The Hawthorns Business Centre Welcome Marlowe Child & Family Services
August 22, 2010
We are delighted to report that Marlowe Child & Family Services have recently leased three office suites on the Hawthorns Business Centre in Staunton. Marlowe were formed in 1991 and over the past 18 years have worked with over 70 Social Services Departments, Health Authorities and Education Departments across the UK. The organisation currently employs over 130 staff.
Marlowe considered several options in the Gloucester area but settled on the Hawthorns Business Centre as the location and specification were ideal for their current requirements and it also offered the potential to expand in the future.
Marlow's new office
The Hawthorns Business Centre offered Marlowe the ideal solution to house their expansion as it is in close proximity to their existing base in Hartpury and the Estate offers high quality accommodation in an attractive working environment. The offices are situated in the original courtyard setting within the grounds of the 17th century Farmhouse in traditional stone buildings and are finished to a good specification. There is generous onsite parking and additional amenities such as the walled garden, Barbecue area and the Conservation area enabling occupiers to enjoy their lunch in a relaxing environment.
View to pinic area
The letting to Marlowe was the third completed in the past 12 months and other tenants include Pulse CRM, Big Dug and the Barrington Lloyd Group. There are several offices available on site, all in period buildings of various sizes. The suites are available individually or there is potential for them to be connected to suit occupier’s requirements.
For further information on the current availability please contact the Estate office direct on 01452 840227.
What’s that blue crop growing in your field?
May 28, 2010
A few neighbours have stopped us and asked ‘What’s that blue crop growing in your fields?’ Well, it is linseed which is also sometimes known as flax. This year it is being used as a break crop instead of the usual oil seed rape or winter beans.
Linseed can be planted in the Autumn (Winter Linseed) or the Spring. Historically, winter linseed has been quite a difficult and temperamental crop to grow because it is sensitive to the climate and could suffer badly in harsh winters but, if the winters are mild then often the crop becomes too thick.
The crop below was planted last Autumn and will be harvested on the farm this year, probably at the end of July or early August.
linseed - view from Newland bank
It was sown using the direct drill. It is a beneficial crop to grow on the farm as it allows the farmer to control some weeds more easily than in wheat, and should allow an easy low till entry into wheat. Slugs do not appear to like linseed and no chemical pesticide control is normally required.
linseed flower
The yield for winter linseed should be in the range 2.5 – 3.5 t/ha (1.0 – 1.4 t/ac) however, as this is the first year we have grown the crop, we will have to wait and see if our expectations have been met.
Traditionally linseed has been grown because of the oil it produces; this is added to paints and varnishes and assists with the drying and hardening processes. More recently linseed seeds are used in health foods because it is rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids, omega 3 and 6. It can also be added to animal feeds and has been woven to make a fabric.
linseed in flower
The linseed plants can grow up to a metre tall but height is normally controlled to about 50cm. Linseed produces very pretty, light blue flowers.
Office Space Available to Rent!
May 11, 2010
Rare opportunity to lease The Old Granary, Unit 6, The Hawthorns Rural Business Centre
The Granary - Unit 6
The Old Granary has become available for only the second time since the building was converted in 2002.
Unit 6 is said by many to be the ‘Premier Suite’ of offices at The Hawthorns because of the retention of many of its original features yet providing modern office facilities such as broadband and air conditioning. Visitors have often commented what a lovely home it would make! The Suite offers a prime location in the original courtyard of the farm. The traditional buildings have been converted to a high specification.
Pigeon loft in first floor office - Unit 6
Inside an office - Unit 6
Consisting of 5 well proportioned office/meeting rooms, The Granary has been cleverly bespoke designed to include the original beams, brickwork and unusual features. In addition there are two bathrooms and a kitchenette. The unit is approximately 1,200 sq ft and is a two storey suite.
Ground floor office - Unit 6
The Granary has the bonus of the secluded walled garden which can be enjoyed by employees at break times, especially at lunchtime or even alfresco meetings! The garden is designed in the style of a country cottage and compliments the original features in the farm court yard such as the old cider press. The Rural Business Centre provides a lovely working environment.
Garden Wall - Unit 6
Flowers - Unit 6
Generous onsite parking is available. The Hawthorns is easy to find, located close to the village of Staunton and is a quick 10 minutes from the centre of Gloucester. This Suite benefits from easy access to both the M5 and M50.
The Walled Garden - Unit 6
The Conservation area provides additional outside facilities including the barbecue and picnic benches
Conservation area - Unit 6
Please contact the Estate office – 01452 840227 if you would like to view The Granary and the facilities available at The Hawthorns
Spring 2010 worm counts comparing a ploughed field with direct drilling
April 23, 2010
Two fields were compared, Hornfield – ploughed and power harrowed, sown to winter wheat, and Cobb Hill – direct drilled to OSR. Both fields have reddish brown slightly stony silty clay loam soils with coarse prismatic or blocky subsoils.
