Welcome to Church Crookham Garden Society

16th December 2016

Church Crookham Garden Society, Fleet, Hampshire UKA vibrant garden society active in Church Crookham, FLEET, Hampshire. We hold several annual events and shows and run a comprehensively stocked stores hut with discounts for members.

HISTORY

Church Crookham Garden Society was formed in 1954 as the Ryelaw Garden Society. It was founded by residents of Ryelaw Road as an outlet for their interest in gardening.

At some time in its early stages, the Society began marketing garden supplies and until 1997 traded from sheds located in Moore Close.

The name of the Society was changed to Church Crookham Garden Society to reflect the wider residential location of its members.

Shows were organised and now two shows per year are held, one in the spring and one in late summer.

In 1997 the ground occupied by the Society’s sheds was subject to planning consent for residential building and the Society moved to a purpose built concrete structure located in the car park of the Crookham Memorial Hall in Sandy Lane, Church Crookham.

The Society is run by two committees:

  • Main committee
  • Show committee

Each committee is made up of elected members, and is chaired by the Society Chairman.

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Tips for July and August

8th July 2020

Tips for July and August 2020, writes Elizabeth Kirton :

All that planning and preparation is worth it in July and August.  Now you can harvest raspberries, currants, gooseberries and freeze any surplus to cheer up winter menus.  By the end of August, the apple and pear harvest can begin; these fruits can be stored on trays in newspaper.

Thanks to the heat and lack of rain in June, beans, peas and early potatoes have not thrived, but will be ready for harvest and the annual courgette glut is under way.

When garlic leaves turn yellow, lift the bulbs and dry in a single layer in a dry place.

Sow seeds for autumn and winter salads.

Erigeron
.

This is a popular plant with bees – Echinops ritro ‘Veitch’s Blue’

Clip, snip and cut

  • Early summer flowering shrubs like Philadelphus: cut back flowered stems to a strong lower shoot and remove one fifth of the old woody stems.
  • Clip privet, box, yew, cypress and other ‘hedgy’ plants now the birds have finished nesting in them.
  • Cut long whippy shoots of Wisteria to 5 leaves from the main stem.
  • Prune out flowered stems of rambling roses; thin out the vigorous new growth and tie it in.
  • Summer-prune cordon or espalier apples and pears
  • Cut non-flowering side branches of grape vines to 5 leaves and fruit- bearing branches to 2 leaves beyond the fruit bunch.
  • Cut back hardy geraniums to the ground after the first flush of flowers to get fresh foliage and more flowers later on.
  • Dead-heading keeps perennials and bedding plants flowering for longer.
  • In August, trim lavender, leaving an inch (2.5cm) of new growth

Propagate

  • Take semi-ripe cuttings from shrubs – use the current season’s growth, cut below a node, remove the soft tips and place in gritty compost.
  • Divide bearded irises and plant the young rhizomes 12inches(30cm) apart.
  • Use strawberry runners to supply new plants for next year
  • Collect seeds from perennials and hardy annuals as they ripen; store in paper envelopes (labelled!) in a cool dry place until spring

For your diary

Church Crookham Garden society has its annual show scheduled for 22nd August, but it is unlikely that we will be able to use the hall by then. We shall keep you informed.

Gardens open for charity

Some gardens are open; check their arrangements by visiting ngs.org.uk or rhs.org.uk

Trading shed update

26th June 2020

Alec Grant writes :

Dear Members

I hope you and your families are all well and, if so, enjoying the summer weather.

This is becoming a weekly update as, due to the Covid restrictions, together with the vulnerability of our shed teams and members, we are do not consider it safe to return to normal and will need to continue with the collection action slot system for some time.  Sadly, the relaxations announced by the Gov will not assist us.

Following recent deliveries we now have:

Levingtons M3 with a significant price reduction to £8.90 from £11.00 – this is high quality compost which does not go hard when it is dry

Doff Multi Rose 1l fertiliser @ £3.40 which makes 300 litres

Doff Tomato Feed NPK 4,5,9 1l @ £3.00 (also making 300 litres) and a significant saving against 1l Tomorite NPK 4,3,8 of £5.70

We also have Horticultural Sharp Sand at £5.40 20kg or £0.50 for 3kg

You will be pleased to know that we now have a good quantity of compost – strangely the Covid lockdown has brought this product to near extinction.

The Maxicrop seaweed organic liquid is also now back in stock.

Anyway, enough of my ramblings, the shed will be open on Saturday and if you wish any products please email alecjgrant@icloud.com and I will check the stock, assign a collection slot and send details for payment.

Attached (link below) is a revised price list with some new items highlighted, one  price reduction and no increases.

Members Price Guide (June26 2020) (1)

Kind Regards & stay safe

Alec

Archive
Tel: 07801 714662 Email: alecjgrant@icloud.com