Chalfont St Peter Garden Club Newsletter - January 2004
Chairman: Charles Flawn
Secretary: Linda Hills-Harrop
Garden Hut Manager: Cliff Thayer
Dear Member, Here we are in 2004, I hope you had a good
Christmas and am looking forward to the new year challenge
of having few chemicals to ward off the raveraging hordes of
hungry insects! You need to think about how the Victorians
used to combat these problems by interspersing flowers with
vegetables to encourage natural predators. Try placing your
bird table near the roses to attract aphids loving birds.
For soil borne predators Armillatox can be a good deterrent;
certainly worth using now to control black spot next year.
OUR SUMMER SHOW 2004. is on Saturday 21st August,
please put this date in your diary and start to plan what
you might enter. This is the time when vegetables, sweet
peas and many others need to be planned and sown to make a
good showing on THE day!
There are some classes that are straight forward and can be
picked from your garden on the morning of the show, like
roses, cut-flowers of many types, foliage variegated and
otherwise, patio plants, bowls of herbs and many others, so
for those of us who hibernate there is still hope!
Meetings: This months meeting will be at 8pm on
Wednesday 21st in the Church Hall to hear Ian Butterfield
talk about his trips to China and the Pleines (Orchids)
that he brought back; he now has the National Collection. A
very good evening is in store for us all.
The Garden Hut will be open on Sundays 11th and
25th January only from 10.00 am to 12 noon. Very important,
you must show your Membership card. Your seed orders will be
ready for collection on these dates. The Hut will be open
every Sunday from 1st Feb to 31 Oct.
Discount: The Club will again be offering a 10%
Discount on all purchases of £20 and over, instead of the
prepaid Bulk Orders. This discount will be available on all
products (excluding Growbags) from Sunday 25thJanuary until
14th March only. After that time space will be needed for
our bulk delivery of Growbags.
Janes Garden Tips
Many of you may have received or bought African violets this
Christmas 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 0c to produce roots and shoots.
New plants should flower 6 months later.
Meanwhile outside check for weeds that have germinated
over the winter, annual weeds can be put on the compost
heap, but perennial weeds should be put in the bin, continue
with winter digging and clear up any lingering autumn
leaves. Finish cleaning greenhouses, pots, trays and
containers.
Also clean out water buts inside and out, this will give
plenty of time for them to refill before water is needed in
spring and summer. Plants that have been newly planted can
dry out at the roots during long cold dry windy weather, so
make sure their roots are kept moist. After the long dry
summer lawns have become very compacted, but with the recent
rainfall they have greened up again, so now is a good time
to aerate the lawn by spiking it with a fork and brushing in
some lawn sand (from the Hut) which will help keep the
drainage holes open.
Cut back foliage on hellebores to reveal flowers. 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.
Continue feeding the birds during cold weather.
Have you ever considered being a Plant Hunter?
Saving plants for the future is crucial to securing a
healthy future for our planet. Intrepid explorers still
venture to little-known areas to see plants in their native
habits several organizations offer travel bursaries to help
fund plant-hunting expeditions. Contact: - Merlin Trust
020-8874-7636: RHS Bursaries Comm. 01483-224234,
www.rhs.org.uk/education
Stanley Smith Horticultural Trust 01223-336299 and the
Winston Churchill Mem. Trust 020-7584-9315,
www.wcmt.org.uk
The RHS is holding a series of lectures by modern-day
plant hunters including Roy Lancaster and Martin Gardner in
London in 2004. Contact them on 020-7821-3408
For Sale: Lean-to conservatory/greenhouse 10 X
6, sliding door, toughened glass. 6 years old in very good
condition. £250 ono ring 01753-892988
Buyer Beware: Through the medium of this
Newsletter the club is bringing to your attention,
opportunities that may interest you, however, you must
satisfy yourself that they meet your requirements as
Chalfont St. Peter Garden Club will accept no legal, moral
or financial responsibility.
Chalfont St. Peter Garden Club Membership Renewal
Application Form 2004
To: The Membership Secretary, Chalfont St. Peter Garden
Club,
Or hand in at the Hut or monthly meeting. Please Renew by
end February, to ensure continuous membership.
*Membership £ 4 per year. Please complete in BLOCK CAPITALS
Date
..
I wish to: - (Please Tick v) Address(House
Number)
.
( ) Renew my Membership.
..
( ) Become a Member
..
Joining fee £2 per person. Phone No
...
Post
Code
Please add £2:50 if your Newsletter is posted or you live
outside the area.
*Subscriptions run until 31st December each year. Title
Initials Name Membership & Joining Fee.
..
..
Cheques/POs should be made payable to Chalfont St. Peter
Garden Club Total of Money £
.
I agree that details of my membership may be held on
computer for administrative purposes only.
YOUR MEMBERSHIP CARD WILL BE WITH YOU SHORTLY
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