BEXROSE BULLETIN
April 2004
Web site: - http://home.btconnect.com/cadoss/bexrose
Email: - cadoss@btconnect.com
Published by the Bexleyheath & District Rose Society
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Patron: - President: - Vice-President: - Chairman: - Vice-Chairman: - Hon Secretary: - Hon Treasurer: - Show Secretary- Membership Secretary: - |
Dr David G Hessayon Mr F H Boardman Mr W Skinner Mr S Burch Mr B Rainsbury Mrs J Newton Mrs Z Neale Mr A. Neale Mrs D Taylor |
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Next meeting on 27th April at St John Fisher Parish Hall, Thanet Road, Bexley at 8pm.
This month we welcome back George Puddefoot from Riverside Nursery, Sutton-at-Hone who will deliver the Bert Powell Memorial Lecture. George holds the National Collection of Fuchsias and will tell us what this entails. We anticipate an amusing evening.
Obituaries.
We were sorry to hear of the death of Mrs. Marion Holman, our
condolences go to her family.
Welcome to new members.
Mrs. H. Lang
Mrs. S. Langley
Mrs. B Wright
Congratulations
Congratulations to Tony and Joan Dixon for being the first members to take the Bulletin via Email from the web site.
Secretary's Report on the March Meeting Spring Show.
There were over 100 members attending for our Spring Show and many put in some very good quality entries. Dora Lemon gave us a floral art demonstration and handy tips while Dr. John Hughes judged the show. She tried to give us all encouragement to try our hand at a display for the Floral Art Table Show each month and also to enter the Spring and Summer Shows. She did 3 displays the last of which was a modern arrangement with the dried seed heads of Angels Fishing Rods, 3 Exotic leaves and 3 Carnations. It was simple but very effective.
John was with us again this year after missing last year due to a foot operation and he had high praise for our entries. I think the number of entries were up especially in the pot plant classes and also the basket of spring flowers. Everyone should be congratulated for their efforts. The overall winner this year was Margaret Stone.
Rose Growers Calendar for April by kind permission of Don Charlton.
1. Keep beds tidy, thin out excess shoots from the base and stems of rose bushes.
2. Look for any signs of die back and cut back stems to good wood.
3. Keep a look out for the first sign of insect build up and spray only if necessary
Gardening jobs for April
This month we must get down to work on the lawn with a vengeance if we want that but billiard table lawn for the summer (draught conditions permitting, what a disaster last year.) Hopefully April will bring some gentle days to allow us to spread our lawn weed and feed fertiliser. A useful tip is to listen to the weather forecast for a few days and choose a day when there is a good wet spell on the way, this will save time and energy having to water. Give your lawn a medium length cut and leave for a few days for the blades to repair before you spread. Don't forget not to compost the next couple of cuts. When the brown patches of moss appear and the soil is reasonably dry rake out the old thatch and dead moss. This is hard work so do a bit at a time to prevent blisters and heart attacks. Next month the bare patches can be prepared and seeded.
Spring is a time to feed your acid loving plants, so get out the Sequestrene and as well as your Azaleas, Rhododendrons and Camellias, don't forget the Heathers. Trim back the dead flowers on the winter varieties, conifers would benefit from a feed too.
Hardy annuals can now be sown straight into the borders, mix them up to give that cottage garden effect. If you have a rockery, have a tidy up then dress it with Fish, Blood and Bone and some new top soil.
We have had our bedding plants for a few weeks now and can start putting them outside to harden off on mild days. Don't forget to bring them back in each night.
Spring flowering shrubs such as Forsythia, Flowering Currant, Ribes and Hebes can be pruned back once they have finished flowering. As many of the older branches as possible should be cut out and many of the younger ones which have flowered, cut back. This allows time for the growth of new branches which will mature before winter sets in to provide flowers for next spring. Tidy up your borders by pruning back the Penstamens and any other plants that are straggly. Most shrubs will now be producing young shoots and these can be used to make soft wood cuttings for rooting in the propagation frame and the Fuchsia cuttings that were the result of pinching out should have rooted by now and can be potted on in 3" pots. House plants can also be repotted those that are difficult to disturb or are already in large pots can have the top inch or so of soil replaced.
