Lamberhurst Gardeners' Association

update

2012-02-01T11:00:00.000Z

This was updated on February 1st

February Garden Hints

2012-02-01T10:30:00.000Z

Vegetables

There is not a lot for you to do in the vegetable plot during February but if you have still got any digging to do and the weather is suitable then you should get it completed, trenches for runner beans can be prepared but be aware not to bury any frozen soil Seed potatoes can be put in trays for chitting. If you have a greenhouse, early sowings of lettuce and such can be done but only if you have facilities to grow them on ready for planting outside later.

Flowers

Wisterias can be given their winter prune whilst all the foliage is off, any new growth should be cut back to about 2 buds unless you want to extend the area covered in which case I would leave no more than about 3ft ( I metre) so as to keep a good covering of flower buds. Depending on the weather and where your garden is rose pruning can be done but you do not want to prune too early and force young growth that can be damaged by later frost. Root cuttings of phlox, poppies and other such plants can be taken now.

If you have bought any shrub like plants and they arrive while the ground is frozen you should not plant them but do dig a hole to get the roots under the soil. Do not put them in a garage or shed where the roots will dry out.

Lawns

Apart from clearing any late leaves from the lawns, it is best to keep off the grass as much as possible during frosty weather.

January Meeting

2012-02-01T10:00:00.000Z

We started 2012 with our annual social evening , we had a change in that we had a picture quiz for memebrs to try and identify plants. Thgis was won by Ann copeman. Bingo has always been popular so a few games of this followed the quiz and the evening came to a close with refreshments brought along by the members. The raffle was so well supported that we had more prizes then the were members present.

Annual General Meeting

2011-12-15T20:04:00.001Z

Our AGM held in November resulted in the Officers and committee being re-elected with no changes.Mr & Mrs Still were unable to present another of their slide shows for us ,so after the business the members saw the pictures taken at the last 2 spring shows, that John Parr had taken and given to the association on discs. Members saw the pictures on Ann's laptop by sitting in small groups whilst the other members had a quiz.

Also at the AGM a small sale of garden items were auctioned with the money going to association funds.

October Meeting

2011-11-04T09:00:00.000Z

Ken Turner was our speaker at our October meeting when he spoke to our members about water features with our gardens. Explaining how water attracts wildlife and creates a peacefull feeling within the garden.The talk was illustrated with pictures showing what plants etc. can be used.

September Meeting

2011-10-15T09:00:00.000+01:00

Brian Gallop came along to our meeting in September with a really wonderful collection of slides showing the members so many different birds that can be seen in our county of Kent.The show itself lasted around 1 hour but to get those pictures must have taken days.
Although Brian has visited our meetings on several previous occasions the evenings are always of great interest.

August Meeting

2011-08-26T13:36:00.003+01:00

We had a really good meeting in August, Aimee Taylor came along to tell the members about the Folly Wildlife Rescue Centre. She brought along a very young Hedgehog that had been rescued after being left by it's parents. Aimee showed it to all the members and as you can see in the pictures it was a very wide awake little thing. There were several entries in the competitions with Jill & Steve being the main winners.

Evening visit to Bounds End

2011-07-28T20:49:00.004+01:00

On Tuesday July 26th a group of our memebrs visited the gardens "Bounds End" in Bidborough. We have always been very fortunate with the weather for our outings and this one was no exception. The gardens owned by Mike & Carol contains a very wide range of trees and general plants. It is open on other occasions for the NGS and is well worth a visit.

Outing to Bedgbury June 2011

2011-07-08T10:46:00.003+01:00

On Tuesday June 28th our members visited the Bedgbury Pinetum and were given a conducted tour of the nursery by Chris Reynolds to see all the trees being raised from seed.During the day we had had a really bad thunder storm but true to our usual luck the weather cleared for our trip.

May Meeting

2011-06-12T16:00:00.000+01:00

Mr and Mrs Osbourne paid a return visit to lamberhurst on Tuesday May 24th when they gave a very interesting talk accopanied by excellent slides about butterflies and their food.Mr and Mrs Osbourne are very keen on wildlife and have many plants in their garden just to atract butterflies.

Spring Show

2011-04-14T22:02:00.000+01:00

Our spring Show held on Saturday April 9th and attracted a very good number of excellent exhibits.The judges were impressed with the overall high standard of the entries on display.The very warm weather just prior to the show did not help as it damaged flowers with the strong sun. There was a good attendance by the public some of whom had not previously seen flowers of such a high standard.
Brenda was awarded the Borrie Trophy for the best flower arrangement and you can see her exhibit below, also below you can see Bernards entry in the handicraft class, it is very hard to believe that is made from wood but if you had visited the show you would nave seen that it was,Bernard never fails to amaze us with his handcraft.

New Telephone Number for Secretary

2011-03-19T12:12:00.001Z

Please note that the chairman and secretary have now moved but can be contacted on 01892 864925

LGA Annual Dinner 5th October 2010

2010-10-06T15:08:00.004+01:00

On 5th October 25 members and friends attended our annual dinner. This year it was held in the Swan at Lamberhurst. Everyone enjoyed a very good meal , botton-holes were given to all the ladies made by Ann. A good raffle meant that many went home with wonderful prizes kindly brought along by fellow members Apologies to the few members who cannot be sen in the pictures below.

