For further information about the Bosham, Chidham & District Horticultural Society
Contact: Mr Bud Cooper (tel: 572583) or email Rozie Bradley

Jan 2012

Although we did not have a monthly meeting in January, the Committee got together to discuss both the Annual Show and the year ahead. Preparing for the Annual Show takes a lot of early preparation behind the scenes, starting with the programme for the competitions, getting judges, sponsors and raffle prizes in the first instance. We hope the 2012 Show will be as successful as the one in 2011! So make sure you put the date of 11 th August in your new diary!

We also made provisional plans for two outings this year – Linda Banting has very kindly agreed to us having an evening get together in her garden on Bosham Hoe (some of you may remember it from the Bosham Gardens Open Day – such a beautiful position on the water's edge with a delightful surrounding garden). We thought it would be nice if everyone could bring their own picnic as we have done on previous outings . Date to be arranged later. By popular request we hope to be able to arrange a day's outing by coach to Wisley again. As we are affiliated to the Royal Horticultural Society we are entitled to one free visit a year. Date to be arranged but preferabley in June so that we can see the new rose garden in bloom.

Brian gave me his topical tips for this month at the Xmas party! Plant your shallots in pots – Feed rhubarb, gooseberries, & currants with Blood Fish and Bone fert ilizer – sow some lettuce seeds in pots and put on kitchen window sill – order from seed catalogue – prune autumn bliss raspberries down to 3 or 4 inches to the ground

Our treasurer, Stewart, has noticed that some memberships have not been renewed as yet. If you have not paid up and got your new programme, please send your cheque (£5.00 single, £7.00 joint) made out to BCDHS to S.Cowans, Orchard Cottage, Sandy Lane, East Ashling, Chichester, PO18 9AT and he will post you the new programme.

Our next meeting is on the 9 th February when Leslie Chamberlain, Assisting County Organiser National Garden Scheme West Sussex, will be giving a talk with slides relating to the Sussex gardens opened under the NGS helping to raise millions for charity. Don't forget to check your programme for the monthly competitions which have a valentine's theme! It would be great to see full competition tables!

November Meeting - AGM
Another AGM report – the end of another successful year at the ‘Horti'. Not always an easy one with the unpredictable weather throughout the spring and summer which wreaks havoc with our monthly competitions as everything was flowering at the wrong time! Also with the present financial climate we did not get so much sponsor money for our Show. So we shall have to tighten our belts this coming year.
Bud Cooper has decided to retire from his post as chairman and we shall miss his wisdom and knowledge of every aspect of things horticultural. As Andrew Amos also decided to retire from his position as President, it seemed very appropriate that Bud should take over as president and he was happy to accept. Bud assured us that he will still be an active member of the society and still judge the monthly competitions.

The committee were delighted when Jenny Lacey volunteered (yes, she really did!!) for election to the committee. So the Committee now consists of Stephanie Fiske (chairman), Stewart Cowans (treasurer), Jackie Bowker (assistant treasurer), Rozie Bradley (secretary), Hazel Dean (assistant secretary), Kay Grant (Show manager), Barbara Cowans and Jenny Lacey – a great team and we are all looking forward to the year ahead. As we shall no longer be sending out newsletters (thanks to this magazine we do not need to!), the Committee would like to thank Pat Montague and her band of volunteers who sorted and delivered them to our doors for so many years.

Our next meeting is the Christmas Party on Thursday 8 th December which will be a social affair with a finger buffet, wine and a Quiz. This year (all part of the belt tightening mentioned earlier!) we have asked Members who attend to bring along a dish for the buffet. The Society will provide the wine and soft drinks and while you are enjoying the buffet, Bud has compiled a few quizzes to tax your brain! There will of course be the usual competitions and raffle. Do hope as many members as possible can attend – it's always a fun and lighthearted evening - I am hoping you will also be able to pick up your 2012 Programme (hope you have paid your subscription by now??!!). An advance warning that there will be no meeting in January. Our speaker had to postpone this date. It was also decided at the AGM that there would not be any more January meetings as it is so hard to find a speaker and it is never well attended due to the weather.

Not too many topical tips from Brian: plant garlic in open ground 3” deep – take the outer leaves off the sprout plants to expose the sprouts themselves (getting ready for Xmas dinner!) – Pinch the centre growing point out of your wallflowers so they will be nice and bushy- lift your dahlias out of the ground.

Finally, a big thank you to all our members who support us at each meeting and make it all worthwhile throughout the year. It's not just the committee who work hard to keep the Society going.

Rozie Bradley www.bcdhs.org.uk

It really does feel like autumn now after the beautiful Indian summer we had been enjoying and our competitions this month reflected this with dahlias, pumpkins and apples adorning the tables. The Manor cup was won by Don Hall for his wonderful dessert apples. the Best in Show Floral by Sue Simms and Best in Show Domestic by Gwen Ambrose. At the start of the meeting Bud reminded the members that next month was our AGM and everyone was urged to attend and he also reminded them that the annual subscriptions are due – at £5.00 for a single membership and only £7.00 for a joint one it seems extremely good value to me. So if you are not a member already why not join us now – come for a visit and see how you like us!
Brian’s topical tips will keep you busy this month and of course there is always the leaf sweeping to do at this time of year! You should have harvested all your fruit by now and planted your spring bulbs (oh, dear I have failed already!) – spring cabbages, onion sets, broad beans and garlic are all ready to be planted out – plant hard round peas (Feltham First and Metre variety) - there is still time to plant your strawberries if you are quick!
If you did not come to this meeting, you missed probabley the best speaker we have had this year. Maggie Haynes of Tuppenny Barn Organics gave us an amazing talk on her project. I expect, like me, you have driven past Tuppenny Barn, Soutbourne so many times and never stopped to visit. After this talk I certainly will. She is definitely a woman on a mission!! After retiring from the Intelligence Corps, and a short stint as a security consultant, she bought the two acre field opposite the Police House on the A259. The only building was a ramshackle barn covered in brambles. Maggie is certainly not frightened of hard work and dedication and the field now has an orchard, raised vegetable beds, soft fruit cages,a poly tunnel, beehives, a pond with great wildlife and much more. She has one fulltime RHS qualified helper Becca and Antonio who is part time. They seem to be just as dedicated to the project as she is. After years of freezing in the winter they do have a portakabin as the office! Her vision was to grow affordable organic produce of a high quality to farmers’ markets, weekly gate sales (Thursdays 10am to 5pm) and there is also a vegetable bag scheme. Further than that she has schools visiting from the local area and they are very involved in the progress of the project helping to plant trees, harvest the produce etc. Her slides showed what a great time they had there! In order to make the project financially viable, she now has planning permission to build an education centre for both adults and children to attend courses. The building will include facilities for the disabled and those with special needs. The work has now started on the centre which of course is being built from natural materials sourced locally wherever possible and with the aid local manpower and a host of willing volunteers. If you want to know more visit her website www.tuppennybarn.com and of course visit the Barn in person! Maggie’s talk was fascinating as she shows what hard work and determination can achieve and she is a great speaker!
Just space to remind you that our AGM is on the 10th November 7.00 for 7.30 in the Village Hall.
Rozie Bradley

Bud, our chairman, welcomed the members to our first meeting after the Annual Show. He thanked everyone present for their support and help on the day, although next year he hopes more strong men will help set up the Village Hall the night before – setting up the tables is tough work! We managed to break even which was impressive as our sponsors were not able to be so generous in the present financial climate. We certainly intend to carry on with this very important village event next year. There were not very many competition entries this month – after a succession of local shows recently it's hardly surprising but let's hope more members will take part next month. Don Hall won the Lady Allen cup and the Best in Show Domestic was won by Rita Sandy and the Best in Show floral by Pat Carter.

