Month: August 2023

Community Council News – Fly tipping

 

Fly tipping

This has been a continuing nuisance in the area for a long time. It is therefore nice to be able to report on some success in the battle. A large amount of rubbish was recently dumped at the Quarrymen’s Memorial at Twyn-y-rodyn. Community Councillors searched through the rubbish and discovered a name and address. This person was approached and while claiming that they had paid to have the rubbish removed from their property quickly came to Twyn-y-rodyn and took it away. Well done Cllrs Gaughan Jervis and Thomas.

 

 

Planning Applications September 2023

Planning Applications September 2023

Planning Applications

• Upper House Pound Lane. Proposed 2 bedroom bungalow in the existing garden. No objection. (Proposed location between Upper House and Chatsworth house with access to Pound Lane)

• Pugh’s Garden Centre Wenvoe. Provision of a new building to accommodate a pet shop. No objection

• Greenacres Morfa lane Wenvoe. Ground and first floor extension to existing detached garage. Objection due to the scale of the proposal which appears to be that of a new detached dwelling rather than a simple extension.

• Valegate, Culverhouse Cross. Poundland. Units C and D. Application for a Premises Licence to allow off-licence sales at the proposed store. No objection

 

The Vale Council have not determined any of the existing planning applications

 

CAN YOU HELP YOUR LOCAL MAGAZINE?

CAN YOU HELP YOUR LOCAL MAGAZINE?

Would you like to join the What’s On production team? We are looking for 2 or 3 local people to as-sist us with the work involved in producing the village magazine.

If you are a person with good computer skills who would enjoy assembling the magazine ready for printing, we would love to hear from you. This would require a few days commitment around the 18th of the month. At the moment, there are two of us sharing the task. A third team member would be very welcome, and would give us added flexibility to support each other at holiday times etc.

If you are a person with good communication skills and would like to share the task of sending in-voices to businesses/individuals who currently advertise in the magazine, as well as helping to generate new advertisers, we would love to hear from you. We also need help with distribution of the magazine and with magazine income and expenses.

Alternatively, if you would like to help out on a more ad hoc basis, say to cover a deliver’s absence or holiday, then please also get in touch.

The magazine is a village production with most material provided by local residents. Could you pro-vide a regular column on a subject that interests you and others? It could be a monthly or bi-monthly item or even a quarterly piece. We are always looking for stand-alone articles.

Ross has written the front cover of the What’s On for a number of years and whilst he will continue to do so for the time being, we would also like to hear from you if you would like to write a feature for the front page, on an ad hoc or regular basis or an idea for a feature aricle.

Please contact any of the team members if interested. Our contact details can be found at the top of page 2. of the What’s On magazine

 

“The Stranding” by Kate Sawyer

OFF THE SHELF

“The Stranding”
by Kate Sawyer

This book is about survival. The book flashes back to Ruth’s previous life and her decision to leave a toxic relationship to lead a new life in a whale sanctuary in New Zealand. On her arrival, it unfolds that some kind of seismic catastrophic event has occurred. On a deserted beach, Ruth survives along with an unknown man by climbing into the mouth of a beached whale.
Ruth and the stranger endure an amazing, new life together and through many hardships, fall in love, and produce two daughters. The story demonstrates how one can build a new and fulfilling life, even though everything is lost.
Although beautifully and emotionally written, some members were frustrated by the implausibility of events and had to supress concepts of reality to enjoy the book. The group rated the book as 7.5/10.
Anne Gill

Through a Glass of Malt

VILLAGE ENVIRONMENT GROUP

A Busy Wenvoe Womble

According to Big John the weather would be in spate on the morning the team were due to meet. So, he decided to monitor the situation through a glass of malt. The rest of the team got wind of this so consequently were difficult to prise out of their homes. When they were herded on to the village green, they became difficult to manage, going off in all directions. Once they’d settled down, work commenced in tidying up the roses and hedge around the memorial.
All was ok until Gareth ‘sing song’ turned up wearing a rubber ring, followed by a drop of rain and told them to go home before they drowned. So that was it. A man and his dog were nearly wiped out in the rush through the gate (pictured).

If we can find them all again, we’ll meet at Pound Lane on 14th August at 09.30. I hope to goodness it’s not too hot, wet, cold, sunny or there’s bad light!

 

 

Mushroom & Leek Spaghetti & Vanilla Apple Sponge

Mushroom & Leek Spaghetti

2 tbsp olive oil
350g leeks, sliced
380g mushrooms, sliced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1/2 tsp dried oregano
50g, crusty white bloomer, blitzed into breadcrumbs
300g spaghetti
1/2 lemon, zested and juiced
10g fresh basil roughly chopped

Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat, add leaks and fry for about 5 – 6 minutes until softened. Add mushrooms, increase heat and fry for about 8 mins until golden and tender and any water has evaporated. Stir in the garlic and oregano, season and fry for about 1 min until garlic is fragrant. Meanwhile heat the remaining oil in a separate pan and fry the breadcrumbs over a medium heat for 3-4 mins, stirring frequently until crunchy and golden. Season and set aside on a plate. Cook the spaghetti as per pack instructions. drain well. Stir into the mushroom and leeks and toss to combine well. Stir in the lemon zest and juice, then scatter with the basil leaves and breadcrumbs. Serve with crusty bread if you like.

