3 Jan 2023 Update

 Hi everyone,

I hope you are well and had a happy and enjoyable time over the festive period, and with the shortest day behind us your looking forward brighter days and times ahead.

Our next Gardening Group talk is with Bryony Gardener this Wednesday the 4th of January and at 7pm at the village hall, the cost of entry will be £3 per person and we will have light refreshments at the end of the evening, so please come along.

The subject of the talk relates to plant science and Bryony's research undertaken at University, and if last year's talk on Hydroponics is anything to go by, then it will be an interesting and thought provoking talk.

So please come along, even if you've never been to a talk before, you are welcome.

Happy New Year to you all.

Kind regards,

Roy

24 Dec 2022 Update

 Good afternoon everyone,

I hope you are all well, and looking forward to meeting up with your families over the holiday. 

So sorry for not getting back to you all sooner, but life can be busy at times.

Thank you all for your support over the last year, and hope you're all fit and well for gardening in 2023.

Thanks to everyone who came along to our talk with Piers Lunt, and thanks to Piers for an informative and encouraging talk. 

As thanks for the talk, we have made a donation of £40 to the Tywi Gateway project.

Our next Gardening Group talk will be on Wednesday the 4th of January, and with Bryony Gardener.

More information to follow next week.

Merry Christmas,
Roy & Sue

15 Nov 2022 Update

 Good morning everyone, 

Firstly, many thanks to all who came along to Rachel Barber's talk (Eithinduon - unexpected treasure trove of Biodiversity. 

This was a very interesting and thought provoking talk about Rachel experiences and observations whilst developing habitats at Eithinduon.

Thanks so much to Rachel for doing this for us and without charging us, and at Rachel's request, we will be making a donation to a local Hedgehog charity as a way of thanking Rachel. 

With regard to Matthew Tebbutt's talk about invasive species, there is some feedback below from Matt. 

I did suggest that a survey of waterways and wetlands in our community area may be of benefit to Matt and PCNP.

So, please see the response below from Matt, including a powerpoint document containing the links used in the presentation. 

However, subsequent to this, I did mention to Kevin Caley that the survey work would best fit Llanteg and Amroth Renaturing Community (LARC) objectives.

Obviously landowner permission would be required, and volunteers. 

So I'm passing this task along to Kevin and the LARC group, since their objectives are more aligned to this.

Kind regards, 

Roy

If you no longer wish to receive these emails, then please get in touch with me.

---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Matthew Tebbutt 

Hi Roy

Please find attached PowerPoint with refs and links used in the presentation.

 

What can our community do to manage Himalayan Balsam and Japanese Knotweed? that would be great

 

In the short term, Survey for the target species and submit records to me

Grid Reference Finder

Next week I will create a catchment map for Amroth/Llanteg and pass on to you what records we have so far for balsam and knotweed.

In the medium term, once we have a better understanding of extent and source areas of balsam we could look to gain some permissions for community led control, the project will assist in permissions, strategy and if I have budget maybe a contractor.

If that’s something the community is interested in? For the Stitch project to fund work outside the project catchments we need to ensure any effort is focused on strategic areas and a commitment from the community to the lead in control and monitoring. I will also need to justify any resource/effort in a catchment context so records and mapping is a key start.

You members are welcome to join me on work parties at other sites such as in Castlemartin corse next season.

On the night of the talk I spoke to 2 ladies, one regarding Montbrecia in a woodland (Hean estate) near Sardis, and another on Himalayan balsam in Amroth/Llanteg. Could you ask them to get in touch, no rush. Sorry I forgot their names.

There may be grants out there (external, not Stitch in time/National Park) to assist communities in biodiversity projects which may include INNS work. I will keep an ear out.

I will get in touch towards the end of next week.

Cheers

Mat

29 Oct 2022 update

 Good evening everyone,

I hope you are all in good health, and stayed indoors on a wet and windy Autumnal day.

On a positive front, don't forget the clocks go back an hour overnight, so an extra hour in bed!

 

Many thanks to those who came along to a very interesting and thought provoking talk on invasive plant species, given by Matthew Tebbutt from Pembrokeshire Coast National Park.

When it comes to Himalayan Balsam and Japanese Knotweed, then a survey of the waterways and wetlands in our community wouldn't go amiss.