Brian's topical tips are not too onerous this time as autumn sets in. You can start harvesting your apples – never pull them straight off, twist to the right or left and if they do not come off then they are not ripe enough - dig up your maincrop potatoes, leave in the sun to dry and then store in a brown paper sack - sow your spring onions seeds for overwintering - take penstemon cuttings – buy your spring bulbs and plan where you wish to plant them – select your runner beans for planting next year – select pods that have at least six beans and then put the beans in a seed tray for a month to dry off (Brian puts the tray in the back bedroom - Ivy must be a very tolerant wife!) and then put them in a paper bag for planting next year.

Our speaker this month was Jane Kilby, the General Manager of the Apuldram Centre. Although I have visited the Centre several times to buy eggs, cakes or vegetables, I had no idea of the range of their activities. The Centre was started 22 years ago by four families whose aim was to provide meaningful day to day care for adults with learning disabilities with a definite emphasis on working and producing goods for sale to the public. On the site they offer horticultural work, woodwork, craftwork, and cookery. They also undertake contract gardening all over the area. It is a wonderful opportunity for the clients to feel they are achieving something in their life and there is a huge age range from teenagers to seventy year olds. Of course all this work is done under close supervision of staff and volunteers (two of which belong to our Horti!). They also provide accredited training in partnership with Chichester College including vehicle maintenance, life skills, recycling, retail and horticulture. In addition to all this the Centre also provides supported living for 20 clients in the Chichester and Wittering area. As Jane talked to us about the Centre I felt what they achieve is quite amazing – so please support the Centre as a shopper or as a volunteer – it is so worthwhile.

Our next meeting is on the 13th October (7.15 for 7.30 Bosham Village Hall) when Maggie Haynes of the Tuppenny Barn Organics Ltd will be coming to speak to us on the setting up and running of the business – how nice to have another local organisation. I do hope lots of our members will attend and also we would welcome visitors/potential new members. The committee is so keen to keep this great Society going and support from the area is greatly appreciated. If you have recently moved to the area and are interested have a look at our new website www.bcdhs.org.uk – it will give you all the relevant information you need. Rozie Bradley Secretary.

July Meeting

Our July meeting was held on a beautiful summer's evening and the scent from our competition entries filled the Hall. The sweet peas and the roses were a delight. Bud, our chairman, reminded the members that the date for the ANNUAL SHOW, 13th August, was approaching fast and requested all hands on deck on the day. Since our last meeting in June we had our outing to 6 Park Terrace in Tillington (open by appointment under the NGS) – oh dear, I can make all the arrangements for an outing but sadly I cannot organise the weather. It didn't just rain – it poured down – but did we give up – no!! The garden must be a delight in the sunshine! The fountains, made by the man of the house, Humphrey Bowden, were amazing and they did not even have to be switched on because the rain did the job for them!! We sat under pergolas and ate a delicious light supper getting slightly damp and vowed to go there again when the sun was shining!

Brian gave us his topical tips – not too strenuous this time so you can have an easy month!! Sow your spring cabbages – you can also plant late runner and french beans, and leeks for harvesting in October. Check your pants for mildew, especially on your marrows and courgettes and give them a good spray. Now is the time to transplant wallflowers into a nursery bed and take penstemon and fuschia cuttings. Lastly prune your rhododendrons and remove the dead flowerheads. Once that's done get a deckchair and have forty winks!

Our speaker for the evening was Mrs Avril Wallace from Nymans Gardens. She has been a volunteer at the gardens for 14 years and having worked in a myriad of departments is now a driver for one of the mobility buggies – as she drives around she takes photos of her favourite areas and flowers in the gardens – so we had an enjoyable slide show. She took us through the family history of the house and gardens - the trees were devasted in the 1987 hurricane – 80% of them were blown down. However this gave the gardeners and the Trust an opportunity to redesign areas and replant and in the long run has been of benefit. Nature is amazing isn't it? The garden is open seven days a week and obviously well worth a visit. All information is on the National Trust's website.

And lastly, I appeal to all who read this magazine to attend our annual show on Saturday 13 th August (Doors open at 2pm) As a committee we are very anxious to keep the Show as an annual event but we cannot do this without lots of entries and a big attendance on the day. As sponsorships decline in the present financial climate, we need your support to keep it going. If you have not been before, it really is an amazing display of flowers, vegetables, cakes, photographs and handicrafts . And of course there will be a raffle, tombola and cake and produce stall. And if you find it all too exhausting there will be a cup of tea and cake awaiting you! If you have not got your Show Schedule and wish to put in an entry they can be got from the usual outlets or Bud Cooper.

SEE YOU AT THE SHOW!!

Rozie Bradley

Meeting June 2011

Our chairman, Bud Cooper, welcomed all to the meeting for our midsummer meeting. He was pleased to announce that we had raised nearly £600.00 at our annual Plant Sale & Coffee Morning. A good result considering there were so many other village activities on that morning. He thanked everyone who worked hard to make it a success. This money goes towards the running costs of the Society which like everything else seem to increase year on year. Our next plea for help is for the Annual Show which will be on the 13th August when once again we shall need all hands on deck. The schedules are available at the normal outlets, or from Bud. Our monthly competition entries were disappointingly low but the ones we had were super – Peter Rogers won the Handover cup and Best in Show Domestic was won by Stephanie Fiske and the Best in Show Floral by Pat Price.

Bud gave us his topical tips (Brian was not able to attend the meeting). Now the first flush of the roses are nearly over, it is time to feed them again with specialised rose feed or blood, fish & bone - keep deadheading them down to the next three or four leaves – on floribundas take out the big middle bud as this will produce larger flowers from the other buds – feed your lawn with spring and summer feed – scarify the dead grass out first – prune early flowering shrubs if you have not already done so after flowering - put plenty of blood, fish & bone on your outdoor tomatoes and give them plenty of water – make sure they only have 4 trusses as otherwise they will not ripen. – plant out your brassicas (making sure they are in deep to prevent the wind from destroying them) – and lastly if you planted your early potatoes 13 weeks ago, now is the time to start digging them up!

Our June meeting followed very soon after the Bosham Gardens Open day, which I know was enjoyed by so many of our members, and also by our speaker for the evening, Miss Monica Lucas. It gave us all a chance to see what grows well here in quite a specialised climate, not to mention the salt air and the strong winds. There were some beautiful gardens which were a joy to visit. Monica very kindly stepped in as our speaker following a cancellation due to illness. It would not matter how many times she visited us as her talks are fun and her knowledge legendary. Her talk on her perennial plants in her borders was inspirational and her slides a joy to see. In fact by the end, I was ready to dig my border up and start again! She brought a selection of her plants for sale as well. I would recommend her to any local society as a speaker, but I suspect she may have already visited most of them!

Some of us enjoyed a visit to Aldsworth House gardens in May and our next outing is on the 17th June to 6 Park Terrace Stillington for a garden visit and supper. Both these gardens are open under the National Garden Scheme. Our speaker for 14th July will be Mrs Avril Wallace who will be giving us a talk with slides entitled “The History of Nymans Gardens” I do hope as many members as possible will be able to attend and we would welcome visitors/potential new members to join us.
Enjoy your gardening!!
Rozie Bradley

Meeting May 2011

The recent beautiful weather brought in some colourful entries to our competition entries this month – especially the roses. Best in Show floral was won by Janet Phillips and Best in Show Domestic by Rita Sandy. It's so good to see the summer vegetable produce in the competitions now. The members are gearing up for the Annual Plant Sale and coffee morning which helps fund the Society over the year - as with everything our costs keep mounting. The outings are being well supported. If you are wanting to come to Tillington for the garden viewing and light supper with us, please make sure you have booked and paid by the next Meeting.

Brian's topical tips will keep you busy this month quite apart from the lawn mowing and hedge cutting everyone seems so busy with in Bosham! Pinch out your autumn sown broad beans to prevent the blackfly – spray the ones planted in the spring – Spray the roses and net the strawberries. Sow in open ground French and runner beans, Swedes for those winter stews, January King cabbages. Plant out tomatoes, cucumbers, courgettes marrows and sprouts.

