BLEWBURY AND UPTON VILLAGE PRODUCE ASSOCIATION (Your Village Gardening Club)

In April we had a very interesting talk, by Stefan Edwin White, about the story of John Tradescant and his family. It was such a shame that we had a small attendance – I guess it was because it was a cold and miserable evening and people didn’t want to venture out.

On the 6th May our meeting is an evening garden visit to LIME CLOSE GARDEN (arrive at 6.30pm), 35 Henleys Lane, Drayton, OX14 4HU. The garden is famous for its displays of Iris. Tickets are £6.50 and available from Blewbury Post Office or through Maggie Maytham in Upton on 01235 850126. Don’t forget to say whether you need transport.

SATURDAY 13^th JUNE we have a visit to THE HARRIS GARDEN, READING UNIVERSITY and then a lunch at THE GRIFFIN PUBLIC HOUSE, CAVERSHAM.

(Harris Garden, Pepper Lane, Reading, RG6 5RQ. The Griffin P.H. 10-12 Church Road, Reading, RG4 7AD).

Arrive at Harris Garden at 10:30am for guided tour and then lunch at The Griffin, Caversham at 1.00pm.

Transport will leave Blewbury Village Hall at 9.30pm.

Ticket 1: Garden tour, one-course lunch & coffee – £7.50 per person

Ticket 2: Garden tour, one-course lunch & coffee, plus transport – £13 per person

PLEASE BOOK YOUR TICKET(s) THROUGH KAREN AT BLEWBURY POST OFFICE OR MAGGIE (IN UPTON) ON 01235 850126 OR EILEEN (IN DIDCOT) ON 01235 510095 TO CHOOSE YOUR LUNCH AND BOOK TRANSPORT IF YOU REQUIRE IT. Please call these numbers if you have any questions.

THE SCHEDULE FOR OUR ANNUAL SHOW ON SATURDAY 11^TH JULY IS NOW AVAILABLE at Blewbury Post Office and through Maggie or Eileen. Included at the Show will be a ‘Beetroot Bonanza’. We hope to have eighteen varieties of beetroot on display (grown by our committee members), together with tastings and recipes you have never seen before!! More news on the Show next month.

DID YOU KNOW? Britain’s Richard Hope holds the world record for growing the longest beetroot, stunning visitors to the 2003 Llanharry Giant Vegetable Championships in Wales with a whopper measuring 6.146 metres!!!

Happy Gardening

Eileen

I am writing this newsletter at the end of February as I’m now away on holiday until the beginning of April – so I hope you will have enjoyed the DIDCOT & DISTRICT WOODTURNERS’ CLUB demonstration which should have taken place in March. I’m really sorry I missed watching them produce amazing items from a chunk of wood.

Don’t forget – our meeting on the 1^st APRIL is being held in THE BARN AT BLEWBURY MANOR AT 7.30PM. We have a very special talk by Stefan Edwin White, called: SKULDUGGERY IN THE SHRUBBERY: The inspiring story of John Tradescant and his family.

You should all have a copy of our 2015 Programme in your March Blewbury Bulletin – if not, copies are available at the Post Office.

Don’t forget the gardening tools we have available for hire (for a donation).

On the 6th May our meeting is an evening (6pm) garden visit to LIME CLOSE GARDEN, 35 Henleys Lane, Drayton, OX14 4HU. The garden is famous for its displays of Iris. Tickets are £6.50 and available from Blewbury Post Office or through Maggie Maytham in Upton on 01235 850126. Don’t forget to say whether you need transport.

Our meeting for June is a visit to THE HARRIS GARDEN, READING UNIVERSITY on SATURDAY 13^TH JUNE – in the morning and a pub lunch on the way home. More details will be published in the next Blewbury Bulletin and Upton News, but in the meantime please pop the date in your diary.

The Schedule for our Annual Show (which is on the 11^th July) has been finalised and is currently at the printers. We are hoping for a bumper number of exhibitors this year and included at the Show will be a ‘Beetroot Bonanza’. We plan to have beetroot displays, tastings and recipes you have never seen before!! More news next month.

DID YOU KNOW? Bees are particularly attracted to blue, white, yellow and purple colours for their ultraviolet properties. It is no use planting red flowers in your garden to attract bees because bees cannot see red.

Happy Gardening

Eileen

Our first meeting of the year was a get together to peruse the vast array of 2015 seed catalogues we had collected. Weather was not too kind – but our small gathering enjoyed the company with plenty of tea and cakes. Hopefully March will be a bit warmer and we can all get back into our greenhouses, gardens and allotments and start planting and growing for the coming season.

We have a great meeting on the 4^th MARCH at 7.30pm in the Vale Room – DIDCOT & DISTRICT WOODTURNERS’ CLUB are giving a demonstration. They will demonstrate how they can produce amazing and beautiful items, from just a ‘lump of wood’. They will also have products for sale.

