Welby gardens expert recognised in honours list
Stephanie 'Steffie' Shields of Welby has received an MBE in this year's Queen's Birthday Honours List.
Steffie is cited for playing a major role in nurturing and successfully merging the Association of Gardens Trusts and the Garden History Society, to create the new Gardens Trust- a thriving forum for research into and promotion of gardens and gardening.
The 71-year-old is also a respected expert and scholar on the landscape architect Lancelot 'Capability' Brown. She played a major role in developing the success of the 2016 Capability Brown Festival and she organised a successful London photography exhibition of his works.
Her book 'Moving Heaven and earth: Capability Brown's Gift of Landscape' was a finalist in the Inspirational Book of the Year Category at the Garden Media Guild Awards.
Wimbledon-born Steffie, who lives in Church Lane, moved to Welby in 1995 with husband Michael, a group captain at RAF Cranwell.
Steffie, who has a daughter Gabrielle and grand-daughter Emily, told the Journal: "I trained as a teacher but with moving around the country it was hard to get settled in a school and with photography, you can do that anywhere."
"For years I have been contributing to books and magazines. I am the gardening correspondent for Lincolnshire Life."
She said of receiving the honour: "I am so excited, I had no idea. This will be leading from the work I did on Capability Brown. It's not about me, but the people I have worked with."