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The Farm at Imberhorne (part 2) Post 1900 This is a study of the development, ownership, and agricultural practice of the Farm at Imberhorne. Located to the South of Felbridge, West of East Grinstead, Imberhorne Farm stands on an ancient East/West Ridgeway. The current Imberhorne Farm was once part of the parish of East Grinstead, but with the formation of the ecclesiastical parish of Felbridge in 1865, this part of the East Grinstead parish transferred to the newly formed Felbridge parish.  The 1901 Census records Thomas Pentecost aged 49 was termed the estate steward still living at Imberhorne Farmhouse with his wife and family along with his brother-in-law George Taylor aged 34 listed as a poultry man. Also living at Imberhorne Farm was George Baldwin aged 38 a labourer on the farm with his wife and family. Living at Imberhorne Farm Cottages (unfortunately not numbered) were Thomas Pollard aged 49 a carter with his wife and daughter; and Henry Tingley aged 56 a stockman on the farm with his wife and family. His eldest daughter Lilly Tingley was listed as a general servant probably at Imberhorne Manor and still living with the family was Henry’s grandmother Polly Brown, by then 90 years old. Also living at Imberhorne Farm Cottages were James Gallard aged 75 a farm labourer with his wife Elizabeth; George Hill aged 45 a cowman and his wife and children [George Hill replaced Albert Hills as cowman sometime between 1892 and 1898]; George Stone aged 82 a farm labourer with his wife Mary; and finally, James Pattenden aged 65 a farm labourer with his wife Mary and boarder Samuel Brand aged 28 a groom and James Pattenden’s sister-in-law Eliza Gear. Thus there was the farm steward and seven other households of farm workers living within Imberhorne Farmhouse and Farm Cottages. On top of these, there were two further households of farm workers housed in Gulledge Farmhouse and Gulledge Cottage by now part of Imberhorne Farm. The census records Henry Stone aged 52 a carter on the farm living in Gulledge Farmhouse with his wife and children and that his sons Thomas aged 23 was a carter on the farm, Robert aged 21 was a labourer on the farm and John aged 16 was a carter’s boy on the farm. Henry Stone had, in the previous census of 1891, been recorded as occupying one of the Imberhorne Farm Cottages. Gulledge Cottage was occupied by John Marden aged 44 a stockman on the farm with his wife and children including his son George aged 23 who was a waggoner on the farm. John Marden and his family had also lived at the Imberhorne Farm Cottages but ten years earlier then Henry Stone in 1881. From the census entries between 1891 and 1901, it is possible to gain a picture of the type of agricultural occupations to found on Imberhorne Farm. In 1891, apart from Thomas Pentecost being the farm bailiff in charge of the workforce and overseeing the running of the Farm, he was also the gamekeeper aided by Edward Wells. Between them they were responsible for rearing the partridge and peasants required for the Blount’s shooting parties. By 1901, Edward Wells had taken over the position of head gamekeeper, living at Tilkhurst. The farm was sustaining a dairy herd having George Hill as cowmen. With Henry Tingley as a stockman in both censuses, the Farm was probably dealing in cattle and possibly sheep for market, as a stockman is a man experienced in driving stock. In 1891, James Tingley was as a pig man, therefore the farm undoubtedly had pigs and although unmentioned in 1891, there were enough poultry to require George Taylor a poultry man by 1901. By 1891, horses had replaced oxen for ploughing and pulling and Thomas Pollard was listed as a horse carter in both censuses with the addition of another carter and a carter’s boy, Henry Stone and his son John, by 1901. Also by 1901, the Farm had a waggoner, George Marden. A carter was a person who generally drove a horse that pulled a two-wheeled vehicle for transporting goods, whereas a waggoner was a man who drove several horses that pulled a four-wheeled vehicle with a rectangular body for transporting heavy loads. The horses would have needed to be groomed and in 1891 William Tingley was the groom and by 1901 there were two grooms, Samuel Brand and Herbert Pentecost. As well as the livestock and associated farm workers, there were between five and seven farm labourers listed as living in the farm cottages not to mention those that were living in the tied cottages on the estate who could be hired as casual labour as and when required. No doubt all members of the families would have been expected to help out when required especially at harvest and haymaking time. Then there was milking and processing the milk and in 1901 Nellie Pentecost, the daughter of Thomas Pentecost the farm steward, was the dairymaid and would have been responsible for processing the milk into dairy products such as cream, butter and cheese. The Blount policy of retaining employees and caring for their welfare was becoming apparent by 1901, with several farm workers working in excess of twenty years for the family and farm labourers such as James Gallard aged 75 and George Stone aged 82 still employed in their advanced years. Unfortunately, they both died in 1902 along