At our September meeting we welcomed Lizzie Pellow of the team currently creating an environmentally sustainable Forest Garden at Shugborough, with a resilient eco-system, that feeds, waters and fertilises itself. Lizzie’s great enthusiasm in sharing the science behind the project, which should open in spring 2026, really made this subject come alive. She explained how the diverse range of plants reduces competition, enabling them to thrive and build resilience to pests, disease and the effects of climate change.

We were surprised at how many common plants have edible berries such as berberis and mahonia, as well as unusual trees such as Toona Sinensis whose leaves taste like beef and onion crisps! No matter how big or small our plots, we discovered that we can all apply some of the forest gardening principles at home. And we’re hoping to arrange a guided tour too.

After her fascinating talk, Lizzie drew the raffle and judged our monthly competition then answered many more individual queries over refreshments. We had a sign-up sheet for the Parish Council’s Bee Squared wildflower seed project which fitted well with the talk, and a list for a potential guided fungi foray with our speaker from February, Richard Sunter, as well as lots of plants and other gardening goodies on our bits and bobs table.

The seasonal single-stem competition was won this time by Christie, with Joan second and Anne (P) third. Well done to everybody, and all the entries create a real talking point, please scroll to the end of this post to see them all.

On a hot August evening we welcomed retired tree surgeon Gordon Malt who trained at Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh, to share his knowledge on this topic. He explained about choosing different supports depending on how individual plants grow, and their situation. His photos showed us a range of plants including unusual ones such as Ribes speciosum, Holboellia latifolia and Itea ilicifolia, as well as underrated old favourites such as Cotoneaster horizontalis which provides several seasons of interest; his complete list will be circulated to members.

After his talk he drew our raffle, and he also brought some lovely home-grown perennials for sale. He judged our monthly competition too, this time Pam took 1st place with her dahlia, Pia 2nd and Sylvia 3rd. Gremlins have unfortunately eaten the other photos, apologies! Over refreshments we browsed our bits’n’bobs table with spare plants, seedlings, books & seeds, and chatted about our free-to-enter Annual show on 30th August which is open to all residents of the local area as well as members. We’re hoping for a good display despite the challenges of this year’s weather.

A day after the coach trip we had our regular monthly meeting, welcoming Nigel Hopes from John’s Garden at Ashwood Nurseries, which we last visited in spring two years ago, with an inspiring presentation on all its beautiful seasons. He explained the behind-the-scenes work, how the garden continues to evolve, and how we can achieve some similar effects in our own smaller plots, with plant recommendations. After his talk he drew the raffle and judged our monthly competition, then we were able to purchase his home-grown Hopes Garden Plants.

Anita took first place this month with her dahlia, then Rosalie’s helenium was 2nd, and Sue’s carnation 3rd. Please scroll to the bottom of the post to see them all. Over refreshments, members and guests browsed our bit and bobs table, and collected schedules for our annual show on 30th August. All topped off with a beautiful nearly-full moon as we left the hall!

On a beautiful sunny June evening we welcomed The Potty Plotters – Elaine and Julia – who shared their allotment anecdotes and growing tips. It was an hilarious meeting starting with an unexpected quiz, and it was easy to see why they’re so popular on their regular Radio Derby Sunday slot. Their cheerful no-nonsense approach to gardening was peppered with lots of good advice ranging from how to start off hard-to-germinate seeds through storing onions and growing loofahs to the best dwarf tomato varieties.

We also heard how they ambushed celebrities at Chelsea Flower Show, why they have to be careful how they talk about moving greenhouses and an unexpected use for non-clumping cat litter! It was tricky to stop laughing while taking in all this information…. then they donated some beautiful sweet peas to our raffle before they drew it then judged our competition, won this month by Pia, with Sylvia 2nd and Helen 3rd, all beautiful entries – please scroll to the bottom of this post to see them all.

The printed schedules and booking forms for our annual show were available, with lots to choose from on our ‘bits & bobs’ table, plus the all-important programmes for our Open Gardens Weekend on 28th and 29th June. Some members also brought plants to be looked after ready for the plant stall. And to finish a super evening, the Strawberry Moon was rising in the as we left the village hall – forgot to take a photo though!

At our AGM on Tuesday 13th May all the committee who were standing for another year were re-elected and members endorsed a proposed annual subs fee of £25 for the 2025/26 year, also an amendment to our Constitution. This, together with our updated policies, can all be viewed via our Links page.

Sylvia was presented with the engraved trophy for the most points gained at our monthly competitions. Scores were very close and the new format has gone down really well since its introduction.

The official business was followed by our usual raffle then we all enjoyed a delicious cream tea with scones and jam homemade by committee members, as were the lovely table decorations.

We enjoyed the opportunity to chat as well as talk about our Open Gardens Weekend in June and coach trip in July (details of both on our Events page). And to finish our delightful evening there was still the remains of a glorious sunset when we left the hall.

On a lovely sunny spring evening, members at our April meeting enjoyed a lively talk by Darren Rudge with his ‘tricks of the trade’ on this subject, followed by a practical demonstration of making up a hanging basket which he then kindly donated to our raffle. His initial presentation recommended different types of pots and baskets as well as plants to go in them, depending on the effect that we want to create and our colour palette preference, as well as how best to fill and a good peat-free compost to use.

There were quite a few questions afterwards, and extra raffle tickets were sold – Sue was the lucky winner of his finished basket. Darren then judged the last of this season’s monthly competitions, and the member with the most points will receive the Trudi Brearley Challenge Trophy at our AGM in May. This month our winner was Anita’s chaenomeles, with Sylvia’s rhododendron 2nd and Sue’s delicate epimedium 3rd. All the entries were beautiful again as you can see from the photo. Please also scroll down to the bottom of this post to spot two dandelions posing amongst forget-me-nots in a shady garden area – serendipity!  

We also announced our 7th July coach trip to Waterperry Gardens, guests welcome, details on our events page, and talked about our Open Gardens Weekend on 28th and 29th June.

In March we welcomed back Diane Clement, this time sharing her vast knowledge of cyclamen & hepaticas – her ‘jewels of the garden’. Her enchanting photography showed us their natural habitats and why they favour similar conditions, then the wide variety available and how to grow & propagate them in our area. There are so many more cyclamen varieties than we knew, and the way that hepatica flowers change colour from year to year was fascinating, also the differences between some of the mums and their babies! Diane’s passion for breeding both these plants really shines through, and she recommended places to source them for those of us who don’t have her patience with hepaticas…..

After her talk she drew our usual raffle then judged our well-supported monthly competition, with Sue’s delicate white erythronium taking first place, Denise’s hellebore in 2nd and Anita’s camellia 3rd. Members enjoyed their refreshments and choosing from the ‘bits & bobs’ table, also collecting their free Teddy Bear dwarf sunflower seeds to grow for the special class in our August Produce Show, with spares that can be used for our 28th & 29th June Open Gardens weekend plant stall.