Category: Nature

The Vale Biodiversity Team

Wenvoe Wildlife Group

 The Vale Biodiversity Team

At this time of year, you will see a lot of activity around our sites cutting the grass and wildflowers. The Vale Biodiversity team own a seed-harvesting machine, and this is being deployed on the Community Orchard and small meadow at Goldsland Farm. The seed will then be used to create wildflower meadows elsewhere in the Vale. They are also cutting the Lower Orchid Field which runs alongside the Whitehall Quarry access road. This has not been cut for many years and was starting to be invaded by bracken and scrub. The cut will help re-establish the wildflowers which used to include several Bee Orchids. The Upper Orchid Field is also due to have its annual autumn cut under a contract let by the Community Council.

In this month’s Nature Notes the focus is on hedgerows and it is good to be able to report that the hedge-laying course, originally scheduled for last winter, but cancelled because of bad weather, is being rescheduled for the coming winter. The two-day course is being run by the Vale Biodiversity team and will take place on the Community Orchard. Our hedgerow was planted a few years ago (see photo) but is now 2-3 metres tall. Places are limited and more information will be circulated by the Vale and will be advertised on our Facebook page.

 

A Key Plant For Wildlife

A Key Plant For Wildlife

 

It features in John Constable’s famous picture, The Hay Wain. It made an important and powerful wand in the Harry Potter stories. Its pith has been used by watchmakers for many years. Its flowers are used to make a rural ‘champagne’ and the berries a jam and wine. Cultivars can be seen in many Wenvoe gardens. And there is much, much more we could write about this small tree which, if you have not already guessed it, is Elder.

In the Hay Wain you can see a small tree growing by a wall on the edge of the cottage and this has been identified as Elder, emphasising its importance to country folk. Herbalists used it – in the 16th century, Gerard recommended its seeds for those who were too fat. It was often planted close to cottages as it was believed to ward off the Devil but may also have helped because its ability to absorb water might have reduced the incidence of damp.

It is a key plant for wildlife, the berries consumed by more bird species than any other native tree although mammals tend to avoid them. It is second only to Ash in the number of Bryophytes (mosses and lichens) it supports. However, you should not see it in any of our orchards except for the Wild orchard. It is believed to inhibit the growth of sweet apples, plums and pears etc. so the recommendation is to avoid having it growing there. Our Wild orchard is made up of native trees which have co-existed with Elder for thousands of years and you will see Elder there growing alongside Crabapple, Wild Cherry, Wild Pear and Bullace.

Unspectacular and easily overlooked, Elder is a key plant in our countryside both for wildlife and for its rich cultural history. For more on this topic try articles by Jeff Ollerton e.g. British Wildlife vol 33, no. 6.

 

Collecting Wildflower Seed

Wenvoe Wildlife Group

 Collecting Wildflower Seed

September should see some of our sites being cut, mainly the Community Orchard off Station Road and the small meadow at Goldsland Farm. This is done by the Ecology team in the Vale of Glamorgan Council using a special machine which collects wildflower seed in the process. This is then distributed to create new wildflower meadows elsewhere in the Vale. We are currently unable to get machines onto the Upper Orchid Field as Cemex changed the locks on the access gate and we are trying to get a key. However the intention is to take some wildflower seed from here and this will be followed by the normal full cut scheduled for October. Photo shows the seed collecting machine in use last year

Funds from the Tuckers’ garden sale have been used to purchase a strimmer to be used for our orchard, the mini-meadow and watercress beds at Goldsland Farm.

Ryland & Dave – Bionic Men

THE VILLAGE GARDENER

Tips from Venwood’s bionic men Ryland & Dave

Ryland

  1. Get to work on lawns by scarifying and seeding.
  2. Hold back on buying Spring flowering bulbs as they will be cheaper by the end of the month.
  3. Water butts are a must, stop putting it off.
  4. Collect seeds from plants. With the cost of seeds increasing it makes good sense.
  5. September is the best time to spray those perennial weeds.

Dave

  1. Put netting over ponds before the leaves start to drop.
  2. At this time of year you will have a lot of garden waste so go on – start a compost heap.
  3. If you haven’t grown sunflowers try to do so next Spring as the birds will love the seeds at this time of year and they are so easy to grow.
  4. If you’re thinking of making a raised bed you need to construct it so you can reach the middle from both sides.
  5. A wooden gazebo covered with a climbing plant provides unrivalled, cool shade

This year the hot weather has made it difficult to find places to be cool indoors or out. Those who walked in woodland during this time have found how cool it is under the shade of trees as they dissipate the heat so well. Planting a small tree in the garden will provide a cool place to sit. If you decide to plant one it will need plenty of water until it gets the roots growing.

