It was thought by the hall committee that it might be a good idea to give you a regular update on our achievements and aims regarding greening the village hall grounds. As West Pennard is a lovely thriving village with a good community we thought you may appreciate to hear the progress we have made and our future aims.
The 1930s Village Hall is a lovely building set in a not so lovely car park. On two sides are boundary fences and the front leads onto the road and the rear overlooks the beautiful valley with views to the Glastonbury Tor. The only thing lacking was any flowers. Paddy always does the hanging baskets every year and mans the flag, but we were very short of flowers to attract butterflies and insects in the ground itself. On one side was a long-raised border with rough grass nothing else. Then we thought let’s dig this up and plant a flower border. After asking for volunteers, it seemed to just take off. There is Sally the seed grower, Nick the diy man and font of all knowledge as is Dorothy. Debs who is a fantastic digger and the dynamic duo Lesley and Joe who weed and dig with great enthusiasm Me Iris well I am the coordinator and try and raise funds to purchase compost etc. We have just been given a grant to buy tools etc. by the Somerset Community Foundation. The village hall has given us great support by donating some money to get us started. All in all a good team of like-minded people.
The First Year
This turned out better then we thought. The flowers were donated from the villagers’ gardens and cuttings. We had a wonderful summer border of Cosmos, Tobacco Plants Dahlias and Perennials which went on flowering until Autumn. Of course we thought what next so we purchased 6 half barrels and filled each one with Acers. At the base we planted snowdrops and crocuses. This ground could not be dug due to the hardcore from the car park so this is the best solutions. If anyone would like to contribute to these tubs in memory of a loved one the village hall has suggested £50.
Late Autumn we turned our attention to under the boundary hedge leading to the field. When we cleared the ground, it turned out it was full of lovely loam from years of fallen leaves. So off we went and purchased 150 Daffodils and received Spanish bluebells from various sources and here we are in Spring 2022 with a colourful display which will only get bigger as the years progress.
This Year 2022
Having designed the border, it is going well so next we gave our thought to the Jubilee Year. We replanted the two tubs outside of the village entrance with red, white and blue primroses. These are now at their best and when finished we will concentrate on the summer flowers. The aim is to get as much red, white and blue into the border ready for the Jubilee Year. So far Blue Delphiniums have been planted and red Hollyhocks. Sally is planting Red and Blue Morning Glories and white Cosmos. Underplanted with a collection of perennials.
Church Yard
We approached the church and asked if they would like us to create a flower border around one of the benches. Happy to oblige this has now been dug and we have started to plant. This will consist of plants and shrubs which are lower maintenance. The ground is heavy clay but rich in goodness helped with a bit of compost. The church has given us a small donation to help us get started. So watch this develop as time goes on. We were able to plant two Queen Elizabeth Roses to celebrate the Jubilee and these should be a lovely tall pink floribunda. Our aim is to plant sensory plants which you should be able to smell when sitting on the bench.
To Close.
The group would like to thank the villagers for their support and donations to help us achieve what we see today. Many of the plants have sentimental value like the wonderful Nerines that came from David Charles Garden and large bunches of snowdrops from Flora’s lawn. If anyone would like to join us even if you just pop in and out to suit, we would love to see you. Usually, we have cake and coffee and a natter. Will try and do an update for you on how it is going, and we feel we have contributed to the wild life for the benefit of all. If you would like to join us please ring 01458 850734.
Iris Goodby on behalf of the W.P.G.G.