What do you think?

 

Our next talk is with Rachel Barber from Carmarthenshire Meadow Group, and on the 9th of November at 7pm at LVH. Please come along, the cost as usual is £3 per person and this includes light refreshments.

I will remind you nearer the date, and let you know the title of Rachel's talk at the same time.

 

Finally I've not forgotten, but I will prepare a draft constitution for our gardening group for discussion soon.

 

Kind regards, 

Roy

Garden Group Talks Winter 2022

 

Gardening Group Talks

As far as gardening group talks at Llanteg village hall during the coming months, then these are the dates and speakers we have booked, all at 7pm unless otherwise mentioned, we will have tea and light refreshments and a room raffle. There will be a reminder email a week before each of the dates, please come along if practicable.

The cost of gardening talks can be quite frightening, we recently made an inquiry and was very surprised to find that an hour long talk which didn't include travelling expenses would cost £1,000, some thankfully charge around £100 but £250 is not uncommon. Most Gardening Clubs are able to tap into funding because they have a constitution and therefore qualify to apply for such funding.

All of the talks are subject to any variations on Covid advice.

Date	Speaker	Subject	Organisation
October 26th	Matt Tebutt	Invasive Species	Pembrokeshire Coast National Park
November 9th	Rachel Barber	TBA	Carmarthenshire Meadow Group
December 7th	Piers Lunt	TBA	Tywi Gateway Project Abergwili
January 4th	Bryony Gardener	Plant Life Research	Research at Bristol University
February 1st	Liz and Paul O’Neill	TBA	Llwyngarreg
February TBA	Kevin Caley	TBA	Llanteg Gardening Group
March 29th	Carole and Peter Whittaker	Behind the Scenes at the RHS	Glyn Bach Llangolman

Cost - £3 per talk.

29 August 2022 Update

 Good morning everyone,

I hope you are all well and having an enjoyable Bank Holiday weekend in the unusually fine bank holiday weather.

With regard to the purchase of bulbs etc via Adele and from https://www.dutchbulbs.co.uk/

Could you place your order directly with Adele by Sunday the 4th of September please, there has to be a cut off date and the 4th is it!

erabarclay@gmail.com

As far as the visit to the Tywi Gateway Project at Abergwili on the 3rd of September from 10am onwards, this isn't a specific Garden Group visit, since it's a horticultural show, so if you can't make it, then I'm sure there will be public support on the day.

As mentioned in an earlier email, the Tea Room and Museum are open on the day.

In respect of the garden visit to Gelly Uchaf gardens at Rhydcymerau SA19 7PY on the 11th of September from 2pm onwards, .

Can you confirm if you are coming along, and if you require refreshments please, also we are limited by parking spaces, so if you can car share then this would be appreciated.

In the event of inclement weather, then Sunday the 18th September at 2 pm is an alternative date. 

The costs per person is £5 for entry, and £3.50 for tea/coffee and cakes.

See www.thegardenimpressionists.com

https://thegardenimpressionists.com/garden-views-2011/garden-views-2021/garden-views-09-september-2021/

Finally our Gardening Group annual meeting is on the 7th of September and starts at 7:30pm, so please come along. Also if you've agenda items you would like to add, then please let us know, at the moment the evening looks like this:

Agenda Items:

Forming a Gardening Club?

Annual Membership Fee?

Maintenance of Community Area's and funds

Garden Visits?

Gardening Talks?

Alternative Talks?

Gardening Workshops?

Summer Show.

Finances.

AOB

Finally, we could do with some help in weeding and generally tidying up the common community areas in the village, special attention is required at the Old School Garden, whilst the other areas require a little work after the wild flowers have died back. So if you can lend a hand, then please email me, the date we have in mind are the 16th and/or the 23rd of September and anytime that best fits in with you on the day.

Kind regards, 

Roy & Sue

AGM Sept 2022

 The annual meeting of the Gardening Group will be on Wednesday the 7th of September and at 7:30pm at the Village Hall, an agenda will follow, but if you would like to add any item, then get in touch, and please come along.

Agenda Items:

Forming a Gardening Club?

Membership Fee?

Maintenance of Community Area's

Garden Visits?