August Meeting

2010-09-03T20:54:00.003+01:00

Dr.Mick Lynn came to our meeting in August to tell our members about bees in our gardens.This meeting was held in the Chequers Inn as the memorial hall was closed for repairs. The talk was very interesting and explained about the bees dancing inside the hive to tell other bees where a good supply of pollen and nectar can be found. Most of the food we eat relies on bees and other insects for pollination , it is only things like sweetcorn that are wind pollinated that do not rely on bees. There has been an increase in th nimber of people keeping bees in recent years which must be a good thing.

July Meeting

2010-08-03T20:14:00.003+01:00

Our July meeting was an evening visit to the Bedgbury Pinetum when Chris Reynolds gave our members a conducted tour , showing them a wide range of the trees. This was a follow up to Chris's visit to our monthly meeting last year.We usually have a fine evening for our outings and this was no exception, the trip ended with a glass of wine and nibbles.

June meeting 22nd

2010-06-28T20:39:00.008+01:00

The speaker at our June meeting was Amanda Wyatt from the Hospice in the Weald. There was a good attendance on a lovely warm evening when many would have liked to be in their gardens. I am sure many members including myself were surprised to hear the large number of patients who are in the 20 - 40 years old group. Many felt that it was mainly elderly folks who were in the hospice.Amanda answered members queries and was thanked warmly for giving up her time to come along.
There were 3 entries in the rose competition but only one in the arrangement class, the winners being Arrangement Jill Arnold
Roses Ist Laurie Manser 2nd Jill Arnold 3rd Steve Jones.

May meetings

2010-05-28T19:50:00.000+01:00

Harry Townsend was the speaker at our May meeting in the hall. Harry has spoken to the members a few times before but this time is was a demonstration on making up a hanging basket. It was explained that there are so many different plants that can be used and Harry used quite a wide selection.The basket was lined with moss with a small plastic sheet being put in the bottom to help retain water.Plants were put through the wire sides and in the top so as to give a good display of colour through the season.
We had an extra meeting on May 27th when we were invited to visit Scotney Castle gardens. This was a follow-on from Noel Burr and Laurie Manser visiting the gardens in April to name some of the daffodils in the grounds.
18 members and friends attended and were given a conducted tour by Anthony Gray. Despite a wet start to the day the evening was sunny and dry although cool compared with the previous weekend.A glass of wine and snacks completed a very pleasant evening.

Spring Show 2010

2010-04-13T07:02:00.005+01:00

Our spring show was held on Saturday April 10th and despite a very long cold and wet winter and spring we had some very good blooms on show. The number of exhibits came close to previous years with some new exhibitors with us for the first time.
Our vice chairman Joe Marshall was awarded the best bloom in show award for a wonder bloom of a variety called "Lydwells". This was raised by Noel Burr who was judging the show this year. Noel who has over the years seen many blooms of that variety said that Joe's bloom was amongst the best he had seen.See picture
Jean Sudell who last year was so pleased to win her first trophy at Lamberhurst this year doubled up by winning two !
There was a new winner of the Borrie Trophy for the best flower arrangement with it being awarded to Jeanette Jones.See picture
Brenda Skelton won the Home Produce trophy.

March Meeting 2010

2010-03-29T08:24:00.006+01:00

Jaqqueline Aviolet was our speaker at our March meeting, the history of Hardy Geraniums was explained to the members including why they are sometimes called "Cranes Bill". This is because the seed heads look like crane's bills.We had 3 entries in both our monthly competitions; a small floral arrangement, which was won by Ann and 10 seed potatoes, this being won by James.

LGA Annual Dinner 2009

2009-10-10T18:38:00.002+01:00

27 members and friends enjoyed a pleasant evening on October 6th when we held our Annual Dinner

Lamberhurst Country Fayre

2009-07-15T07:56:00.005+01:00

On Saturday July 11th we had a plant stall at the Lamberhurst Fayre, we had a successful day and after giving a donation to the organisers we boosted our funds as well.

Evening Outing June 23rd 2009 to Ladymead Oast

2009-06-24T20:07:00.006+01:00

Our June meeting was another visit to a local garden.This time we went to Ladymead Oast to see Jill's garden. This was created by Jill and her husband over several years. There were many plants of interest but I hope you enjoy the few I took photos of.

Spring Show April 11th

2009-04-26T22:20:00.000+01:00

The first photos taken 9 pm on Thursday 9th with the hall ready for exhibitors to come and start setting up their exhibits on Friday or Saturday morning. The later photos show the show ready for the judges at 11 am on Saturday 11th. This season has been a late one and so there where more varieties in bloom for exhibitors to choose from. We offer no prize money but still attract exhibitors form as far as 40 miles away.

Spring Show 11th April

2009-04-26T22:16:00.000+01:00