Lydden Vale

Gardening Club

You don't need to have a large garden

to be interested in plants and like

growing them. Window sills, pots and

containers and house plants can

provide year round scope for the

enthusiast. So why don't you come

along and meet us?

Anyone interested in joining, please contact: Antony Parson Lydden Vale Gardening Club on Facebook

Buckland Newton Community Website

in the heart of rural Dorset

The Lydden Vale Gardening Club meets on the second Wednesday of each month between September and April in the Buckland Newton Village Hall enjoying a mixture of talks from guest speakers, practical sessions where you can learn top tips for all things gardening. During the summer months we visit award winning gardens, garden centres and enjoy Alfresco Social evenings. We welcome all ages and levels of experience and are keen for all generations to benefit from the enjoyment of gardening. If you live in Buckland Newton, Pulham, Glanvilles Wootton, Kings Stag, Alton Pancras or neighbouring parishes and if you’re interested in having a fine garden or rewilding, planting or harvesting the results of your labours, or simply visiting gardens and learning about the history of gardening, we would love you to have you with us. If you are not already a member of the Club and are interested in gardening and think you might like to join, we would love to hear from you. Please do get in touch by emailing Jan at greystonebn@yahoo.co.uk or Antony at Bladeley365@outlook.com We are well into the season of the year when most of us have put our gardens to sleep for the winter or are working hard to do so and are enjoying, or looking forward to enjoying, a well-earned rest from gardening and a few months of long evenings with feet up, by the fire. Grass Roots PR’s Claire Hart however told Club members at our get together last month that she found herself working to a very different agenda in in November 2012 following a request from her clients, Kings Seeds, to arrange for them to have a display stand at the RHS Chelsea Show the following spring as part of their 125th anniversary celebrations. Easier said than done, and so began Claire’s “Chelsea Adventure” or, to give the talk its alternative title, “Chelsea or Bust”. Over 160,000 individuals attend the Chelsea Show every year and opportunities for new exhibitors to secure a stand are few and far between and for applications to be considered, they are usually submitted at least a year in advance; Claire found herself with only 48 hours to submit her application accompanied by outline designs for the stand. By burning the midnight oil, the first deadline was achieved and then it was a case of waiting until the following March when she heard that her application had made the cut. Kings Seeds had been awarded a 19sq Metre stand in the Environmental Zone. The hard work now started in earnest, detailed designs were developed, revised and revised again to accommodate a budget that was a third of that usually available for similar sized Stands. Favours were called in, props borrowed family members invited to act as models and the stand completed with hours to spare. Kings Seeds not only achieved their objective of a stand at the Show but won the Premier Gold award in their class. This talk provided a fascinating insight into what goes on behind the scenes in the UK’s premier gardening show and a demonstration of the old adage of “Where there is a will, there is a way.” What an achievement for Claire and her Client, Kings Seeds! The Club does not meet in December and our next evening on Wednesday 13th November at 7.15 for 7.30 in Buckland Newton Village Hall will be the final one of the calendar year. This will be very much a social evening with refreshments and a light-hearted Quiz hosted by Brian King of Castle Gardens. The evening will appeal to all those with any interest in gardens, gardening or quizzes. A great knowledge of gardening is not required, and teams will be formed on the evening. As always guests are most welcome to join members at what we expect will be an evening of great fun to conclude our 2024 calendar programme. Antony Parson