In the Hop Garden

[rpadam]

This is the predecessor of yesterday's 1950s oast - something much more traditional, with a single round kiln, but no doubt much less efficient too.

However, it continues to be cowl-less, which is something I would have thought you would want to fix if you had the sort of money to buy a place like this...

[rpadam]

One of the great pleasures when out walking is to see a good rainbow (especially if a complete arc, and even more so if a double one).

Of course, there is one vital ingredient for a rainbow, and another heavy squall caught us a bit later (although we managed to reach a barn for some temporary shelter).

[rpadam]

Now here's something a bit different, an 'industrial' oast dating from the late 1940s that was used until the late 1980s.

However, and perhaps it's just me, isn't there something rather sinister about this place (especially with the chimney)?

[rpadam]

Probably the closest oast to yesterday's 1940s example, this much earlier building looks particularly business-like in the landscape.

That impression is maintained as you approach, with quite a plain front elevation, but unexpectedly having a three-storey stowage (albeit almost totally rebuilt when it was converted).

However, things may not be quite as simple as that, because old maps and aerial photographs only ever show a single round kiln?

Indeed, the second 'kiln' isn't even a replica, but instead a wholly new early 2010s extension in the local vernacular (but very well done, because I don't think you would ever guess).

[rpadam]

As previously noted, unconverted oasts are increasing rare these days, with hop growing becoming a more specialist farming activity and these buildings giving rare opportunities for upmarket residential development in rural areas.

However, while taking our daily exercise when cycling along a 'quiet lane', we came across this fine example which I had almost forgotten about.

This alone is worthy of note (and it is rightly listed Garde II), especially when you look at the two early 19th-century roundels. You would normally expect the one on the far side to be a later addition, with the kiln at the end of the stowage being the original, but old maps show that this wasn't the case here.


More remarkably, though, this farm not only has a second oast, but this one (also Grade II listed) had a large square kiln and stowage added to an older barn in the 1920s and this ensemble remains unconverted as well.

As another point of interest, both of these buildings have an adjacent pond too; not at all uncommon, and you may have spotted this feature earlier elsewhere, but when you have got open fires in structures with at least as much wood as brick then this is a sensible precaution...

[rpadam]

This should be one of the most widely known oasts, since it's right by the entrance to one of Kent's biggest National Trust attractions and even nearer the gift shop (although both are closed at the moment of course), but I suspect that barely 5% of visitors give this interesting nearby building any thought.

The arrangement of six conjoined square kilns is certainly unusual, and I think you would need to walk across two drying floors to get to the end pair, which seems initially seems inefficient. However, with careful management, I suppose you could fire any number of kilns between one and six in the right sequence to match the size of each day's crop to give the same drying time? Or perhaps it didn't work that well, so they added the two much larger roundels instead, or maybe they just increased the acreage of hop gardens and needed all eight?

For the curious, here's a couple of clues (but not the landmark view that would give the game away too quickly).

[oldboots]

For the curious, here's a couple of clues (but not the landmark view that would give the game away too quickly).

I suspect this is a castle that sounds like it's in Yorkshire.

[Wittenden]

This should be one of the most widely known oasts, since it's right by the entrance to one of Kent's biggest National Trust attractions and even nearer the gift shop (although both are closed at the moment of course), but I suspect that barely 5% of visitors give this interesting nearby building any thought.

The arrangement of six conjoined square kilns is certainly unusual, and I think you would need to walk across two drying floors to get to the end pair, which seems initially seems inefficient. However, with careful management, I suppose you could fire any number of kilns between one and six in the right sequence to match the size of each day's crop to give the same drying time? Or perhaps it didn't work that well, so they added the two much larger roundels instead, or maybe they just increased the acreage of hop gardens and needed all eight?

For the curious, here's a couple of clues (but not the landmark view that would give the game away too quickly).

For those of an agrarian pursuasion, many of the leading Kent farmers of a now elderly generation were trained here, under the redoubtable Captain Beale. They lived in the upper storey of the gate house like building: it must have been perishing in the winter.

[rpadam]

I suspect this is a castle that sounds like it's in Yorkshire.

No, not that one - try again!

[rpadam]

The hop gardens were starting to look sorry until the end of last week because the ground was so dry, but thankfully a few heavy showers have got things going again.

Looking closer, you can see that the bines have now been trained (or twiddled) to grow clockwise up the strings at a great rate.