with Polly (real name Philadelphia) Brown who died at the age of 92 at the end of 1902. One of the effects of being caring masters was the fact that cottages had to be found to accommodate the incoming younger workers because the older members of the workforce were never retired off and were allowed to retain their cottages until the end of their life. The older members of the workforce in return were still expected to work on the Farm but due to their advancing years were obviously unable to be as productive as a younger man. This would inevitably lead to an increased workforce and wages whilst not being markedly more productive. In 1905, Sir Edward Blount died followed six years later by his son Henry, leaving Charles Blount the sole heir to the estate. Charles Blount like his grandfather before him was considered a good master to work for continuing the caring attitude adopted by his grandfather. Charles Blount continued with the country gentlemen pursuits and regularly held shooting parties. He was a member of the Old Surrey and Burstow Hunt before and after their amalgamation in 1915, became the head of the North End Allotment and Garden Association and also hosted the Working Man’s Annual Rabbit Pie Supper. He was also a member of the Three Counties Ploughing Association with several matches being held at Imberhorne Farm. With the onset of World War I much of the potential young male workforce signed up to fight for King and Country and Imberhorne Farm was no different. Particularly badly hit was the Harding family, William Harding being the cowman in 1915. He lost a son Ernest, killed in action in Palestine in 1917 and a son-in-law Albert Victor Brand, who died as a result of his wounds in France in 1918. Despite the war years, Imberhorne Farm along with Gulledge, Tilkhurst and Hill Place were in full production and these years were probably considered to have been their best years even though cheap cereal grasses from Canada and America could not be imported. Imberhorne Farm, being largely arable, was growing fields of wheat, barley, oats and flax. Farming during the war years was all about producing food for the nation so it was inevitable that the partridge and pheasant shoots would be in decline especially as the under-keeper, Frank Wells, had signed up for War duty which left just the head gamekeeper, his father Edward Wells, responsible for over 200 acres of woodland and all that goes with breeding game birds and protecting them from vermin such as jays, magpies and grey squirrels that steal the eggs and rabbits that burrow under the pens, along with predators such as stoats, weasels, foxes and poachers who steal the birds. With the end of World War I, life began to return to normal but a heavy price had been paid both financially and in the cost of human life to win the war. Not only had large numbers of young men been killed during the war years, but at Imberhorne Farm some of the more elderly members of the workforce had also died. Henry Tingley had died in 1913 aged 69, Edwin Pattenden died in 1915 aged 51 and James Pattenden aged 83 and Thomas Young aged 65 had both died in 1919, leaving several vacancies in the workforce. Costs now had to be balanced against the rising prices of both goods and labour and as a consequence farming, like most other industries of the period, suffered a severe depression in trade. The solution was to make cuts in the permanent workforce at Imberhorne Farm, hiring casual labour only for harvesting. The workforce at Imberhorne Farm between the wars was still under the supervision and direction of Thomas Pentecost. The rearing of partridge and pheasant was re-established under Edward Wells, head gamekeeper and his son Frank Wells, recently returned from the war as under-keeper. By the end of the war, Thomas Pollard the carter then aged 67 was still living in one of the cottages in the old farmhouse and was joined by Jack Cushen as head cowman and Alec Creasey known as Bob Creasey. Also still there and living in one of the other farm cottages was the cowman, George Hill, having been joined by Mr and Mrs Brand and Ottewell Lomax. Sam Brand was the horse and van man and Mrs Brand ran the dairy. Tom Creasey a carter and brother of Bob Creasey had moved into Gulledge Farmhouse and the Botting family occupied Gulledge Cottage, George Botting also being a carter. Joining the workforce in 1921 was Frederick Redman known as Taddy moving into no.2 Birches Cottage, Crawley Down Road no.1 being occupied by Frank Wells the under-keeper. Taddy Redman remembers that when he started working at Imberhorne Farm there were between twenty and thirty men working on the estate. Most of the work was done by hand and each man had his own occupation. Apart from the farm labourers and cowmen, there were rick thatchers and hedgers. There were also bricklayers and carpenters building ever more cottages to accommodate the growing workforce. Thomas Pentecost the farm steward died at the age of 80 in 1931 having got Imberhorne Farm back up and running efficiently after the setback of World War I. Edward Wells the young gamekeeper who had boarded with the Pentecost family in 1891 and who had worked his way up to the position of head gamekeeper was then asked to fill the position of farm bailiff. The