after the first few minutes of shyness had passed. The most important questions we were asked were:

    May we play with the gravel?
    Are you married or do you live together?
    How much did you pay for the house?

July 2008

After much consideration we bit the bullet and cleared out the ground floor of the barn. The staircase to the loft was positioned in the centre and we have removed this and installed a new one in an end bay. The extra space inspired us to carry on with the cleaning and during the month we have cleared the cobwebs and remaining detritus and painted the walls and ceiling. Chairs and tables now provide a covered area for displays, refreshments and talks. 

August 2008

The new plaster in the back part of the former cross passage (the downstairs lavatory) is now drying  and the new boards on the ceiling have covered up the oak floor joists once again. Archaeologists believe this room contains timber dating to the late 14th C. We hope to have the room fettled and painted by the end of the month.

We always seem to moan about the weather delaying work on the Elizabethan garden. Well, it has happened again. The rain at the beginning of the month made a real mess of some plants in the knot so we shall be out snipping to try and re-establish some structure.

We had a visit from an assessor of the National Garden Scheme. We failed the test as the garden is still under development and is not mature enough. Unofficially we were advised to learn to love the garden as much as we do the house - that was good advice.

September 2008

We seem to have spent the month laying white gravel over the hardcore. The effort was worth it as it reflects light and made the paths more attractive.

The garden opens for Heritage Open Days and we always get one or two eccentric visitors - this year was no exception. The woman in question was a knowledgeable plant person and she added to our knowledge of the use of the plants; here are a few examples:
        She found an ointment made from the leaves of pot marigolds eased the soreness of her nipples whilst breast feeding~
        The "pint" in cuckoo pint (lords and ladies) comes from the Latin for penis
        She identified nipplewort from the shape of its flowers

The mother of a 10 year girl in the group must have wondered what she would set her eyes on next!

After clearing away tangled bushes of philadelphus I planted a bank in the wood with wild heather.

November 2008

The two 18th C weavers' cottages at the end of the lane have changed hands and we hope the long needed restoration has started. We had thought of bidding for them, but the idea of starting a big new project put us off. The new owner employed a dry stone waller to rebuild the wall on the lane and he made an excellent job of the work. As a result we have now used him to build a 20 feet long wall in the wood as part of our plan to make it more accessible.

December 2008

Some years ago we visited a garden at the Dower House at Morville Hall, Bridgnorth, Shropshire. The garden was created by Dr Katherine Swift and earlier this year she published her book "The Morville Hours" in which she describes her experiences over the 15 years the task took. The book contains a great amount of other detail and comes with our recommendation as a good and interesting read.

The work on the new wall in the wood has finished. We hope to receive some inspiration that will guide to the next phase. A number of oak saplings have appeared in the last few years and we have thought of removing the ageing sycamore trees in the next few years and allow the oak to grow with established beech trees.

Thinking back over the year we have not seen any blackcaps or goldfinches and few nuthatches. Greater spotted woodpeckers have appeared on the feeders a few times, but not as regularly as last year and even the ubiquitous blue and great tits and the robins seem reduced in numbers. The bobbing pied wagtails seemed to have a forsaken us, but a few greys arrived in early December to amuse us. We wonder whether the invasion of grey squirrels and magpies is the cause - we have not seen so many since we moved here 10 years ago.

February 2009

We have completed the clearing out of the barn and the painting of the walls and floor. This has provided us with a weatherproof area for visitors to sit down and have refreshments and for us to display items for sale and historical items.

April 2009

The knot garden suffered badly from the cold weather. In the SW corner the winter savory all but disappeared. The cotton lavender fared better, but gaps have appeared in some places. The box was not damaged. One lesson we have learnt is that the plants need regular renewing so that weak growth is removed before the frost gets to the plants. 

9 July 2009

Whilst in Huddersfield to attend the re-opening of the Ramsden Building at the University, the Duke of Somerset asked if he could visit the hall. In 1883 the then duke opened the building that was then called the Huddersfield Technical School and Mechanics Institution. Sir John William Ramsden, the fifth baronet and a previous owner of the hall, married Guendolen the daughter of the duke and the connection is recorded in Somerset Road, Somerset Bridge and the Somerset Arms. We attended the ceremony and had the opportunity to meet the Sir John Ramsden, the ninth baronet.

The Duke of Somerset (L) with Christine and Robin Gallagher at Longley
Old Hall on 9th July 2009

15 July 2009

Work starts on replacing damaged stone slates on the front of the roof and replacing rotten timber on the gable of the dormer window at the rear.

27 July 2009

Work has finished on the main roof and the dormer at the rear of the house. We took the opportunity to replace the dickey finial on the gable and repainted all of the dormer. The 160 replacements for the frost damaged plants in the knot garden have arrived and so far we have made slow progress with the replanting. And at long last we have bedded in the posts for the carvings of heraldic lion and dragon and these will be on display for the first during the August Open Days.

16 September 2009

This evening we gave an illustrated talk on the hall to the members of the Wentworth Castle Garden Society. This was our first such talk and we felt a bit nervous speaking to a society of knowledgeable gardeners. However, the evening went very well. When I listed some of the plants having aphrodisiac qualities, a person in the audience asked if they did any good. I was a bit miffed when Christine said "No".

Following the success of the evening and an invitation to talk to National Trust members at East Riddlesden Hall in March, we decided to offer to give talks to more groups.

October 2009

One matter has annoyed us more than any other over the last 11 years, and that is the state of the wooden gate at the end of the private drive on to Wood Lane. Climbing over it had become a challenge for some of the local children and eventually weather and ill use brought its life to an end. This month we had a pair of taller metal gates fitted that should prevent the high jumping. We took the opportunity to dig up the rough hardcore on the Wood Lane side of the gate and had new stones re-laid with a two coverings of tarmac.

Hardly any wind-blown rubbish lands in front of or comes though the new gate - a great advantage compared with the old one. However, we have to keep on our toes, for people coming down the hill on Longley Lane can now see through the gate onto the green lane beyond.

November 2009

 We do complain about the weather a great deal, but the last few weeks have caused a great deal of frustration. The rain and high winds brought the leaves down a couple of weeks earlier than last year and this needed concentrated attention. The beech trees have deposited an enormous amount of seed shells on to the gravel and getting these up when they are wet causes back ache.

The wet and high winds have prevented further work on the path into the wood, although we made good progress in October. We have started to cut steps into the steep bank on the N boundary with the idea of completing a circular path. We found some 17th C pottery and oyster and limpet shells, so maybe this was the area of an old rubbish tip.