Our speaker this month was Mrs Jan Mitchell, a retired teacher, who gave us an informative talk on the subject of garlic. I think everyone enjoyed the garlic bread halfway!! Make sure you don't miss the 9 th June meeting when our friend Monica Lucas will be giving us a talk on Garden Perennials – her talks are so inspirational and I recommend her highly. If you are not a member please feel free to come and join us for the evening. The meetings are very informal and we are a friendly bunch! After the Bosham Gardens Open Day on the 5 th June, you may feel inspired to add more perennials to your borders!

Don't forget to check our new website on www.bcdhs.org.uk to keep abreast of what we are up to!

Rozie Bradley

Meeting April 2011

Our April meeting was a very busy one with 36 members and 6 visitors attending. We have changed the lay-out of the meetings with tables to sit at and chat with a cup of tea or coffee and biscuits before the meeting starts. We feel that this makes a more friendly and relaxed atmosphere. Bud, our chairman, welcomed everyone at the start of the meeting and reminded everyone about the Annual Plant Sale and Coffee Morning on the 21 st May (10.00am in the Village Hall). A great way to start the planting of vegetables and plants in your garden. For the members it will be all hands on deck for the morning and the more who can help on the day the better. The competitions were well supported this month and Stephanie Fiske won both best in Show Domestic and Floral!!

Stephanie Fiske announced to the members that her husband has set up a fantastic web-site for the Society. If you click on to www.bcdhs.org.uk in your web browser you can find it. We hope to use this medium for members who are on the internet to view the bi-monthly Newsletter and all announcements etc. It will also be a great way for interested people to find out about our Society. If you would like the Newsletter to be emailed you, please contact me via the email on rbrad10308@aol.com and I can do this for you. So you can see that the Society is keeping up with the modern age!! Rozie announced the ideas for two outings this summer – one on 25 th May in the early afternoon to the NGS garden at Aldsworth House (entrance £3.50) - to go in members cars. The second one, an evening visit on Friday 17 th June, to another house opened under the NGS at 6 Park Terrace,Tillington, Nr.Petworth. The owner Mrs Isabelle Bowden is very happy to also serve us a light supper for £8.00 each, plus the entrance fee of £3.00. Again, members to share cars. Please contact Rozie (576057 or email!) )if you would like to go to an outing. I will need to know numbers by the May meeting. Brian gave us his topical tips for the month – in order to multiply your snowdrops for next season, lift, divide and replant in groups – spray your gooseberries – plant early spuds – plant out overwintered pansies – prune established penstemons by half – in open ground sow carrots, cornflowers, asters, antirrhinums – and lastly dead head those daffs 2” below flower head.

Our Speaker for the evening was our old friend Mr Brian Kidd. He did entertain us so well and if anyone thinks pruning is boring they should go to one of his presentations! He gave us details of the best tools to buy and also how and when to prune almost anything, with personal anecdotes on every aspect!! I wish he would write an idiots guide to the subject!

The Speaker at our next meeting on then the 12 th May , will be Mrs Jan Garlic - she will be giving us a talk entitled “Garlic” with hot garlic bread to be served half way through!! Sounds good to me! See you there and of course at the Plant Sale and Coffee Morning.

Meeting - Mar 2011
‘Spring is in the air’ was the floral competition for our March meeting – and it certainly felt like it, with the most beautiful and colourful arrangements. Bud welcomed 33 members to the evening. Brian Linkhorn was unable to attend so Bud gave us his topical tips for the month ahead – you can now start sowing your annuals in the conservatory or greenhouse and he asks you to plant a few extra of whatever you are sowing so that you could donate them to our Coffee morning and Plant Sale on the 21st May – we need as much as you can spare whatever the plant (flowers or vegetables) – outside you can start planting radish, lettuce and sprouts now and also carrots in the next two or three weeks – if you plant spring onions in between the rows of carrots this will help prevent carrot fly – plant your spuds 4” deep at the beginning of April but be prepared to cover with fleece if frost is forecast - plant tomatoes inside as they need 65 to 70 degrees to germinate. Now is the time to plant new shrubs including roses in the garden as the soil is slowly warming up – if you followed his advice last month and put lawn sand on your grass, you can now rake up the dead moss and then in April you can ‘weed and feed’ it – and lastly finish pruning your roses –the longer you leave it the later your flowers will be.

We were all looking forward to a talk by the weatherman Ian Currie but unfortunately he was in hospital so very kindly Jonathon Huet stepped in and we were not disappointed! His talk on the Ancient Woodlands of Great Britain was amazing and we wished he could have talked for longer. He made us realise how lucky we were to live in an area of ‘ancient countryside’ which stretches from Hampshire to the Eastern side of England. We as a country are passionate about our woodlands (as witnessed by the outcry when the government wanted to sell off our forests very recently). We are also blessed locally with the wonderful ancient yews in Kingly Vale – it is very rare to see so many yews concentrated in one area (a must if you have not visited them). His knowledge and passion for his subject was contagious and his poetry quotations were a delight to listen to. I would thoroughly recommend his talk to any other clubs in the area.

If you have been pruning your fruit trees lately or remember struggling with overgrown shrubs in the autumn, come to our next meeting on the 14th April and listen to our old friend Brian Kidd with his talk entitled ‘How on Earth do I prune that’?! He is an entertaining speaker and very knowledgeable. 7.00 for 7.30 in the Village Hall – visitors welcomed!
Rozie Bradley

Meeting - February 2011
At this time of year it is quite difficult to get speakers to the meetings, so we decided to hold a members' evening this time. Bud welcomed over thirty members and two visitors who braved the wet to join us. It was with sadness that he reported the death of one of our vice-presidents Mr G Adsett who had been a loyal member of the Society for many, many years. The competitions had limited support at this meeting and we do hope more of you will give it a go next month!! Brian Linkhorn was away so Bud gave us his own topical tips for the coming month: Prune roses at the end of February – get out as much old wood as possible and then feed and spray. Deadhead your hydrangeas, cutting out some the old wood and feed. The lawn – after all this rain there must be a lot of moss in your lawn –Bud feels the best way to deal with this is to take your garden fork and every foot or so dig it in and wiggle it a litte to aerate it - then scatter over lawnsand – do not weed and feed until April. Don't forget to feed your azaleas, camellias and hydrangeas every two to three months from now on. At this time of year it is also a good idea to fork over the borders to aerate the soil after winter months.

An ‘Ask the ‘Experts' open forum then followed. Bud Cooper, Don Hall, Peter Rogers, Marlene Whalen and Barbara Cowans where there to help answer all questions horticultural but mainly regarding their expertise in showing . It was very interesting and our ‘Experts' definitely know their stuff!! In fact there were so many questions we almost ran out of time! Simultaneously, members were kept busy answering a quiz set for them which was enjoyed by all in a lighthearted manner. The tie breaker question was 'When was the Horti Society formed?' I wonder how many of our readers know that it was formed in 1911 – so we are celebrating our centenary this year which is a huge milestone!! Our records only go back to the 1930s. Wouldn't it be wonderful to celebrate this occasion with some new members. We really do have fun at the meetings and you learn a lot too, but we do need your support to keep it all going. At our next meeting on 10 th March, Mr Ian Currie will be giving a talk with slides and a display of pictures entitled ‘Making sense of the Weather'. With the wonderful skies, cloud formations and very changeable weather we get here in Bosham, it should be a very interesting evening. If you are not a member, do come along and see if the Society is for you – 7.00 for 7.30 in the Village Hall. You will get a great welcome!!

Rozie Bradley

Our first meeting of the year on the 13 th January 2011 and a chance for us all to catch up after Christmas and New Year. Bud opened the meeting with the very sad news that our Vice Chairman, Roy Retallick, had died. He was so special to the Society, a treasured member of the committee and a true gentleman. He will be sorely missed by us all. We held a minutes silence in his memory.

