The Official Wenvoe Homepage
GIANT HOGWEED WARNING
Just a reminder to walkers, especially now it seems summer has finally come, to be wary of Giant Hogweed when you are out in the country especially if you have your children with you. The picture below shows a young girl who suffered 2nd degree burns after coming into contact with Giant Hogweed
VILLAGE ENVIRONMENT GROUP
THE VILLAGE GREEN AND MEMORIAL
On an absolutely beautiful morning we tidied up around the village green and memorial, where the beds we planted up for the Jubilee are looking good. Gareth sing song had to work twice as hard today because his gang was somewhat depleted as big John had to renew his pilot’s licence to help out the shortages in the aviation industry and bright Brian has been summoned to the Home Office. We will have to grill him on his return to get the gossip.
The next meeting will be on the 11th of July to clear overgrowth on Tarrws Lane and weed the border at the Community Centre.
THE VILLAGE GARDENER
Jobs for July from Susan Bowen MBE
Sylvia Davies of that lovely garden opposite the Walston Castle
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
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THE VILLAGE GARDENER
Thoughts of Michelle Morgan on patio gardening:
Advice from Gerry Crump, the gentleman gardener.
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
Wenvoe Wildlife Group
We are thrilled yet again to be receiving a substantial contribution from the Tuckers following their plant sale. This will be in excess of £800. Our thanks to everyone who manned the stands, attended on the day and spent money as well as donating raffle prizes and plants for the sale. Particular thanks to Mike and Glenys who made the whole event possible. Where would we be without them!
Dog walkers who visit the Upper Orchid Filed will have noted that the dog poo bin has been removed. When the bin was installed 10 years ago, the next nearest bin was in Grange Park. WWG members have emptied the bin ever since but as all other bins are emptied by the Vale of Glamorgan Council and bins are now also available at the corner of Walston Road, Vale of Glamorgan Council were approached to empty it. Even though payment was offered, VOGC was not prepared to help and the decision was made to remove it. We were happy to leave the bag dispenser. However, this has been abused by dog owners who have been placing filled bags in it and so this is also being removed.
Please help to keep this wildflower meadow tidy by taking your dog bags to the nearest bin and help ensure that we retain our Green Flag status. Thank you.
How old is that meadow?
Ever wondered how old that meadow is? A new method should give you an idea. Count the number of Creeping Buttercups with more than 5 petals in any hundred and multiply by 7. So if you find 2 buttercups in any hundred the age of the meadow is roughly 14 years.
The first challenge is to know your Creeping Buttercup. There tend to be 3 types of buttercup in our meadows. Bulbous Buttercups are quite uncommon in our parish but look behind the petals and if the sepals are folded back it is Bulbous. It is much more likely that you have either Meadow or Creeping Buttercups. Look online to see the differences but the easiest indicator is to see if there is a groove or furrow in the stalk leading to the flower. If there is you have Creeping Buttercup. Most buttercups have five petals but occasionally they will turn up with more than 5 and as these buttercups can spread by cloning, each new plant from these will also have over 5. Scientists have correlated the numbers with meadows whose age is known to confirm the formula.
Why not try this out with the children? All they have to do is check for a groove and then count the petals. Simple!
VILLAGE ENVIRONMENT GROUP
THE TEAM PREPARE FOR THE PLATINUM JUBLIEE
The memorial soldier overseeing the planting up of flower beds in red, white and blue for the Jubilee.
Greenmoor Nursery in St Brides, Wentloog, gave us a huge discount and some free plants when he realised the work the team does and the quite unbelievable age of the personnel. Always a pleasure to go there; the plants are reasonable and in great condition.
We hope that you will enjoy this splash of colour to mark the Platinum Jubilee.
VILLAGE ENVIRONMENT GROUP
BURYING A TIME CAPSULE
The Environment Group
The Environment Group will meet again on the 13th June and part of their work will involve burying a time capsule to celebrate the Jubilee. Team member Gareth ‘sing song’ will bring along some photographic plates of him performing at the palace, on the birth of Her Majesty.
VILLAGE ENVIRONMENT GROUP
On a glorious April morning the somewhat under strength team formed a couple of flower beds around the memorial stone in preparation to celebrate the Jubilee in June. The area will be planted up in royal colours hopefully at our next gathering; we will need to add some more soil to help make the beds visible from the road.
While digging our resident choirmaster Gareth sing song unearthed some interesting artefacts which are at least a hundred years old, We know this as one of the team who shall remain nameless said he remembered nicking the bottle from the back of the pub as a teenager. Now we know why he wears a Tag.
Our next meeting will be at the same venue on Monday May 9th at 9.30am.
If anyone has some red, white or blue bedding plants that would be great, thank you.
