The Wychwood October/November 2014 Fifield with Idbury News Defibrillator the area. I have been privileged to read With the generous contribution of £820 this recently, and I can only say, Wow! It from the West Oxfordshire District is splendid and so full of information. Les Council, £350 from Rodney Rose’s Big and Margaret are very kindly going to Society Fund, a contribution from a give this work to the village in due charity and thanks to the incredible course. generosity of a number of parishioners, Fifield now has its own defibrillator. It Fifield’s Indian Dinner just has to be installed for it to be ‘all On Saturday 9 th August, with marquees in systems go’. the gardens of Fifield House, and the rain always threatening but mostly holding off, Cream Teas in Idbury this was a memorable, wonderful, Congratulations to Mary and Rob unforgettable event. Our congratulations Champness who held a delightful Cream to Rachel and James Chapel, Lucy and Tea event in their garden on Saturday 26 th Hugh Taylor and Anabel and Jonathan July, offering excellent scones, mouth- Scott-Smith, who with generous help watering cakes with coffee and tea, and from Vicky and Simon Orr-Ewing, raised £170 towards Church expenses for planned and organised the whole event, the Fifield with Idbury Parochial Church and catered for over 100 guests. The Council. proceeds from the evening amounted to over £4,000 after expenses and will be Les Wilcox’s Book of Fifield, distributed: 50% to the Parochial Church Foxholes, Bould and Idbury Council, 25% to the Fifield Parish Hall Congratulations to Les and Margaret on and 25% to the Fifield Memorial the truly wonderful album of photographs Recreation Ground. and information they have compiled about Catherine Hitchens

News from the Wild Garden If you have been down the Avenue now been generously sponsored by local recently you will have noticed a number donors. of white topped posts. Not for tying up errant dog walkers for a firing squad as We are planning to start planting in mid suggested by one wag, but rather marker October, matching the original spacings posts for the new lime trees to replace as far as we can. To ensure they get those which have fallen or were badly established quickly we may have to damaged. further trim back some of the adjacent Our challenge has been to find the right limes to give enough growing light and limes, matching the specific clones that will certainly have to instigate a were planted in the 18 th and 19 th centuries. comprehensive watering regime for the These are Tilia x Europea, Hatfield and next two years. We are taking advice from Pallida clones. Only the Pallida is now Barchams, our suppliers, and local tree grown and we have sourced these from a specialists to get the limes off to the best UK grower as container planted trees, start possible. about four metres high. All 18 trees have Mike Watson www.thewychwood.co.uk 61