It was wonderful to see so many members at the meeting (despite the ghastly weather!) and four visitors from Prinstead , who had read about us in the magazines! I must thank both Bosham Life and The Village Magazine for so kindly printing my articles and being patient as I often miss the deadline due to the dates of the meeting. It's such a great way to promote the Society and keep the members up to date with our activities. Brian Linkhorn was at the ready with his topical tips which at this time of year keep us busy in the greenhouse! If you have not already done so, sow your broadbeans , onions , shallots and garlic seeds in 3” pots and place in the greenhouse. Also you can sow lettuce and cabbage seeds in 3” pots and try and sneek them into the airing cupboard for a while before transferring them to the greenhouse!! Check the lawn mower over and start it up for a minute so that the valves don't stick. Brian assured us that this would save a lot of cursing and swearing in the spring! When the weather conditions improve, dig the veg patch , fork around your rhubarb and feed with either Fish Bone & Blood, Bonemeal or Growmore. If you want early rhubarb place a bucket over one of the crowns to force it. Lastly lightly prune and feed gooseberries.

Our speaker for the evening was Mr Marcus Dancer who cheered us up with his very interesting talk on Clematis. He has been growing clematis for over twenty years and his beautiful photos of this amazing climber were a delight. I had never realised how many evergreen varieties of the species there are and really you could have clematis flowering at every season. His information on when and how to prune them was very helpful indeed. Although he lives in Fordingbridge, he attends the Farmers' Market in Selsey each month and would be well worth a visit to purchase and get advice on clematis. He knows everything there is to know about them!

As you will have seen from the new 2011 programme, on 10 th February (Village Hall at 7.30) we are holding a members' evening when our knowledgeable experts from the Society will be there to take questions and offer their advice on how to get our vegetables and flowers ready for our Annual Show in August. For many amateur gardeners like me showing is a daunting prospect after you have seen the amazing displays at our Show. I am sure too that they will be happy to answer questions on other aspects of gardening and plants. It should be an interesting informal evening and I do hope as many as possible will be able to attend.

Rozie Bradley

November Meeting
November seems to be the time for AGM reports in this magazine! Here is another - I know these AGMs are usually reckoned to be boring but this one certainly wasn’t. We managed to get through the business side of the meeting very quickly and with much laughter! The meeting was opened by our President, Mr Andrew Amos, and then our Chairman Bud Cooper gave us the annual report. I agree with Bud that we have had a good year with all the committee members working hard to make it a successful society. His thanks went to them all. Of course we must not forget the non-committee members who also put in a lot of hard work – Beryl for the raffle each month, Pat & Rita for the teas and Pat Montague and her merry team who deliver the newsletter to us all during the year. Bud also gave thanks to everyone who entered the monthly competitions - keep on showing!! I think there was no doubt about the great success of the annual show and hopefully we will be able to do the same next year with everyone’s support. Our best wishes go to Roy Retallick and Dave Smith who were unable to make the meeting due to ill health – we miss you both. Our esteemed Treasurer, Stewart Cowans, spoke to us all about the financial side of the Society – yes, we are solvent but we do need to increase the annual membership fee starting in October 2011 to keep the show on the road! It is only by a small amount and was agreed to at the meeting . Thanks also go to Brian Linkhorn for his monthly topical tips and yes here are some for you to get on with in between writing Christmas cards, cooking the cake and the pudding and buying and posting the presents – so no pressure there then!! If you didn’t finish halving the roses last month as instructed let’s hope the gales haven’t damaged the roots - strip and spring clean the greenhouse with Jeyes fluid – greaseband the apple trees – prune the old wood from the blackberries – take the leaves off the rhubarb and split in half to make more plants – plant garlic 3” deep in the soil (better in the autumn than spring) – he never gives us a break, does he?

We had a fascinating ‘Antiques Roadshow’ of our own after the formalities were over – Mr Peter Hancock, who has an antique shop in Chichester, viewed, discussed and valued items brought in by members on the night. Sad to say there was no life changing valuation for anyone but it was extremely interesting and enjoyable!

Next month is our Christmas Party for our members on the 9th December which is always fun – lots of good food and wine organised by the Committee and Barbara Cowans has kindly agreed to show us how to make a beautiful Christmas table arrangement. Hope to see as many members as possible!

October Meeting
Our October meeting had a real taste of Autumn with pumpkins,chrysanthemums and colourful leaves featuring in the competitions not to mention ripe apples and pears. Bud welcomed 30 members to the evening . He reminded us all that next month (November 11 th ) is the AGM when he hoped as many members as possible will be able to attend. We need your votes on the night! He also reminded us that if anyone would like to serve on the Committee please contact any member of the committee as soon as possible – It is always good to have new faces on the committee with fresh ideas. This year we have also arranged a speaker to make the evening more entertaining. Mr Peter Hancock will be there to talk on antiques and we hope as many members as possible will bring along their favourite antique for him to look at and value during the course of the evening.

Mrs Frances Farrer Brown who should have been with us last month but had lost her voice very kindly stepped in as Dawn Crowe was unable to make it. Her talk on the Plant Hunters was a fascinating subject. What dull garden borders we would have if these intrepid hunters had not risked like and limb to scour the world for beautiful plants and bring them back to Kew. Did you know that we only have three native evergreen trees – the Scots Pine, the Yew and the Juniper – wouldn't our parks and gardens be bare in the winter without the introduction of the foreign species – no holly at Christmas! The three hunters she talked about most were John Banks (hence the Banksian Medal awarded annually to one of our members), John Trandescant senior and junior, Joseph Dalton Hooker and Francis Masson. Well worth looking up on the internet.

Topical Tips – Brian has been kind this month and not set us too many tasks – although we don't need him to remind us of all the leaf sweeping and general clearing of the borders as winter approaches! We should of course have planted all our bulbs , wallflowers and sweet williams - don't forget to pinch out the growing point of the wallflowers when they are established to make the plants bushier for spring. Prior to the winter gales cut down your roses by half to prevent the roots being damaged – by the end of October you should have planted your broad beans ‘aquadulce' in open ground along with the peas ‘meteor' and ‘feltham first' – and sow autumn onion sets ‘radar'. Finally, select the dahlias that you wish to lift and mark them so that when they have died down you can dig them up and store them. Its easy to forget which ones were the best when they are just a bunch of dead frosted stems!

And finally our best wishes go to Roy Retallick and Dave Smith, two special members, who are in poor health at present and were unable to attend.

See you all at the AGM with your antiques!!
Rozie Bradley

September Meeting:

It really feels that the summer of 2010 is finished now that we are back to our monthly meetings after our break in August. Of course not really a break for everyone who helped at our Show! Bud thanked everyone for their hard work and John Fox congratulated the committee who had put in so much time to make the Show such a success. As I am sure everyone in Bosham is aware by now, Dave Smith, a valued member, is in hospital and not able to help with the setting up of nearly all the activities at the Hall. We all wish him a speedy recovery and hope he will be home soon. As you would expect at this time of year the competition tables looked a picture of colour with all the beautiful dahlias on show. Congratulations to the following: Lady Allen Cup: Don Hall, Mrs Barnett Cup: Don Hall, Heaver Cup: Peter Rogers, Jescot Cup: Jackie Bowker, Best in Show Domestic: Rita Sandy, Best in Show Floral: Jackie Bowker.

Ah, those topical tips from Brian!! As he said this month is a busy one for gardeners: Lift your maincrop potatoes – cut back your lavender , tie up in bunches, put headfirst into paper bags and hang up to dry – now is the time to prepare your new strawberry bed with bone meal and plant out the new plants – plant out your spring cabbage seedlings – take the shading off the greenhouse – harvest your runner beans for next year's crop by waiting until the pods, with five beans, or more have gone yellow and put the beans on a seed tray to dry for about a month – lift your gladioli and dry them and lastly bring in your Christmas cactus for December flowering.

We must apologise for all the members who came hoping to listen to Frances Farrer-Brown with her talk on the Plant Hunters. Unfortunately she was taken ill, and so her place was taken by Mr Steve Taylor who kindly stepped in at two days notice . Steve, as some of you may know, is a herbalist and remedial masseur and has The Medicine Garden in the High Street in Emsworth. Personally I have always been rather sceptical of herbal remedies but his talk was fascinating and certainly made me view the subject in a different light. As he said, before 1948 and the start of the National Health Service, herbal remedies were widely used especially by those who did not have the money for the doctors' bills. I would recommend his excellent and entertaining talk to other societies in the area and I think his shop in Emsworth well worth a visit.