rearing partridge and pheasant continued under Frank Wells now elevated to the position of head gamekeeper. The farm workers and their children would be called upon as beaters during the shooting parties. Jim Coomber son of Albert remembers that payment was 2/6 for a morning’s beating, 5/- for a full day and that no food was provided only a bottle of ginger beer. An average shoot would bag about a thousand birds. William Hicks who primarily worked at the Manor was responsible for the maintenance of the guns kept in the gun cabinet in the office of the bailiff’s house. He lived in one of the farm cottages and on his death was replaced by Mr Card. During the 1930’s the farm workforce was joined by Albert Coomber acowman, Bert Searle the poultry man and rick thatcher and Mr Russell who was second cowman, his property was later taken over by Mr Friend. Albert Coomber like the other cowmen on the Farm was responsible for about fourteen cows that had to be milked twice a day by hand. A good cowman could milk ten cows an hour being paid £1.10/- for a six and a half day week. Stockmen were paid 4/- extra because cowmen finished at 1 p.m. on Saturdays but the stockmen had to go back at 4 p.m. Young cattle, between forty and fifty bullocks, were kept for fattening in the cattle sheds up at Gulledge Farm but the dairy cows were generally turned out into the field to the North of Imberhorne Farmhouse that, at that time, ran down to what is now the Northern boundary of Imberhorne School, the school’s playing fields and what is now known as Cow Field at Imberhorne Farm forming one large field. The milk was processed in the dairy by Mrs Brand, the dairy having relocated from between the milking sheds to the cellar under Imberhorne Farmhouse. The ‘Big House’ required two gallons of milk, a jar of cream and butter on a daily basis along with cheese on occasions. Farm workers who worked on the estate were entitled to one pint of free skimmed milk a day and skimmed milk was also sold for 1d a can to local families, generally collected by children before going to school of a morning. Any excess milk was carted to the Broad’s at Hill Place Farm who supplied milk for the town of East Grinstead. Apart from cows, the farm also had pigs kept in the range of sties located in the North wing of the farm complex the most Eastern room being the boiler house where the pig’s swill was cooked up. Sheep were also grazed but these did not belong to the Farm, the field being let for their grazing, the sheep dip was located to the Northwest of the farm complex in a natural hollow by the stream. Bert Searle, aided by his wife, was responsible for the poultry that included chicken (Light Sussex, Leghorns and Rhode Island Reds), grey geese, Aylesbury ducks and black turkeys, all being free range. Each day the poultry had to be turned out into orchard and what was and still is known as Poultry Field, East of Imberhorne Farmhouse and returned to their poultry shed of an evening. Whilst out, the eggs had to be collected from the poultry sheds and whilst in, eggs had to be searched for in the orchard and Poultry Field. The ‘Big House’ required six geese and ducks weekly and any surplus eggs over and above the two-dozen eggs required daily were sold to Farm Gate Egg Market. The poultry sheds formed part of the range of outbuildings extending to the West of Imberhorne Farmhouse. There were individual sections for geese, ducks, turkeys and chicken. There were also brood huts, as all the poultry were bred on the Farm, and a shed for cooking up potatoes and hot mash used as feed in the winter. Bert Searle was also the thatcher and had to thatch the circular hayricks after they had been built to keep the rain out and to prevent them turning mouldy. The grass was all cut by hand using a scythe, left to dry naturally in the field and then forked onto wagons and brought to the rick yard. Bundles of faggots were laid on the ground to keep the rick off the ground and the hay laid onto the faggots so that the bottom layer of hay remained dry. As the rick grew a small pony was used to operate an elevator that raised up the hay. The ricks, as many as thirty, were laid out in the field to the West of the farm complex in front of the farm cottages, now called Gullege Field, being at one time two separate fields. Apart from livestock and hay, the farm being largely arable grew many crops using the rotation system introduced to Britain in the 18th century. Taddy Redman outlines the agricultural practice they followed at Imberhorne Farm between the wars. ‘First we had a voller [fallow]. If it was about ten acres, it would be ploughed about six times in a summer, this was to kill the rubbish. Then I used to land [break] it up and put manure on it. It was then ready for the early wheat to go in. This was then followed by winter oats sown alongside clover. This was to make clover hay especially for the horses. After that it was spring oats; then you might next year have a crop of potatoes, mangle and Swedes; then that might start a voller again’. A tractor had appeared at Imberhorne Farm between the wars, but there was only one, so ploughing and harrowing all six hundred acres was done by horse. When used, it was Taddy Redman’s job to drive the tractor. Prior to ploughing or