Holidays.
Christmas Trip to Valkenburg. Holland 29th Nov - 2nd Dec 2004.
We must apologise for the typing error in last months Bulletin. The cost of this trip should read £225 single £185 sharing. We have 4 single and 6 twin rooms still available.
Day trip to France 29th June 2004 We have received a good response for this trip, we have 9 seats still available.
Dorset 16th - 21st July (6 days - 5 nights) After all your hard efforts with your rose displays at our annual show, why not come along with us and relax and enjoy the beautiful County of Dorset. We are staying at the East Anglian Hotel, Bournemouth which belongs to the Best Western Group so we are assured of a comfortable stay. Dorset has many places of interest, too numerous to list here and of course Bournemouth itself has many attractions, so we feel sure this will be a lovely break. The cost is £245 per person. No single supplement. We have 11 twin rooms still available.
Norfolk 17th - 20th September 2004 ( 4 days - 3 nights). We have been successful in upgrading our hotel to a 4 star with no extra cost. We shall be staying in the Hilton Hotel Norwich. The cost is £147 per person sharing and £192 for a single room. This is the first time we have had a trip to this area but we are given to understand that Norfolk offers many places of interest such as Sandringham, Norwich, Blickling Hall and the Lavender fields. We have 4 single and 10 twin rooms available.
If there are any members of the Society who would like to be included in any of the above trips please ring either Janet (01322 445010) or Vanessa (0208 303 1498).
Weekend trip to The Malvern Spring Show 7th - 10th May 2004 Your final payment for this trip is required by 23rd April 2004 being £155 per person if sharing and £185 if a single, ( this takes into account the deposit of £25 already paid) If paying by cheque, please make it payable to Bexleyheath & District Rose Society and send either to Mrs. Janet Newton, address on the top of the Bulletin or to Miss Vanessa Rochester, 4, Martin Rise, Bexleyheath, Kent, DA6 8NB. A newsletter detailing this trip will be coming your way shortly.
Dates for your diary
16th & 17th April RHS Plant Road Show, The Palace Hotel Torquay
24th & 25th April The Weald of Kent Garden Show, The Hop Farm C.P. Paddock Wood.
1st -3rd May The Garden Design Show, Farming World, Faversham.
7th - 9th May The Malvern Spring Show.
7th - 9th May Urban Gardens 2004, Olympia.
17th May Charlton & Blackheath H.S. RHS Lecture, Entry by Ticket only £3 RHS members & £4 others Ring Ron Roffey Tel: 0208 467 0377
25th - 28th May Chelsea Flower Show
29th -31st May The Kent Garden Show, Detling, Maidstone.
12th - 27th June Groombridge Place, Midsummer Garden Celebration
19th June Bexrose Summer Show
26th June The Southern Rose Show, Squires, Shepperton.
6th - 11th July Hampton Court Flower Show
25th & 26th September Malvern Autumn Show.
Hospice Garden Festival
This years plant day held in aid of Greenwich and Bexley Hospice will be on Sunday 23rd May 1pm to 5pm at Bostall Heath Playing Fields. We shall not be having a stall this year as we no longer have the facilities to store large numbers of plants but we hope that members will still try and attend as there are bargains to be had and it is a worthy cause. Admission is free.
Ellenor Hospice Open Gardens 2004
Sunday 4th April
will see the start of this years open days with St John's Jerusalem. This is a National Trust Garden which is usually only open on Wednesdays. If their summer borders are anything to go by we should not miss this one and of course the river Darenth flows through the grounds giving extra interest.Sunday 25th April Whitestacks, off Crockenhill Lane, Eynsford
Meadow View, Lullingstone Lane, Eynsford
All gardens will be open from 2pm to 5pm, Refreshments available, Tombola and / or Raffle, Plant stalls available. Entry £2 regardless of the number of gardens open on that day. A brochure can be obtained from the Ellenor Hospice shop Dartford or local libraries.
Greenwich & Bexley Hospice Open Gardens 2004
Booklets for this years scheme will be on the Secretary's table at each meeting, they are free, please take one and visit the gardens.
Cheese & Wine Evening.
