A Year in the Taybank Walled Garden
In the spring of last year, we took on the walled garden at the nearby Murthly Castle Estate in order to begin growing our own fresh, chemical-free produce for The Taybank kitchens. Our Head Grower Gabriella Bennett writes about her first year in the garden and our plans for 2023.
It was during last summer’s heatwave that the enormity of our project really hit home. In May 2022 The Taybank took on a four-acre walled garden with one goal in mind: to grow as much of the produce served to diners ourselves. A few months later, as the mercury rose to 55c in the polytunnel, it seemed like our ambitions might have got the better of us. It was hard enough to keep the growing team hydrated let alone the seedlings.
It would be fair to say that although our growers were determined, they were not hugely experienced. Grower one – myself – had kept an allotment but had never grown on a commercial scale. Grower two, volunteer Lindsay, had spent decades gardening at home but hadn’t grown for a restaurant kitchen before. Grower three, Taybank boss Fraser, was more of the logistics man, dipping into the project whenever he could, which usually meant working the twilight shift. Often I’d arrive in the morning to find the ground had been cultivated or the tractor had been out at dawn.
Did we know exactly what we were doing? No, but we did have a plan. We spoke to other growers in the area and read a lot of books and blogs. Then we figured out what we now know as ‘The Taybank Way’. Firstly, that involved making a commitment to grow without chemicals. Next, it was crucial to work closely with The Taybank’s chefs to find out what produce they loved to cook. Also, we wanted to find interesting veggie varieties not commonly available from suppliers. We also took into account the particular growing conditions of our location – something we’re constantly learning and assessing.
The beauty of those early days was having the opportunity to try new things. “A little experiment”, was the most common phrase spoken last summer, followed by: “it’s trial and error”. Trying to ensure thirsty pak choi, salad leaves, chard and rocket received the right amount of water was a mission in the very hot days. I found wearing cotton pyjama tops helped me stay cool (plus jumping in a nearby loch on my lunch break). Pest control was always on our minds. There were more than a few hairy moments, including when the irrigation system was accidentally slashed during a harvest and when two pheasants broke in and had to be ejected.
Over the summer, while the infrastructure was set up, growing continued in earnest. Rainbow chard was a hit: our chefs turned into a menu favourite, deep-frying the leaves in tempura batter and serving it with leek emulsion plus flaky salt seasoned with a herb mix we grew and dried ourselves. Rocket topped our sourdough pizzas served in the beer garden and our salad mix (Ruby streaks, land cress, purslane, lamb’s head) went from strength to strength. There were also casualties, including our purple veined pak choi, which pests loved just as much as we did. In autumn, radicchio ‘palla rosa’ was ready to be slow-braised and served with local venison. Kohlrabi and colourful winter radishes enlivened salads. Because of the mild weather at the end of 2022 all of our produce lasted right up until the middle of December. I cleared snow away from the polytunnel door before the last harvest a week before Christmas. It was a testament to the benefits of growing undercover.
Fast-forward eight months from the start and the walled garden is now home to beehives and a second polytunnel. Before spring we’ll have laid paths, turned an old pigsty into a growers’ canteen and established a composting hub. This is also the busiest time for coming up with new ideas, learning from our successes and failures and tweaking The Taybank Way. The ground may be frozen, but our imaginations aren’t.
Other exciting plans for 2023 include taking on another grower, selling our surplus veggies at farmers’ markets and hosting long-table feasts. Soon a flock of hens will arrive, and perhaps even cows and pigs in the future. What started as a mission to supply The Taybank with veggies has grown into plans for a self-sufficient smallholding. Who knows if there’ll be another heatwave this summer – but we’ll be ready this time, pyjamas and all.
Follow Gabriella’s journey in the garden @palebackwriter