harrowing someone, generally children, would have to spread mole hills and pick up stones out of the fields making the soil clear of debris and flat for the horses to chain harrow. At harvest time, the corn was originally cut by hand using a scythe and the men were paid 6/- an acre. After the corn had been cut, sheaves of corn were shocked [tied up] and stood upright to form stooks [shocks of sheaves of corn]. At this time anyone and everyone had to turn out to help get the harvest in before it rained. General practice was that the stooks was left stood upright to dry ‘until the church bells rang out three times’. They were then taken to be round stacked and kept dry until the steam-thrashing machine arrived on its tour of the farms. With the arrival of the tractor, harvesting was done with a binder. This threw sheaves out which were then shocked and stooked, saving numerous man hours cutting by hand. As a token of thanks, the Blounts used to hold a Harvest Supper for their workers to celebrate the gathering of the harvest. This included much whiskey, wine, cider and beer, but had sadly died out by the end of World War I. At any give time, the Farm employed at least four carters who each had a team of two horses, two based at Imberhorne Farm and two up at Gulledge Farm. On top of that, there was the horse and van, the van being used to take the laundry daily from the ‘Big House’ to the Blount’s personal laundry located next to the school at North End, run by Mrs Edwards. The horses were generally stabled or let to run in the field West of Gullege; hence this field is now known by the name of Horse Pasture. Imberhorne Farm was also cashing in on its timber crop and horses were used to pull the timber out. Olive Sharman, who as a child lived in Imberhorne Lane wrote ‘We used to see big timber wagons, four powerful Shire horses were harnessed to a long flat-based wagon with four or more huge tree trunks chained to it. Now and again, the horses had a high ‘set’ of bells and brasses over their heads and red or blue bows and hair plaits in their manes’. Apart from carriages going to and from the ‘Big House’ and the occasional horse and cart, the timber wagons were the only traffic that passed along what is now known as Imberhorne Lane. 1939 saw the outbreak of World War II and yet more disruption to farming. Again, young men volunteered or were called up to fight, affecting the agricultural workforce and with a blockade on the seas, Britain was relying totally on home grown food. An agricultural workforce was generated in the shape of the Land Army Girls and Prisoners of War; Imberhorne Farm had the use of POW’s camped at West Hoathly to pick up potatoes. The Farm did not get away unscathed during the war, with several bombs landing in and around the area. The War Damage Reports reveal that Imberhorne Farm and outbuildings suffered damage on at least two occasions, once on 16th October 1940 and again on 17th June 1944. The Reports are also a good source for who was living in the farm cottages at the time as the 1940 Report details that slight damage was suffered by Mr Cushen of 3 Imberhorne Farm Cottage, Mr Samuel Brand of no.4, Mr O T Lomax of no.5, Mr George Creasey of no.6 and Mr William Hicks of no.7 and medium damage was suffered by Mr E Wells of Bailiff’s Cottage (Imberhorne Farmhouse). During World War II, Edward Blount found himself in direct control of a Civil Region set up take responsibility for maintaining services such as food, clothing and shelter for casualties in the event of an invasion. As a result of this and his commitment to the Queen Victoria Hospital, the administration of Imberhorne Farm became neglected and Edward Wells the farm bailiff aged 73 was not in the best of health. As a consequence, the Ministry of Agriculture placed an ‘A’ Order on the farms in 1946, and threatened to put in their own manager giving Edward Blount just three months to come up with a programme of improvements and implementation. The Farm was by then being operated by men, old men at that, and two carthorses. Without new implements Imberhorne Farm could not produce enough crops to make it pay and the Government would no longer reduce their taxes for farm losses. Sticking with the Blount policy of not retiring or sacking elderly employees, Edward Blount appointed a younger farm bailiff Frank Wells, the former head gamekeeper and son of the old farm bailiff Edward Wells, and asked for suggestions on how to turn the Farm around. It was estimated that £10,000 would be required to bring all the farms, including Imberhorne Farm, on the Imberhorne estate into modern practice. Frank Wells’ suggestion to raise the capital required was to throw [fell] some of the timber on the estate, which Edward Blount agreed to. The trees were chosen, measured and priced by the estate agent together with the purchaser. The throwing was done when weather permitted and the money was to be paid as soon as possible to allow for the purchase of modern machinery. The first equipment to be purchased was two three furrowed ploughs, a new Fordson tractor and a large trailer. Every field soil was tested and fertiliser applied accordingly. New fencing was put up along with gateways and the older men were found inside jobs that were not too strenuous. The