Gardening Talks?

Gardening Workshops?

Finances.

AOB

Finally, we could do with some help in weeding and generally tidying up the common community areas in the village, special attention is required at the Old School Garden, whilst the other areas require a little work after the wild flowers have died back later in the year. So if you can lend a hand, then please email me and we will set a date. 

Many thanks for all your support and time.

Kind regards,

Roy

Llanteg Show Update August 2022

 Llanteg Garden & Craft Show

Our first Village Show took place last Saturday, 13th August, being a joint effort between Llanteg Village Hall and the Gardening Group.

This show was for us a big step change compared with our previous Virtual Shows, but nevertheless it was well worth the effort and turned out to be a success.   

We received over one hundred and eighty entries, across the forty six show categories. 
Much appreciation to E.C.Thomas & Son of Zoar Chapel for very kindly sponsoring our advert in the Tenby Observer.

To all of you who helped out on the day, and to the judges, your efforts and skills are greatly appreciated.  In addition, thanks go to all of you who submitted entries, and to the public who came along to support this event.  

Apologies in advance for singling out people for a special mention, but to Ruth Roberts and Sue James our appreciation and gratitude go to you both for all your hard work in making this event run so smoothly.

Also, as a result of the generosity on the show day, we are in a position to donate a total of £226 to the Saudersfoot First Responders and the Wales Air Ambulance charities. 
Roy James, Hall & Garden Group Chairman

8 May 2022 update

 Good afternoon everyone,

I hope you are all well and enjoying the fine weather and busy out in your gardens, or perhaps on the beach taking in our lovely coastline?

Our next gardening visit is on the 13th of May and from 11am onwards, with a talk with Joseph Atkin in the afternoon. If you are coming along, then can you please let Pauline and I know as soon as you can.

The group prices are as follows:

• Groups of 10+: £8.40 per adult
• Groups of 45+: £8.25 per adult
• Children under 16: Free of charge

The guided tour of the Gardens with Head Gardener Joseph will be paid for out of existing Gardening Group funds. Whilst the entry fee is to be paid for by yourselves. 

Also, the Kilgetty in Bloom Committee are looking for three judges to view/judge the entries on Wednesday 13th July.

If you're interested, then please get back to me or Pauline, and we will forward your email address to Margaret Moffat at Kilgetty in Bloom. 

Kind regards,

Roy

31 March 22 Update

 Good evening everyone,

I hope you are all well and enjoying the warm weather, and looking forward to spending time in your gardens in the coming days ahead.

Our last gardening talk at the village hall is with Jake Rayson on the 6th of April at 7pm, the subject of the talk is Community Forest Gardens. 

Following on from this, here is a list of venues and dates for garden visits planned for the coming months.

I will update you nearer the dates, since I will need to know about numbers etc.

April 24th 2pm onwards Old Rectory Lampeter Velfrey 

https://ngs.org.uk/view-garden/34289

May 13th & 11am onwards Aberglasney

https://aberglasney.org/

June 12th & 2pm onwards Norchard Manorbier Tenby. This is an NGS open day, so there's a limited number of tickets available. So please let me know if you're interested in attending, we've paid for 12 tickets (£6 each). 

https://ngs.org.uk/view-garden/25634

July 16th & 2pm onwards Llwyngarreg

https://www.llwyngarreg.co.uk/

August 7th & 2pm onwards Glyn Bach

https://www.glynbachgardens.co.uk/

September 9th or 10th & 11am onwards Abergwili, although the date is to be confirmed. 

With most of the garden visits, there will be a walk and talk, but I will update you closer to the time. 

With the virtual show firmly in the past, we are planning a summer Gardening/Craft/Art/Photography show at the village hall. The format of the show will be similar to the virtual show, although not on the same scale.

If you would like to be involved, and we do need volunteers please, then please let me know, be it a helper on the day or judging any categories.

The date we have in mind for the show is Saturday the 13th of August, and more information will follow shortly. So please start growing, painting and creating your show entries.

We've someone who's looking for some paid help to create a garden and offer advice. So if you are interested, then please get back to me?

We are going to meet up for a plant sharing get together in mid May, venue and date to be announced later.

