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December 2020 / January 2021 Newsletter

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December 2020 / January 2021 Newsletter December 2020 / January 2021 Newsletter www.gardenclub.org.uk Hello By the time this goes out the Lockdown will be over and we will be experiencing different types of restrictions. The important thing now is to get through the next few months, get the vaccine and be ‘back to normal’ by Easter. Optimistic I know but lots to look forward to. The garden still requires attention and the grass needs cutting. Until we have a hard frost of course. Jane’s ‘Garden Tips’ as ever remind us there is plenty to keep us busy. We are continuing to arrange Speakers who give talks via Zoom with the turnout increasing by the month. In November we had a talk by Patricia Gentry- Verhoestraete about Kew Gardens which was most informative. Karen’s report in this Newsletter is worth reading in case you missed it or as a reminder. Our Speaker for December is Timothy Walker, former Director of Oxford Botanic Garden and Arboretum, details below. May I take this opportunity to wish you all the best for Christmas and the New Year. It will certainly be different but hopefully for just this one time! Julie Pearson, Chairman -------------------------------------- Virtual Talk on Wednesday 16th December 7.00 for 7.30pm start. ‘In the Not-So-Bleak Midwinter’ by Timothy Walker, Lecturer in Plant Sciences at Somerville, Oxford and previously for 26 years Director of Oxford Botanic Garden and Arboretum having started as a trainee gardener 8 years before then. Timothy Walker will talk about making our gardens interesting in winter. He is an entertaining speaker who has travelled extensively in search of plants. He presented a series on BBC4 in 2011 on the history of botany. He is also from South Bucks! A link to Timothy’s talk via ZOOM will be sent out by email on Monday of that week. The Talk will start at 7.30pm and last for about 1 hour plus Q&A. You do not need to download ZOOM, just click on the link as shown in the email with video and audio on. ZOOM will open from 7pm to give people time to settle and say hello. We have a limit of 99 people so bear with us if we cannot accommodate you. --------------------------------------------- AGMs We will hold our belated AGM on 20th January 2021 at 7.30pm via Zoom We will then hold our usual AGM via Zoom in March on the usual date. More details to follow. Hut Report - December 2020 The Hut is now closed for the year. We will re-open on February 21st, 2021. As we missed the last few open days due to the second Lockdown, please note we MAY open one more Sunday to sell off items we don’t wish to keep in the Hut over winter. It’s not possible to be specific at this time, but please check our website and your email inbox. I am contactable by phone on 01895 234609 or 0744322 9626. Email [email protected]. Garden Club website behind the scenes You may not know him but Andy Watts secured our Domain name and built our website. Over many years he has supported the club, continuing from his father who is a Life member now. Mr Watts senior used to duplicate the newsletters and distribute them; help organise the show and was a committee member for 20 or so years. He also volunteered down at the Garden Hut on lots of Sundays. Jack Wennel was also around at that time. Richard Fenton, along with Andy, kept the site updated and renewed for over 10 years. Richard has now retired but luckily another Richard has picked up the baton. Richard Mitchell, with occasional help from Sue Mills, liaised with Andy who has created a new, updated version of our website. The bright, easy to navigate, site will be online in December. The club is extremely fortunate to have a supporter as professional as Andy. Heartfelt thanks to the two Richards is barely adequate. For the website a Christmas idea? Please take a selfie perhaps wearing a Christmas hat and send it via email by 15th December to [email protected] It would be wonderful if as many members as possible could participate. We cannot meet in person, but it would be a treat to see your faces. The intention is to create a video scrolling through your selfies over the Christmas period. Please look at our new website. Susan Mills JANE’S GARDEN TIPS – December I get the overall impression that, during this strange year we have just had, gardening has been more popular than ever. Let’s face it, we have all had more time to spend in our gardens and even giving vegetable growing a go. If you think there is nothing to do in Winter – think again. Here are a few of the tasks awaiting you: - Cut back the foliage of hellebores now to prevent the emerging flowers being obscured and to help control hellebore leaf spot disease. Strong winds can damage climbing plants so make sure they are securely attached to supports. Also, make sure tree ties and stakes are securely in place, gently re-firming the soil around the root ball of newly planted trees. Many deciduous trees can be pruned now whilst free of leaves. A clear view of the branch structure helps with early pruning of new trees and thinning of branches on established trees. Prune fruit trees during their dormant season to control shape and size; remove dead, diseased and crossing branches, take out overcrowded branches and shorten laterals shoots to 4-6 buds to stimulate growth of fruiting spurs. Look out for spots or blotches on the leaves of pansies or violas which may be caused by fungal disease, remove infected leaves or the whole plant if badly infected. Many of you may have received or bought African violets this Christmas and now is a good time to propagate them from leaf cutting. Select mature healthy leaves cutting the stalk close to the crown. With a sharp knife trim the leaf stalk to 1-1 ½“, set to one side to allow cut end to dry. Tape up a small bag of compost to make a firm “pillow”, cut across the plastic to allow leaves to be inserted back to back, space pairs of leaves over the surface of the bag and cut hole in centre for watering, put in propagator and try to maintain a temperature of 20 degrees c. to produce roots and shoots. New plants should flower 6 months later. Plant up some herbs (mint, chives and coriander) for growing on the windowsill to provide leaves for cutting. If you fancy growing some fresh vegetables try some sprouting beans in a jar on the windowsill; the water needs changing twice a day but the result is very nutritious. Sow onions seeds in modules and germinate in a propagator. Also sow sweet peas under cover. To prepare for spring sowing cover areas of prepared soil with polythene to allow the soil to dry and warm up - secure firmly to the ground. If you are lucky enough to have a Greenhouse then give it a thorough clean and clear away any debris. Look after your garden birds by cleaning out bird feeders and refilling with fresh seeds and nuts. Look for peanuts that are RSPB approved or BSA (Birdcare Standards Association). This means they have been tested to ensure they are free from a fungus which produces a poison called aflatoxin. Make sure there is fresh water available. Lastly order seeds and potatoes for next year. Jane Campbell Report on Online Garden Club Meeting on Wednesday 18th November 2020 Patricia Gentry – Verhoestraete, a tour of the Royal Botanic Gardens of Kew Over 50 members tuned in to our monthly Zoom meeting which was a talk by Patricia Gentry-Verhoestraete about the Royal Botanic Gardens of Kew. Patricia is a Blue Badge holder with a special interest in gardens and lives not far from Kew. Patricia started her talk with two interesting facts, Kew’s sister garden, Wakehurst, houses The Millennium Seed Bank, a collection of over 2.4 billion seeds from around the world. The seeds are freeze dried for future generations and it has reached 25% of its target of all seeds. At Kew itself is a DNA and Tissue Collection which contains tens of thousands of samples of plants genomic DNA plus silica dried tissue samples. So we are reminded that Kew is not just a pretty place to wander around, but is carrying out invaluable conservation work. The humble Periwinkle which was nearly extinct at one point is now used to treat cancer. Kew was originally two gardens, hence the word Gardens, and was used as a stop-over for those on their way to and from Hampton Court Palace. History tell us that George II had a keen interest in gardens, as did George III and his wife Charlotte and his 15 children (goodness!), we can only speculate what led to George III going mad. Kew was a good place to get away from London life and the pollution. Richmond Gardens and Kew Gardens were joined together and called the Royal Botanic Gardens. However after George III the gardens declined until Queen Victoria stepped in to save them. Kew has had its share of bad luck, a tea house was burnt down by suffragettes, bombs caused damage, and the hurricane of 1987 destroyed 700 trees which took two years to rectify. Kew is an area of 300 acres, and has 4 entrances.
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