For all you flower arrangers, we have a treat in store for you next month with Mrs Dawn Crowe, florist, giving us a demonstration entitled ‘Fun with Flowers'. October 14 th , 7.30 Bosham Village Hall – See you there!!

Rozie Bradley

ANNUAL VEGETABLE AND FLOWER SHOW 14 TH AUGUST 2010

Another really successful show! The weather was not as kind as last year and there was a lot of shower dodging – not easy early in the morning as the exhibitors were arriving with their beautiful exhibits. However this did not seem to put off the visitors and once the doors opened we had a steady stream all afternoon. The exhibits were magnificent and I am so glad so many came and saw what talent we have in the area. It must have been a hard job for the judges and many thanks go to them from the Society. Many congratulations to the prize winners who won so deservedly. I am sure you will recognise many of the names! It is wonderful to get such great support every year. The afternoon seemed to be enjoyed by young and old alike enjoying the tombola, raffle and taking a rest with a cup of tea and a slice of cake.

The Committee members worked so hard to make the afternoon a success and special thanks must go the Bud, our Chairman, and Kay, our Show Secretary, who had put in so much of their time over the last few months. An event like this is a mammoth task as I am sure you will appreciate, and so many members of the Society came and helped both set it up the night before, worked all day , and then helped clear it up once it was all over – again many thanks to them all too many to mention by name.

Our next monthly meeting is on the 9th September when Mrs Frances Farrer-Brown will be entertaining us with a talk entitled ‘The Plant Hunters'. She is a great speaker and I thoroughly recommend it. If you are not a member you are most welcome to come along as a visitor and you never know you might decide to join us! 7.00 for 7.30 in the Village Hall.

Rozie Bradley

Southwood Cup: Best exhibit Class 1
Awarded to: Peter Rogers
Banksian Medal: Most points for Fruit/Veg & Flowers at Show.
Awarded to: Bud Cooper
Society’s Challenge Cup: The most meritorious exhibit Section 1 and 2. (Except Class 1).
Awarded to: Peter Rogers
Lady Worsley Cup: Most points, Section 1 (Except Class 23).
Awarded to: Peter Rogers
John Brinkman Cup: Most points Section 2.
Awarded to: Peter Rogers
Wornum Rose Bowl: Most points Classes 25-27
Awarded to: Bud Cooper
Society’s Rose Bowl: Best Exhibit Class 25-26
Awarded to: Bud Cooper
Marwood Trophy: Best Exhibit Class 30
Awarded to: Rita Sandy
Baxendale Challenge Cup: Best Exhibit Classes 31-33
Awarded to: Peter Rogers
Chidmere Cup: Best Exhibit Classes 38-40
Awarded to: Wendy Ranft
Battersby Floral Challenge Cup: Most points Classes 38-40
Awarded to: Wendy Ranft
Miniature Cup: Best Exhibit Class 40
Awarded to: Linda Banting
Novice Cup: Best exhibit in Class 41
Awarded to: Rachel Gick
Olga Baldwin Domestic Cup: Best Exhibit Section 4
Awarded to: Jenny Wild & Stephanie Fiske
Myrrh Cup: Most points Section 4
Awarded to: Steve Arkle
Handover Cup: Best Exhibit Classes 51-53
Awarded to: Doreen Hedley
Painting Cup: Best Exhibit Classes 54-56
Awarded to: Katie Price
Photographic Cup: Most points Classes 57-60
Awarded to: John Dean

Children’s Section

Woodman Challenge Cup: Best Exhibit in Section 6
Awarded to: Matthew Ritchie
Phyllis Woodman Cup: Best Exhibit in Section 7
Awarded to: Phoebe Harris
Wood Challenge Cup: Best exhibit in Section 8
Awarded to: Catherine Ritchie
Nichol Challenge Cup: Best exhibit in Section 9
Awarded to: Joe Farrell

Bud, our chairman, welcomed 46 members to our July meeting. As we approach the middle of summer the flowers in the competitions fill the Hall with such a beautiful scent, especially the sweet peas on this occasion. Congratulations to Peter Rogers on his winning the Sweet Pea Cup, and to Don Hall for winning the Mrs. Hamblin Cup. These two members always have entries in our competitions and thoroughly deserve their cups. There were some beautiful entries this month.

Bud reminded the members present that after the summer it will time for the AGM and nominations for the committee. We are always hoping to recruit members to the committee. Last year Kay and Stephanie joined us and have been such an asset, so don't be shy come forward and join us! Its fun!

Since our last meeting, we have had two outings – the first to Monica Lucas's garden in Sidlesham which was a real treat and she looked after us so well, donating the entry fee to the Snowdrop Trust. We then had a coach trip to Wisley which we all thoroughly enjoyed – every year there is something new to look at there. As we are affiliated to the RHS, the Society gets one free entry a year to Wisley. If anyone has ideas for next year's trips, please let me know.

As I hope everyone in the area is aware, our next big event is our ANNUAL SHOW on Saturday 14 th August. The committee has been very busy in organising this but will need lots of help on the night before and on the day. If you can spare the time please contact Bud or a committee member. We are hoping that members will be able to make cakes for the cake stall etc. Please bring them to the Hall on the day. If you live in the area and have not been to the Show before, please come along and view the magnificent entries , enter the raffle with its amazing prizes, try the tombola and then have a rest over a cup of tea and cake! Or even better, put in an entry!

Our speaker this month was the Head Gardener from Fittleworth, Mr Mark Saunders, and his subject this visit was ‘Annuals'. He is a most entertaining speaker with invaluable tips and beautiful slides. I liked his idea of mixing hardy annual seeds together and scattering them in the borders. I shall certainly try that – a good way to fill the gaps in flowering that always seems to occur at about this time of year. He even gave us a demonstration of the best way to plant seeds in trays and when to plant them out etc. Very useful to the amateur gardeners amongst the members, like me!

Oh dear, nearly forgot Brian's topical tips! I expect you thought you were getting a rest this month! Sow your spring cabbage at the end of the month – sow your winter carrots – transplant swede seedlings – take fuschia, geranium and pelargonium cuttings - sow more runner beans (that way you will be eating them until October) – and lastly the dreaded blackfly on the runner beans - feed with Maxi crop which makes the leaves bitter for them but make sure you wet the foliage with it as well feeding the roots.

No meeting in August but hopefully we will see you at the SHOW, both members and lots of visitors!

Our next meeting is 9 th September with Mrs Frances Farrer-Brown giving us a talk with Props and plants entitled 'The Plant Hunters'. She is an excellent speaker and I thoroughly recommend you attend. If you are new to the area, please come along on the evening as a visitor and maybe become a member. 7.00 for 7.30 in Bosham Village Hall.

Rozie Bradley

June Meeting

Roy Retallick opened the meeting with the sad news that one of our cherished members, Esther White, had died last month. We held a minute's silence in her memory. Rozie spoke to members about the forthcoming trips and also about the assistance needed from the members to make sure the Annual Show on 14th August is a success on the day. Our bookings member, Barbara Cowans, requested feedback and any ideas for the bookings for 2010/2011. Selecting speakers for the meetings is not an easy job and information of this nature would be very helpful to her. John Fox updated us on the allotment situation. Apparently the site originally offered in Station Road has been turned down by the Parish Council for various reasons. However Karen Ongley Snook has located another site which might be possible. It would need to be cleared on a self help basis and then could be divided up. John has a list of people who applied for an allotment and he has contacted them – if anyone else would like to join in please contact John or Karen.

We had some lovely exhibits in the competitions, including beautiful roses. The Handover Cup was won by Brian Linkhorn. Brian's topical tips for this month - pinch out tops of broadbeans to stop the blackfly – plant your marrow and courgette plants in the garden – ring sweetpeas and take out tendrils – feed your tomatoes and cucumbers – spray the gooseberries – plant your hanging baskets – pinch out dahlia tips and tie them. And then sit in the garden with a glass of wine and admire your efforts!