Please put the 1^st APRIL in your diary. Our meeting will be held in The Barn at Blewbury Manor at 7.30pm. We have a very special talk by Stefan Edwin White, called: SKULDUGGERY IN THE SHRUBBERY: The inspiring story of John Tradescant and his family – 17^th century Gardener to Royalty, founder of the world’s first Museum, widely travelled plant collector, adventurer and collector of nature’s rarities, all stolen by a rascally lawyer, who took all the credit and founded The Ashmolean Museum with Tradescant’s collection. Witchcraft, the last remaining dodo, mermaids, magic spells, a unicorn’s horn, Pocahontas the Indian Princess, pirates, Kings and Queens, intrigue and treachery all feature in this insight into a turbulent period of Britain’s history.

You should all find a copy of our 2015 Programme in your March issue of the Blewbury Bulletin – if not, pick one up at the Blewbury Post Office. It also includes details of the gardening tools we have available for hire for a donation.

Our May meeting is an evening garden visit – more details in the next Blewbury Bulletin.

DID YOU KNOW? Origins of names of some flowering plants: Buddleia – named after the 17^th century English botanist Adam Buddle. Forsythia – named after the 18^th century Scottish gardener and writer William Forsyth. Fuschia – named after the 16^th century German botanist and herbalist Leonard Fuchs.

Happy Gardening

Eileen

BLEWBURY AND UPTON VILLAGE PRODUCE ASSOCIATION

We concluded 2014 with a very enjoyable Xmas Social at Upton Village Hall, having a delicious fish & chip supper with fun games and a very mixed quiz. We had an indoor game of ‘Croquet with a Twist’ – it was interesting to see the non-croquet players were more successful than Blewbury Croquet Club players!

The weather’s a bit of a mixed bag at the moment but hopefully we’ll be able to get out onto our allotments and into the garden very soon. In the meantime, maybe we can help you.

4^th FEBRUARY at 7.30pm, we have an evening at BLEWBURY SCHOOL to have a look at the wide selection of 2015 Seed and Plant Catalogues available. Everyone is welcome. We can order any seeds you’re interested in – so don’t forget to bring some cash with you. Come and join us for a cuppa and a piece of cake and have a chat about your garden plans and problems! EVERYONE IS WELCOME.

Don’t forget the following dates for your diary:

4^th MARCH at 7.30pm – Didcot & District Woodturners’ Club are giving a demonstration in the Vale Room. They will demonstrate how they produce such amazing and beautiful items, from just a ‘lump of wood’. They will also have products for sale.

1^st APRIL 7.30pm Stefan Edwin White is giving a talk called: SKULDUGGERY IN THE SHRUBBERY: It’s the sad, true and fascinating story of the Tradescants – more information about this very special talk will be in the next Bulletin. Please pop these dates in your diary. Our complete Programme will be due for circulation shortly.

DID YOU KNOW? To animals, the smell of elder leaves is so awful that even rabbits won’t eat them. In days gone by gardeners used to place a few branches of elder in their gooseberry bushes to stop magpie moths stripping off all the leaves!

Happy Gardening

Eileen

BLEWBURY AND UPTON VILLAGE PRODUCE ASSOCIATION (Your Village Gardening Club)I’m having to meet the December deadline for the Bulletin before our Xmas Social on the 13^th December, so I hope by the time you read this, those of you who bought a ticket, will have enjoyed yourselves. If you couldn’t make it, on behalf of the VPA Committee, may I take this opportunity to wish everyone in Blewbury and Upton A HAPPY CHRISTMAS AND A PEACEFUL AND PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR.

2014 was a really good year for the VPA, with lots of interesting talks and a great Summer Show. Most people I’ve spoken to have also had a good year in their gardens, veggie plots and allotments. I’m still eating vegetables off my allotment and looking forward to home grown Brussels Sprouts with my Christmas lunch.

The first quarter of the VPA 2015 programme is confirmed and the following dates are for your diary:

January – No Meeting. 4th February – A Fireside Evening with Seed Catalogues at Karen’s. Come round to ‘Tadcombe’, Besselslea Road, Blewbury at 7.30pm for hot drinks and cakes to have a look at a great variety of seed catalogues and discuss gardening plans for 2015. 4^th March – Didcot & District Woodturner’s Club are giving a demonstration in the Vale Room at 7.30pm. They will demonstrate what they can produce from a ‘lump of wood’. They will also have products for sale.

1^st April – ‘How do I Enter?’ Karen and myself will be giving our entertaining presentation about the Annual Show which takes place on the 11^th July 2015. Please pop all these dates in your diary.

