On behalf of the Shepton Snowdrop Festival, via Jane Hunt

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We are delighted to announce the launch of a Poetry Competition as part of the February Shepton Mallet Snowdrop Festival. This is for you if you have ever written a poem or enjoyed reading one in your school days…or since.

The Competition will be for poems written on the theme of snowdrops – the essence of the Festival. The Festival and the Poetry Competition celebrate the life and work of a snowdrop breeding pioneer – James Allen – who lived in Shepton.

The winning poem will be chosen by Deborah Harvey, an established poet (see below). There are three classes – for ages 6-11, 12-16 and over 16s. A formal awards ceremony will be held as part of the Festival on 19 February in Shepton, when Deborah will announce the winners, and even if you do not win, the writers of a number of selected poems will be given the opportunity to read out their poems. There is no entry fee for submitting poems.

The keen photographers among you will also be interested in the Snowdrop Festival Photography Competition, again with three classes (Under-16, Over-16 and Camera Club members). And on Sunday 15 January we are holding a Workshop on Photographing Flowers which will offer top tips from the Mid-Somerset Camera Club.

There is much more information about the Competition (and about the related photography competition and workshop) on the Festival’s website (www.sheptonsnowdropfestival.org.uk) – go to ‘Competitions’ at the top of the page. This also leads to the entry form. The Poetry Competition closes at midnight on 15 January 2017 – so do not delay putting in your entries.

Any requests for more information or queries to bondchristophere@btconnect.com

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Cornish Grit

Sorry for the delayed answer to this question. Cornish grit is said to be available from:

• Sweet Acre Nursery near Glastonbury. I verified this by phone (website)
• Chelston Nurseries (website)
• Champions Building Supplies, 4 tonne bags (website)

Two places which no longer supply Cornish Grit:

• Chamberlains in the Mendips
• Michael Kings

I hope this helps for those needing supplies. Thanks to the members who replied to the enquiry.

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Welcome to new Members

• Catherine Bond
• Gordon & Hilary Roberts
• Anne Kaile
• Susan Whitehead

We hope you enjoy the group.

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And Finally

Penny Berry writes: Members who have not used Riverside bulbs may like to know that I placed an order and was very impressed with the quality of the bulbs and their efficiency.

Our next meeting is coming up on Saturday 22nd October at 11.00am and will be a presentation by Mark Wash on ‘Crocosmias and Eucomis’.

Mark is the owner of Trecanna Nursery in Cornwall, which specialises in hardier varieties of South African plants, selling at plant fairs and via mail order.  This lecture is based on two of his real favourites – crocosmias and eucomis – of which he has bred some outstanding (and non-invasive) varieties at the nursery.  See how these plants grow in the wild, find out what conditions they enjoy and learn how to use them to best effect in the garden.

Plants for sale.
http://www.trecanna.com

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As a bonus, there may also be a short presentation about the new website. (To be confirmed)

Despite a gloomy forecast, the rain held off for the Somerset Group’s inaugural Plant Fair in the grounds of Forde Abbey.  Considering this was the Group’s first autumn event of this kind there was a good turn-out, and by mid-morning plant-hunters were already carrying bags of foliage and flowers as they wandered amongst the stalls.

The Somerset HPS table was decked with donated plants, which gradually diminished in number as the day wore on.  Small children were invited to come and plant a pot of miniature daffodils for free, learning which way up the bulbs should be planted, and that age-old gardener’s lesson of waiting for spring.

Expert advice was on hand from the stall-holders and nurserymen.  There were a wide variety of bulbs for sale, from dainty dwarf narcissi to elegant azure-blue camassias, and customers were intrigued by exotic plants grown for their architectural and curiosity factor.  Many of the stalls boasted a wealth of reliable herbaceous perennials, from the jewel colours of Michaelmas daisies and salvias to the metallic pink sprays of miscanthus grasses.  There were stands displaying woven willow animals, carved spoons and all manner of pots, planters and paraphernalia.

Dogs were welcome and a variety turned up with their owners in tow.  There was a generally sociable atmosphere to the event and many people stopped to chat as they enjoyed the fair.

Forde Abbey’s own borders were still full of colour, and the extensive kitchen garden seemed designed to instil vegetable envy in anyone who grows their own, with a fine pumpkin harvest, huge clouds of feathery asparagus and a display of picture-perfect Brussels sprouts.  Tall wigwams at the corners supported the scrambling climber, Spanish Flag, (Ipomoea lobata) in full flame.  Elsewhere, glowing rudbeckias, beetroot-tinted sedums and the velvety, rich orange Mexican daisy, Tithonia rotundifolia, brought life to the fading autumnal borders.

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Click on the images to see them full size.