Sponsored by Upchurch River Valley Golf Course Ltd
Before talking about November I must say what a fantastic month October turned out to be. After such a long hot and dry summer the garden burst into flower in October. The roses gave a great Autumn show and the perennials have finally caught up after the summer and will hopefully continue until the first hard frost. The runner beans produced a massive crop in the first half of the month and couldn’t be picked quick enough before going stringy. Lawns are improving but have taken a hammering this year and will take a bit of time in the Spring to come good.
Aim to complete planting spring bulbs in November with Tulips the last to go in and complete winter bedding and containers. Continue with tidying the entire garden, pruning back perennials and sweeping up leaves as the weather permits. If your roses had blackspot then discard the leaves and do not compost. This is also a good month to plant bare-rooted trees, shrubs and roses.
Start lifting parsnips after the first frost as this converts the starch into sugar and gives them a sweet flavour. Also divide mature clumps of rhubarb once they are dormant. Prune apples and pears but do not touch plums (winter pruning encourages disease). Tidy up the greenhouse, prune the hedges and light the fire.
That’s about it for me in the garden unless the weather stays unusually good in which case I will do some fence repairs. So it is time to reflect back on the year and start making plans for next year. Firstly, I have had it with tomatoes after another poor year. Germination was slow in the spring and the seedlings struggled to gain any size and like last year hormonal damage produced distorted plants with little flower. The spring onions also failed with virtually no germination. The marrows were great but produced such a glut that I do not know what to do with it all, so time to cut back on the number of seedlings. This will create extra space to try some sweetcorn next year and I will go for a super sweet variety. I am also growing suspicious of some seed suppliers as seed only remains viable for a limited time, so I am changing to DT Brown.
The new perennials finally came good in the Autumn but again poor seed germination has resulted in fewer plants than expected and in some cases no plants at all. So it is time to switch to plug plants for flowers and increase numbers from cuttings.
One last project is to consider ground cover for the shady patches underneath the shrubs which isn’t as easy as it may sound and will require lubrication of the brain cells.
We are always looking for new members and try to encourage a fun attitude towards friendly competition. So if you want to grow your own fruit, vegetables and flowers or even enter any of the 3 shows we hold each year, then please get in touch, we would be happy to hear from you.
If you are interested in becoming a new member, (all ages are welcome), please contact Rosey on: 01634 377812 (evenings) or Email: rosemary@ringwoodaccounting.co.uk
Remembrance Sunday - November 11th 2018 marks 100 years since the end of The First World War.
As a special commemoration, the 5 ladies of the Kitting Group, along with their partners have decorated the railings and a new military style commemorative arch at St. Mary's with a 1000 knitted poppies.
The group have been busy for 9 months knitting the poppies which they attached to the railings and new arch on Saturday 3rd of November 2018.
Constructed from wood, the arch was designed and built by Jim McAlpine and finished in NATO Green by Terry Lewis. The arch's metallic military design and shape compliment the entrance to the church perfectly.
A small memorial with purple knitted poppies to commemorate the animals that died during the conflict has written on it:
'Purple poppies commemorate the animal victims of war, of which there were many
Animals in war are not heroes, they are the victims
Join FareShare for the UK's largest food collection at Tesco Metro - Rainham on Thursday 29th November, Friday 30th November and Saturday 1st December 2018.
You can make a big difference to the 8.4 million people currently living in food poverty in the UK, as donating just 3 hours to help collect food on any of the days above, could collect enough food for 600 meals!
You will be in store handing out FareShare ′shopping lists′ with suggested donations.
Sign up as an individual or bring your colleagues, family and friends with you.
Want to know how it works? Watch the short video here.
Make the biggest difference this Christmas by signing up for a shift, the extra customers you speak to will allow you to collect much more food. It won't take long!
Between 9:15pm and 9:50pm on Tuesday the 23rd of October, a red Honda 150cc Motocross Bike was stolen from Grenadier Close, Upchurch.
If you have any information that could help investigators please contact Kent Police on telephone number 101 and quote the relevant crime number above.
The Armistice Day - Remembrance Sunday Poppy Memorial to the villagers who lost their lives during the WW1 and WW2 conflicts is back on the corner of Horsham Lane - wrapped around the Upchurch village sign.
The Memorial was manufactured and fitted by the Boakes family and staff of Boakes Joinery, Upchurch.
Each of the poppies has on it one name of the deceased and the conflict in which they died.
The plaque reads:
“A TRIBUTE TO
The Brave Souls from Upchurch
That made the Ultimate Sacrifice”
Click picture to enlarge.
The single poppy to George Willson Sellen who died during The Boer War is back on the gable end of the bus shelter, along with a new giant poppy on the inside.
