By Deirdre Huston
Clive Gravett is one of the leading worldwide authorities on lawnmower history and often gives talks and writes lectures. Back in 2013 he heard the Tate family were planning a major redevelopment of the Heritage Centre. Keen to be involved, Clive approached Jonathan Tate and tells me: “We clicked!”. A couple of years later they had a meeting and agreed to create a ‘museum of gardening’. Clive’s specialist interest is lawnmowers but they wanted to cater for wider interests. He explains: “I like to try and keep the museum changing because we have a lot of local regulars. Our collection is much wider than the items on display. We have a lot in storage, and I move things around. All the mowers are displayed with information so you can see what makes them unique and how they’d have been used.”

To find out more about the museum, its volunteers and a small hint about this year’s Christmas grotto, you can find the full article in September’s issue of Hassocks Life.