purchase of a grain drying plant was far too expensive so the decision was made to use the old binder and stack the corn and then thrash it. The farm workers built thirty-two large corn ricks in a straight row up the nearest field allowing enough room to build straw stacks for each one. It meant a lot of work but without a drying plant there was no alternative. Mr Pusey, the Ministry of Agriculture representative, came two or three times a month to check on progress. He then made a report that was forwarded to the Ministry. After three months, three men from the Ministry arrived at the Farm and spent the day delving into everything. Finally, they contacted Edward Blount with their decision. On receipt of the decision the butler, Mr Boniface, was dispatched to inform Frank Wells that the ‘A’ Order had been lifted. Modernisation had hardly begun but with the ‘A’ Order lifted it could move forward at a slower pace without the threat of the Farm being taken over. The Farm workforce by this date included George Botting, Bob and Tom Creasey, Charlie Pannell, Mr A Parsons, Fred Penticost, George Piper, Taddy and Freddie Redman, Bert Searle, Eddie Streeter and Frank Wells. Unfortunately, as things began to improve on the Farm Edward Blount’s health began to deteriorate, leaving Frank Wells to carry on with the Farm and the estate as he thought fit. He had been far than satisfied with the cowmen or the cows and had not come up with an answer as to what to do with them. The solution arose when the second cowman refused to cover the head cowman, so at the end of the week he was given his pay packet and cards. The weekend relief cowman was then asked if he would take over from the second cowman, but he also refused stating that he no longer wanted the job anyway. With that Frank Wells put all the cows up for auction and suggested the weekend relief cowmen might like to look for another job. It was shortly after this incident that Edward Blount died, on 4th February 1953, leaving Clara his widow and Clare and Marguerite his two daughters to run the estate. Shortly after the death of Edward Blount, Clara Blount died leaving Clare and Marguerite facing huge death duties and an estate to run for which they were ill prepared. Requiring still more capital there was no alternative but to put the Imberhorne estate up for auction. The ‘Big House’ and grounds were sold for development and the Clare and Marguerite Blount had a house built at Tilkhurst for them to move to, retaining Tilkhurst Farm. It was decided that as the railway line now cut through the lands of the original Imberhorne Farm, all the land South of the line would become part of Tilkhurst leaving all the land North of the line as Imberhorne and Gulledge Farms. Hill Place Farm was offered for sale to the Broad’s who had been farming it since 1919 and Imberhorne and Gulledge Farms were put up for auction on 6th May 1954. The sales particulars describe Imberhorne and Gulledge Farms as a ‘Freehold agricultural Estate and valuable mixed farm of 422.201 acres’. Selling with the land was the ‘Georgian’ Imberhorne Farmhouse, the seven farm worker’s cottages attached to the Farm, Birches Cottage, Crawley Down Road and the Farm buildings. The farm buildings were described as:
‘Compactly arranged, brick built with tiled roof range of outbuildings near the Farmhouse comprising of:
Also selling with Imberhorne Farm was Gulledge Farmhouse, described as early 17th century and it was noted that ‘This house has considerable charm and character and could be made into a delightful residence’. There were also the farm buildings and cottage. The farm buildings were described as:
‘Brick built, part weather boarded with tiled roofs. They are arranged around a quadrangle and comprise:
In addition to the purchase price, the purchaser was required to pay the Tenant Right, comprising of ‘all growing or un-harvested crops including grass and potatoes, cultivations with rent on fallows, seeds sown, whole dressings of dung, artificial manures and lime; young seeds, farmyard manure and labour thereto; hay, straw, haulm [stems or stalks of peas, beans potatoes or grass used as litter for animals or for thatching] and silage [fodder prepared by storing and fermenting green foliage plants in a silo or pit] at market price; the residual value of purchased feeding stuffs and home-grown corn consumed, purchased dung, artificial manures and lime applied and fixed machinery in accordance with a list to be supplied on application’. The valuation was to be made by two valuers or their umpire, which was to be paid on completion of the purchase. The Blount sisters reserved the right to hold an auction of the live and dead farming stock at Imberhorne Farm prior to the completion of the purchase. However, the valuable standing timber was included in the sale. Of the farm cottages at Imberhorne, no.1 was occupied by Bob Creasey, no.2 was let to Mrs Amy Brayshaw at 3/9d a week, no.3 was occupied by George Botting, no.4 was unoccupied, no.5 was occupied by Eddie Streeter, no.6 was occupied by Bert Searle and no.7 was occupied by George Piper. Amy Brayshaw was the only person paying rent, as she was not an employee on the estate. All seven cottages were to be sold subject to existing tenancies. Birches Cottage was