April Joint Meeting with Purleigh

A joint meeting of Maldon and Heybridge Horticultural Society and Purleigh Gardeners Society was held at Maldon Town Hall on 15th April when Olive Baldwin and Thelma Wilson spoke on 'Warley Place and the Essex Wildlife Trust'.  Warley Place had been a garden for many centuries and the estate was famously the home of Ellen Willmott the plantswoman, violinist, choral singer and photographer.  She was the second woman to be awarded the Victoria Medal of Honour by the Royal Horticultural Society, the other being Gertrude Jekyll.  Ellen Willmott was in charge of Warley Place by the late 1890s as well as having gardens in France and later in Italy too.  One of her photographs showed her 46 gardening staff all in their uniforms!  She had an alpine garden formed with a picturesque gorge and had imported a Swiss gardener to look after it.  A grotto to display filmy ferns and extensive greenhouses were constructed both to raise and display plants.  The house built in 1702 was demolished, except for the stone conservatory, by 1939 and later the volunteers of the Essex Wildlife Trust rescued the wilderness over the last 30 years to provide a lovely nature reserve for the public with meadows of flowers, ponds, trees including the seven Spanish Chestnuts dating back to 1640 and habitat for many species of birds. The enthusiasm of the presenters was greatly appreciated by the audience and all were captivated by the fascinating story and the green and white photographs of the garden in Victorian times and the coloured slides of the reserve as it is today.  Tony Froom

Janshaven Cup The gardeners of the Society most be congratulated on such a marvellous display of flowers and knowledge of rare and exotic cultivars.  Imagine my excitement when I spotted KLEINA GRANTIA, an exhibit at our recent March meeting, at no less an auspicious place than the temperate house at KEW.   In my humble opinion the specimen exhibited by Mr L Wakeling was a far better example of the species.  The winners of the April round were 1st Mrs Hopkins (Multiheaded Narsissus,) 2nd Mrs  Thorp (Multi headed Daffodil),  3rd  Mrs Allen  (Clematis Alpina Frances Rivers).  The other exhibits were Daffodil Rembrant (L. Lister), Berberis golden haze (L Dunkin), Triparoleum Trifolium (M Shrimpton), Trillium Sessile (E Shrimpton).  A truly great effort by nine of our members, but we have many more members than nine, so grasp your courage in your green fingers and share with us your beautiful flowers and your immense knowledge.  A very grateful thanks for your efforts.  Margaret Hurley 

Miss Willmott’s Ghost

In her younger days Miss Willmott carried the seeds of Eryngium giganteum Biberstein and surreptitiously scattered them in other people’s gardens.  The spiny plant of the giant sea holly was said to match her personality and this silvery-blue biennial would startle the garden owners when it flowered in the second year and is still called Miss Willmott’s Ghost.

Warley Place opening times March Weekends through to Easter Weekend with two Snowdrop Walks in February.  £2 per head for guided walks.  

Diary Dates

Thursday 8 May                       MHHS Committee Meeting, Moot Hall, 7.45pm

Tuesday 20 May                      MHHS Members Meeting, URC Hall, 7.30pm

Thursday 12 June                    MHHS Committee Meeting,  Moot Hall, 7.45pm

May Members Meeting

Our speaker this month is Richard Ford from Park Green Nurseries near Stowmarket which specialises in hostas and ornamental grasses.

He will be giving an illustrated talk on hostas.  His nursery has won gold medals at many flower shows including Chelsea with their hosta exhibits.  

Please note that there will also be an half hour talk about compost by Brian Arbuckle from Maldon District Council, starting at 7.30pm prompt.

Doors will be open at 7.15pm.  There will also be the usual refreshments, raffle, video library and shop.

Janshaven Cup – don’t forget your entry for the May round of the competition

Visit to Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

It was a damp, misty start but by lunchtime we had sunshine and the slightest of cool breezes and the party enjoyed a superb day's visit.  This time of year meant many areas were particularly peaceful and although the early bulb display was fading there was colour to be seen and many fine plants and trees to admire.  The Palm House and Princess of Wales Conservatory are world class and stunning but we found Climbers and Creepers catered for grandchildren not grandparents!  Also human youngsters were having fun in the Giant Badger Sett but everyone could enjoy the Evolution House and the Stag Beetle Loggery and the enormous compost heap with its own viewing platform!  The secluded garden with a perfect conservatory was a favourite of ours and has provided ideas.  Thanks to Rita and Gerald for organising the day and arranging the Voucher Raffle.   Tony Froom 

Little Baddow Open Gardens 2008

Saturday 10 May, 11.00am – 5.00pm, Adults £5.00, free Park-and-Ride all day

Open gardens, refreshments, vintage/classic cars, Morris dancing, canal trips.  Tickets in advance from Meacock & Jones, Danbury and The Rodney and Generals Arms pubs, Little Baddow. 