We can take cuttings from a lot of plants at this time of year. Pelargoniums, fuchsias, penstemon etc are all easy to propagate. Just pick a stem without a flower, trim below a leaf node and place in pots of compost and keep in a cool place. Divide perennial plants, pot up and water the ones you want to give away and dig the others into their new home. If you have some clear ground to spare try sowing some hardy annuals such as cornflowers for early summer flowering.

Hedge cutting will be the major job in most gardens during the autumn so take your time and don’t worry that you can’t get it all done in a day. It’s not going anywhere and the longer you can live with it the shorter it will be at the beginning of next year’s growing season. When you’re cutting the shrubs back try cutting some of the lower branches off to allow more air and light around the base. In most cases the plant will look better as well. Are you considering buying a shredder to reduce the debris and use it as mulch? This is a commendable idea in practice but be warned there are dozens of sheds in the village with shredders that were purchased without the benefit of YouTube, so do check before buying.

With more rain and some sunshine September is a good month to sort out the damage done to the lawns by the dry weather (and the no mow May) during the late Spring and Summer. Most will need scarifying plus an Autumn lawn treatment along with some lawn seed. Besides the amount of effort needed you will need to keep the birds from taking their fill of seed.

Produce is being harvested from allotments and veg gardens in what is the most productive month of the year. Onions are being laid out to dry, runner beans are still being harvested and Autumn raspberries are at their best. Even when harvesting is in full swing Bernard, of compost bin fame, is planting onion sets and broad beans to get a good start for next year. Garlic really benefits from an early Autumn sowing as do meteor peas. Try putting in some turnip seeds as at this time of year conditions are perfect to produce a small but perfectly formed veg for the Christmas dinner table.

Hope to see you all at the Village Show, where the ability of local folk can be seen, admired and tasted. Be a part of village life and meet some of the characters that make Wenvoe a lovely place to live.

Take care and happy gardening

 

 Seven Green Flag Awards

Wenvoe Wildlife Group

 Seven Green Flag Awards for 2022!!

This is a tribute to all involved with the community sites. The landowners – The Reader family and Vale of Glamorgan Council – make it possible. Without the land we would not have the orchards and meadows for everyone to enjoy.

Our thanks also to Wildlife Group members who help with the conservation and others who either as individuals or groups cut the grass, strim the vegetation and cut down unwanted bushes and trees, To the Scouts who plant the hedgerows and individuals who fundraise for us – a big THANK YOU.

This year promises to be our biggest crop of fruit so far. Why not visit the orchards and sample over 50 different varieties of apple, pear, plum, cherry, medlar, damson and filbert? The photo shows a Nant Gwrtheryn apple all the way from the Llyn in North Wales. This is in the Welsh Orchard. See if you can find another in any of the other local orchards at Dyffryn, Porthkerry, Peterston etc

 

Unusual and Interesting Variations.

Unusual and Interesting Variations

Even the commonest plants and animals can throw up unusual and interesting variations. This photo shows a wildflower found all round the village which is Great Bindweed. Usually it is trumpet shape but the variation in the photo has the petals split and is called Quinque partita. It is growing close to the bus-stop near Pughs Garden Centre along with plenty of the normal version. And whilst the bindweeds can be a nuisance to gardeners, the bees love them.

Several people have noticed white versions of the Common Spotted Orchid growing in the Upper Orchid Field and the field by the Premier Inn. White versions of the Early Purple Orchid often appear on the footpath between Whitehall Farm and Burdons Hill and an albino buzzard was spotted a few years back which was being mobbed by crows. A blackbird was reported in Vennwood Close which had some white feathers – a form known as leucism caused by a melanin pigment deficiency. Last year we found a double form of a buttercup growing in the wild.

So, keep your eyes skinned and be on the lookout for anything unusual. If you find something different, take a photo and let the Wildlife Group know.

 

Must Do Gardening Tips for August

THE VILLAGE GARDENER

Tips on managing large gardens

Jan Bird

  1. Planning is so important; one should always be looking forward to the following year’s display.
  2. First impressions always matter so keep the public entrance well maintained.
  3. Hardy geraniums make excellent ground cover; cut back after flowering and you will get a second flush.
  4. With the use of Biofuels being mixed with petroleum these days it is imperative that you use a fuel additive to protect the engines of mowers etc.
  5. I have always found that a tray of tea made up for when the gardeners arrive; keeps them attentive when issuing instructions.

Gwen Williams

  1. One needs scale so be careful of the full-grown height of plants.
  2. Hiring Victoria to lead the garden team was a good investment as you need someone to put your trust in.
  3. Colour co-ordination will make beds a lot more pleasing to the eye.
  4. Patience is one of the best attributes to have, as certain members of the long-term staff are prone to discard some of the plants rather than care for them.
  5. It matters not the size of a garden as long it pleases you.

