Visitors are always welcome on the first Monday of the month at Colwall Village Hall WR13 6EQ. We meet for 7.30pm when there is a talk given by a person well versed in their speciality. Arrive early, meet the members and enjoy a free cup of tea or coffee.
The February meeting commenced with Megan Taylor announcing good news from the Percy Picton Memorial Fund. With the proceeds of various events and particularly the Percy Picton Memorial Lecture, the fund had £2200.00 to help with sponsoring horticultural students at Pershore College.
There followed an enthralling presentation on chemistry in plants, soil and the kitchen. The talk was delivered enthusiastically by Drs Natalie Fey and Jenny Slaughter, School of Chemistry lecturers at Bristol University. Their presentation included revealing pictures, befuddling equations (I write for myself) and Lego representations of stick molecules. Confused? But we did learn why Miscanthus grows in arid conditions; why roses scent; how Heleniums and sunflowers draw contaminating metals from the ground and how to use red cabbage as an indicator of acidity or otherwise.
It would be worth looking at their blog www.chempics.wordpress.com/about/ws2014. It is fascinating.
Megan said, in her closing words of thanks, that as an ex-lecturer in chemistry, she was surprised to learn how much she had forgotten. The talk was entitled Why is Grass Green? We didn’t learn that.
There was an opportunity to purchase books from the collection of a well known local gardener, the late Merle Stanning. A stunning collection gathered over many years, any one of which would enhance a gardener’s library. The writer found a 1949 edition of The Countryman’s Breakfast Poser for £1.00. The collection will be available at the next meeting. All proceeds go to the P. P. Memorial Fund.
The March meeting will feature Pauline Pears who has 30 years experience with Garden Organic and is the editor of The Encyclopaedia of Organic Gardening; her talk is entitled My Desert Island Veg..
Come early, make/meet friends and discuss your gardening interests (and challenges). There are many experienced and knowledgeable gardeners who are happy to answer questions. Subscriptions, payable in January, are £12.00; visitors are charged £4.00.
Tim Beaumont – Joint Programme Secretary