DID YOU KNOW? Grasses and cereals are wind-pollinated plants so they don’t have the colourful flowers or distinctive scents that other plants need in order to attract insects. Grasses and cereals produce an enormous amount of pollen, which explains why pollen allergy has come to be known as HAY FEVER.

Happy Gardening

Eileen

BLEWBURY AND UPTON VILLAGE PRODUCE ASSOCIATION (Your Village Gardening Club)

On the 5^th November we had an excellent Annual General Meeting and those of you who didn’t make it missed a very good evening. After wine & nibbles, the AGM business was short and sweet and having elected the new Committee, our guest speaker Chrissie Harper updated us with her work on Owl Rescue. She brought with her, her wonderful barn owl and Ruben, the Indian Eagle Owl. Chrissie runs her sanctuary completely on donations and does not receive any grants. She spends a great deal of time giving talks to anyone who is interested in her work in order to raise funds. Thank you Chrissie – it made our evening.

PLEASE DON’T FORGET – we have our XMAS SOCIAL on SATURDAY 13^th DECEMBER – 7.00pm at UPTON VILLAGE HALL. The tickets are selling really well, so don’t leave it too late and be disappointed because we’ve sold out. The FISH & CHIP SUPPER is being provided by Danny’s Mobile Fish Bar. (Danny will also have chicken, burgers, etc on the menu and gluten free batter is available). On arrival you will receive a complimentary glass of wine or non-alcoholic drink and nibbles and then finish with the traditional mince pie. (Please bring any other drink you may want). We have an interesting table quiz and a couple of unusual indoor games!!

REMEMBER – it is open to the whole family, so please bring the children for a fun night out. Tickets at only £9 per head are available in the Blewbury Post Office, or you can telephone and book your ticket with Margaret Maytham – 01235 850126 or Eileen Bracken – 01235 510095.

The VPA Programme for 2015 is almost finalised – the first quarter of the year has been confirmed:

January – No Meeting. 4th February – Seed Catalogue Evening at Karen’s (More details next month).

4^th March – Didcot & District Woodturner’s Club are giving a demonstration (More details next month).

1^st April – “S-S-S” (details to be advertised). Please pop these dates in your diary.

DID YOU KNOW? In the late 1800’s, Charles Dudley Warner an American essayist and novelist made the famous remark “Everybody complains about the weather, but nobody does anything about it.” This was quoted by Mark Twain (a great friend of Warner) in a lecture and is still commonly misattributed to Twain.

Happy Gardening

Eileen

Yet another month has passed us by – but what a great summer we’ve had. Plenty of sunshine and a few heavy! showers. Now is the time to think about putting the allotments and gardens to bed. Hopefully bulb planting will be going on this month, for wonderful displays next spring. You’ll be pleased to hear that we still have a very busy programme and below are some important dates for your diary.

Wednesday 1^st October – 7.30pm in the Vale Room at the Village Hall, Blewbury.

Our talk is about The Oxford University Gardens with Jean Warr.

Saturday 11^th October – 1.00pm to 3.30pm at the Red Lion Pub, Blewbury.

We have a huge Cake and Plant Sale.

Wednesday 5^th November – 7.00pm in the Vale Room at the Village Hall, Blewbury

Our Annual General Meeting starts at 7.00pm this year with a glass of wine and nibbles. After the VPA business we have Chrissie Harper giving a talk on her work with owls and there will be a live owl display!! Everyone is welcome, including children.

Saturday 13^th December – 7pm at Upton Village Hall. We have a great Christmas Social planned and the whole family is welcome. More information next month. Please note the date has changed from that shown in our Programme.

Well, they say variety is the spice of life – I hope you will find something of interest in our programme above during the coming months.

DID YOU KNOW? Queen Victoria and Prince Albert encouraged their children to garden. At Osborne House on the Isle of Wight they were each given their own vegetable and flower plot and their own personally monographed wheelbarrow and tools that had been scaled down to the right size!

Happy Gardening

Eileen

Blewbury and Upton Village Produce Association

At long last the weather has come up trumps – plenty of sunshine – and a few showers.

Our Annual Show on the 12^th July was a great day! We had 38 exhibitors with over 300 entries in the various classes. It was great to see the young people entering exhibits in their Section. Despite the hot weather affecting some of the flowers and vegetables, there was a fantastic display in the Horticultural Section. Our “Old and Modern” Display of Garden Tools proved to be a good talking point.

Thanks to everyone who supported the Show, including entrants from Didcot and Harwell Gardener’s Club – they won the Inter-Society Trophy! If we didn’t have the Exhibitors, we wouldn’t have a Show. A VERY BIG THANK YOU to the Committee and all the other volunteers who helped to make the Show such a success.

We took a well-deserved break in August and for those of you who were on holiday – hope you had a great time.

