Ramsbury Village Diary

Ramsbury & Axford Community

Village Diary - June 2008

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Nature Notes Bird Notes Rainfall Editorial Items Diary Items Thanks Advance Notices Calendar (current) Past Issues	Please may we have items for the July Diary by 18 June. They can be left at the Post Office; or sent by email to diary@ramsbury.org
	Nature Notes I am sure that we have all been enjoying the fine sunny weather that early May has brought until today May 15. There was welcome overnight rain for the gardens but what a drop in temperature. Today has kept the butterflies in hiding but on May 7 I was not the only person to see a small blue one in the garden. It was probably a Holy Blue which is more likely to be seen near shrubs rather than on open downland. Other early season butterflies include orange tipped Yellow Brimstones and Peacocks. The fine weather has also brought out some queen wasps looking for nesting sites, as they do not use the old nest from previous years. In woodland areas other invertebrates can be found, such as a roundish black beetle in West Wood on the early May Bank Holiday, crawling amongst the leaf litter. It was not large enough to be a dung beetle although they do occur in Southern England in a few places. This is the season when baby rabbits can be seen disappearing into hedgerows; also grey squirrels, stoats and badgers all of which get killed on our roads. Unfortunately hedgehogs seem less common than in the past: have too any been killed? When weeding in a shady part of the garden I sometimes disturb a frog, although I do not have a pond. Hopefully they keep down the slugs but I doubt that they can feed on snails: I need thrushes to deal with them. This is the best time of year for a good variety of flowering plants, not just hedge parsley or Queen Anne's Lace; and dandelions, of which there is more than one variety although I have never studied them to sort them out by their leaves. Their main flowering season is now over only to be replaced by the hawks beards that have more flowers on a single stem and even the smooth saw thistle that can give some quite attractive yellow flowers. May June bring fine warm days so that we can enjoy the great outdoors. Rosie Pauline Bird Notes The heavy rains that ended the hot dry weeks of the first half of May were not only welcomed by gardeners. The House Martins had been unable to start their nest building due to the shortage of mud! Now they can catch up with the swallows that are already nesting in the roofs of barns. Nesting is the order of the day, and it is interesting to contrast the relaxed singing of the male Blackbirds in the evening as they wait for the first eggs to hatch, with the frantically busy Starlings feeding well developed chicks. The first Mallard ducklings and young Coots are out and about, but in tiny numbers. Two and three seems to be the norm from a brood of six to twelve, so the predators are doing well. The Little Egrets seem to have found their way over the hill from Froxfield, with a number of sightings to the east of the village. My sighting of the month was not a bird at all. While waiting patiently for a clear sighting of a Sedge Warbler in the Nature Reserve, I was entertained by the antics of a pair of Water Voles nibbling elegantly on some reeds. As the UK's fastest declining mammal, it is great to see them breeding here. Paul Swan Rainfall Rainfall for the month to 18 May was 3.17 inches, average 2.05 inches.
	Bridge Closures The two bridges near the bottom of Spring Hill (the Froxfield road) are to be strengthened. The road will be closed for the duration of the work but a temporary foot bridge will be provided. Work will start on Lamplands Bridge on Tuesday 3 June and on Cedar Bridge on Monday 30 June. Wiltshire Highways have said that the work will take a maximum of 22 weeks but hope it will be finished rather sooner than this. The area is an SSSI and the work cannot be done in winter as it may adversely affect the trout. Release of Trout Fry at Mill Lane Triangle On Wednesday 21 May, Ramsbury Primary School children with ARK members and Parish Councillors welcomed TV celebrity Bear Grylls to help them release into the river, 100 trout fry raised from eggs in a school project. This splendid occasion on a beautiful day also celebrated the joint acquisition of the triangle of land by ARK and the Parish Council. Waste The black wheelie-bins and orange sacks will be taken on Tuesdays 3 and 17 June. The black boxes and green wheelie-bins will be emptied on Tuesdays 10 and 24 June. There will be skips at Aldbourne Pond on 10 June and at the Ramsbury Surgery from 8 - 10.30 am on Tuesday 24 June.