I hope you don't mind. But with busy times ahead, I think it sensible to defer forming a gardening club to a later date.

As a matter of interest, these are a few dates to be aware of:

Spring fair at Abergwili on the 10th of April, see link. 

https://parcyresgob.org.uk/new-spring-plant-fair-at-bishops-park/

Summer fair at Picton Castle on the 9th of July.

Finally, could you please let me know if  you're happy to continue with the annual maintenance of the community land?

Kind regards, 

Roy 

10 March 2022 update

Good afternoon everyone,

Thanks so much for coming along to our gardening group talk last night, and really appreciate your support.

In addition, It was so encouraging to see so many smiling faces back in the hall.

I'm hoping that you enjoyed yet another informative and entertaining talk by Paul and Liz O'Neill. Hard not to really!

Thanks to those who brought along old plant pots, which Paul & Liz appreciated and these will help with their charitable work.

The next talk, which is the last of our winter program, is with Jake Rayson on the 6th of April. I will update you nearer the time.

Thereafter, the plan is to visit various gardens throughout the summer months. 

However, I would appreciate your input as to what gardens you would like us to visit, and also what would be your preferred day to visit these places?

Personally I will be looking at the following gardens: Aberglasney, Llwyngarreg, Abergwili, Picton Castle, plus some of the gardens in the NGS flyer I sent in a previous email.

Also if there is a desire to have two garden visits per month, then please let me know. 

With regard to our finances. The £2/head entrance fee is covering the hall rental with a small surplus, so I can't see any reason to change this at the moment. 

Kind regards, 

Roy 

8 March 2022 Update

 Good afternoon everyone,

I hope you are all well and looking forward to getting on with your gardening, once the lighter evenings are with us again.

Apologies for not getting back to you sooner, but thanks so much for coming along to the talk with Piers Lunt last month. It was a very interesting talk, from yet another of the very talented head gardeners we have in the area. l'm sure we're looking forward to visiting the Tywi Gateway gardens later in the year. 

Our next talk is next Wednesday the 9th of March and at 7pm, and I expect like us you're looking forward to Paul and Liz O'Neill from Llwyngarreg and their talk entitled "Growing Acid Loving Plants".

Please see a message from Liz:-

If you have used plant pots you don't want, then can you please bring them along for Paul and Liz. They use them for plant sales, which goes to finance their garden at Llwyngarreg. Which in turn raises money for charities. Also there will be some plants on sale on the night. 

Please see a message from Adele:-

Joseph (Aberglasney) has given us a tray of Cleome ‘Rose Queen’ seedlings for our garden group. They are ready to be pricked out, so Adele will bring them to Wednesday’s meeting. So please bring along small containers. 

Many thanks to Joseph for this very kind gesture, and to Adele for making this happen.

Our talk on April the 6th is with Jake Rayson and is titled "Community Forest Gardens", although I will confirm this at a later date.

A list of garden visits will follow some time next month, but in the interim, see NGS list below.

As for Covid, the WAG restrictions have now been relaxed, although if you wish to wear a mask and socially distance, then please do so. Since whatever you are comfortable with, works for us all.

Kind regards,

Roy

I Feb 2022 Update

 Good morning everyone,

Many thanks for coming along to the talk on Hydroponics and Aeroponics last Friday. 

The talk Bryony gave us was so interesting and thought provoking, that we need to have a further talk on her research in the future. Please. 

Thanks so much Bryony for giving us this talk, and we are making a donation to you for doing this for us.

Belated Happy Birthday, sorry forgot to mention it on Friday.

The next gardening group talk is with Piers Lunt on the February 23rd at 7pm, the subject is:

Designing Hidden History: Creative Planting and Restoration of the Bishop's Park and Garden.

Then it's Liz & Paul ONeil on March 9th and again at 7pm, the subject is to be confirmed, New Talk!

Then we have Jake Rayson on April 6th at 7pm, the subject is: Forest Garden.

If your thinking about ordering seeds etc from Suttons, then these are the discounts available from their current catalogue if you quote SUGS4025Z.

Packet seeds 50%

All others 15%.

See order form below. 

Thanks so much to Pauline and her pollinator project team for all their efforts in delivering this project. 

Well done everyone. 