Our next monthly meeting is on WEDNESDAY 2^ND SEPTEMBER AT 7.30PM IN THE VALE ROOM, BLEWBURY VILLAGE HALL.

Our speaker is Mr D’Ayala who is giving a talk on WILDFLOWERS OF THE CHILTERNS.

Due to unforeseen circumstances our trip to WATERPERRY GARDENS ON SATURDAY 20^TH SEPTEMBER has had to be cancelled but we hope to replace it with a trip to HARCOURT ARBORETUM to see the acers in their glorious autumn colours and a coffee and cake at Notcutts Garden Centre later in the year. We will let you know the proposed date next month.

Our diary for 2014 is still very busy and we would love to see more of you at our monthly meetings. Everyone in Blewbury and Upton is a member of the VPA and the only cost is £2 when you come to a talk.

DID YOU KNOW? The invention of the wheelbarrow is usually traced to China’s Chuko Liang, an adviser to the Shu-Han Dynasty from AD197 to 234, who had it developed as a means of transport for military supplies! The first evidence of wheelbarrows being used in Europe is found in illustrations in the thirteenth century.

Happy Gardening

Eileen

In June we had a very lively and interesting talk from John Negus on Shrubs of Distinction. Our members did very well in identifying most shrubs and we didn’t let ourselves down. Our next talk takes place on Wednesday 2^nd July at The Vale Room – 7.30pm. Our speaker will be Malcolm Brownsword giving a talk on the Butterflies and Orchids of the Upper Thames Region.

I’ve noticed a vast change in various allotment sites – bamboo canes are appearing in abundance awaiting the runner beans and it looks as though everyone is going to have a bumper crop of new potatoes. Let’s hope the weather holds and doesn’t ruin all our hard work. My strawberry blossom has converted into fruit and all being well I should have a good crop. Update on my greengage tree on the allotment – I have more than one greengage this year (so far). Despite the wind, the fruit survived and I have quite a few on the tree – it’s amazing how hard they are to see, let’s hope the birds don’t eat them before I do!

You will be pleased to hear that I’ve had plenty of offers of ‘old’ tools for the display at the forthcoming Annual Show in July. In fact, I have a couple that I think people will wonder what they were used for!! Don’t forget to call or e-mail me if you have any tools you think would be good for the display.

Talking about the Summer Show – it’s fast approaching (Saturday 12^th July). Karen and myself gave a light-hearted presentation to the Blewbury W.I. recently and I think we may have a few extra entries – particularly in the cookery section. Looks as though VPA members may have a bit more competition this year!! Don’t forget if you want a Show Schedule, pop into Blewbury Post Office or e-mail me on VPA.in.bl.up@gmail.com

DID YOU KNOW?

With larger seeds like those of the broad bean or the pea, there is a simple, age-old method for determining their quality: fill a tray with water and put in the seeds. The best seeds will sink, the inferior ones will float.

How about this? The Persian word for enclosure was pairidaeza, which became paradeisos in Ancient Greek and eventually park in English.

Happy gardening

Eileen

On Saturday 10^th May, twenty five people from Blewbury and Upton visited the RHS Gardens at Wisley in Surrey. We were extremely lucky with the weather and only suffered a couple of showers, although it was pretty windy. The rhododendrons and azaleas were amazing and everything else looked really healthy and fresh. Quite a few of us came away with a few plants from the well-stocked garden centre!!

Our next talk takes place on Wednesday 4^th June at The Vale Room – 7.30pm. Our speaker is John Negus who will be giving a presentation on Shrubs of Distinction.

The weather seems to have gone haywire again. Fortunately I had tied up my peas and sweet peas but my broad beans look like a few rows of leaning towers of Pisa!! Despite the weather, everything I’ve planted appears to be doing well, especially the onions and shallots. The strawberries are the best ever at the moment with plenty of bloom, but it remains to be seen if they produce fruit. The greengage tree on my allotment has for the first time been smothered in bloom. The blossom survived and teeny weeny fruit appeared but most of them have now disappeared as a result of the awful winds. Hopefully, I will get more than the ONE greengage which I had last year.

Just a reminder – Don’t forget the VPA has tools available (for a donation) which might help with some of your more strenuous gardening jobs.

The Summer Show is fast approaching – so if you haven’t got a Schedule yet, either pop into Blewbury Post Office or e-mail me on VPA.in.bl.up@gmail.com

DID YOU KNOW?

To kill off unwanted insects in the greenhouse or cold frame, bash up some laurel leaves and leave them in a bowl overnight. The damaged leaves exude prussic acid gas, which is deadly to most small insects.

How about this? Battersea Park in London was once the site of a giant asparagus field, with over 260 acres set aside for its cultivation!

Happy gardening

Eileen