occupied by Taddy Redman who was offered the purchase of it, but declined the offer preferring not to have the responsibility of a mortgage, it was then bought by Bert Searle, and Taddy Redman moved up to rent one of the Imberhorne Farm Cottages. Tom Creasey occupied Gulledge Farmhouse and Gulledge Cottage was unoccupied. Imberhorne Farmhouse was still in the occupation of Edward Wells although by now an invalid and in very poor health and it was shortly before the completion of the sale that he died. Frank Wells whilst being the farm bailiff at Imberhorne had been living in West Lodge the old head gardener’s cottage just short of the railway bridge in Imberhorne Lane. After the sale of Imberhorne Farm, he continued in the employment of the Blount sisters becoming the farm bailiff at Tilkhurst Farm the only farm and part of the Imberhorne estate retained by the Blount sisters. Mr Beeney purchased Imberhorne and Gulledge Farms along with most of the farm cottages in 1954. The total size of the farm was 422.201 acres, with a breakdown of the land usage being:
Land Usage 1954 Acreage % An interesting comparison of land usage can be made between 1954 and 1842. Arable land was still by far the largest proportion of the Farm although it had dropped slightly to just under half the acreage of the Farm. The next largest proportion was woodland, this had also marginally dropped from 21% in 1842 to 18% in 1954, probably due to the throwing of timber to provide capital to modernise the Farm in the late 1940’s. The proportion of land put to pasture had risen from 11% in 1842 to 15% in 1954, even though the dairy herd had been sold off in 1953. This is repeated in the increase in meadowland from 8% in 1842 to 14% in 1954 despite the reduction in livestock in the form of the dairy herd and thus less winter feed required. This may suggest that the number of beef cattle had increased or with the employment of Bill Searle as shepherd in 1953, possibly the reintroduction of sheep rather than just letting for sheep pasture, as had been the case in the 1930’s. There remained very little rough compared to 4% in 1842 implying the land termed as rough had been better cultivated and able to produce a crop of some description. The main difference to be seen between 1842 and 1954 is in the size of the fields. By 1954 many of the hedgerows had been grubbed out to increase the size of the fields. In 1842 there were ten small fields between what is now the route of the concrete road and the woodland to the North of the Farm totalling about 136 acres, by 1954 there were just five fields doubling the size of each field. Mr Beeney dealt in cattle, but Imberhorne Farm was not to see a great expansion in livestock, as within a year Mr Beeney, suffering from poor health, put Imberhorne Farm back up for auction and Robert Emmett a farmer from Kent, purchased it. At the time of purchase the workforce consisted of Bill Searle son of Bert Searle, Taddy Redman and his son Freddie, George Piper and Bob Creasey. Robert Emmett could ill-afford to retain all five so Bill Searle, having only worked on the Farm since January 1953 and being the youngest and single with no attachments, volunteered to leave. In April 1955, at the time of purchase by Robert Emmett, Imberhorne Farm consisted of 285 acres, the size it is today, the remaining 137 acres was split up and sold separately. A large proportion of the old cow field was set aside for the construction of Imberhorne County Secondary School, the woodland to the North of Imberhorne Farm and one field abutting Imberhorne Lane and the trackway leading to the Farm was sold to William Rayner and the remaining open land, now the site of the Birches Industrial Estate, was sold to Ernest Jones, being used as Birches Piggery and yard for his company, Mid Sussex Tractors. Robert Emmett took over Imberhorne Farm initially farming it as a mixed farm but gradually it became predominately arable, although free range poultry were still kept until the foxes proved too much of a nuisance and ‘won the battle’ as Brian, Robert Emmett’s son, put it. However, some of the potential arable land had been rendered unusable at the time of purchase by the fact that it was still full of stumps, remnants of the trees that had been thrown in the 1940’s in an attempt to gain capital to modernise the Farm. The solution to this problem was to dynamite the stumps out (common practice at this time). Once removed, the land could be turned over to pasture or arable. One sideline that the Emmetts had when they first moved to the Farm was cutting, bunching up and selling to Covent Garden boughs of winter holly. There was much debate as to what to do with Gulledge Farmhouse, being no longer needed as a farm worker’s cottage, and by then in bad state of repair. In 1958, the decision was taken to sell it along with a small amount of ground as a private dwelling needing much renovation. Imberhorne Farm retained Gulledge Farm buildings, although they were later sold back to the owners of Gullege, as it is now known. With the proceeds of the sale of Gulledge Farmhouse, the farm track leading to it, once across Gullege Field, was re-routed and concreted and is now referred to locally as ‘The Yellow Brick Road’. The footpath was also rerouted at this time.
