BEHOLD the magnificent Gloucester cow, with her upswept horns, burnished mahogany coat and broad white stripe running from belly to tail. Clifford Freeman breeds these ancient cattle, native to the Severn Vale since the 13th century, on the lush grassland of his Gloucestershire farm. He was 10 when he watched his father, Eric, lifting the Supreme Champion trophy at the annual Royal Three Counties Show and has not missed one since.
‘The show is one of those big markers of the year you prepare for, like Christmas,’ explains Mr Freeman. ‘I’m always looking for my next prize animal, my daughter likes leading in the ring and my boy shows chickens; he won champion cockerel there last year.’ Covid-19 restrictions meant the 2020 show had to be cancelled: ‘The children were upset, but I’ve got 10 heifers already being halter trained for next year—life goes on.’
Over the border in Herefordshire, Simon Parker’s 250-acre mixed farm is a picture book of bounty: hops and cobnuts, soft fruit and ​cider orchards, free-range laying hens and woolly headed Ryeland sheep. He stewards wool classes and has been to the show every year since childhood. ‘Dad had a tradition—he would cut his hay on the first morning of the show, turn it on each following morning, then cut it after the last day,’ recalls Mr Parker. ‘He’d walk the blackcurrant bushes then, too —the Three Counties was part of the cycle.’
Denne historien er fra July 29, 2020-utgaven av Country Life UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Denne historien er fra July 29, 2020-utgaven av Country Life UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Kitchen garden cook - Apples
'Sweet and crisp, apples are the epitome of autumn flavour'
The original Mr Rochester
Three classic houses in North Yorkshire have come to the market; the owner of one inspired Charlotte Brontë to write Jane Eyre
Get it write
Desks, once akin to instruments of torture for scribes, have become cherished repositories of memories and secrets. Matthew Dennison charts their evolution
'Sloes hath ben my food'
A possible paint for the Picts and a definite culprit in tea fraud, the cheek-suckingly sour sloe's spiritual home is indisputably in gin, says John Wright
Souvenirs of greatness
FOR many years, some large boxes have been stored and forgotten in the dark recesses of the garage. Unpacked last week, the contents turned out to be pots: some, perhaps, nearing a century old—dense terracotta, of interesting provenance.
Plants for plants' sake
The garden at Hergest Croft, Herefordshire The home of Edward Banks The Banks family is synonymous with an extraordinary collection of trees and shrubs, many of which are presents from distinguished friends, garnered over two centuries. Be prepared to be amazed, says Charles Quest-Ritson
Capturing the castle
Seventy years after Christian Dior’s last fashion show in Scotland, the brand returned under creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri for a celebratory event honouring local craftsmanship, the beauty of the land and the Auld Alliance, explains Kim Parker
Nature's own cathedral
Our tallest native tree 'most lovely of all', the stately beech creates a shaded environment that few plants can survive. John Lewis-Stempel ventures into the enchanted woods
All that money could buy
A new book explores the lost riches of London's grand houses. Its author, Steven Brindle, looks at the residences of plutocrats built by the nouveaux riches of the late-Victorian and Edwardian ages
In with the old
Diamonds are meant to sparkle in candlelight, but many now gather dust in jewellery boxes. To wear them today, we may need to reimagine them, as Hetty Lintell discovers with her grandmother's jewellery
