Newsletter June 2011

Gardening Club
Visits

Sunday 19th June - Beth Chatto visit

A trip to this beautiful garden - we are leaving the Rose & Crown, Ashdon at 9.30 am and will be back around 6 pm. Tickets £15 per person.

Thusday 23rd June - Snares Hill, Stebbing

An evening outing leaving the Rose & Crown at approx. 6.15 pm for a visit 7-9 pm. Tickets cost £7 per entry including tea and cake or glass of wine. Please let Rob Elston know asap or call Lisa at the phone number above.

Thursday 21st July - Gardeners' Walkabout

Meet 6.30 at Fallowden Lane car park (additional parking along Church Walk). Visits to 4 gardens in Church End, Ashdon by kind permission of Lisa Swan, Sue Kidman, Jill Hewitt & Hilary Haynes.

PROTECT OUR APPLES

If you're an apple lover, fly the flag for our beautiful English varieties. Following the decline in popularity Dr David Bellamy has teamed up with the National Trust and Copella Juice to ask us to show support. You can pledge support online and for each pledge a donation will be made to plant an English apple tree in a National Trust orchard.

ADOPT A BEEHIVE

How would you like to own 1/12th of a beehive or even a whole one? If the answer's yes, check out Adopt a Beehive site where you can receive information packs. Other Websites offer this too at a similar cost but this one is offered by the British Beehive Conservation Society.

GARDENING CLUB BBQ - Friday, 29th July from 6.30 pm

We are hoping for glorious weather for our annual barbecue. The event is for members and guest only. Tickets are £7.50 and are available from Philip Marchant on 01799 584265. Do join us for a very relaxing evening in a beautiful garden.

PLANT SALE - WOW!!!

Our plant sale went extremely well and we raised £383, our best ever! Well done to everyone who helped and to those that donated plants.

EARLY WARNING!  EARLY WARNING! EARLY WARNING!

Roy’s Bulbs and Seed Catalogues.

Roy will be again doing the Bulb and Seeds Catalogues.  The Bulbs will be ordered from Parkers and the catalogue is due out around the end of August.  The Fothergills seed catalogue will be out around the end of September to early October.  If you require a catalogue or any information, please get in touch with Roy on 01799 584628 or email roy.b@surfree.co.uk.

ASHDON VILLAGE SHOW – 20th August

The Village show schedule has been posted on our website and put in the Ashdon Village Magazine shortly.  If you require a copy and are not able to get one please contact Lisa on 01799 584144.  The Gardening Club member plant is available from Ian on 07961735416.  We are also having a tombola. If you have any garden related items, from twine, seeds, bulbs etc. then please get in touch with Lisa before August please so that it can be organised before she is away on holiday!!  Thank you to all those that have already kindly donated items.

JOBS FOR THE SUMMER (MAY TO AUGUST)
With thanks to Springwell Nurseries.

Get your Summer Bedding plants in, Pots & Baskets – Busy Lizzies, Begonias, Marigold, Lobelia, Petunias, Fuschsias, Geraniums, Bacopia, Diascia and Verbenas to name a few.

Plant out your vegetables – Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Courgettes & Runner Beans

Also consider- Herbs, Perennials, Shrubs and Dahlias

Ashdon Gardening Club - Speakers for the new season 2011/2012

September 15th - Mr Richard Ford:  Hostas

October 20th - Mr Andrew Sankey-Smith:  A Brief History of the English Garden

November 17th - Mr Rodney Tibbs:  Cambridge College Gardens

As always there will be a Questions & Answers session at 7.45pm, a raffle, bring & buy stall and refreshments.  More details will be given nearer the time.

Nothing to do in the garden..? How about?

Wimpole Estate, Arrington, Royston are holding their National Gardens Scheme Day on Sunday 24th July 10.30 – 5pm.  Proceeds from entry will go to charity which supports National Trust Careership Gardeners and Wardens.

RHS Garden Hyde Hall, Chelmsford is holding a Rose Weekend on 18-19 June and a Flower Show from 12-14th August

Clavering Open Gardens – Sunday 12th June 2 – 5pm.  Popular village with many C16 and C17 timber-framed dwellings. Beautiful C14 church, village green with thatched cricket pavilion and pitch. Deers garden(see separate entry) for 9 acres, judged by visitors to be a very romantic garden. Piercewebbs is a formal old walled garden with shrubs, lawns, ha-ha, yew with topiary and stilt hedges, pond and trellised rose garden. Extensive views over the countryside.

Parsonage House, Helions Bumpstead – Open Garden through NGS – Sunday 26th June 2 – 5pm. C15 house (not open) surrounded by 3 acres of formal gardens with mixed borders, topiary, pond, potager and greenhouse. Further 3-acre wild flower meadow with rare trees and further 3 acres of newly-planted orchard of old East Anglian apple varieties. £3.50 entry, children free- refreshments & plants available.