As our Show is only a couple of months' away, the excellent talk given by Margaret Borsberry on ‘Cookery and Preserves at the Show' was very appropriate. There were really far too many tips to mention, but if anyone is planning to enter in the domestic competitions in August, I have some spare copies of her REALLY USEFUL TIPS which I am happy to send you or you can collect at the next meeting. I am not much of a baker myself (my sons always called my sponge cakes Frisbees, so I gave up!) but I learnt a lot from her talk and might try again and see what the grandchildren think this time round!!

Our next outing is to RHS Wisley and I am pleased to say that we have a full coach for it. Our next meeting is on July 8 th when Mr Mark Saunders, the head gardener of Fittleworth will give a talk with slides entitled ‘Annuals' - if you have not heard him before I thoroughly recommend him - it should be very interesting. We always welcome visitors on the night and of course anyone recently come to the area who might like to join our friendly Society. 7 for 7.30 in the Bosham Village Hall.

Rozie Bradley

Mr Norman Flint was our speaker with a talk entitled The Dahlia Grower's Year. His talk, with some beautiful slides took us through from preparing the beds, storing them in the winter, to getting them ready for showing. My goodness what a dedication to one species. He got hooked on them with his first six plants which he bought for 10/6d in 1958 (about 50p to you younger readers!). He even dug up his lawn, while his wife and sons were out, in order to be able to have more plants!! He is now of course a National Judge – even judging as far afield as Australia. I apologise for readers who might have liked a more detailed account of his talk, but it is very difficult to make notes during a slide show when the lights are off!!

We have been busy preparing for this month's Coffee Morning and Plant Sale on 15 th May and the preparations for the Annual Flower and Vegetable Show on the 14 th August are well in hand. The Show schedule is now available for all who wish to put in entries. The Committee would like to thank all those who support us at these events. We have our two summer trips planned to Monica Lucas's garden in Sidlesham on the evening of the 11 th June and also our coach trip to RHS Wisley on the 26 th June. If you are not a member and wish to take advantage of the trip to Wisley please contact Rozie Bradley on 01243 576057 as we have a few spare places.

Next month's meeting on the 10 th June, will be a talk with hints and tips by Mrs Margaret Borsberry, entitled ‘Cookery & Preserves at the Show' and we look forward to seeing you there and welcoming visitors and new members.

Rozie Bradley

BOSHAM VILLAGE HALL
ENTRANCE 50P
INCLUDES YOUR COFFEE

April Meeting
Our chairman, Bud Cooper, welcomed 46 members and two visitors to our April meeting – a great turnout! He commented on how wonderful it was to have so many colourful entries decorating the Village Hall. After such a dreary winter it certainly brightened up the evening and made us all feel spring was really here at last! Bud reminded us that the COFFEE MORNING & PLANT SALE is on the 15 th May and that we should all be thinking about the plants we would be able to bring for the sale and also donations to the raffle, book and cake stall. It will be all hands on deck! Rozie spoke to the members about the forthcoming outings to Monica Lucas's garden at Sidlesham on the 11 th June and the coach trip to Wisley on the 26 th June. If you are not a member of our society and would like to take advantage of the trip to Wisley please call Rozie on 01243 576057 and she will give you the details.

Brian Linkhorn gave us his tips for the coming month including – spray gooseberries for mildew – prune hydrangeas and feed with fish, blood and bonemeal – plant early spuds – prune roses if have not already done so – plant out onion sets – sow: asters, zinnias, sprouts, lettuce, radish, carrots, parsnips and sow runner beans in the greenhouse for planting outside for the 15 th May – and if you have not pruned and fed your autumn bliss raspberries do so now! Certainly enough to keep you gardeners busy!!

We were so lucky to have as our speaker Mr Brian Kidd talking about his allotment. I would recommend his talk with slides to all societies. He is the most entertaining gentleman and was able to make his talk both informative and very funny! Some of you may have heard him on Radio Solent or read his articles in the local Portsmouth paper. I hope we are able to remember all his handy tips for when (?) Bosham gets some allotments!

Next month on May 13 th our speaker will be Mr Norman Flint with a talk and slides entitled ‘The Dahlia Growers Year'. Visitors are always welcome at our meetings - please call Rozie Bradley on 01243 576057 if you need any information about the Society, the meetings and the trips.

The March meeting
The March meeting was held on the 11 th March 2010 . Our chairman, Bud Cooper, welcomed 36 members and our speaker, Mr Peter Collett, to the meeting. As he said, the competition entries were rather thin on the ground, mainly due to the fact that spring is so late this year with all the recent cold weather. The Ernest White cup will be judged at the next meeting when hopefully there should be plenty of daffodils. Congratulations go to Pat Price who won the Best in Show Floral, and to Stephanie Fiske who won the Best in Show Domestic. Brian Linkhorn gave us his topical tips for the month including – prune hydrangeas and feed with blood, fish and bonemeal – prune and spray your roses with fungicide, including the ground beneath them and feed them with a granular rose feed – in the greenhouse sow radish, summer cabbage, sprouts, and lettuce - in open ground plant broad beans (Banyard Exhibition is ideal for Feb/March planting) – prune your Autumn Bliss raspberries and feed with bone meal - at and the end of the month try sowing some early potatoes – slight gamble but worth a try.

Peter Collett entertained us with a very informative talk on growing daffodils to show them. He showed and judged daffodils for years and there is nothing he does not know about the subject! He certainly gave us an insight into all the hard work and effort that has to go into showing them. He brightened the evening up with some beautiful slides of all the different divisions of daffodils that are shown. What a lot of varieties there are and I just hope some them start flowering in our gardens soon!!

Our next meeting on the 8 th April should be of interest to our members who are keen to have an allotment. Mr Brian Kidd will be giving us a talk with slides entitled ‘A greener way on the allotment'. If you are interested in having an allotment in Bosham, why not come along as a visitor if you are not already a member.

A reminder that we will be holding our annual Plant Sale and Coffee morning on Saturday May 15 th from 10.30- 12.00 in the Village Hall. As I do not have a greenhouse, I find it is a great way of getting the vegetable garden started without all the hard work of growing from seed – and also buying perennials and annuals for the gaps in the flower beds. We will also have a book stall, cake stall and of course a raffle! So something for everyone!

Rozie Bradley

At the February meeting, the Chairman, Bud Cooper, welcomed 41 members who had braved the cold weather to come along that evening. Bud reminded members to start collecting plants to sell at our Plant Sale and Coffee Morning on May 15th which is our main fund raiser. Bud also asked for volunteers to act as Stewards at the Annual Show in August. There were 13 competition classes with a Valentine's theme. Best in Show (floral) was Mr. M. Cope and Best in Show (Domestic) was Mrs G. Cope.

Brian Linkhorn gave his topical tips. Shallots could now be put in pots and kept in a cold frame. At the moment the ground was too hard and cold for planting. At the end of the month if the weather is mild, sow broad beans and onion sets, prune roses and sterilize the soil, put Growmore around rhubarb, lay potatoes out in the shed and order seeds.

The speaker Mr. John Negus gave a very interesting talk entitled 'Twelve Months of Colour'. He entertained members with slides of colourful flowers and shrubs throughout the year and tested the audience with a quiz about the names and details of each one, followed by questions about plants. Jacky Bowker thanked John Negus for an enjoyable and informative evening.

January Meeting

Due to the adverse weather conditions this month, it was decided by the Committee members that the monthly meeting should be cancelled. With the icy roads and with the car park and pedestrian steps at the Village Hall looking quite treacherous early on in the week, it was felt that it was not worth the risk of one of our members slipping. We were sorry to disappoint our members but feel sure they would agree with the decision. I am sure we can arrange for Mr Hancock to come at another time.

