Month: March 2025
Curry & Chocolate Cake
There are one or two simple recipes that every cook should include in their repertoire. A good quick standby curry that isn’t expensive or hard to make but always delicious! The other is a chocolate cake, the ultimate comfort food in my opinion….
Curry
Ingredients
1 medium chopped onion
25g margarine or own choice fat/oil
1 medium apple, peeled and sliced
1-2 heaped tsps. curry powder (for mild curry)
2 large tomatoes (sliced) or medium tin of tomatoes
1 heaped tbsp flour
½ tsp sugar
Pinch of salt
55g sultanas
½ pint stock (or cube and boiling water)
400-450g cooked leftover meat or fish
Method
Fry the onion in the fat/oil until transparent. Add the chopped apple and cook until soft. Stir in the curry powder and the flour followed by the tomatoes and stir until it thickens.
Season with salt and sugar. Add the stock and the sultanas and simmer slowly over a low heat for about 30 mins, stirring occasionally.
Add the meat or fish and allow to heat thoroughly.
Almost any kind of left overs, meat or fish can be added.
Try diced beef, lamb, prawns, flaked cooked cod or diced potato and carrot for vegetarian meal.
Easy-Peasy Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
175g soft butter or margarine
115g caster sugar
4 tbsp golden syrup
175g self-raising flour (sifted)
2 good tbsp cocoa powder (sifted)
Good pinch of salt
3 eggs beaten
Method
Preheat the oven to 180C/360F/Gas 4. Mix together all the ingredients using an electric mixer or elbow grease and wooden spoon! Add a little milk if the mixture seems too stiff. Divide the mixture immediately between two 7 inch greased sandwich tins. Bake for about 30 mins.
When cold, sandwich with filling of choice i.e. butter cream and icing sugar frosting.
Butter cream
140g butter
280g icing sugar
1-2 tbsp milk
¼ tsp vanilla extract.
Beat the butter in a large bowl until smooth. Add half the icing sugar, 1tbsp milk and vanilla extract and beat the mixture until creamy and smooth. Beat in remaining milk to loosen mixture if necessary.
The Life And Times Of Mr J C Meggitt – Part 1
THE LIFE AND TIMES OF MR J C MEGGITT – Part 1
In his article in the April 2024 Edition of What’s On, Steven Jones wrote about certain people who were notable in the early days of Barry’s development. One of these was named Meggitt. Here is the story of that man. J C Meggitt was born in Wolverhampton in 1858 and after leaving school he joined the firm of Shelton and Sons, Wolverhampton in the timber supply trade. His duties included travelling widely throughout Britain seeking business opportunities for expanding the timber trade.
His keen business sense lead him to believe that there were major prospects in south east Wales and to further develop his understanding of this area he joined Alexanders and Co in Cardiff who were at that time the largest importers of timber in the Bristol Channel area.
Whilst thus employed he was a diligent saver as he had ambitions to start his own business, which he eventually did at the age of 26. He posted the above circular just three weeks before the Earl of Plymouth ceremoniously cut the first sod for the new dock on 14th November 1884.
One cannot help but think that the young J C Meggitt had perhaps bitten off a bit more than he could chew. The nearest railway station at that time was at Penarth Dock, some six miles away. The local roads were undeveloped being narrow unsurfaced lanes totally unsuitable for heavy traffic. Some of the gradients were steep and the cost of transporting materials was inevitably high.
At that time only horse drawn wagons were available and in the early days of the venture as many as 30 horses were being used. As an alternative to delivering by road, small coastal vessels into Barry Old Harbour were used but the costs of loading at Cardiff, delays at sea, unloading at low tide and storage of materials near the original Ship Inn proved to be as costly as delivery by road. There was much double and triple handling of materials involved.
The tenacious Meggitt overcame the difficulties and proved to T A Walker, the main contractor for the dock construction, that he “could deliver the goods” at competitive prices and the new business continued to thrive. As it became evident that the Barry Harbour option was becoming increasingly unworkable, Meggitt moved his operations to Cadoxton.
