WEDNESDAY 4 MARCH

David Jones in action

The Man is back! Anyone who was at our meeting in April 2012 cannot fail to have been amazed at the almost magic like floral arrangements created by our speaker DAVID JONES, who pays us a return visit on Wednesday 4 March at 8pm in the Red Cross Hall, Oxted.
This time his presentation has the intriguing title of "THREE WEDDINGS AND A 4Oth". Make of that what you will, but all will no doubt be revealed on the 4 March.
One of David's creations will be the top prize for a raffle that night.
Here is some information about David and his background:

The beginning

Unlike most florists or floral decorators who profess to have had a passion for flowers and plants from an early age, I did not. I grew up in the centre of Liverpool, with the only green space being the local park!

It wasn’t until I had moved to London and worked in the hotel industry for a year, that I embarked on a course for flower arranging. For how and why is a mystery, but as it turned out, it was the career and future that was meant to be. That was back in the long hot summer of 1976.

After the course (of which I failed all of the exams), I met Kenneth Turner, the greatest innovator of the flower industry. It was he who drew out of me what was to become my life long passion. He saw in me a natural talent for colour sense and mixing, the ability to appreciate scale and the dramatic visions within. Also at this point I met Noel Minett, who eventually became my business partner and life long friend and adviser.

I worked for Kenneth for 5 years, then moved off into the freelance circuit working for the floral worlds elite, to gain more experience.

Development

In 1986, Noel and I began our business journey. We became immediately successful and in great demand. We were innovative leaders of the event / party decorating world for the next 15 years. Creating magical settings for a whole array of weddings including Sting and Trudie Styler, Greg and Lucy Rudedski, Duke and Duchess of York, barmitzvas, birthdays and all forms of celebrations and events, such as the Jaguar style.

We were introduced to Jaguar by Belle Shenkman, who was our driving force to developing the Jaguar style. Again this was achieved with JCB with the enthusiasm of Sir Anthony and Lady Bamford in the development of the "look" for their excavating machinery company. Other projects with The Royal Shakespeare Company, The National Theatre, The National Portrait Gallery, British Alcan, all followed suit. It was a very exciting time.

Noel had retired after the first five years, when I continued with two new partners, firstly with Jenny Lamberton, then later with Simon Waddilove.

After the first 15 years, I needed “Time Out”. To give my creativity a well earned break.

The Future

In 2009, I returned to the wonderful world of flowers, with renewed enthusiasm and vigour. I am now back at what I do best, and producing some of my best work. And so I continue...

Pruning Old Fruit Trees - Reinvigorating Old Trees

FULL HOUSE...!

We enjoyed a wonderful evening on Wednesday the 4th in the company of Tom Coward, the Head Gardener of Gravetye Manor. What is more, we had a "full house", and it was almost standing room only.
We announced a visit to the garden on 1 May, and the limited number of tickets were snaffled up very quickly. We are sorry for those who missed out.


Our 2015 Schedule is now in circulation, and a copy can be picked up at a monthly meeting or by request from our Membership Secretary (01883 715496).
On the left Tom can be seen answering questions after his talk.

The 2015 Schedule

Tom Coward answers questions

TOM COWARD

 TOM COWARD THE HEAD GARDENER AT GRAVETYE

our speaker on Wednesday 4 February

Now that we are in deep winter it is the best opportunity to really get ahead in the garden. Pruning, clearing and preparing borders are all jobs on the list that simply have to be done before the start of spring. But one of the biggest jobs we have is composting the vegetable garden, to keep a fertile and healthy soil for next year’s crops. It may not be so glamorous, but the compost heap is probably one of the most important parts of the garden. It is a cheap and effective way of disposing of waste from both the garden and kitchen and with a bit of careful management this rubbish can be turned in to “brown gold”.

In a garden the size of Gravetye, we produce vast amounts of compost material throughout the year, which we pile up in a large bay made from railway sleepers. To make good compost it is really important to get the right balance of all the ingredients- carbon, nitrogen, air and water. Much of the old border plants we cut back in the autumn are very dry and have a lot of carbon so we balance this out by adding horse manure into the mix. Quality horse manure is always difficult to find but fortunately, the love of my life is obsessed with her horse and keeps a manure pile for me with the perfect straw to dung ratio…. Romance can blossom in the most unusual places! Water is quite plentiful at this time of year but in the summer through very dry patches, it can be good to water the heap. Air is added to the heap by turning it from one bay to another with a tractor; this is the point where the quality of the compost can be inspected. If all the ingredients are in the right balance, then the microorganisms are doing their good work. This gives off a lot of heat generation and creates clouds of steam as the tractor lifts each load.

It can take several months for the compost to fully break down into beautiful fine crumbly humus and when ready, it is time for it to be spread on the vegetable garden. We only do this when the soil is dry enough as pushing wheelbarrows on wet ground can ruin the soil. For extra protection, we work off a path of scaffold planks to help prevent too much compaction. We don’t compost the whole garden every year but instead do different beds each year as part of our rotation. By composting the brassicas, peas and pumpkins each year, most beds get a dose of muck every two years. The hard part is wheel barrowing it into place and digging it in but this is a perfect workout after the excesses of Christmas.
See below as Tom talks about the Gravetye garden in winter...

STOP PRESS: A tour of the Gravetye garden is in the process of being
                                  finalised. Find out more at the meeting on 4 February. 

GRAVETYE IN WINTER

November Meeting & Terry's Birthday

We are a little behind with the postings, but at our meeting on the 5 November we celebrated the the 80th Birthday of Terry Stent, who was for many years a leading member of the Society and a keen exhibitor at shows. That competitive streak saw him win many prizes. He has eased down now and in recent years has looked after the seed order. He is looking after the 2014 requirements but will be passing the responsibility to someone else in 2015. He is seen here dealing with the candles on the cake. Congratulations Terry.

The Secret Gardens of London was the topic for our speaker Colin Jones, who also happens to be Chairman of the nearby Sanderstead Horticultural Society. No of us had any idea there are so many to view, and it has stimulated some ideas for a members trip out during 2015. Colin (on the left) is seen chatting to a member following his talk.

ANNUAL SEED ORDER

We are able to offer discounts on most items in the D T Brown 2015 catalogue (50% on packet seeds and 15% on non seed items and sundries). The offer is open to members and friends, and catalogues/order forms as well as further information can be obtained at the November monthly meeting, or by contacting Terry Stent (telephone 01883 714545). The coloured catalogue is always worth browsing.
We are delighted that Terry has decided to postpone his retirement from administering the scheme for a further year.
Please note that orders have to be with Terry by 21 November.

LODHS OCTOBER MEETING

Geoff Hawkins gave us enlightening talk on wildflowers, which comforted a lot of us in confirming that our lawns are "wildflower meadows", rather than just overrun with weeds.
Geoff is seen here chatting to a couple of members after his talk.

With the recent physical changes changes to the Red Cross Hall we have altered the seating arrangements by 90 degrees, thus allowing larger projected pictures than before, and bringing everyone in closer contact with the speaker.

Just look at this entry from Linda for the monthly competition. Another version of "Little and Large", but the the peppers were an incredible size. The winner was, however, a dahlia collection from Sandra.