In the early 1960’s, a new site was being sought for the local amenity tip and the East Grinstead Urban District Council gave approval for an open rubbish dump to be positioned in the field to the South of the trackway down to Imberhorne Farm, abutting Imberhorne Lane. The field known as Poultry Field had a deep gully running East/West through the middle of it and seemed a suitable site to fill. Unfortunately, this was a time when the disposal of rubbish was unchecked, resulting in many products being disposed of, which today would be considered environmentally unfriendly. As a consequence, toxic liquids filtered their way down to the fishpond killing most of the fish. A filter bed was then installed to clean the water. Eventually the amenity tip was moved to the site of the old Isolation Hospital further up Imberhorne Lane (its current position) and Poultry Field, by then levelled, was sown and is now let for sheep grazing. In 1964, woodland to the North of the Farm, West of Gullege track, abutting the River Fel, had a planning application submitted to the East Grinstead Urban District Council, for the erection of private dwelling houses. However, planning application was refused, even after an appeal, so what was once Avenue Wood became arable land by clearing in 1976 and now forms part of Heathy Field.
Countryside Stewardship is the Government’s principal scheme for conserving and improving the countryside. Farmers are paid grants to follow more traditional farming methods that enhance the landscape, encourage wildlife and protect historical features. The traditional English landscape and features are largely the result of farming over the last few hundred years. A feature such as stonewalls or barns, once important to farmers, have become part of Britain’s heritage. However, modern methods of farming have changed the landscape and some landscape features have been lost. Traditional farming practices provide good conditions for a rich diversity of wildlife, which modern techniques have to some extent destroyed, resulting in a reduced diversity of wildlife. There is now more awareness of how farming shapes the countryside and an appreciation of the wide variety of landscapes and the rich diversity of wildlife that lives in them. The grant offered by Countryside Stewardship Scheme is one way that farmers can afford to conserve and improve this heritage and most of the farming industry is keen to support it. By conserving the countryside in this way, it not only helps wildlife but also allows Britain to play its part in the international agreement to maintain the natural diversity of animals and plants throughout the world. To comply with the Countryside Stewardship Scheme, Brian Emmett had to agree to manage Imberhorne Farm in accordance with the Scheme. The objectives set out in the agreement are: Landscape: Create arable margins to soften the visual impact of the arable fields on the landscape, and restore the landscape character of the area by re-creating grassland and managing it in a traditional way. Wildlife: Create arable margins to provide wildlife corridors around the farm, linking woodland, grassland and waterside habitats. This in turn would provide habitats for invertebrate and small vertebrates that use the arable land. The arable margins would then encourage herb and wildflower species to colonise in the reverted field. History/archaeology: Strengthen the historic boundaries of the farm by laying and reinstating hedges. Access: Provide new access opportunities for horse riders in the area and enable walkers to enjoy the farm by maintaining Public Rights of Way in good order. Imberhorne Farm is one of 128 farms in the scheme in West Sussex, equating to 4% by acreage of Countryside Stewardship land in West Sussex. Imberhorne Farm is also one of only twenty-three with public access in West Sussex and is also the nearest farm in the scheme to Felbridge. In December 2000, Imberhorne Farm also became a LEAF (Linking Environment and Farming) Demonstration Farm. LEAF is a charitable organisation working to develop and promote IFM (Integrated Farm Management) farming practices that are both viable and environmentally responsible. LEAF helps farmers to adopt the principles of IFM and promote them to a broad range of interest groups through the network of Demonstration Farms. Brian Emmett is keen to encourage public access and respect for the countryside; this is evident from the number of people that can be seen during the day walking, jogging or horse riding through the Farm. In 2000, Brian Emmett provided 1 1/2 acres, which were planted with 1,000 native trees by local school children. In February 2001, The Millennium Wood was planted by the children of Felbridge School, part of the 2000 trees planted