Robert Lloyd - a Sir Gar Blog of random news . . . and some Clecs!

Latest news from Aberglasney House and Gardens in the picturesque Tywi Valley -  Aberglasney's Winter Fair ~ one of Wales' biggest festive events Friday 2nd December ~ 11am-4.30pm (parking at Aberglasney, no park and ride) Saturday 3rd December and Sunday 4th December ~ 10am-4.30pm (parking at Aberglasney and free park and ride from Coleg Sir Gar’s Gelli Aur campus) A must-do of the Christmas season! Be inspired by our Mansion and two large marquees which will be packed with over 100 stalls offering a wide range of Christmas gifts and decorations, crafts, homeware, toiletries and clothing: you'll be sure to find some special things for you and yours Warm up with mulled wine or spiced apple juice and a mince pie included with entry Enjoy delicious local artisan food on the day and to take home, with a hog roast, vegetarian pies, 'Coaltown' coffee and hot chocolate, and much more Feel festive with music and choirs across the event ( see our website for the programme...

Latest news from Aberglasney House and Gardens in the picturesque Tywi Valley between Carmarthen and Landeilo -  Winter Fair - December 6 and 7. Winter Opening Hours From Sunday 26th October to March the opening hours will be: 10:30am - 4pm (last admission at 3pm)

Latest news from Aberglasney House and Gardens in the picturesque Tywi Valley -  Aberglasney's Winter Fair 2014 - Saturday 6th & Sunday 7th December (9:30am to 4:30pm) "One of the biggest events of its kind in Wales" Aberglasney's Winter Fair has something to offer everyone, with stalls selling leather goods, silver/gold/costume jewellery, wood, slate, children's books, art work, teddy bears along with fine food, drink and much, much, more. A full programme of entertainment throughout the event with complimentary mulled wine and a mince pie to all visitors. Normal admission prices apply. Ainsley Hillard's Exhibition ‘Where Echo Talks’ - 11th to 23rd October 2014 Where Echo Talks by artist Ainsley Hillard at Aberglasney Gardens. Interested in bringing together the past and the present, her arts practice is site-referential, being informed by specific places and the memories they hold. Over the past year, Ainsley has been collaborating wit...

Geraint Jones,of Aberdulais Water Wheel Singers and Neath Writers' Group reads his poem 'Lost in time' at the Aberglasney Gardens Winter Fair, December 2011

Busy day today. Pre-Christmas rush will take in the Winter Fair at wonderful Aberglasney Gardens in the Tywi Valley.

The power of the Carmarthen Journal has worked its magic to ensure the traditional Winter Fair at Aberglasney House and Gardens is a success. "The Journal carried a story the other week about Aberglasney looking for stallholders at the fair," said a spokesman for the gardens. "For days after the story appeared, the phone didn't stop ringing. So we have to say to all potential stallholders, Sorry, we are now full for this year, try again next year! "It just shows the power the Journal has to get things done and get results!" The spokesman added: "We may be full on the stallholders front, but we will, of course, be glad to welcome visitors on the two days of the fair." The fair is billed as ‘the best traditional winter fair in South West Wales’, offering something for everyone in the run-up to Christmas. Last year’s fair fell victim to the heavy snow, but the promise is that the event will be back, bigger and better than before. Fair organiser and ...

The countdown to Christmas is well and truly on at picturesque Aberglasney House and Gardens in the Tywi Valley. The staff at Aberglasney are gearing up for one of the highlights of the year at the gardens – the Traditional Winter Fair. The fair is billed as ‘the best traditional winter fair in South West Wales’, offering something for everyone in the run-up to Christmas. Last year’s fair fell victim to the heavy snow, but the promise is that the event will be back, bigger and better than before. Fair organiser and Aberglasney administrative manager Patricia Turner said: “There’s a huge buzz about the fair this year, especially after the snow and ice put paid to all the hard work last December. “The idyllic setting of Aberglasney House and Gardens in the Tywi Valley is ideal for a winter fair and we’ll have plenty on offer this year, from Christmas gifts, crafts, decorations, Welsh food and drink. “There will be entertainment from Welsh and choirs, bell-ringers and bands – and there’s ...

Modern farming and traditional milling techniques have come together to produce Wales’s newest organic flour. Loaves made with the flour will be one of the talking points at this year’s Winter Fair in Llanelwedd. The new flour is unique in that it uses locally grown organic wheat – a joint project between the world renowned IBERS research centre at Aberystwyth University and the owners of Wales’s latest working water mill. Andrew and Anne Parry of Felin Ganol, Llanrhystud, near Aberystwyth, in mid-Wales, are both former members of staff at IBERS and when they were looking for locally grown organic wheat, they turned to their former employers. Further developments are in the pipe line with IBERS and Felin Ganol carrying out further research into a variety of traditional oats. The loaves will be on sale at the Wales Organic Centre stand as part of the organic area on the balcony of the Livestock Building at the Winter Fair. The Centre is part of IBERS. Growing crops locally means a savin...

Aberystwyth University's IBERS centre is showing how its latest research can help farmers help the planet – and themselves Better farming equals better incomes equals better environment. At this year’s Welsh Winter Fair in Llanelwedd, Aberystwyth University IBERS will be showing Welsh farmers a range of ways to help the environment and to help themselves at the same time. The holder of the UK’s only Chair in Sustainable Agriculture will raise a crucial issue during a special breakfast discussion on the Tuesday morning, November 30, in the company of Elin Jones AM, Welsh Assembly Government Minister for Rural Affairs . Professor Gareth Edwards Jones, Waitrose Chair of Sustainable Agriculture at Aberystwyth University’s Institute for Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences will ask the audience of invited guests, “Can large farming enterprises ever be truly sustainable?”. With pressure on farmers to increase the size of their units and with stories in the press about farms with ...