OFF THE WALL - WINTER 2012

 

 

Breaking new ground

 

 

The exceptionally mild and dry autumn has allowed us to get on with a lot of digging so we are quite well

advanced in our allotment preparations. Other work has been able to progress nicely too and we have enlisted a few new volunteers who are contributing well to current progress. No doubt the weather will eventually become wintery…..

 

Here we see Jim Riley and Sue Thompson turning over the area planned as a soft fruit bed, and below Nigel Grounds is doing his bit to help. It has been a long job and back-aching work but persistence has paid off! This area has now been planted up with a selection of gooseberries and currants. This week, we received a big new delivery of fruit trees so we now have fruit trees all around the inside of the walled area and a row of almond trees running along the herbaceous border pathway. Roll on spring and blossom time!

 

A second team of labourers – Dave Murcott, Jim Hartless and Richard Oakley have begun laying the paths between the allotments. This should all be completed by spring – weather permitting. They do help to delineate each holding as well as giving firm, maintenance free access in all weathers.Ted Taylor and his ageing ‘apprentice’ Peter Kennedy have been occupied with getting electricity to the outbuildings and barn. We can now hold events without miles of extension cables to provide power. 

 

 

Dave Hill is now making rapid progress on reroofing the outbuildings on the North Wall (above). Dave Watton is preparing all of the timber for the job while Dave and Keith Whitehouse are making the brickwork safe. Meanwhile, a team of ladies is keeping the rose garden up to scratch with weeding pruning and planting for spring. Alongside, Reg Cornell is making progress with the boules pitch in preparation for fun and games next year. It really is quite busy at present with volunteers doing a great job.

 

Cash Flow

 

Friends and volunteers are well aware that the running costs at the Walled Garden are not insignificant. Rent, rates, power and water all produce bills which need to be met so it is indeed fortunate that the fund raising events we run are so well supported by the village and by places beyond Elford. Since our Royal visitor in September there have been a number of successes which have helped considerably with the housekeeping!

 

Countryfile

 

The Delderfields continue their one family campaign to bring quality Country Music to Elford. Rod Picott made a great impact (even without Amanda Shires) and was very well received by an enthusiastic audience. Slaid Cleaves made a welcome return to the village with his second appearance – to great acclaim – in what may turn out to be a regular venue on his UK tours! Well done all concerned.

 

 

 

Hot Stuff

 

The annual bonfire was brilliant and very well attended. A committee of helpers worked on the logistics, people were sent to be trained to set off fireworks at displays, a ‘small’ bonfire appeared gradually over a couple of weeks and the stage was set for a good evening. An army of volunteers prepared and served food and drinks to keep the crowd happy and the bar staff did a tremendous job keeping the wheels oiled! This year, more things were laid on for kids (thanks to Irene Standerwick) and even the adults were queuing for face painting. Prizes were generously donated for the raffle and Maxine again proved too persuasive to resist.

 

It always amazes me how Elford people turn out in numbers when help is needed. The Saturday morning volunteer team was reinforced by many willing hands – those people who always seem to be around to help when help is needed (and very grateful we are too). Soon the site was set out and ready for the fun to start - but would  the weather be kind to us.

 

 

In the event, it did and the hard work was rewarded with a sell-out crowd which was treated to a feast of pyrotechnics and food. More than 350 burgers and 20 kilos of sausages supplied by Peter Coates Butchers of Alrewas, were consumed during a rain-free event that climaxed as fireworks lit up the inky blue night sky during a spectacular 30-minute salvo of explosions and colour.

 

 

The meaty treats were supplemented by 350 doughnuts and washed down by five barrels of ale, 30 bottles of wine and countless cans of soft drinks.

 

 

The evening ended with live music. A good time was had by all. The fire glowed on until late in the evening as the last few lingerers did  their utmost to drain the bar dry but, amazingly, all of them were there at 9 o’clock on the Sunday morning to help with the clean up. By midday, you would not have known that an event had taken place but for the burnt circle of grass where the fire had been. Roll on next year!

 

 

Here we come a Wassailing

 

Carol Wedgbury set about organising a free-to-all village event sponsored by the Heritage Lottery Funding. The

idea was to introduce a bit of traditional fun to the village and she was able to persuade the Lichfield Morris Men,

the Armitage Mummers and the Beggar’s Oak Clog Dancers to come to Elford to bless the orchard trees in

the time honoured fashion of Wassailing. It seemed to go down very well (and noisily, as it should).

 

Starting and finishing at the Crown, they processed with villagers, to the walled garden orchard and back before dancing for everyone to enjoy. It was a very busy Sunday at the Crown and seemed to go down well. Perhaps it will become an annual event? Who knows?

 

What a lovely afternoon we have had! We processed noisily from the Crown with a crowd of villagers and

their families. After Singing, trees blessed with Ciderand evil spirits removed, we made the return trip to

the Crown for more dancing and merriment.

 

 

Extra Sensory Perception

 

One of the big over-winter projects is to start work on the ambitious sensory garden. This will appear bit by bit in the narrow strip of land between the west wall and the holly hedge.

The idea is to create a garden that

will appeal to young and old alike but with particular focus on colour, objects and planting that resonate with our senses.

It will be accessible to wheelchair bound and people with other handicaps like blindness. It should also appeal to children since we have designed it to be a Giant’s Garden (from the Oscar Wilde children’s

story of the Selfish Giant) so it will have secret places, sculptures of large things (like Giants garden tools, oversized insects) to give it a sense of fun.

We are looking for LARGE plants (giants would have large plants, wouldn’t they?) so if you know of anything suitable – large leaves, big flowers, tall plants, lots of colour and different leaf shapes etc then you know where to find a home for them! We will be looking locally to find sponsors for sections of the garden so if you know of any likely sources please let us know.

If this is a project that appeals then please feel free to come along and have some input yourself.

 

Ghosties, and Ghoulies and things that go batty in the night!

 

 

Halloween was an opportunity for strange goings on in the village. A disguised Gemma Taylor was seen leading a marauding mob of excited youngsters on a bat walk with a difference and she followed this with a similar event for adults, who were no less excited!

 

The adult event began with a really interesting talk about bats and then we walked to the walled garden to see if we could detect them using hi-tech equipment. En route, we were treated to stories of local ghostly activity and a few unexpected spirit appearances. I had really no idea how many strange things coloured Elford’s past!

 

Just good friends

 

The volunteers - who get on really well together – were lamenting that they never get to enjoy our events

because they are all called upon to work. To counter this, we have planned a series of socials JUST for

volunteers and their families.

 

We’ve already had a meal out together organised by Roger and this week we will be enjoying a beer and skittles evening arranged by Jim Hartless. Got to keep the troops happy, eh?

 

Smell the bouquet

 

Anne Brown made her annual pilgrimage to the village in December to demonstrate her flower arranging skills on some traditional and not so traditional Christmas subjects. The evening began with mulled wine and mince pies and ended with all of Anne’s arrangements being raffled off. The evening attracted many of the village ladies so the odds were very good for the small number of token males who put in an appearance!

 

And finally ...

 

It’s been another great year at the Walled Garden and the village and visitors now have access to a valuable asset thanks to the hard work, skill and imagination of many people.

 

It remains for me to wish everyone the compliments of the season. I hope that you have enjoyed reading these irregular newsletters and will continue to support the work being done at the Walled Garden in the coming years. May you enjoy the best of years in 2012.

 

 

My best wishes to you all

 

Roger