Lawns do not need a high nitrogen fertiliser now as this will encourage a lush growth that will be damaged by Autumn weather. The lawn should have a fertiliser with a high potassium content to encourage root growth. Ant nests have been a big problem this year; it’s best to sweep the mound before mowing.

Camellia and rhododendrons should be watered well now to encourage bud development for next year’s display. The dahlias will need extra staking to hold up the heavy blooms. Time to take cuttings of fuchsias and pelargoniums to increase stock. Black spot on roses gets more prevalent as summer goes on; damaged and fallen leaves should be put in bin or burned and not composted. Rose clear is an effective remedy for this along with other rose diseases. Lily beetle can devastate your lily displays; the brown sludge they leave is their larvae, so wipe off the leaves. To catch the culprit, you need to venture out after dark and pick them off the plant. We are told about the overuse of weed killer and the damage it can cause to the environment but used carefully it is extremely effective. During the early Autumn it can be used to kill off persistent perennial weeds like ground elder and bindweed before they start to fade and recoup for next year. Trying to eliminate these weeds by digging out is soul destroying.

On the veg patches and allotments a lot of produce will be ready for harvesting. Feed sweetcorn with tomato fertiliser to get the best cobs. This feed is also good for cucumber, pepper and aubergine plants. Keep removing the leaves below the first trusses on tomato plants to increase circulation and help prevent disease. Pinch out the tops of runner beans to increase side shoots and hopefully more beans. Keep picking the beans before they get stringy. Runner beans freeze well. The spent canes of summer fruiting raspberries can be cut down to the ground leaving the new canes for next year.

Of course, the dreaded cabbage white will be laying eggs on the underside of your brassica leaves so squash them in your fingers, as if they are left alone the crop will be devastated.

Next month sees the long awaited return of the Village Show, so if you are at all competitive then enter some of your produce. There will also be baking and craft competitions.

Take care and happy gardening.

 

Wildlife Is All Around

There Is Wildlife All Around

Look up – look down; there is wildlife around. Scan the skies for a sighting of the Red Kite, being spotted more frequently around the parish. Common in Shakespeare’s London where they helped to keep the streets clean by scavenging for dead animals, the Red Kite has been here in Wales far longer than Homo Sapiens. Bones have been found in Gower caves dating back 120,000 years along with those of lions, bison and rhinos. In mediaeval times the birds were protected but by the 16th century, farmers were poisoning them in the mistaken belief that they killed lambs and a bounty was put on them by the king – you could earn yourself a penny for every one you killed. By the beginning of the 20th century they were extinct in England and Scotland and there were just two breeding pairs in mid Wales. With protection and reintroductions from abroad we are now back up to around 4,500 breeding pairs in the UK. It is the National Bird of Wales so look up and see if you can spot one.

Many of you have a pond in your garden, so look down and you could well find a newt or two. If you do have them they are likely to be the Smooth or Common Newt. The small Palmate Newts tend not to be found here but the very large and rare Great Crested Newt has been found in the parish but usually in larger ponds in the countryside. Create a pond, large or small, and newts will soon find their way to it. Whilst they seek out ponds to breed, newts spend much of the year on the land. They breathe air so if you are patient you will often see them breaking the surface to take in air. Better still go out after dark and shine a torch into your pond as newts are more active at night. Many residents have reported having them in their ponds but as they love eating tadpoles you might not get so many frogs. A young newt is called an ‘eft’.

 

Must Do Gardening Tips for July

THE VILLAGE GARDENER

Must Do Gardening Tips for July

Jobs for July from Susan Bowen MBE

  1. Cut back growth in hanging baskets and feed to encourage new growth.
  2. Prune wisteria now. Just remove the whippy side shoots to about five leaves from the main stem.
  3. Cut spent stems of lupins to promote new growth.
  4. Dead head bedding plants to keep displays going.
  5. Don’t let dandelions go to seed.

Sylvia Davies of that lovely garden opposite the Walston Castle

  1. High potash feed will give you brilliant blooms on many flowers especially sunflowers.
  2. Use grass clippings to cover potato tubers that are near the surface to stop them going green.
  3. Keep up the hoeing of weeds to give your plants a better chance.
  4. Keep greenhouse clear of disease by clearing up any fallen or dying leaves.
  5. Check your pots for vine weevil if your plants are wilting for no obvious reason.

Watering consistently is so important as plants can wilt, become stressed or stunted. Large leafed plants need a lot more water than small leafed ones. Newly planted trees and shrubs will be in particular need of watering in dry spells. Check plants in pots, even after rain, and terracotta pots should be lined with polythene to prevent moisture loss through the sides. For plants in the garden you should water generously but less frequently to encourage roots to grow deeper and overtime become more tolerant of dry conditions. Bark or gravel around the base of plants will help retain moisture. Lawns are very tolerant of dry conditions and will recover well; on cricket pitches they cut the grass down to virtually the roots and it recovers. If you really must water, then do it thoroughly as just a sprinkle will do more harm than good.