Brian Linkhorn gave me the monthly topical tips which he would have normally read out at the meeting – shallots can be planted in the cold frame – begonias should be pricked out and be in the cold frame – sow sweet peas in 5 inch pots and put in the airing cupboard - check dahlias and dust with sulphur if necessary. When the weather gets better prune the apple trees back to this side of three fruit buds - this should be done by the end of February at the latest. Don't forget to feed the birds daily and check their water is ice free. And lastly if the weather is too awful to do any of these tasks, then sit back by the fire and study your seed catalogues and dream of the spring and summer!!

Hopefully all this snow and ice will have gone in time for our next meeting (11 th Febnruary 7.30 - in the village Hall as usual) when Mr John Negus will give us a talk with slides and a Quiz entitled ‘Twelve months of Colour' sounds like the tonic we all need at present!

Rozie Bradley

Christmas Party December 2009

Our last meeting of 2009 was our annual Christmas Party held on the 10 th December. This was organised by all the Committee members and thanks go to them for an excellent evening and delicious buffet with wine.

The evening started off with the usual competitions. Congratulations to the winners who were: Peter Rogers, Brian Linkhorn, Pat Price, Marie Gilby, Anne Davis, Stephanie Fiske, Janet Phillips, and M. Cope. The Miss Scales Cup was awarded to Beryl Cooper and the Lady Allen Cup to Don Hall. Brian Linkhorn gave his Topical Tips: when the weather is dry enough you can plant out shallots, sow onions and sweet peas.

Peter Rogers, our youngest Society member, entertained us with his guitar and Beryl Cooper organised some great raffle prizes. So all in all a thoroughly enjoyable evening.

The new programme has been printed and it will be issued to members early in the New Year. There are some excellent speakers lined up for the year 2010 and I feel special thanks should go to Barbara Cowans who spends a great deal of her time arranging them - not an easy task.
The next meeting is on January 14th when Mr. Peter Hancock will be giving a talk on Antiques and members are invited to take along items to be valued etc. We look forward to seeing you all there!

Bosham, Chidham & District Horticultural Society

November Meeting

As usual, the November meeting was our Annual General Meeting. Our President, Andrew Amos, conducted the election of the present Committee en bloc. Sadly as I am sure you all know Pam Tomlins died earlier this year and she is such a great loss to the Committee. The Committee now consists of Bud Cooper - Chairman, Roy Retallick - Vice Chairman, Stewart Cowans – Treasurer, Jackie Bowker – assistant Treasurer, Rozie Bradley – Secretary, Hazel Dean – Assistant Secretary, Barbara Cowans, Don Hall and two very welcome newly elected members Kay Grant and Stephanie Fiske.

Bud, as chairman, gave us his annual report on our activities over the year, giving special thanks to Marie Gilby for all her dedicated work over the past five years as Show Secretary. Special thanks too, to Jackie Bowker who, after five years' hard work, has handed over the treasurer's task to Stewart Cowans. Our Coffee Morning and Plant Sale in May was a great success as was the Annual Show in August. He thanked the Committtee for their hard work over the year and also for those outside the committee who help at each meeting – Beryl Cooper for the Raffle, Dave Smith who sets up the Hall each month for us, and Pat Carter and Rita Sandy who serve us a welcome cup of tea or coffee each time. And we must not forget Pat Montague and her energetic team who deliver the newsletter to us all during the year.

The business of the AGM over, everyone enjoyed a glass of wine with cheese and biscuits whilst attempting the Quiz (which was voted much too hard - who could have designed that?! – sorry it seemed so easy when you knew the answers!)

Next month - Thursday 10 th December - is of course our Christmas Party with the food and drink supplied by the Society and some surprise entertainment on the night. There will be the usual raffle and competitions as per newsletter and programme. Should be a good evening and we look forward to seeing as many of our members as possible.

It is easy for me to report the results of this month’s competitions as Don Hall made an almost clean sweep winning six of them. Best in Show (floral) was Pat Price and Best in Show (domestic) was Stephanie Fiske. Brian Linkhorn gave us his monthly topical tips – plant garlic at least 3 inches deep, plant broad beans - Halve your penstemons down to 18 inches - prepare and plant strawberries – halve your rose stems if they are not still flowering, chip and sow sweet peas – plant autumn onion sets – finish planting your bulbs. Try and have all these jobs done by the end of October! He certainly likes to keep us busy!

Mr Peter Gardner kindly stepped in as our speaker at the last minute as the one we had arranged had to cancel. His interesting talk and slides on the ‘Beauties of Hampshire’ covered a wide range of subjects from wildflowers to insects and animals. He quizzed us on the names of each one and I think we did pretty well with our answers! My knowledge was sadly lacking and I just kept quiet at the back!

Next month’s meeting (November 12th) is our AGM and Members’ Evening with some entertainment and a glass of wine to liven it up!! We shall of course still have our usual competitions and the Committee hopes as many of our members as possible will be able to attend.

Rozie Bradley

Our September meeting indicates the beginning of the autumn, after the summer break. Bud opened the meeting with the sad news of the death of Don Goodall. Don and his wife have been supporters of this Society over many years and our sympathy goes out to his wife and family at this sad time.

Bud thanked Marie Gilby for all the hard work she did to ensure that the Annual Show in August was such a success. With Marie at the helm you can be sure that everything will be organised faultlessly. Bud also thanked everyone who helped set up the show the night before and worked hard on the day itself. Marie has set up a beautiful album of photos of all the shows and coffee mornings and visits we make each year but she has no photos of the last coffee morning - so if you have some please could you contact her. Bud made a plea that if the Show and Society is to continue we really need members to come forward and volunteer to be on the committee.

On a personal note, I feel it is such a marvellous Society, so enjoyed by all the members who come each month, that it would be a crying shame if it could not continue along the same lines. Another plea from our treasurer -remember subs are due next month!
Topical tips from Brian Linkhorn included – Plant Paperwhite daffodils now if you would like bulbs in bloom for Christmas – you should have lifted your main crop potatoes by now – take penstemon cuttings – pick your early variety apples (when picking, do NOT tug the apple free but turn it either to three or nine o’clock or cut it with scissors) – scarify lawn and feed with autumn feed when the next rain is due – select runner bean seeds for next year from your crop. Marlene announced the winners for this months competitions and I can only say that our youngest member Peter Rogers seemed to scoop nearly every section!! Well done Peter!

Our speaker this month was Mr Chris Howkins, an ethnobotantist, who spoke on the subject of Poisonous Plants. I thought it was one of the most informative and entertaining talks I have heard at the meetings. He has researched information on plants over the last forty years and his database is reckoned to be the third largest on the subject in the country. It is amazing how many plants in our gardens are very toxic, a lot of which we eat each day – and he wonders how many of our grandchildren are made aware of this and kept safe from poisoning. It was so interesting to learn how many of these poisonous plants are used in minute doses in modern medicine from eye drops to anaesthetics. And, never, never eat potatoes that have any green on them! There was so much information, that it would take up the whole of this magazine to report on, but Chris does has a very good website (chrishowkins.com) if you want to learn more about his work.

Rozie Bradley

I am sure that everyone who attended our special show this year would agree that it was a resounding success. It is the first time that I have been involved with the setting up and running of the show on the day. It is a huge job for our members and a special debt of gratitude is owed to Marie Gilby, our show secretary, who made all the arrangements from start to finish, and got so many of us involved on the day. To have everything up and running in time for the judges by 10.30am takes great effort both on the night before and from 8am on the day. Not to mention the ladies that provided a delicious lunch for the judges and stewards before the doors opened.
We had over 400 entries (100 more than last year!) from the under fives upwards! Once the doors had opened it was a steady stream of visitors and members who came to view the wonderful exhibits, have a cup of tea, buy raffle and tombola tickets and goods from our cake and produce stall. The Society would like to thank all our sponsors of the Show , and everyone who donated the amazing array of raffle and tombola prizes. We hope the Show was enjoyed by all and hopefully it will encourage not only new members to our Society, but also new exhibitors for next year's show. There were certainly lots of happy faces who went home with their cups and prize money, not to mention the wonderful raffle prizes.