Worm counts were carried out using the Visual Soil Assessment method (Landcare Research, 2000). Numbers of worms in a 20cm3 soil sample were counted over a 5 minute period. Penetrometer readings were taken to assess soil compaction at each sample site and a visual note of soil structure in each soil sample was made. Five sample sites were tested in each field.
The results below include the penetrometer readings taken in Cobb Hill in October 2009 for comparison.
|
Average penetrometer readings (MPa) |
||||
| at depth:
(cm) |
Hornfield
April 2010 (Ploughed and power harrowed. Planted with winter wheat) |
Cobb Hill
April 2010 (Direct drilled to OSR) |
Cobb Hill
October 2009 (Direct drilled to OSR) |
|
| 5 | 0.5 | 1.4 | 1.4 | |
| 10 | 0.6 | 1.7 | 2.1 | |
| 15 | 0.7 | 1.7 | 2.7 | |
| 20 | 1.0 | 1.8 | 2.8 | |
| 25 | 1.4 | 1.9 | 3.0 | |
| 30 | 1.7 | 2.3 | ||
| 35 | 2.1 | 2.6 | ||
| 40 | 2.4 | 2.7 | ||
| 45 | 2.6 | 3.0 | ||
| Average number of worms in 20cm3 soil | ||||
| 12.6
(range 2 – 20) |
34.4
(range 29 – 43) |
|||
| per m3 equivalent | 315 | 860 | ||
Notes:
Topsoil structure in Hornfield was coarsley granular but rather wet and easily smeared. The subsoil became increasingly compacted with depth but had a good blocky structure. Numbers of worms in each sample were variable, the worms were rather small in size and were found in the upper 20cm of the soil profile.
The soil on Cobb Hill was compacted, especially below 10 cm depth. The majority of the worms found were in the top 10cm of the soil profile where the soil structure was good, coarse granular. Below 10 cm depth the soil formed a typical argillic clay enriched B-horizon, generally having a coarse prismatic or blocky structure but with horizontal plates in parts.
General analysis / comment:
There is a clear difference in worm numbers between the two fields, with much higher numbers of worms in the direct drilled field. This is probably because of the previous year’s crop debris (organic matter) available in Cobb Hill (direct drilled) for the worms to feed on. Organic matter from the previous year’s crop debris has been ploughed in in Hornfield. Cultivations carried out in Hornfield will also have disturbed the worm ecosystem, reducing numbers.
Soil structure in the two fields reflects management. Hornfield (ploughed and harrowed) has a much looser soil structure compared with Cobb Hill (direct drilled) with little compaction until below 30cm depth. Previous examination of Cobb Hill had already identified the soil compaction in this field, and the apparent easing of the compaction between the October and April readings will be because of the increase in moisture content in the soil after the winter (which allows easier penetration of the penetrometer) and not a reduction in the soil density.
The higher worm population in Cobb Hill will be responsible for the good soil structure in the upper 10cm of the soil profile and their activities will be increasing organic matter content so increasing the moisture and nutrient retaining capacity of the topsoil. However the compaction lower down the soil profile will be reducing the potential of the crop roots to exploit the full depth of the soil profile. A point for debate is whether the increased worm population in Cobb Hill and the improvement they will make to the topsoil makes up for the compaction and reduced root exploitation lower down in the soil profile.
Dr. Nancy Oakes conducting a worm count
Soil Structure Update
March 23, 2010
Following the extremely wet harvest and planting in 2007 and 2008 we decided to subsoil (some would say flat lift is a better word) most fields going into wheat or oil seed rape. This was because the harvesting and planting equipment had caused compaction in the soil structure. As long as the soil condidions are right when the flat lifting is carried out then the soil should lift and crack, disrupting soil pans and therefore allowing water and root penetration.
Cobb Hill oil seed rape on the 22-9-09 (a month before this test)
However we wanted to see if there was any benefit to the soil structure nearer the soil surface from a pass of the Claydon drill. Therefore Dr Nancy Oakes and I selected two fields, Cobb Hill and Days Ground which had not been subsoiled. On the 22nd October 2009 we used a penetrometer to measure the pressure required to push a probe into the ground thus giving an indication of soil compaction. Cobb Hill had already been planted into oil seed rape resulting in some well established plants. We tested the pressure inbetweenwhere the drill legs had passed and in the actual seed row. There is clearly a small reduction in soil compaction in the seed row. However this result would lead me to mark the field for flat lifting next year. The results for Days Ground were very encouraging. The field was being drilled into wheat as we checked for compaction. The first set of results show a part of the field pre- drilling. The second set show the exact same spot after the drill had passed by. There is a notable improvement in soil compaction down to a depth of 25cm.
The full results can be downloaded here. Penetrometer results October 2009.
