A new harvest festival comes to Wimpole Estate this September.
For the first time, the National Trust’s Wimpole Estate in Cambridgeshire invites visitors to Harv’Fest, a celebration of the harvest season and all that is grown, cultivated, and produced on the estate.
Visitors can enjoy a programme of events, talks, demonstrations, and workshops throughout September.
Harvest season plays an important role in the calendar year for Wimpole.
As the National Trust’s only in-hand arable farm, the 1,000-acre farmland produces a large crop of organic produce every year and is grazed by the rare-breed cattle and sheep that are cared for on the Wimpole Estate.
The Walled Garden and Orchard, favourites with visitors to the Arrington estate, produce fruit, vegetables and over 50 varieties of apple, which are used to make Wimpole apple juice, for sale at certain times throughout the year in the shop and restaurant.
Polly Ingham-Watts, general manager for Wimpole Estate, said: “Wimpole’s history is woven with links to farming and food production, the land having been farmed for over 2,000 years.
"Sustainable land use remains an integral part of our work at Wimpole today, so the harvest season is always an important part of the year for our staff, volunteers, and visitors, from apples to hay bales, the produce is endless.
"We’re really excited to celebrate the season this year with our first ever Harv’Fest, which we hope to see grow and grow in the coming years.”
Harv’Fest 2022 events at Wimpole Estate
Events each weekend in September focus on a different theme: Produce, Gardens and Farming.
On Saturday, September 3 and Sunday, September 4, the Wimpole Kitchen Garden produce stall will offer visitors the chance to purchase the fruit and veg of the garden team’s labour.
Demonstrations of traditional crafts, including ceramic making and wood turning, will also take place across the weekend.
Wimpole Estate are also partnering with Anna’s Flower Farm, a Cambridgeshire business, to offer flower arranging workshops.
Alongside Wimpole gardener Joe Mott and Anna Taylor, visitors will enjoy a tour of the Walled Garden, pick their own flowers, and create a hand-tied bouquet to take home.
Workshops are available on Saturday, September 10 and Sunday, September 11, and can be pre-booked online for £65 per person.
As part of this weekend’s focus on gardens, visitors can also enjoy a talk and tour with senior gardener Ciaran Taylor sharing the story of Wimpole’s orchard.
Saturday, September 17 and Sunday, September 18 focus on the farm.
There will be talks on nature-friendly farming and farming with Shire horses from Dave Hassall, farm and countryside manager, and Emma Warner, countryside manager.
The Five Churches Vintage Tractor Run will also pass through Wimpole on Saturday, September 17, sharing the history of farming, the importance of UK food production, and showing how farming used to be done with vintage vehicles from a bygone era.
Sweet-toothed visitors will be satisfied too, with the opportunity to try Wimpole Ripple Ice Cream, vanilla bean ice cream rippled with homegrown fruits from the Walled Garden.
Wimpole Ripple will be on sale during every weekend of Harv’Fest, whilst stocks last, and the proceeds will go back into caring for the Estate.
Families can also get involved in Harv’Fest with a sensory, interactive harvest play area at the farm throughout September.
Wimpole managers are hoping to break the record for the world’s longest corn dolly – a traditional harvest custom where a figure is woven from wheat to encourage a good harvest the following year – with visitors' help.
The previous record is held by a group in Wales who crafted a 20-metre corn dolly.
For more information on events, visit to www.nationaltrust.org.uk/wimpole-estate.
All talks, demonstrations, and events, with the exception of the flower workshops, are included in the admission price or validation of a National Trust membership.
About the Wimpole Estate
The Wimpole Estate is a working estate still guided by the seasons, with an impressive mansion, parkland, gardens and Home Farm.
From Iron Age roundhouses to a sophisticated, modern estate, this Cambridgeshire site has been lived on and farmed for over 2,000 years.
Over the centuries, Wimpole has been owned by several families, and each has left its mark.
The Civil War, a true love match, and a collection of priceless manuscripts that formed the core of the British Library are just some of its stories.
The present house, at the heart of the estate in Arrington, near Royston, was the vision of Elsie Bambridge, daughter of novelist Rudyard Kipling.
Wimpole had been an empty shell until she filled it with pictures and furniture, bringing it back to a welcoming home in the 1930s.
Intimate rooms contrast with beautiful and unexpected Georgian interiors, including Soane's remarkable Yellow Drawing Room and wonderful plunge bath.
The fascinating basement corridor offers a glimpse into life below stairs.
Within the gardens, a geometric parterre, winding Pleasure Ground and Walled Garden, abundant with fruit, vegetables and beautiful herbaceous borders, can be found.
The house and gardens are set within 600 acres of landscaped parkland, with grand avenues, shaded woodland, arable farmland, lakes and an atmospheric Gothic Folly.
Home Farm contrasts the traditional farmyard with the noisy modern piggery and cattle sheds.
One of the UK’s largest rare-breed centres, the farm cares for and breeds cattle, sheep, pigs and Shire horses.
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