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The Grapevine Magazine June 2004 Issue No 191
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To: Grapevine From:
The Residents of Church Lane “Lewknor villagers
might like to know a bit more as a result of the comments made in the last
issue of Grapevine by the chairman of the Parish Council, concerning a
possible housing development on Church Farm. Some people have had early
sight of a draft consultative plan - mainly those likely to be most
affected. Clearly the possibility of
access down But it would be good to
canvass other views in the village as there seem to be greater
implications. At present 15 houses is
proposed. Will it end there? If the access IS deemed adequate, or even
if alternative access is found, some people can foresee the day when there
will be many more than 15 houses, perhaps a development stretching to Do we want to live in a
fairly rural village, with a working farm still at its heart, or do we want
to live in a dormitory suburb? Would
the village infrastructure (school, shop, public transport, roads that are
already busy and congested with parking) cope? Do we want to see changes that encourage
the infrastructure to cope, developed to that extent? How much do we value the village atmosphere
we presently enjoy? Once any plans are
deposited, it could be too late for such discussion. Let’s have it now!” EDITORS’ NOTE - Let us have
YOUR views on this important subject. Please note a change of
Email address: Kay Hazlewood now - derek.hazlewood@virgin.net CHRISTENINGS - Past and Present The Parochial Church
Council is planning to hold a celebration of baptism at St Margaret’s
Church in Lewknor both as a fund raising event towards the repair of the
fabric of the church but also as an event in which the children of the
primary school can be involved. We
hope to decorate the church with flowers and the children will perhaps help
with making small christening cakes and take part in a re-creation of a
Baptism Service. The preliminary plan is
to display in the church christening gowns which may have been passed down
through the generations or ones which reflect current fashions. Together with the gowns there would be
other items on display, for example christening gifts and family photographs,
cribs, prams or baby toys from a previous era. I have volunteered to organise this and as a first step I would be grateful if
you would contact me if you have a christening gown which you would be
prepared to loan or any of the other items mentioned. The address and telephone
number is: Elan Preston-Whyte, “Knysna” Lewknor. Tel no. 01844 350382 Something Unusual From Herbs with a difference Herbs make a decorative
and useful addition to any garden and there are many varieties of even the
most common ones that with imagination (and some searching) you can create a
traditional herb garden with a new and interesting look. Did you know, for
instance, that there are more than 600 varieties of mint? Try contrasting the bright green leaves of
the indispensable Moroccan spearmint, with the cream edged ones of variegated
applemint and the golden speckles of gingermint. Or you
could try the reddy-purple eau de Cologne mint, the
crinkly leaved black peppermint, or the creeping pennyroyal with its bright
green scented leaves. Keep them in a
pot, though, because they will spread! Another herb with lots of
varieties is thyme. Silver Posie has pale pinky-lilac flowers and green silver-edged
leaves. Like all thymes it makes a
useful edging plant and retains its colour throughout the year, making it
perfect in a knot garden. Look out too
for Fragrantissimus with its pale lilac flowers and
sweet, fruity, blue grey leaves, caraway thyme which has rose
flowers and caraway scented leaves, and There’s a good
choice of lavenders too. French ones
are popular, but if you have an exposed site, we would recommend English
varieties. Alternatives to the popular
Hidcote include Nana Alba, a dwarf variety with
white flowers, and Munstead, a
small early flowering lavender with blue green leaves and flower
spikes topped with wing-like petals. You can even find
different types of bay. There is a
willow-leaf bay with narrow, olive green leaves, and
a golden one too. If you would like
further gold highlights, look out for variegated lemon balm and sage. There’s a tricolour
sage as well, with pink, green and variegated leaves. This could work particularly well next to
the Purple Ruffles variety of sweet basil.
This has frilly deep-toothed leaves and is perfect in a pot because it
can be brought out when the weather is warm enough. The cinnamon variety is also good as it has
light pink flowers and a distinctive cinnamon smell. To finish your herb
garden, why not choose some ‘surprising’ herbs like alpine
strawberries, brightly coloured nasturtiums, or
even an Aloe vera plant for a really striking
statement. The dry weather (so far
this term) has seen us making the most of the out-door area, the children
have planted lots of seeds which, with a bit of luck and no disturbance will
produce a great splash of colour! All the children have
thoroughly enjoyed dancing round the Maypole and it is lovely to see them trying
so hard to skip in time with the music. The sand-pit is providing
endless pleasure and now that it is warmer the water tray is being very well
used. Looking ahead to the next
school year - we are pleased to announce that following the appointment of a
new supervisor, from September the Pre-School will be able to run for 5
mornings per week. If you wish to put your
child’s name on the waiting-list then please contact FREYA (01844
354053) We are also looking to
appoint another assistant to work Mon-Fri 8.30-12.30 (term time only). For further details please phone FREYA (as
above). There have been
interviews at the SOHA Housing Association offices for applicants to take on
the tenancy. These have been early stages, and applicants are working with
the Oxfordshire Rural Communities’ Council to draw up business
plans. More discussion will then
follow, and we’ll keep you informed of any developments. We have not been given a
specific start date for road-works to begin around J6 for the bus stops,
however, County Council have approved most of the details, and it is hoped
that it might be soon. One of the unexpected
pleasures of reading is being entertained but also informed. Our book for May, “The Constant
Gardener” by John le Carré, proved to be a
departure from the author’s usual obsession with the Cold War but dealt
with murder and intrigue on the African continent. The novel, however, highlighted the global
influence for good, but mainly for evil, of multinational pharmaceutical
companies in their use of We have selected the
books for June and July. They are
“The curious Incident of the Dog in the Night” by Mark Haddon and
“Samuel Pepys- the unequalled self” by Claire Tomalin, the overall winner of the Whitbread book of the
year 2003. If you would like to join
the Book Club or would like to suggest a book for us to read, please contact
me on 350382. Elan Preston-Whyte, “Knysna”, As we have a Notcutts Nursery quite near to us, we thought that this
article from a national newspaper might be of interest: IT AWAYS feels like a terrible
waste to leave old, unwanted or broken gardening tools lying around at the
back of the shed when someone else could make good use of them but the
problem is knowing how to get them into the right hands. Notcutts has
taken the initiative and is organising collection
points at its garden centres from now until the end of July. It will accept any
non-powered hand tools even if they have broken handles, as long as they are
repairable, in special dump bins.
They’ll be shipped out to needy families in developing countries
by the charity Feed the Children. As
an extra incentive, Notcutts is giving donors
vouchers for a 20 per cent discount off the price of new hand tools bought at
its garden centres, so it’s a terrific opportunity to upgrade and do
someone else a bit of good in the bargain. |
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