A local church with interesting family memorials

 

We love visiting local churches, especially those with a connection to my maternal side who were Shropshire born before taking military pensions in The Cape in the mid 1850's. 

One such church is St Edith's at Eaton under Heywood. 

The church is modest, set under Wenlock Edge. In the Doomsday book of 1160, it was referred to as Tickelvorde, with the next door manor belonging to the Wenlock Priory. It is a grade 1 listed building, showing its importance. 

St Edith (of Wilton) - an Anglo-Saxon saint. 12th Century nave, not divided from the 13th century chancel. The tower is unusually placed on the south side, and is of about 1190. The church stands on a the hillside, and has a sloping aisle.

Eaton under Heywood church is set in a tiny village surrounded by beautiful rolling hills. 

There is an effigy to St Edith who the church is named after.

The Church at Eaton-under-Heywood is dedicated to the 7th century St Edith. The church nestles under Wenlock Edge, west of the small town of Church Stretton. A small nave, which is just the western part of the present church, was built in the 12th century. The present long chancel was built c.1200; it is the same width as the nave and has three lancets in the east wall. About the same time the tower was built against the south side of the new chancel and a new north door was made in the nave.

Special features of the Church include a tub font probably Norman (cover c. 1872), a 14th-century wooden effigy in the chancel, a late medieval chest, and a superb example of a three-decker pulpit. The plate is 18th-century and later, and the three bells date from 1615, 1622, and 1869.

The church was built for the estate that the Pinches family owned for 250 years, their memorials filling the walls, leger stones in the floor & stained glass windows at the entrance. 

The estate passed to the Buddicom family, the husband of the last daughter who had no children of her own. 

Her siblings - a brother & sister had not married & so the estate passed out of the family when the last sibling wed. 

It is distant family line of my maternal grandmother & I felt strangely grounded in that space. I will definitely visit it again, to be able to just sit in the space & to take in the history.

I hope you have enjoyed the visit with me, 

Dee ⛪️🔔🪦

Unwelcome garden visitors ...

The Dorset in-laws propagated some box plants for us some 25 years ago from cuttings on their bushes on the family plot. 

They were about the size of a small football when they came to our garden & I have tended them ever since. They have moved thrice with us & went in to the ground at our home some 8 years ago. 

It is very therapeutic to clip them gently in to their large round shapes several times over summer & to enjoy their structural shapes over winter when the snow rests on them like large Christmas puddings. 

I was sitting on the patio reading today when movement caught my eye. On closer inspection I saw it was the dreaded box hedge caterpillar, several of them on the box closest to me. 

These vile creatures can decimate a healthy plant in no time as they munch their way through the  bush &  their lifecycle continues with eggs being laid & another huge clutch of them appearing to continue on the bush. 

I immediately made up a solution of white vinegar & dishwasher soap in a spray bottle & sprayed it all over the bushes where the leaves were looking depleted. I spied caterpillars on all the bushes  & the far one has extensive damage to the one side. 

I thought that my mixture of soap & vinegar might delay them while I researched some treatments. 

Another resident in our community had reported box caterpillars recently & our local garden nursery said they had a spray for it. 

We duly went down & bought 2 large spray bottles of it as it will need more than one treatment to break the lifecycle. 

Can the 25 year old box balls be saved? I don't know because this is going to be a battle of the wills to stop them. It will need consistent treatments & they might be back again. 

Has anyone got any advice in dealing with this? Thank you for stopping by, 

Dee 🪏🪴🏡🐛🐛🐛

Every garden needs some honesty ...

 

Every garden needs some honesty - the lunaria type of honesty with its beautiful purple flowers that become green pods with a pointy top & with the seeds visible. 

They become stunning translucent papery pods that dry out & keep for months in a vase. 

I love the hint of the seeds in the green pods as they grow, then the pods dry on the plant with dark papery skins that rub away easily to reveal the seeds & the gorgeous iridescent seed pods. 

Mine self seeds in various places on the patio & the pods are forming their beautiful green shapes. It looks like the stems will have loads of pods this year.

I look forward to picking the stems in the autumn when they have set seed, then popping the stems in a vase on a windowsill so their beautiful pods catch the light. 

This is a large vase in the kitchen window with the pods from last year. Aren't they just gorgeous? 

I hope you grow some too as they are low maintenance. Pop by again soon, 

Dee 

Sowing some summer salads

Some years ago I bought 3 raised planters with plastic covers to grow my summer salad leaves in. Covered planters give confidence that the leaves are organic & protected from sharing it with birds, the squirrels or even snails. 

Today I scooped out about half of the compost in the planters, added in new compost & some perlite to keep the soil loose. 

I sowed several kinds of rocket leaves, some lettuce as well as some nasturtium seeds that are a favourite as the peppery leaves are good in a salad & the pretty flowers brighten a summer salad & they are edible. 

One of the planters still has a very healthy sage plant, a large celery & some spring onions. They will stay for now. 

It is a joy to pick salad leaves for salads that I eat daily in summer. It takes little effort once they get going. 

The annual tomato planting challenge was completed too. Hubby was gifted 4 plants & I bought another 2 & they were planted in a tomato grow bag. This is always next to the conservatory side where it is warm but sheltered so they tend to enjoy that spot. 

It is a hit & miss activity because the tomatoes do not always do well & sometimes we have had only a few for the effort but it is an annual activity. Who else pits their skills against tomatoes each year? 

Thank you for stopping by, 

Dee 👩‍🌾🍅🥗🫜🪏🏡 

A leisurely canal lunch

 A few years ago I treated my friend to an afternoon birthday tea on the local canals.

I decided to do a canal trip lunch &  ream scone tea treat with cousin Lorraine so we could catch up at leisure efore she prepares to go home to South Africa after her extended stay. 

The local canal cruise is a leisurely & smooth trip along the Shropshire Union Canal. 

The hot fish & chips was served as we set off & we could enjoy it while watching the canal-life. We opted for the mini portion so we could enjoy the tea & scone too.

Pots of steaming tea, coffee & other drinks were offered & enjoyed. The 3 staff / crew work hard, serving, popping on & off to do the locks & one doing the steering. 

It is a great way to enjoy a few leisurely hours over lunch. 

Who else loves canal life? Thank you for stopping by, it is appreciated, 

Dee ⛴🚤🛳🐠🐟