Page 65 - Simply Vegetables Autumn 2021

Welsh Branch
News from Wales
The Welsh Branch at long last held
a committee meeting on Saturday 31st July. This was our first meeting since March 2020. Our branch show at Wrexham was cancelled yet again because the hall, which is local authority owned, is being used for Covid testing. We decided to have another go at holding it there in 2022 on 20th and 21st August. I certainly hope for the third time, we’ll be lucky.
We lost Alaw Jones this spring. Alaw was a very loyal committee member, and a great supporter of our display
at the Royal Welsh show. We also lost Ron MacFarlane, who in the past organised the wonderful shows we had at Pembroke Castle many years ago and more recently in other venues in the Pembroke area.
Like any other organisation, older members pass on and we all hope younger people will replace them. That is the position we are in here in Wales right now. So, if you are reading this, don’t be shy give me a ring, or
With the pandemic going on, I had a feeling of Dig for Victory
any other committee member and come and join us. We meet in Rhayader in mid Wales to make travel from north and south Wales fairly equal.
Hopefully we can put a
display of vegetables on
at the Royal Welsh Show
in 2022. Its great fun and we meet so many people who are interested in growing vegetables. We have certainly
missed these events this last few years.
We also decided
to hold our AGM on Saturday 9th October 2021 at Rhayader. Any NVS member will be very welcome to attend, and as I mentioned above contact me if you’d like to
join our committee.
Personally, in my own garden, I have
moved my chrysanthemum standing ground from my front garden, in 2020 to make it easier to carry my pots into my greenhouse in my uphill garden. This meant I lost a lot of vegetable garden. In the winter of 2020, I dug my old standing ground, which I had walked on for over 40 years. It’s been under black ground cover membrane all this time. I was quite surprised how easy it was to dig. In late February we had a short spell of dry weather and I managed to rotavate the ground and sow the grass seed, mark out a new border and move the rose bushes and herbaceous perennials. This meant
I could return the old border at the rear of the house to vegetables for 2021. With the pandemic going on, I had a feeling of Dig for Victory. My vegetables are certainly thriving on it. Proving that crop rotation certainly works. Interestingly, although the lawn has established very well, there is a lot of Mayweed in it. So, I’m guessing their seeds have survived for 40 years under the black membrane. Unless someone knows better.
Congratulations to the members of the Irish DA on their success in the Southern Branch Virtual Show from their fellow branch members in Wales. Ivor Mace
Obituaries
Ron MacFarlane FNVS
It was with great sadness that the Welsh Branch was informed that their former sponsorship secretary and branch committee member Ron MacFarlane had passed away.
Ron served on the Welsh Branch committee from 1990 until 2004. He was very active in Pembroke where he lived, promoting the Welsh Branch of the National Vegetable Society, and for his work for the Welsh Branch he was awarded a fellowship, i.e. FNVS by the society in 1994.
This was followed by the award of the Silver Medal in 2005
In 2010 the Welsh Branch nominated him for the NVS Gold Medal, which was presented to him at the NVS championships in his native Dundee, by the society’s president Medwyn Williams.
The Welsh Branch send their sincere condolences to Ron’s wife and family on this sad occasion. Roy Tudor
Alaw Jones FNVS
It was with great sadness that the Welsh Branch announce the sad loss of Alaw Jones, a long serving member of the Welsh Branch committee.
Alaw was from Bethesda in north Wales, has been a very hard- working member of the committee, and never missing a meeting.
Alaw always attended the Royal Welsh show, every year bringing his supply of various kinds of vegetables to display on our branch stand. He would always arrive on Sunday afternoon and helped to stage the vegetables required to be shown on our stand.
He would remain at the show for 5 days and sold raffle tickets and always talked to the public about vegetable growing, recommending the various publications we sell on vegetable growing.
Our sincere condolences to his wife and family.
Roy Tudor
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