 

Vanilla Apple Sponge

250g unsalted butter, softened plus extra for greasing
250g golden caster sugar
4 large eggs
250g SRF
1 vanilla pod, split, seeds removed and reserved
3 small Bramley apples, peeled, cored and cut into wedges
2 tbsp demerara sugar
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

Heat oven to 180C. butter a 20cm spring form tin, then line the base with baking paper. Using a mixer beat the caster sugar and butter together until mixture turns pale and fluffy. Add the eggs, flour and vanilla seeds then beat together quickly to make a smooth batter. Tip into the prepared tin, then lay the apple wedges on top, poking them halfway into the mix. Don’t worry if the apples look crowded-they will sink as they cook. Sprinkle with the demerara sugar and the cinnamon, then bake for about 1 hr 5 mins or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean and the sponge is risen and golden. Leave to cool for a few minutes, release the tin and place on a wire rack to cool completely. Serve with a good dollop of double cream.

CELEBRATING BRIDGES

CELEBRATING BRIDGES

6 July saw an international celebration following the conclusion of three years of restoration work on the Union Chain Bridge linking England and Scotland across the river Tweed and the unveiling of an International Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). There is also an important Welsh connection as all the ironwork was made in Wales, at the Pontypridd chainworks of Brown Lenox. Now 203 years old the extensive restoration work saw some of the ironwork replaced in a complex project costing £10.5m. The bridge is now the oldest vehicle-carrying suspension bridge and with a 449ft (137m) span and was the longest suspension bridge in the world when it opened in 1820. It was designed by Captain Samuel Brown who introduced iron chain cables into the Royal Navy.

The structure is Grade I listed in England and a Grade A listed structure in Scotland and was singled out for honour by the ASCE, supported by the Institution of Civil Engineers and the Japanese Society of Civil Engineers (JSCE), along with many members of the local community from both sides of the Tweed. In terms of this accolade, it now joins the Eiffel Tower, Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Brooklyn Bridge. Amongst the supporters were the Friends of the Union Chain Bridge who had campaigned for many years to support the preservation of the Union Chain Bridge and to conserve, protect and enhance its immediate environment for public benefit. See https://www.unionbridgefriends.com/ and http://union chainbridge.org/

Closer to home the website; Crossing the Severn Estuary severnbridges.org/ has been taken forward by the South Wales Institute of Engineers Educational Trust (SWIEET 2007) to continue the work by the Severn Bridges Trust (SBT). SBT trustees are all Chartered Civil Engineers who have enjoyed an involvement in the design, construction and maintenance of one or both of the Severn bridges. The Trust have sought to provide a permanent record of the many professions and disciplines involved in the First Severn Bridge and the Second Severn Crossing [now called ‘The Prince
of Wales Bridge’] together with approaches, the Severn Tunnel and former ferry crossings of the Estuary.


In 2016, the year marking the 50th Anniversary of the opening of the Severn Bridge and the 20th Anniversary of the completion of the Second Severn Crossing, the website was launched to provide a permanent public display expanded with engineering detail for those who are interested and to provide information on the background to both bridges as well as information on earlier crossings of the Estuary. It celebrates the broad spectrum of engineering disciplines and other professions involved, and the environmental and construction achievements of these two crossings. The website has been added to since then but is now complete.

Like the story of the Union Chain Bridge Crossing the Severn Estuary presents an inspirational example of the work of engineers and what they can achieve and contribute to society.

Stephen K. Jones

LOOKING AFTER A LARGE BORDER ETC

THE VILLAGE GARDENER

LOOKING AFTER A LARGE BORDER

Angela Flynn, on LOOKING AFTER A LARGE BORDER.

  1. Dead head daily during the flowering season.
    2. Fill any gaps, so that most of the soil is covered, this helps keep weeds at bay.
    3. Don’t put up with plants you dislike.
    4. Keep any shrubs under control or they will merge into one mass.
    5. Take cuttings of your favourite tender perennials and propagate for next year.

Beryl Richards gets to the point.

  1. Don’t bother with no mow May, your lawn will provide for wildlife even when very short.
    2. Make your own compost, if at all possible, as most of what’s on offer wouldn’t grow weeds.
    3. If someone offers you a plant you don’t want, kindly decline, or they will keep checking that you still have it.
    4. Don’t be kidded into thinking those small tunnels just below the surface of your lawn are made by moles. They are rat runs which are mainly built over the winter.
    5. Probably best not to save those ice cream containers and yogurt pots, you’ll never use them.

If you don’t do much else this month, please make sure you water camellias and rhododendrons thoroughly to make sure next year’s buds develop. Time to trim the lavender after flowering (not the French plants they just need deadheading) but be careful not to cut into the old wood. Dahlias are coming into their own now and will need strong stakes and a feed. Roses will become more prone to black spot as the season goes on. Spraying is not what we want to be doing but for this disease I use rose clear. There must be some other remedies, but I have found this spray works well. Cut the seed heads off lilies before they set, this will give you bigger blooms on the parent plant next year. This month and next are the best times to spray perennial weeds especially ground elder and bindweed before they start to die back.

Using a high nitrogen feed on your lawn will have a detrimental effect, as it will encourage rapid green growth which has been proved to weaken the grass over the Autumn and Winter. Use a preparatory Autumn fertiliser. If you have leatherjackets in the lawn, then now is the time to start a nematode treatment.

Allotment old-timer Herbie will, on a good year, get a second crop from his broad beans by cutting them off to a leaf joint about 6 inches from the ground. They will then shoot and give a lighter crop. Harvesting beans, courgettes and salad will go on for quite a while as long as you keep picking. Tomato plants seem to need a lot of care to get the best out of them. We need to keep taking the top growth off and remove any leaf below the first truss as well as taking some of the leaves off the rest of the stem. We don’t want the plant putting any energy into growing greenery.

The Village Show on September 9th will hopefully encourage you to show off your produce and encourage others to take up gardening.

Take care and happy gardening

 

 

 

 

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