July 2017
28/06/17 21:52
KIRTON AND FALKENHAM GARDENERS CLUB
August visit - Thurs. 10th.August - Berghersh Place, Witnesham IP6 9EZ
July visit – Perfect Perennials Nursery.
For our July evening visit we headed for Forward Green home of the Perfect Perennials plant nursery. Darren the owner was waiting our arrival and managed to park all our cars in the tiny car park, we would obviously have to leave together!
Darren started the nursery in 2005 on family land midway between Stowmarket and Stonham in the small village of Forward Green. The nursery attracts a lot of visitors and Darren has dispensed more than 6000 plants this season. Despite this there were a lot of plants on display and after the usual plant hunt and purchases we were able to view Darren’s own gardens before the evening was rounded off with complementary drinks and cakes. See the website for opening details. August visit – Thurs. 10 Aug – this is a change to our published programme , and we visit Berghersh Place, Witnesham, IP6 9EZ, entrance off B1077 just north of Witnesham village. Berghersh Place is a peaceful walled and hedged garden around a Regency house among fields above the river Finn valley. Times to be advised.
Summer Garden Party
The members’ traditional garden party took place on 8th. July at Mick and Diane Elmes’ home and garden at Felixstowe. The weather was perfect and members kept Mick busy with tours around every nook and cranny of his very special garden. After the garden members were able to sit in the sun and enjoy strawberries and cream, cakes and pots of tea and take the rare chance to just sit and relax and chat. Thanks to all who contributed cakes and especially Diane and Mick for hosting the event. The garden is open under the NGS scheme so take the chance to give it a look.
Autumn
On September 14th. we are back in the village hall for the start of our Autumn programme and the visit of Neil Bradfield talking on tulips and complementary planting, followed by the great Jim Buttress talking on his time in charge of the Central Royal Parks on 12th. October, on 9th. November a return of Sonya Burrows and for Christmas on 14th. December in the Church Hall it is Charlie Haylock taking ‘ An Eccentric Look at Spoken English ‘.
More of the club’s Origins -
2004 was our first trip to Euroland and there followed further trips with Ledger Tours, Reims 2005 and Loire Valley in 2006. Ledger’s then advised that they were dropping the use of guides which was a blow. Johan had guided the first three trips but his own input of history lessons, evening entertainment and special meals had become indispensable, who remembers The Handkerchief Song? So much so that tours without him were unthinkable.So we decided to run our own tour, Johan agreed to guide for us and we chose Galloways as coach operators. Jo organised the tours, Martin the hotel and coach, and Alma admin and we were away. There followed 9 brilliant tours to Ardennes, Amiens, Rouen, Belgium three times and finally Troyes in 2015. By this time Ria, Johan’s wife had joined the team. However there were problems at Calais with immigrants and it was decided to take a break which was just as well as the pound dropped against the euro which would have made a further trip very expensive.
Tales from the Allotments
I have mentioned our plot sharing with a pair of Red Legged partridges, an amicable arrangement, they provide entertainment running around in pairs and in exchange I don’t begrudge the few berries they purloin. The Red Legs were introduced to Britain from Southern France by King Charles 11 and are very colourful compared with our common partridge. On the plot late one glorious June evening I came face to beak with the hen. We both freeze a few paces apart eye balling each other. She then does a soft shoe shuffle to one side, her gaudy legs as scarlet as a femme fatale’s cheap lipstick in the evening sun, stops and stares again. Then repeats the movement.
I then realise what is happening , she is out with new born chicks and is trying to act as a decoy. Sure enough I then see a slight movement amongst the squash plants, a chick, all fluff, no bigger than a tennis ball. I leave them to enjoy their evening – a magical moment in a mad world.
The robins and blackbirds also become very tame , Rosemary has a blackbird that pecks at her door at breakfast time every morning, I expect she feeds it on peas!
Must mention the old station master, he straitened buckled rails to run his trains in aid of the childrens’hospice on 9th. July – no leaves or cows on the line for him, well done Fred.
Perhaps he should make a bid for the Greater Anglia franchise!
