Joanna Dyson

Our final evening meeting before we break for the summer will be on Tuesday 15th July at 7pm in St Mary’s. We are delighted to be joined by local beekeeper, Adam Walker who will speak on The Benefits of Honeybees and other Pollinators.  Adam will provide some information about honeybees and the benefits of their activities and those of other pollinators to gardeners, farmers and society generally, as well as sharing some beekeeping basics for those who may be interested.  This should attract not just garden-lovers!

The Gardening Club will be taking a break over August to allow everyone to enjoy their gardens and any holidays they have planned. We will be back with a bang in September starting off with a stall at the Village Fete on Sunday 7th September, a coffee morning on Saturday 13th September and we will celebrate our 1st birthday at our AGM on Tuesday 16th September – more details to follow!

… and don’t forget our final coffee morning before the break this Saturday 28th June 10am – 12pm!

Many thanks to all those of you who continue to support our village coffee mornings. They are not just for gardeners, everyone is welcome! Come and join us at the next one on Saturday 28th June 10-12, regulars will notice that this is later in the month than usual – there is just so much on in Black Bourton this month! We hope to have a selection of plants and seeds for sale and welcome any donations of plants or homemade cakes or tray-bakes which are always much appreciated by those who come along. Just bring them to St Mary’s Church on the morning.  

There is no evening meeting for the Gardening Club in June but instead we are having an outing to visit the gardens at Friars Court, Clanfield Sunday 8th June 2 – 5pm. We have a good sized group planning to go, but tickets are still available so if any one else would like to join us please contact us on blackbourtongardeningclub@gmail.com

Our final evening meeting before we break for the summer will be on Tuesday 15th July at 7pm in St Mary’s. We are delighted to be joined by local beekeeper, Adam Walker who will speak on The Benefits of Honeybees and other Pollinators.  Adam will provide some information about honeybees and the benefits of their activities and those of other pollinators to gardeners, farmers and society generally, as well as sharing some beekeeping basics for those who may be interested.  

The next Village Coffee Morning will be in St Mary’s Church at 10am-12pm on Saturday 10^th May. These monthly coffee mornings are not just for gardeners, EVERYONE is Welcome, local or not! Come along and enjoy a cuppa, a cake and a chat. Donations of homemade cakes or tray-bakes and the like are very welcome and much appreciated by those who come along. Just bring them to St Mary’s Church on the morning. We do need more people to support these events if we are going to be able to keep them going on a regular basis. Looking forward to seeing you there!

May Gardening Club Evening Meeting

Tuesday 20^th May at 7pm, St Mary’s Church, Black Bourton

Our speaker for the evening in May will be Hazel Roberts. Hazel got the bug for growing fruit and vegetables over thirty years ago when she moved to a house that backed on to allotments. She took on two of the allotments and is still working them today. In 2002 she brought out a book entitled ‘Hazel’s Homegrown’ advising what to grow and when, and five years later she was selling jams and chutneys to the public! The book provides an all-encompassing information source for the kitchen gardener by bridging the gap between gardening and recipe books. It has everything we need to know to grow, protect, harvest, cook and preserve fruit, vegetables and herbs.

Hazel will be sharing some of her secrets with us, including enjoying the positive benefits of growing food whilst also warning of the pitfalls and problems to avoid. The important thing is that it’s suitable for anyone interested in growing and using their own food, from the complete novice to the old hand, whether we have a window box, a small garden or a large allotment!

Please do come along to the talk and invite any friends and family, we are keen to grow our numbers and welcome members from outside the village as well as within. Visitors do not have to join but if they choose to do so, their entrance fee will be deducted from their joining fee.

Plants Under Attack – Presentation

St Peter and St Paul’s Church, Broadwell, Sunday 27th April

For information regarding another local plant focused event, please find below details of an event at St Peter and St Paul’s Church, Broadwell.

The talk on Sunday 27^th April will be presented by Katia The Plant Scientist and is for plant lovers and gardeners.  Doors open at 2.30, the talk starts at 3pm and there will be refreshments before and afterwards.  Tickets at the door (£5 cash/card).

The Gardening Club committee can be contacted on blackbourtongardeningclub@gmail.com

The next Village Coffee Morning will be in St. Mary’s Church at 10am-12pm on Saturday 12^th April. These monthly coffee mornings are not just for gardeners, EVERYONE is Welcome, local or not! Come along and enjoy a cuppa, a cake and a chat. Donations of homemade cakes or traybakes and the like are very welcome and much appreciated by those who come along. Just bring them to St. Mary’s Church on the morning. We do need more people to support these events if we are going to be able to keep them going on a regular basis. Looking forward to seeing you there!

April Gardening Club Evening Meeting

Tuesday 29^th April at 7pm, St Mary’s Church, Black Bourton

Our speaker for the evening in April will be Tim Mitchell.  Tim developed the organic kitchen garden at Asthall Manor and he is going to talk about gardening organically and for wildlife..

Please do come along to the talk and invite any friends and family, we are keen to grow our numbers and welcome members from outside the village as well as within. Visitors do not have to join, but if they choose to do so, their entrance fee will be deducted from their joining fee.

The Gardening Club committee can be contacted on blackbourtongardeningclub@gmail.com

Our first Coffee Morning of 2025 will be held on Saturday 8th February in St Mary’s Church from 10 – 12.

