Page 57 - ALG Issue 4 2017

an interesting and informative display of materials from the Eton Wick History Group, with volunteers on hand to discuss how
the village has changed over the years. The show also hosts the nal of the Eton Wick Village scarecrow competition. This year’s theme was “robots” and there were a dozen entries from children and adults alike. By 4pm, it was time for the chairman of the Allotment Association (yours truly) to say
a few words and present the prizes to the show winners.
This year was our most well attended yet.
The judges were impressed by the quality
of the entries, and visitors enjoyed their time looking at the specimens on display. Next year sees our tenth anniversary, for which
we hope to offer visitors something a bit special in order to celebrate. Finally, I would like to say a big thank you to all of those who attended and helped with the set-up and running of the show; without our volunteer committee and entrants the show wouldn’t be half as much of a success as it is.
Stuart Woods, Chairman, Eton Wick Allotment Association
Wokingham Allotments Open Day
On Saturday 12th August 2017 Town Mayor Cllr Peter Lucey attended the fth annual Allotments Open Day at Wokingham Town Council’s Ormonde Road allotments site.
The event was jointly organised by the Town Council and Wokingham Horticultural Association (WHA). The WHA has a trading store at Ormonde Road.
The Mayor saw the hard work of over 180 allotment gardeners and was impressed by the profusion of so many varieties of fruit and vegetables.
The Open Day is held in part to support the National Allotment Society ‘Allotments Week’ – the prime purpose of which is to promote the bene ts of allotment gardening. These all revolve around enhancing your sense of well-being – working outdoors, exercise, fresh produce and the camaraderie with fellow growers.
On Saturday many prospective allotmenteers were taken on guided tours of the large site – and many subsequently joined the short waiting list for a plot.
The WHA ran a plant stall and members provided delicious homemade cakes. The proceeds from the donations for refreshments have gone to the two charities the Mayor is supporting
this year – Wade and Keep Mobile.
Entertainment was splendidly provided by Oojama ip who
bamboozled young and old alike with an array of magic tricks. Local beekeeper David Geen did a roaring trade with honey from
his own bees. He brought along a small section of one hive with bees hard at work.
Cllr Lucey said: “If you like the idea of growing your own food then allotment gardening could be for you. It does require some hard work but from what I saw the results are more than worth it. Do contact the Town Council for more information. Especial thanks to Jenny Gilbert and Pauline MacBrayne from Wokingham Horticultural Association for their invaluable contributions to the success of the day. It was a real team effort to promote and set-up the open day”.
Paul Smith, Amenities Of cer, Wokingham Town Council
The Town Council has four allotment sites – Gipsy Lane, Latimer Road, Ormonde Road, St Paul’s Gate. Full details at https://www. wokingham-tc.gov.uk/services/allotments
Information about the work of and bene ts to joining the WHA can be found at https://www.w-h-a.org.uk/
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