to mark the Millennium. There are a large number of footpaths and bridleways, with Conservation Information Boards placed adjacent to permissive paths to illustrate specific routes and features of interest. Imberhorne Farm is also open, by appointment, for visits by groups, associations and schools, fulfilling the educational aspect of LEAF. In 2002, the threat of development at Imberhorne Farm returned, with West Sussex District Council proposing the erection of 2,500 houses and the obligatory by-pass, even though two other sites in West Sussex had been proposed. Local opposition grew during the year, but the Examination In Public, held in the beginning of 2003, upheld the suggestion that East Grinstead was the most suitable location to receive the development. Although it found that Imberhorne Farm may not be the most suitable site in the East Grinstead area. It suggested that an alternative site should be considered, as the Examination found against the development being detached from the main body of East Grinstead and was keen to maintain a strategic gap between East Grinstead and Crawley Down as well as a gap between East Grinstead and Felbridge. A breakdown of the current land usage in 2003, demonstrates that Imberhorne Farm is still predominantly arable.
Land Usage 2003 Acreage % The reduction in total acreage was due to the separate sale of the Birches Wood, land for Imberhorne County Secondary School and other land sold to William Rayner and Ernest Jones. Comparison with the land usage in 1954 highlights the fact that the acreage of arable land at Imberhorne Farm has remained unchanged, the majority being turned over to wheat. Due to the lack of livestock, meadowland and pastureland is no longer required to provide foodstuffs. However, there is an ancient meadow that has been designated as a Site of Nature Conservation Importance because of its biodiversity. After the sale of Birches Wood in 1955, Imberhorne Farm only retained about 15 acres of woodland, now reduced to nine acres of which six acres are classified ancient woodland and have recently been thinned, coppiced and replanted under a Woodland Improvement Scheme. Both the ancient woodland and ancient meadow sites lie to the West of Gullege. Some of the hedges previously grubbed out have also been reinstated, returning to the practice of smaller field cultivation, although the fields are still not as small those of 1842. The workforce at Imberhorne Farm has dramatically declined in numbers since 1954, being worked solely by Brian Emmett with the use of contractors for operations such as combining at harvest time. Until 1999, Brian Emmett had been growing wheat in rotation with the break crops such as oilseed rape and peas or linseed. However, major problems with runch, a weed that is particularly difficult to control in break crops, together with pigeon damage, and low returns, forced a change in farming practice. The practice now adopted is a rotation of wheat, and set-aside as a way of cleaning-up the land for one year, or voller, in the terms of past employee Taddy Redman. A spring-sown variety of barley is now being used to provide a better habitat for birds like the fieldfare and lapwings, once seen in great abundance on the Farm but whose numbers had sadly declined over the years but are now building up again. Crop rotation and the careful management of the condition of the soil produce 3 tons of winter wheat per acre. Birds, such as skylarks, and other wildlife have also benefited from the use of set-aside land and the six metre strips around all of the fields act as buffer zones and wildlife habitats. The return to traditional agricultural practices and appropriate soil maintenance, along with the re-instatement of hedgerows and the management of hedge and verge cutting have enhanced the biodiversity of Imberhorne Farm, whilst still being a viable farming concern. On the whole, the fields that make up what is now known as Imberhorne Farm have changed very little since being part of the demesne lands of the manor of Imberhorne in 1597. Farming emphasis is now on arable rather than livestock farming, but on the whole, Sackville Turner would be able to recognise the land that Brian Emmett now farms. The main difference being that Imberhorne Farm is now situated within a heavily populated area, making it a haven for wildlife and a place were people can escape to enjoy the relative peace and quiet, except for the song of the skylarks and a chance to get close to nature and appreciate a little piece of, as yet, unspoilt Sussex countryside.
Bibliography
My thanks go to Sir Walter Blount of Tilkhurst, Gwen Broad of Hill Place Farm, and Brian and Marilyn Emmett of Imberhorne Farm, for their help and information about Imberhorne Farm. SJC 05/03  |