EVERYONE is welcome from Black Bourton and surrounding villages.  Join us to share hot drinks and cake and enjoy a warm welcome. Donations of home made cakes and biscuits gratefully received!

The Black Bourton Gardening Club will be meeting on Tuesday 25th February in St Mary’s Church from 7 – 8.30pm.  There will be a presentation of the year’s programme: BBGC Events Calendar 2025. It includes a number of interesting external speakers in the coming months. There will be an opportunity to discuss any plans and ideas for your own gardens that you have and would like advice on, as well as a Q&A.

We look forward to welcoming both members and non members.  If anyone would like to get more involved in the Gardening Club by joining our committee please do let us know, we are a friendly group and can be contacted on blackbourtongardeningclub@gmail.com

Thank you to all of you who have supported the setting up of the Gardening Club in 2024,  whether you have joined as a member or just shown an interest. We have hosted 3 successful B-B village coffee mornings and had one Gardening Club evening with a speaker who gave a great talk on Winter Gardens. All feedback welcome.

We are looking forward to monthly Gardening Club events starting in February. We are working on lining up speakers for some of these, as well as planning other types of activities such as  discussions, questions & answer sessions, quizzes, plant and seed swaps, outings – other suggestions welcome!

We will also be continuing to host monthly village coffee mornings from February.

If you haven’t joined the Gardening Club yet, you are still welcome to at any stage please just email us at blackbourtongardeningclub@gmail.com.

We wish you all a very Happy New Year and please look out in the following weeks for news from us concerning future events.

We would like to thank everyone who has been to our monthly Village Coffee Mornings so far, we have enjoyed welcoming everyone and it has been good to see so many of you. Our last coffee morning of the year will be held on Saturday 13th December in St Mary’s Church from 10am – 12pm.  Do pop in and take a moment to mingle with neighbours and enjoy a hot drink and a warm mince pie in this busy pre Christmas time.  We are also hoping to be joined by some live musicians and/or singers who will add some festive spirit.

Our first talk on Tuesday 10^th December at 7pm in St Mary’s

‘In the Bleak Midwinter’ by Pip Smith

Design tips and plant suggestions to help provide winter interest in your garden

Pip Smith is a professional horticulturalist and landscape designer.  He has been a Head Gardener at several public and private gardens and speaks regularly on a wide range of gardening related topics.

The meeting is free to Black Bourton Gardening Club members or £5 on the door to non-members.  If you would like to pay your membership or non member fee before the event please contact us via our email blackbourtongardeningclub@gmail.com. Please come along and support us as we try to establish the Gardening Club in the village.

It is for anyone interested in learning more about gardening and plants, whether you have no prior knowledge or are an experienced gardener – all welcome!

The Black Bourton Gardening Club will be hosting their second Village Coffee Morning and Plant Sale in St Mary’s on Saturday 9^th November from 10am – 12pm.  All are welcome to this informal village social event. 

This is an opportunity for any one in Black Bourton or the surrounding villages to pop in and meet some neighbours, enjoy a cup of tea or coffee and some lovely homemade cakes in the St Mary’s Community Hub as well as browsing the gardening club stall.

At the October Coffee Morning we were delighted to be joined by the local ukulele players who entertained everyone and were very well received.  So if there are any other musicians or singers who would like to come along and use the occasion as an opportunity to practice on a welcoming and appreciative audience then we would love to hear from you.  Please email us on blackbourtongardeningclub@gmail.com

We are also pleased to announce our first Gardening Club meeting and speaker!!

Tuesday 10^th December at 7pm in St Mary’s

‘In the Bleak Midwinter’ by Pip Smith

Design tips and plant suggestions to help provide winter interest in your garden

Pip Smith is a professional horticulturalist and landscape designer.  He has been a Head Gardener at several public and private gardens and speaks regularly on a wide range of gardening related topics.

The meeting is free to Black Bourton Gardening Club members or £5 on the door to non-members.  If you would like to pay your membership or non member fee before the event please contact us via our email above. Please come along and support us as we try to establish the Gardening Club in the village. It is for anyone interested in learning more about gardening and plants, whether you have no prior knowledge or are an experienced gardener – all welcome.

The Black Bourton Gardening Club (BBGC) is now up and running!

Thank you to all those who came to support us at the BBVA Village fete or at our Inaugural Meeting. We are very grateful to the BBVA for their support and encouragement.

Our next planned event is to host a Village Coffee Morning on Saturday 12^th October 10-12am in St Mary’s Church.

This is intended to be an informal, social event to which ALL are welcome. Refreshments will be available. As BBGC are hosting, there will be a Gardening Corner at the event with some plants and other gardening items for sale and an opportunity to discuss garden related questions with people who may have some expertise.

These coffee mornings are intended to become monthly events if there is enough interest.  Please do support us by dropping in.

What next?
For Members of the Gardening Club there will be regular evening meetings at which we hope to provide speakers on gardening topics, and perhaps some garden related activities for everyone to partake in. Dates to be confirmed but we are hoping to get a couple in before Christmas, subject to speaker availability.

Please do contact us if:

• You would like to become a Gardening Club Member,
• You would like to join the committee,
• You have some ideas for the club,
• You want more information on the club.

We look forward to you joining us!

blackbourtongardeningclub@gmail.com