It wasn’t just the dock construction that required vast quantities of timber for “false works”. Hundreds of houses and shops were being built which further increased the demand for timber. Until the new Barry Railway was functional some three years later the struggle with transporting timber persisted.
It is of interest to note that the imports of timber in those early days were from Archangel (Russia), Norway, and Canada. The supplies were negotiated though local agents.
In 1888 he went into partnership with his brother-in-law Mr D Sibbering Jones and the firm now known as Meggitt and Jones opened other depots and facilities in East Moors Cardiff, Gloucester and Aberystwyth from which places they supplied high quality timber to their respective hinterlands. At each of these principal locations, the firm operated large saw mills and the business continued to flourish.
…to be continued.
Tony Hodge
Very Wet, Windy…But Exhilarating
Exhilarating Stroll Around Barry Island
A very wet, windy…but exhilarating stroll around Barry Island prior to Storm Eowyn (or maybe it was during…) for an amazingly intrepid, well soaked, happy group of walkers…that’s my version of the walk anyway!!
If you would like to join us, we meet the last Thursday of the month at 10.30am, Barry Island Station.
And Later
Rough Seas And Grey Skies!
A Gavin & Stacey train, a Shelduck and a helicopter
were some of the sights at Barry Island on the Carers
stroll….distractions from the rough seas and grey
skies!
The Wenvoe Orchid Field
VILLAGE ENVIRONMENT GROUP
THE WENVOE ORCHID FIELD
If you don’t know how to find the Wenvoe Orchid Field, take the footpath at the top end of Walston Road (Walston Road is the road up past the village church), at the far end the road swings sharp right down to the Walston Castle. The footpath passes the old Walston Quarry, now filled and being restored, up past the gate used by the lorries providing the ‘clean’ infill material and on into the Orchid Field.
To the left of the entrance is a display board showing the shape of the field and where the different paths lead. Climbing to the top far side of the field there is a footpath exiting the field which leads to the Quarryman’s Stone, a tribute to past quarrymen of the different quarries of the area, the recently installed toposcope and Twyn yr Odyn with it’s recently refurbished public house.
The Orchid Field. known by some old residents as the sledging field when winters were colder, and snowier, belongs to the Vale Council and is being managed by the Wenvoe Wildlife Group. Orchids and many other wild flowers thrive best in poor soil rather than enriched areas, which is why, each year, the field is cut and the material removed rather than being left to rot down and fertilize the soil. Brambles also thrive in poor soil; new shoots grow over the top of last year’s old brambles leading to some dense bushes, these provide refuge for wildlife, but hence there is a constant battle to control them rather than let them run rampant by. pushing growth back towards the perimeter of the field. Black thorn is also a problem in some sections of the field if not kept in check.
The Orchid Field working party meet monthly on the third Monday morning of the month from 9.30am onwards and is always keen to welcome anybody looking to participate in some worthwhile outdoor voluntary work for a few hours (no set working times). You do need to provide your own tools, ie shears, lopper, secateurs etc along with a sturdy pair of gloves.
The field has recently been cut, leaving areas that the machine cannot reach and require cutting by hand. Members often select a certain area to concentrate on clearing over a few months and will return on other days in the month, when they have some free time and the weather is pleasant. What can be better on a nice summer’s day in pleasant peaceful surroundings than enjoying some easy exercise in the great outdoors.
Wenvoe Bird Watch Results
Summer Garden Birdwatch
After the success of the Garden Birdwatch just completed, we are planning a Summer Garden Birdwatch run along the same lines as the Winter Birdwatch but potentially including our summer visitors such as Swallows and House Martins. It will take place between Sunday 18th May to Sunday 25th May. This is a purely Wenvoe-based initiative. Full details will follow in the May issue of What’s On.
In the lead-up to this we have organised a Bird Walk which will be of interest to both complete beginners and more experienced wildlife watchers. This will take place at Goldsland Farm on Saturday 3rd May starting at 9.30. It will be led by Rob and Linda Nottage who have knowledge of both birds and other wildlife and will be an ideal opportunity to find out more about local fauna and flora. No dogs as we shall be going into sensitive areas.
