Co-Op and Edward Jenner Museum in an English Country Garden

On 30^th June 2009, 14 volunteer gardeners are visiting Berkeley for the day to give the Edward Jenner Museum a tidy-up/make-over in Jenner’s former garden. The Museum run by a charitable trust is the Co-Op’s chosen recipient for assistance this year out of the whole Mid-counties region, which has delighted staff at the famous Gloucestershire attraction.

As part of the Co-op ethos staff have to do ‘community hours’ which must go towards a worthwhile project. Museum Director Sarah Parker said: We are very grateful to the Co-op team for their most generous offer to help us in our efforts to improve and renovate our garden. We hope eventually to re-plant Jenner’s garden to as it was in the 18/19^th Century. We are working with garden designer, Jane Fearnley-Whittingstall on the project but need support, research and as a charity, above all funds.

The Museum currently operates with one part-time Gardener/Maintenance Manager who apart from looking after nearly one acre of garden, also looks after Edward Jenner’s 200 year old vine, planted from cuttings taken from the world’s oldest vine at Hampton Court Palace in 1801. The delicious dessert grapes (Black Hamburg) will be on sale at the museum from August and cuttings are also available.

The assistance the Co-Op volunteers will provide is an immense boost to the Museum’s “outdoor look”. After the Co-Op team has left long-term volunteers in the garden are needed for ongoing assistance and the Museum is looking for an Apprentice Vine-Keeper, to learn the ancient craft of vine-keeping.

Jenner himself apparently experimented with blood as fertilizer and was a keen gardener, along with his world famous medical research activities.

This year celebrates the 260^th anniversary of Edward Jenner’s birth and his garden has one noticeable scar on the lawn. The trench left by the University of Bristol’s archeological dig is being left open for visitors to see Saxon Berkeley. Sarah Parker said We doubt that Jenner would have been aware of how much history was under his lawn!

Sherman Memorial, Slapton Sands

Sherman Memorial, Slapton Sands
Originally uploaded by TMR Davies

A simple yet moving memorial to all those hundreds of US soldiers who lost their lives when a squadron of German E-Boats got amongst the training exercise for D Day, which due to the wrong radio frequencies could not call for support.

This was a "swimming tank", that sank during training and was raised a few years ago.

Gloomy Predictions from South West Tourism

I'm disappointed that we are allowing negative publicity to rule our industry again.

To quote from the BBC website:

A stern warning has been issued about the future of tourism in the West.

In a new booklet, Malcolm Bell, Director of South West Tourism, says optimism the 2009 summer will be a bumper year may be misplaced. Assumptions a good Sterling/Euro exchange rate would favour the region may not materialise, he said.

Mr Bell predicts rising unemployment and ongoing economic uncertainty could see visitor numbers drop between three and eight per cent.

He said: "Even if we do get reasonable numbers of displaced visitors, they may just replace losses from loyal customers who cannot visit due to reduced incomes from savings, or lower earnings because they have lost their jobs."

South West Tourism covers Bath, Bristol, Bournemouth and Poole, Cornwall and Scilly Isles, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire.


Surely it would be better to promote the benefits of the South West's undoubted excellent tourist facilities rather than hint that it will be a bad summer. We are so media driven these days that any bad news means we instantly assume the worst.

Come on South West Tourism, promote us all and be positive! I'm all for being realistic but let's see what happens.

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