Now that the excitement of the Show is over for another year, we can look forward to the monthly meetings resuming after the summer break. On Thursday 10th September we have Mr Chris Howkins coming to give us a talk on poisonous plants (7.30 in the Village Hall). If you enjoyed the Show, why not come along as a visitor to one of our meetings and then maybe you will be inspired to join us!! If you want any further information please call me on 01243 576057.

Rozie Bradley

Hard to believe that we are nearly getting to the longest day, giving us plenty of time to get into our gardens. I'm sure all our members are full of ideas for their garden after visiting so many beautiful and varied gardens last Sunday at the Bosham Open Gardens Day. A lot of our members opened their gardens and it was so impressive to see the fruits of all their hardwork - only sorry the weather wasn't as bright as the gardens!

Our June meeting was held on the 11 th June. Our chairman Bud Cooper opened the meeting with the sad news of the death of Pam Tomlins. Without her our Society would have failed a few years ago, and she will be sorely missed by us all. We held a few moments of silence for us all to recall our special memories of her. It was wonderful to see so many members of our Society at her thanksgiving service earlier in the week. Bud thanked everyone who helped to make our annual plant sale and coffee morning such a success. We raised £675.00 which will go a long way to help paying for speakers and the general running of the Society. Thanks to you and to the community of Bosham for supporting us so well on the day. The next date for your diary is the Annual Show which will be held on the 8th August. A chance to show off your gardening skills, flower arranging etc. !!

Brian gave us his monthly topical tips for June – spray your gooseberries for any mildew and aphids. Put codling moths traps out (1 trap will do five plants) – spray broad beans for black fly – sow runner, French and cobra beans – also wallflowers and sweet williams. Lastly don't forget to dead head the last of the tulips.

We had some magnificent roses in the monthly competitions (aren't they wonderful this year?) and some amazing perennials. Brian Linkhorn won the Handover Cup and Beryl Cooper won the best in show floral (again!).

Our speakers, Christine Westcott and her son Kester, entertained us with a very interesting talk on Managing Woodland. They have a 63 acre woodland, Bluebell Wood, over the border in Hampshire and their life is devoted to the management of it.

Their enthusiasm and love of their work was very evident. We learnt about the history of the woodland in England , the archaeology from Neolithic times to the present day, coppicing etc. and Kester stressed the importance of management. They accompanied the talk with slides of magnificent trees and the ancient woodland plants including rare orchids. Christine spoke to us about which flora, fauna and insects to look for as you walk through woodland. It is obviously a lifetime's work managing their wood, and as Kester informed us the rarest species in any woodland nowadays is a woodland worker!

Orchids are the subject of next month's talk on the 9 th July. Mr Roger Grier will talk to us on the cultivation - the basics, the truth. Bring along any orchid plants you want advice on – maybe you have a giant plant like me from the West Wittering Nursery and am not sure what to do with it!! I think I need an HGV to bring mine along!! Visitors are always welcome at our meetings!
Rozie Bradley

Bosham, Chidham & District Horticultural Society

May Report

The Society is now getting into the swing of our summer activities and outings. Not to mention all the members getting busy in their gardens! This month we have our annual Coffee Morning and Plant Sale which helps us to raise funds for our expenses and fun during the year. We have two outings planned in June and July to the National Sweet Pea Collection at Bracklesham and to the gardens at Fittleworth.
Our meeting this month was chaired by Rozie Bradley as Bud Cooper was visiting the bulb fields in Holland. She was very happy to report that our past chairman, Pam Tomlins, is now back in Bosham and recovering at home. Welcome back, Pam, we have all missed you! Marlene Whalen read out the topical tips for this coming month – all seeds can now be planted as the ground will now be warm enough – The roses should be fed and sprayed and any die back cut down to the green stems. Feed borders with a balanced fertiliser (i.e. Gromore), feed Strawberries and raspberries with sulphate of potash and water in. And lastly, but not least, for a nice lawn cut twice a week and feed once this month. Now is the time to plant your hanging baskets – why not do one for our hanging basket competition in July (members only).
Competitions – Beryl Cooper won the Best in Show floral. We had some beautiful premature baby cardigans in the interest section which will be donated to St. Richards. ( Marie Gilby’s was awarded first prize).

Our speaker at this meeting was Jaine Wild from the Badger Trust, West Sussex. As she said some people are crazy about them and others are driven crazy by them when they dig up their lawns, not to mention the question of TB. However this evening was not to discuss the politics of it all but to show us how the Trust cared for the badgers in all aspects of their lives. So many of them are injured in road traffic accidents and the Trust rescues the injured, takes them to the vet and from there if they recover they are returned to the wild. They lobby to prevent roads and property developments from being built where there are setts. They try to prevent badger baiting and snaring of badgers and other wild animals. An offshoot of the Trust is the National Anti Snare Campaign, an organisation endeavouring to ensure that all the horrific snares are banned. The snares are normally anti fox but envitabley end up snaring any wild or domestic animal which happens to pass by. Her talk was accompanied by a slide show and I am sure we all learnt a lot from her. She works tirelessly for the Trust.

Next month (11th June) there will be a talk and slides given by Mr & Mrs Keste Westcott entitled ‘Why manage Woodland’ – look forward to seeing you all there!

Rozie Bradley

Bosham, Chidham & District Horticultural Society

April Meeting report

At our April Meeting, our Chairman, Bud Cooper, welcomed 39 members, two new members and one visitor. He reminded us of our plant sale and coffee morning on the 23rd May, the two outings in June and July and a hope that a venue could be found for our cheese and wine social evening proposed for July.

Brian Linkhorn followed with his usual excellent topical tips for this April – feed the strawberry plants and all soft fruit including gooseberries. The gooseberries should also be checked for mildew and sprayed with fungicide accordingly. Now is the time to sow your broad beans and finish planting your maincrop potatoes. Runner, french and cobra beans can be planted in pots ready for sowing outdoors in early May. The present conditions are ideal for sowing parsnips. And last but definitely not least one very important tip to dead head your daffodils. Do not let the seed heads mature. We had some wonderful spring flowers and shrubs in this month’s competitions – the Best in Show floral went to Jackie Bowker and the Best in Show domestic was won by Rita Sandy.

Our speaker this evening was Frances Farrar-Brown and she entertained us with a talk and slides entitled “A History of the Gardens of South East England”. She is a Blue Badge Guide for the South East of England, covering Kent, Surrey and Sussex. The slides were beautiful and her accompanying talk was both amusing and fascinating, starting with the Roman Gardens of Fishbourne (which some of us were ashamed to admit we had never visited!) following right up to the present day. We are so lucky to have so many beautiful gardens in this area and I am sure her talk inspired us to go and have a look at as many as possible.

Next month we have a talk with slides entitled “Badgers” by Mrs J. Wild on 14th May and of course don’t forget that we have a plant sale and coffee morning on the 23rd May from 10-12noon in the Bosham Village Hall. Its an ideal time to stock up on your garden plants and vegetables for this summer.

Rozie Bradley

BOSHAM, CHIDHAM AND DISTRICT HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY

Our programme for 2009 is full of interesting and varied topics (not all strictly related to gardening) hopefully you will find something that will tempt you along to a meeting! We would like to see some new faces; they might bring some new ideas with them.
All of our meetings are at Bosham Village Hall on the second Thursday of each month unless otherwise stated, 7.15pm for a 7.30pm start. Refreshments are available before the meeting, every month we have a wide selection of competitions, ranging from seasonal fruit, vegetables and flowers to Floral Exhibits, Domestic classes and Handicrafts, you don’t have to enter any of them, but see what is entered and I bet you will think – well I could grow/produce that. We also have Topical Tips and a Raffle. In between all of this we have a speaker (see below) I don’t know how we pack it all into 1½ hours but we do.
We also meet socially, in May, June and December added to this we arrange trips out to places of interest for our members.
Come along and meet us, you don’t need a garden – just a sense of humour and an interest in plants.

Mr Marcus Dancer – “Clematis” A Talk & Pictures with practical demonstration on Pruning

Members' Evening

Jane Kilby ‘The Apuldram Centre' Horticulture & Craft Training for people with learning disabilities.

Christmas Party