Roy Mallett 616
Horticultural adviser (unpaid!) to KLR.
August visit - Thurs. 10th.August - Berghersh Place, Witnesham IP6 9EZ
July visit – Perfect Perennials Nursery.
For our July evening visit we headed for Forward Green home of the Perfect Perennials plant nursery. Darren the owner was waiting our arrival and managed to park all our cars in the tiny car park, we would obviously have to leave together!
Darren started the nursery in 2005 on family land midway between Stowmarket and Stonham in the small village of Forward Green. The nursery attracts a lot of visitors and Darren has dispensed more than 6000 plants this season. Despite this there were a lot of plants on display and after the usual plant hunt and purchases we were able to view Darren’s own gardens before the evening was rounded off with complementary drinks and cakes. See the website for opening details. August visit – Thurs. 10 Aug – this is a change to our published programme , and we visit Berghersh Place, Witnesham, IP6 9EZ, entrance off B1077 just north of Witnesham village. Berghersh Place is a peaceful walled and hedged garden around a Regency house among fields above the river Finn valley. Times to be advised.
Summer Garden Party
The members’ traditional garden party took place on 8th. July at Mick and Diane Elmes’ home and garden at Felixstowe. The weather was perfect and members kept Mick busy with tours around every nook and cranny of his very special garden. After the garden members were able to sit in the sun and enjoy strawberries and cream, cakes and pots of tea and take the rare chance to just sit and relax and chat. Thanks to all who contributed cakes and especially Diane and Mick for hosting the event. The garden is open under the NGS scheme so take the chance to give it a look.
Autumn
On September 14th. we are back in the village hall for the start of our Autumn programme and the visit of Neil Bradfield talking on tulips and complementary planting, followed by the great Jim Buttress talking on his time in charge of the Central Royal Parks on 12th. October, on 9th. November a return of Sonya Burrows and for Christmas on 14th. December in the Church Hall it is Charlie Haylock taking ‘ An Eccentric Look at Spoken English ‘.
More of the club’s Origins -
2004 was our first trip to Euroland and there followed further trips with Ledger Tours, Reims 2005 and Loire Valley in 2006. Ledger’s then advised that they were dropping the use of guides which was a blow. Johan had guided the first three trips but his own input of history lessons, evening entertainment and special meals had become indispensable, who remembers The Handkerchief Song? So much so that tours without him were unthinkable.So we decided to run our own tour, Johan agreed to guide for us and we chose Galloways as coach operators. Jo organised the tours, Martin the hotel and coach, and Alma admin and we were away. There followed 9 brilliant tours to Ardennes, Amiens, Rouen, Belgium three times and finally Troyes in 2015. By this time Ria, Johan’s wife had joined the team. However there were problems at Calais with immigrants and it was decided to take a break which was just as well as the pound dropped against the euro which would have made a further trip very expensive.
Tales from the Allotments
I have mentioned our plot sharing with a pair of Red Legged partridges, an amicable arrangement, they provide entertainment running around in pairs and in exchange I don’t begrudge the few berries they purloin. The Red Legs were introduced to Britain from Southern France by King Charles 11 and are very colourful compared with our common partridge. On the plot late one glorious June evening I came face to beak with the hen. We both freeze a few paces apart eye balling each other. She then does a soft shoe shuffle to one side, her gaudy legs as scarlet as a femme fatale’s cheap lipstick in the evening sun, stops and stares again. Then repeats the movement.
I then realise what is happening , she is out with new born chicks and is trying to act as a decoy. Sure enough I then see a slight movement amongst the squash plants, a chick, all fluff, no bigger than a tennis ball. I leave them to enjoy their evening – a magical moment in a mad world.
The robins and blackbirds also become very tame , Rosemary has a blackbird that pecks at her door at breakfast time every morning, I expect she feeds it on peas!
Must mention the old station master, he straitened buckled rails to run his trains in aid of the childrens’hospice on 9th. July – no leaves or cows on the line for him, well done Fred.
Perhaps he should make a bid for the Greater Anglia franchise!
Roy Mallett 616
Horticultural adviser (unpaid!) to KLR.
