"It is very difficult for two women to share a kitchen," says Ruth Mott. But this is war, and so she welcomes London evacuees Joyce and her son Paul. The diplomacy implied by the equation two women and one stove must be worked out later.
Meanwhile, head gardener Harry Dodson reluctantly roots up the flower beds and orchard to concentrate on food production. As war approaches 60 per cent of this country's food is imported, so the work is urgent. He has the assistance of a recruit from the Women's Land Army. At least during those early months of the "phoney war" there was a chance to stock up.

Ruth Mott and Harry Dodson draw on their personal experiences for this new series that, through its re-creation of a wartime kitchen and garden, tells the story of how the country fed itself during the Second World War, when the motto was "dig for victory".

Ruth Mott cooks a special wartime meal: See Feature page 42