George and Nell Puddefoot have arranged a Cheese and Wine Evening at their Riverside Nursery, Sutton-at-Hone, on Thursday 24th June at 7pm. This is exclusively for Bexrose members and friends. The cost will be a 50p raffle ticket, cheese and wine provided. Make your own way there. This will be an opportunity to see the National Collection of Fuchsias and of course buy some plants. George also sells a wide variety of bedding and perennial plants. This should be a good evening especially if the weather is fine as the setting is very pleasant with the River Darenth running through the nursery.
Let Janet have your name if you wish to go so that we can give Nell a rough idea of the numbers for catering.
Pot grown Rose for the Summer Show.
The pot grown rose Drummer Boy was on sale at the March meeting. Many thanks to Ben for ordering them and potting them up with help from others. If you could not attend the meeting but wish to buy one of these roses there are still some available priced £3. Ring Janet and she will either direct you to the nearest person who is looking after them or arrange to have one delivered to you.
The Allotment Saga Chapter 3 or could the whole scheme land up on the compost heap
The borough's allotment holders are up in arms at the Councils modernisation strategy which could see the closure of 18 sites across the borough, claiming they have not been given the opportunity to make their feelings known. Councillor Bryant's draft proposals were due to be rubber stamped on 23rd February but after a rumpus at the Cabinet Meeting it was agreed to send them to an environment scrutiny committee, (more waffle and wasted paper).
Consultations were held with the Federation of Allotment Holders and Leisure Gardeners but it seems several high ranking councillors knew nothing about the proposals and neither did the plot owners themselves until the eleventh hour. Plot owners accuse the Federation of working hand in glove with the Council instead of representing them. They also feel there is a conflict of interests as Federation Secretary Mike Williams runs a Horticultural business with Jan Thornton of the Councils Parks Dept which looks after allotments.
Mr. Williams claims that every plot holder had been sent a copy of the strategy and invited to two meetings with Councillors in January. The allotment holders say they never received the strategy or knew of the meetings, ( must have all got lost in the post). A Society member rang us to tell us that everything was on hold, probably until October or November and that no noticed of termination would be sent out before March 2006. The allotment holders are demanding full consultation and many are now writing to the Council making their feelings known.
Several allotment sites run themselves and have their own committees, they are not in favour of being modernised.
And what about the sheds!! The Council say everyone who wants a shed on their plot must go to a designated supplier so that all sheds are uniform, but surely that is half the fun of having a plot, to have a potting shed that has cost nothing to bang together out of window frames and old doors rescued from skips. Its an Englishman's right to be as eccentric as he likes on his plot and to grow his runner beans up any outlandish contraption that has cost him nothing but yields a jolly good crop.
So where do we go from here??? Do they plant their spuds or have they had their chips for the foreseeable future???
If the plans are going to another committee it is bound to drag on for months, there will be plenty of waffle from people who like the sound of their own voices. Use the time wisely lads,devise your own strategy and present a united front!!! Watch this space for further news.
Uses old and new
Old herbal records show that the Acacia has many healing properties and as well as being used in the treatment of eye complaints it was also incorporated into perfumes and love potions. Bark extracts can be used to make brown dyes and are used in the tanning process. Acacia Senegal (the Cape Gum or Egyptian Thorn) is a small spiny tree from tropical Africa which produces Gum Arabic. This has long been used to form a protective and soothing coating for inflammations of the urinary, alimentary and respiratory tracts, and for treating sore throats, coughs and typhoid fever.
Myths and Legends
Acacia was mentioned in the Old Testament and was known as Shittim wood by the Hebrews. It was used in the building of the Ark of the Covernant and the thorns formed Christ's crown of thorns.
The ancient Egyptians believed that an Acacia harboured a human soul and if the tree was cut down the soul died and so did its owner. One owner was revived by drinking a potion made from Acacia seeds and he was made Pharaoh of Egypt.
The ancient Greeks believed that when Pan desired Cephisa she changed into an Acacia tree to escape his attentions. Some say when sinners pass a Mimosa tree the leaves close up in horror, this is Mimosa Pudica or Touch Me Not.
On the Indian sub continent Acacia or Mimosa is said to have magical charms and can ward off evil. It can often be found hanging over a bed, to protect the sleeper in the hours of darkness.
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