Down on the Allotment

Matron grows vegetables and fruit in a Hampshire garden. I've been growing veggies since I was knee high to a grasshopper. Some traditional varieties and old favourites as well as new ideas. I share my garden with my allotment assistant Daisy the Labrador. On Twitter as @MatronsVeggies

Monday, June 10, 2013

Matron's Passion

 One of my top foodie passions is to eat fresh fruit and vegetables grown locally and in season. So today I drove about an hour down the M40 just past Banbury in Oxfordshire to the Wykham Park Farm shop.  and boy was it worth it.
 Set in the beautiful Oxfordshire countryside this gem of a farm shop specializes in growing and picking their own asparagus. Cutting and selling bunches of asparagus on the same day.  Actually they have a mail order business to pick and post asparagus on the same day too.
 Not just fruit and veg inside this farm shop, but a first class butchery with locally reared meat too.  Leo was pulling frantically to get inside the shop for some reason... perhaps it was the Gloucester Old Spot Cumberland Sausages?
 And grazing in the field right next to the shop were these fantastic old British Longhorn cattle.
 Well, no trip through Banbury would be complete without partaking of a local 'cultural experience', the Banbury Cake.  Really just like an Eccles cake, but with a university degree!
 Ride a cock horse to Banbury Cross (photographed above)
to see a fine lady upon a fine horse...

posted by Matron @ 9:03 PM

7 Comments:

At 9:23 PM, Blogger Cabbage Tree Farm said...

Hi Matron, thanks for sharing this - my brother lives in Banbury and I hope to visit later in the year. I did not know about the farm. Unfortunately it will not be asparagus season then though :-(!
Enjoy!

 
At 11:47 PM, Blogger africanaussie said...

With bells on her fingers and rings on her toes - she shall have music wherever she goes! That looks like it was worth the ride.

 
At 4:20 AM, Blogger Wyatt said...

Mmmm... fresh asparagus and sausage!
Well worth the drive...Leo knows.

Wyatt

 
At 6:07 AM, Blogger Mark Willis said...

Yes, trips like that are a real treat. The good farm shops are out there, you just have to avoid the temptation of the easy trip to Tesco!
I think the Asparagus season will have to finish later than usual this year, since it took so long to get going. They normally advise to stop cutting in late June, but I will be cutting mine until mid-July at least.

 
At 4:23 PM, Blogger Gardeningbren said...

We stood right there, not many years ago, at Banbury Cross. Hub's family came from there a number of generations ago. Beautiful town, past baptisms in the church nearby.

The asparagus and farm shop would have been an added delight to our visit so, am pleased you posted that. Thank you. Happy memories.

 
At 7:25 PM, Blogger Robert Brenchley said...

At last I know what those cattle are! I saw a herd in Christchurch Meadows in Oxford way back, and never found out what they were.

 
At 1:03 AM, Blogger Carrie said...

That place looks like heaven, I can't think of anywhere here that does that. We have a few farm shops but it's just meat (and to be honest I'd rather not 'harvest' that myself)!

I had an eccles cake once - didn't do anything for me, maybe I'm a Banbury girl.....

 

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