We need to give our plants proper attention during the summer months as a lot of work went into getting them to this stage, so feeding, deadheading, and watering will prolong the display. Herbaceous geraniums need to be cut down to the floor after flowering to give a 2nd flush. Roses need constant dead heading but the results are worth it. Sid & Linda Cottle of Gwenfo Drive have a lovely garden full of roses which are always in good fettle.

July is the best time of year to sow foxgloves and wallflowers for a display next year, if you have doubts about whether you can be bothered just remember what Dick Turpin is selling them for in the garden centre. You will need to sow delphiniums now as this is the latest time to be certain of blooms next year.

At 85 years young Herbie is proof that working the soil is good for you and on his allotment at Twyn-yr-Odin he dishes out advice whether you ask for it or not. I caught him on a ladder trying to pick his broad beans and asked him for some tips to put in the gardening column. Ever obliging he said water daily and not just a splash, hoe weeds on dry days and they are guaranteed to die, always remove dying leaves from plants to prevent disease, check for aphids on the runner beans and rub them off with your hands and take the tops off broad beans to deter black fly.

The panel at gardeners question time in the library hub on the 27th May want to mention through this column that they were made to feel most welcome and enjoyed a pleasant evening. The knowledge displayed by the audience left them in no doubt that gardens in Wenvoe are in safe hands.

Take care and happy gardening

 

;

Must Do Gardening Tips for June

THE VILLAGE GARDENER

Must Do Gardening Tips for June

Thoughts of Michelle Morgan on patio gardening:

  1. If you are not happy with how your pot plants are looking change them as the season is too short to put up with something that displeases you.
  2. Pot stands on wheels make it so much easier to move pots around.
  3. Calendulas are cheap to buy. Three plants will fill a large pot and give a display all summer.
  4. Blueberries do well in pots with ericaceous compost. You will have to net them when fruit has formed.
  5. The downside of having a lot of pots is constant watering and feeding.

 

Advice from Gerry Crump, the gentleman gardener.

  1. Don’t plant early as it’s just a waste of resources.
  2. Take care of your tools and they should last a lifetime.
  3. When planting seeds always label them properly.
  4. Do not take too much on, or you will not enjoy the garden.
  5. Grow what you like to eat and what the ‘other half’ likes to look at.

 

June is the month when show growers put their hanging baskets up to display. If that’s what they do then it’s good enough for me. It is very tempting to put them up early but patience will ensure a better display. Once the sweet peas come into flower, start picking for the house as the more you pick the more they flower. Try not to let any set seed early in the season or the plant will think it’s job is done. Using a hoe on dry days in the boarders is a good way of killing annual weeds. If we need to water please follow the advice of experienced gardeners by watering early in the morning or late at night. When watering the borders, a good soak once a week should be adequate. Don’t think about watering your lawn unless you have a lot of time on your hands. Grass is tough and can withstand a drought but, by watering a little, you will encourage the roots to come closer to the surface and make the grass more susceptible in dry weather.

‘No Mow May’ is the latest must do according to experts and TV gardeners. Not so sure about that myself. On the plus side it has stopped your cats killing so many birds as there are a lot more mice running around in the long grass for them to bring home for you. If you have a lovely weed free lawn then letting it grow for a month it’s not going to provide much nourishment for insects etc. On the other hand your lawn may be full of weeds so crack on and spread the seeds over your neighbour’s gardens! It seems to me those popular presenters can tell us what to think sometimes. I have been bitten and stung as much recently as I have been over previous decades so will take some convincing that there are less insects around presently. I have to add though that it is probably my fault that I get bitten so often because when Monty Don told us we should have a ‘No Wash April’ I thought he meant me and not my car. No wonder I had to sleep in the shed!!

On the allotments the pigeons are testing the resolve of gardeners by pulling up young onions and eating the new growth of brassicas. The only way to combat this is by netting and using stakes as support. They are also partial to soft fruit, so be warned. They say that bamboo grows quickly but just plant a row of any veg seed on a clean cultivated patch and the minute you turn your back it’s covered in weeds. This is why growers plant in rows as weeds don’t grow in a straight line. Thinning out the crop on fruit trees is a task that needs to be done to get larger fruit. We do get a June drop where trees will drop fruit to look after the stronger ones, but often it’s not enough to prevent branches breaking under the weight.

Thank you to everyone who supported us for helping to make the plant sale such a success and helping the Wenvoe Wildlife Group continue their outstanding work all around Wenvoe.

Take care and happy gardening

 

The Village Gardener

 

 

1 … 11 12 13 14 15 … 34