Finally, if any one would like to go along to the Old School Garden, Mountain Chapel or the Clay Pits and carry out any maintenance then this would be greatly appreciated.

Things like, weeding, cutting of brambles, raking paths, picking up fallen branches would be good. If so, then please go along at any time you can spare please. 

We will set a date in March to do some work in these areas, as the weather improves and the days lengthen. 

Kind regards, 

Roy

Jan 2022 Talk - change of date

 LLANTEG GARDEN GROUP TALK - CHANGE OF DATE

With regard to the hydroponics talk with Bryony Gardener at the village hall next week.

Apologies, but the date has now changed from Wednesday the 26th to Friday the 28th of January at 7pm, the entry fee is £2/person.

If you could let me know if you are attending please, then this would be appreciated.

As far as covid is concerned: Please carry out an LFT before hand, then sanitise your hands on entering the hall, wear a face covering and adopt social distancing whilst in the hall.

There will be some ventilation of the building, so please wear warm clothing.

Roy James

831468 Roy.James1536@gmail.com

8 Jan 2022 Update

 Good afternoon everyone, 

As far as the weather today is concerned, it's certainly not the best, but at least we have the hope that better days are ahead. So time to order those seeds and plants perhaps?

Firstly, many thanks for attending the talk with Aberglasney Head Gardener Joseph Atkin last Wednesday. As usual Joseph was a fountain of knowledge and enthusiasm, which all goes to inspire us to get gardening, I hope!

 

My thanks to Mary Megarry {VH Treasurer} for organising the payment on our behalf. 

Thanks also to Adele for volunteering to coordinate the sourcing of suppliers of wildflower bulbs, so more information to follow soon.

Incidentally, our next Gardening Group talk will be on Wednesday the 26th of January and at the village hall {7pm}.

The speaker will be Bryony Gardner and the talk relates to Hydroponics. We don't have any more detail than that at the moment, but will get back to you when we do.

At this point in time, the Covid precautions remain the same as before, and if you can carry out a LFT in the days leading up to the 26th. Then please do so, although we will send a reminder closer to this date.

If you wish to order seeds and or plants from suttons, then the unique order code is SUGS4025Z the discount is 50% off packet seeds and 15% from all other items, and that's all from their current catalogue.

In the past we've ordered specialist seeds from the Real Seed company, see https://www.realseeds.co.uk/about.html.

Also, Tavernspite Garden Centre offers a good selection of plant plugs including tomato and brassicas etc, as well as seeds. 

Finally, if anyone is interested in a workshop cafe. Along the lines of learning new diy and repair skills, then get back to me please on roy.james1536@gmail.com

Kind regards,

Roy

20 Dec 2021 Update

 Good morning everyone,

I hope you are all well and looking forward to Christmas with your families, and hopefully a better year ahead.

Although from a positive perspective, looking forward, the shortest day is on the 21st of December, so less darkness and more light days ahead.

Below is a list of talks planned to take place at the village hall and at 7pm.

This is subject to any changes made by the WAG and Central Government.

At this point, there is no requirement for passports, but social distancing and face masks within the hall will apply. 

The hydroponics talk with Bryony, which was planned for the 22nd of December, is now deferred to the 26th of January and at 7pm.

Winter Talk Schedule, at LVH and 7pm onwards.

• Joseph Atkin - January 5th - Aberglasney Specials.

• Bryony Gardener  - 26th of January - Hydroponics. 
  

• Piers Lunt - February 23rd - Designing Hidden History: Creative Planting and Restoration of the Bishop's Park and Garden

• Liz & Paul ONeil - March 9th - New Talk!

• Jake Rayson - April 6th - Forest Garden

If the situation changes, then I will update you, and we will revert back to zoom if possible! 

Happy Christmas and healthy New Year to you all.

We greatly appreciate your support and enthusiasm during yet another interesting year! 

Cheers, 

Roy and Sue

20 Nov 2021 Update

 Good morning everyone,

With regard to the gardening talk last night.

Many thanks to Carole & Peter for making this such an enjoyable and lovely evening and providing a most interesting talk about the History and Medicinal properties of the Monarda.

Similarly, many thanks to all who came along to our first gardening talk since those wonderful pre-Pandemic days!