Tel 01245 223624 for more information.  In support of St Mary’s Church, Little Baddow. 

Gardens Of Langham

Spring bank holiday Sunday and Monday, 25 & 26 May, 11.00am to 5.00pm each day.  Entry £4 – valid both days, children under 16 free.  “English country gardens at their best”.  Free parking, refreshments, plants for sale, craft & garden stalls, art exhibition.  Easy access from the A12 north of Colchester, take the exit signposted ‘Langham /Dedham’ into Park Lane, then follow the arrows.  

Gardens Open for Charity 2008

Sunday 18 May, Braxted Place, Little Braxted, 2.00pm – 5.00pm, Admission £3 Adults

Opening for the British Red Cross, this mature organic garden has a walled kitchen and herb garden, wild area and herbaceous borders.  Very limited parking, CM8 3LD for your sat nav or Google map. 

Sunday 1 June, Three gardens at Mill End, Bradwell-on-Sea, 10.00am – 6.00pm, Admission £3 Adults

These gardens are open in aid of the British Red Cross. The Old Mill House (wildlife garden), New House (large developing garden) and Laburnham Cottage (cottage garden) are all within walking distance to each other, parking and refreshments at New House.  CM0 7HL..

Gardens Open for National Garden Scheme                                                      

Friday 16 May, 4 Millbridge Road, Witham CM8 1HB, 10.00am – 4.00pm, £2.50 Adults               Small town garden with themed areas, pond and hidden areas

Sunday 18 May, Casa Mia, Rookery Lane, Gt Totham CM9 8DF, 1.00pm – 5.00pm, £2.50 Adults Rhododendrons, roses, clematis, ponds & waterfall

If you would like to recommend a garden to visit or if you hear of village open garden days locally or any other events our members would be interested in please contact me (details at the bottom of this page).  Thank you!  KH

Chelsea Flower Show, 20 – 24 May 2008 just in case you had forgotten!

Friary Walled Garden 

Sunday 6th April, it was planned to be another workday but we were hindered by the early snow.  There were four of us there and many trips were made back and forth to the local tip with bins and sacks of the ivy rubbish.  

Tuesday 8th - While in the garden I saw a pair of mallard ducks on the little pond.  They stayed for about 15 minutes - just time to get a couple of photos. 

The West Wall Bed - during the month of April a start was made on replanting the long West Wall bed. Details of the plants are being noted on a chart.  On 22nd April we had a delivery of timber poles and these will be used to construct an 33 feet long plant support approximately 6 foot high.  A stand has been purchased for the second water butt which can be used to water the new plants.  The masses of primroses are still there and they have increased greatly from previous years.  The grass areas have had their first cut for this year.  A supplier for the wooden edgings has been found and we can now, perhaps, make a start with replacing those boards that have rotted away.

The next Opendays will be Sunday 4th May and Sunday 1st June.  Arthur Cox
 

Wild about gardening … following on from our recent features on bumble bees, you may have seen the recent reports about the possible extinction of honey bees due to a mystery virus which is wiping out the bee population in the US and UK, this affects the pollination of food crops, garden plants and food for wildlife too such as hawthorn and other berries.   As birds are busy nesting and collecting food for their young it is important to still keep those seed feeders topped up to provide them with energy.  Also check hedges and shrubs for nests before getting too carried away with the hedge trimmer!  House sparrows are nesting in the wall of my house by the study window in the space previously occupied by blue tits, I’d like to find a way to get a web cam in there before the next breeding season, I can hear them chirping away while I type this.  KH 

Stop Press …The MHHS was represented at the Town's Annual Meeting with our display boards and hand-outs and we were delighted to see the Mayor's Award for the Citizen of the Year presented to Albert Kilby.  He later spoke of the need for extra sports pitches for children as nearly 20 teams were trying to use the Prom area at present.  You will all know Albert and his wife, Margaret, who do a great job organising the raffle at our members meetings.

Best Kept Front Garden Competition

Pumpkin and Gourd Competition