To help our feathered friends we have put up around 15 nest boxes around the village from boxes for Robins and the smaller songbirds to Tawny and Barn Owls. These are in a variety of locations including the Village Green, Grange Park and the churchyard. Thank you to Mike Tucker for installing the boxes. And next a number of Swift and Swallow homes will be going into Goldsland Farm which should be visible on the Bird Walk. And, finally, Nigel Billingham has asked if you could drop him a line (nigelrbillingham @yahoo.co.uk) when you see your first Swallow, House Martin or Swift. You never know exactly when they will appear because the weather can affect their journeys from different parts of the world.
Happy Birding!
January 2025 200 Club Winners
Orchard Maintenance Courses
Wenvoe Wildlife Group
Orchard Maintenance Courses
Two successful Orchard Maintenance courses have been held; one at Goldsland and the other at the Welsh Orchard, Maes y Felin. A number of our members attended but there were also plenty of keen orchard enthusiasts from elsewhere. The courses are run by the local Nature Partnership team, and we benefit as many of our fruit trees are pruned in the process. Mike Tucker ‘laid’ the hedgerow around the Goldsland Orchard in the traditional manner and although only planted a few years ago it is already supplying the local wildlife with berries and fruit.
February included Nestbox Week. We erected, around 12 boxes, mainly thanks again to Mike Tucker. Of these, several were Owl boxes.
Sian has strimmed and brushcut the Wild Orchard and with the trees steadily maturing, are hopeful of good crops of Cherry, Crabapple, Bullace, Wild Pear, Cherry Plum and Chequers.
This Month for Early Spring Bulbs
THE VILLAGE GARDENER
This Month for Early Spring Bulbs
This month early spring bulbs and ornamental quince will be in bloom. The quince would have been in flower since last October and will continue to flower for months. When we were pupils of Wenvoe school, a long time ago now, there never seemed to be any daffodils to be had for St David’s day, we made do with leeks which we all ate before going to the church. This winter we had daffs in bloom before Christmas on the village green.
Hardy annual seeds can be sown directly in the ground now, remember that these plants like poor soil, so don’t waste fertiliser on them. Please don’t buy tender plants yet, unless you have a warm place to keep them. These young plants will have been grown in perfect conditions, so a sudden change in climate will either kill them, or at best stunt their growth. It is always better to wait and let the garden centres or nurseries look after them until the weather warms up a tad. Tomatoes and chillies need a long growing season to get the best out of them and can be sown under glass or on a windowsill now. If you sow lupins this month, they will flower this year given favourable conditions. When putting young plants out in the garden, it’s a good idea to cut the bottom off a plastic pot and put over the top of the plant to protect from wind and cold, even if they are hardy. It will give them a better start. Mr Crump’s trick to protect his plants from late frosts is to put an upturned plastic pot over the plant then a bigger one on top of that so there’s an air pocket. This works brilliantly and with the cost of plants it is well worth the time.
On the allotments there is always a lot of activity at this time of year, with soil preparation and seed sowing taking place. Plants that were brought on at home will be planted out under cloches at the end of the month. Beetroot is ok to sow now as it germinates at lower temperatures, along with peas and broad beans. Also give kale a go. It’s one of those plants you can keep picking the leaves off and it regenerates. Early potatoes are sown now and there always seems to be an argument on whether they need to be chitted or not. Whichever way you prefer to plant them, just be sure that when they start showing you protect them from any late frosts by putting some soil up over them. As always, there is plenty of advice to be had on the best methods from the likes of Colin and Bernard. If you are feeling brave you could ask Lewis, as long as you’re prepared to listen to heavy metal, which he insists does his plants a power of good.
Take care and happy gardening.
THE VILLAGE GARDENER
March Thursday Walks
THURSDAY WALKERS
Next Walk
On Thursday 20th March, a circular walk from the Knap in Barry, following the old parish route as far as Porthkerry Country Park. About 5 miles.
Meet 1.00pm at Wenvoe Village Hall. Transport can be shared. Many thanks, Bert. 07828665264
All are welcome participate at your own risk.