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Ashington Manor Farm (Yeovil)

After a two-night stay at The Swan Hotel in Wells , we departed for Exeter. Along the way, our first stop was Ashington Manor Farm, the home of the husband and wife garden designers Julian and Isabel Bannerman.  Roses are a specialty of the Bannerman's, but sadly, we were too early to see any. That disappointment was curtailed by touring their magnificent farmhouse, which we were invited to roam around at leisure. And Julian Bannerman, who did most all the talking, was a very entertaining man.  Gathering at the front door - We actually entered at the side of the house, right off the patio, which led to this room, where the Bannerman's greeted us. The massive table was filled with books they had written as well as magazine articles about their gardens. As we were listening to Julian's speech, I happened to notice Isabel Bannerman's book "Husbandry" on the table and immediately recognized it as a book I have at home but have not gotten to yet. At the time, I ha...
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Apples & Peaches


Our forlorn apple tree still stands despite my constant plans for removing it. Since the trunk of it is the size of a small house, taking it out is something to think about. And heaven forbid hiring someone to trample over my plants. So it remains. Every year, in the dead of winter, I cut it back although several of the limbs are difficult to reach and some always remain. This year, I cut more than I usually do and only two or three large branches still stood, reaching straight up into the sky. 

Judging from the apples this year, maybe I'm doing something right -

However, it is hard to find a good apple unless it is picked from the tree (hard to reach). The ones on the ground always have bad spots on them. We've never treated the tree for disease or insects and the thought of doing that doesn't appeal to me. 

I usually make at least one pie or cake every year from the unblemished apples I am able to retrieve. 



My go-to apple recipe is the French Apple Tart from Ina Garten. I make it at least twice a year. I form it differently from her though and instead of making it flat, I fold up the edges like a galette.

A friend brought us some peaches and again, I turned to Ina for a recipe and tried this Peach Cake which turned out nicely.



Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy
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  1. Kris PetersonSeptember 21, 2022 at 10:42 AM

    Hopefully, the apple tree's performance this year has earned it at least another year's reprieve ;) I inherited 2 persimmon trees which have never done much until this year - it's too bad that neither my husband nor I care for persimmons. Most will go to friends, neighbors and the critters.

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  2. Hoover BooSeptember 30, 2022 at 4:01 PM

    Yummy! Ina Garten's recipes are deee-lish!

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  3. RobinLOctober 2, 2022 at 3:29 PM

    Peach cake! I’ve longed for a peach pie all summer, but just couldn’t find nice peaches. Phooey!

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  4. Maria BOctober 7, 2022 at 6:23 AM

    Oh yum! The apple tarts looks amazing. My mother in law has apple trees and this year for some reason I am into making homemade applesauce. Thank you for sharing!

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