I appreciate it's not easy to meet during these times, but it was good seeing you all, and thanks for your positive feedback.

I will update you soon with details of the next talk, which is with Bryony Gardner (Georgina's daughter), the subject is Hydroponics.

On a different subject, there is a Victorian Fair at Picton Castle this weekend, but please check the link below for more details;  https://www.pictoncastle.co.uk/2021/11?cat=3

1 Nov 2021 Update

 Good afternoon everyone, 

I hope you are all well and enjoying what has been a warm dry day, and thank goodness yesterday's high winds are behind us all! Lets hope the rest of the week is much the same as today's weather was?

Apologies for not getting the minutes of our last meeting on the 15th of October to you earlier, but life even for the retired old folks can be a busy one.

Can I thank all of you who came along to the Botanical Garden on the 23rd of October. The weather was again kind to us, and Nigel and Liz made our visit a more enjoyable one with their very interesting walk and talk.

These are the main points discussed at our meeting:

Apologies for absence from: Dawn Sanders, John James, Trish Cormack, Carolyn and Mike Brotherwood.

• Pauline gave us a very interesting update on our Pollinator Project. The raised beds are in place at the Mountain Chapel {thanks to Ken} and the plan is to have top soil delivered for these beds in the coming days, this will allow further planting of pollinator plants. In addition, some shrubs have been planted at the Clay Pits and some fruit trees are on order for delivery in November. The bug hotel was to be purchased from funds, but now, thanks to Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Trust they will provide the bug hotel which is to be placed opposite Stanwell. It was agreed that if there was an overspend of the grant money, then this would come out of the Gardening Group funds. Pauline thanked her Pollinator working group for their support and also thanked Paul Webb at Tavernspite Garden Centre for his donation of plants for the project.

• The Virtual Summer Show was discussed, and it was provisionally agreed that we would have a real Summer Show in the village hall in 2022. This show would take a similar format to our previous virtual shows and include some electronic entries where practicable, the latter would allow support from far and wide. The show would take a lot more organising and the need for a committee, along with sponsorship from local businesses. It was agreed that we retain the virtual certificates for the successful entrants, this would be more environmentally friendly and reduce costs. Our thanks go to Ruth and her judges for all their hard work in making this year's show such a successful one.  http://llantegshow2021.blogspot.com/

• It was agreed to go ahead with Winter Talks at the Village Hall and that a list of talks would be sent out soon. Additionally, it was agreed to hold the talks on a Wednesday evening as an alternative to a Friday. These talks/meetings would be subject to WAG Covid legislation and guidance.

• It was agreed to have Summer Walks and Talks and therefore a list of dates would be sent out soon.

• It was agreed that presently there was no requirement for a membership fee, but that there would be the usual charge of £2 per person for anyone attending the Winter Talks. Furthermore it was suggested that we have fundraising events, should there be a need to do so.

• The Maintenance of the Common Public Areas is continuing and a suitable date and time is to be circulated when the weather conditions allow. Although, if anyone would like to carry out any work at these areas and at their convenience, then this would be greatly appreciated.

AOB

A brief discussion took place regarding the possibility of renting and or purchasing land suitable for allotments. It was agreed to gauge the interest in allotments within the community and to approach other organisations that operate allotments for advice.

Winter Talk Schedule, at LVH and 7pm onwards:

• Carole & Peter Whitaker -  Friday the 19th of November - History, Medical Qualities & Care of Monadas. Apologies, but the only date that works for Carole & Peter was a Friday.

• Bryony Gardener  - Wednesday in December, date TBA - Hydroponics.

• Joseph Atkin - January 5th - Aberglasney Specials

• Piers Lunt - February 23rd - Designing Hidden History: Creative Planting and Restoration of the Bishop's Park and Garden

• Liz & Paul ONeil - March 9th - New Talk!

• Jake Rayson - April 6th - Forest Garden

Summer 2022 Walk and Talks:

• Aberglasney - April or May date TBA

• Abergwili - May date TBA

• Llwyngarreg - June date TBA

• Norchard Manobier - July date TBA

• Glyn Bach - August date TBA

• September - One or more of the following: Upton Castle/Picton Castle/Stackpole Walled Garden/Botanical Garden

Kind regards, 

Roy