	Ramsbury WI Ramsbury WI will meet on Thursday 5 June in the Methodist Schoolroom, when Mrs Demi Ladwa will give a demonstration of Indian Cookery. New members and visitors are welcome. Doors open at 7.15 pm and the meeting starts promptly at 7.45 pm. Ramsbury & Axford Link Scheme By kind permission of Mr and Mrs Simon Blunt there will be an afternoon of light musical entertainment at Ramsbury Hill on Sunday 8 June from 3-5 pm. It will be in aid of the Ramsbury Silver Band and the Link Scheme. There will be teas, a raffle and a retiring collection. Link will offer lifts to this event, which will be in the Church Room if wet. Ramsbury Amenity Group Guided Walks Sunday 8 June to Loves Copse (No 9), 4 miles; followed by tea at Ramsbury Hill. Sunday 22 June to Harrow Farm, 4 miles. Come and join us on our local walks, get to know the local area and make new friends. We meet at the Tree in the Square at 2 pm on the second and fourth Sunday of the month and everyone is welcome. Shared cars and dogs on leads. For further information Call Sheila Morgan on 520501. Coffee Centre Please join us on Thursdays at the Coffee Centre, there is much going on: Cakes 5 June, Charity stall 12 June, Fair-Trade 19 June, Card stall 26 June. All Welcome. Chat Shop on Friday 13 June at 2 pm at the Methodist Church. Axford Bingo There will be Bingo in Axford Village Hall on Wednesdays 11 and 25 June. Ramsbury Flyer The next visit to Newbury will be on Thursday 12 June, leaving the Tree at 11.30 am and returning from Newbury at 2.30 pm. Book with Muriel Lye on 520555. The Community Bus also has its own page - just follow the link. Rose Evening and Members’ Supper The Rose Evening and Horticultural Society Members' Supper will take place on Saturday 14 June in the Memorial Hall and will follow the judging of exhibits by members ballot. If there are any members who have not yet rejoined (or are uncertain) please contact Michael Handford on 520545 or email to hortsoc@ramsbury.org. Entries for the Rose Evening have to be staged between 6 and 6.45 pm and the show opens at 7.30 pm. Entry forms are in the Show Schedule but please contact Di Barnett on 521363 Allan Davison on 520591 in the event of any difficulty. Parish Council The Parish Council next meets at 7.45 pm in the Memorial Hall on Monday 16 June. All are very welcome. Ramsbury Primary School Ramsbury Primary School Summer Fête is on Saturday 21 June from 2 - 4 pm. Please come along and support your local school. Plenty of fun to be had; suitable for all ages! Royal British Legion Veterans' Evening Ramsbury Royal British Legion Veterans' evening will be held on Wednesday 25 June at 7.30 pm. Veterans, widows and service personnel are all invited. If you would like to come, please ring the club on 520579 to confirm numbers. A local man is trying to put together a film on Ramsbury and the surrounding area. If anybody has a cine film on Ramsbury, would they please ring Denise Edwards on 07867 921878 Bella Voce Bella Voce have just started rehearsing their summer programme of music. This will be performed at their forthcoming informal concert to be held at 7.30 pm on Friday 27 June in the Memorial Hall. Tickets at £2 will be on sale in the Post Office and Midway Stores from early June, so please look out for posters. ARC The annual Arthritis Research (ARC) Coffee Morning will take place in the Memorial Hall on Saturday 28 June from 10 am until noon. There will be wonderful home produce; books; plants, bric-a-brac; raffle etc. Please call Marion Young on 521126 if you can offer help or would like more details. Garden Luncheon The Ramsbury & Axford and Chilton Foliat Conservative Association are holding a Garden Luncheon at Ramsbury Hill at 12.30 for 1 pm on Sunday 29 June to meet Michael Ancram QC MP. Tickets including wine (adults £17.50, children £5) from Ramsbury Post Office or Conservative Committee members.
	THANKS Treloar Coffee Morning raised £2000 on the day in addition to £1000 in generous donations received prior to the day. The organisers are most grateful for the support they received from helpers and the village. The Horticultural Society is very grateful to all those who were able to donate plants, or were able to support, a very successful plant sale on a Spring morning in the delightful gardens of 'Millstream'. The society raised £732 to help the continuation of the programme of events throughout the year. Christian Aid Coffee Morning Methodist Church. A big Thank you to all who joined us on Thursday 15 May when £93.02 was raised. Thank you to the Pre-school children, Sue and their helpers who entertained us with their singing, and the collectors round the village. A grand total will be available in the next issue. Congratulations to Wendy Jordan, the first lady to win the Ramsbury Trophy. On a rain affected Marlborough golf course, Wendy's score of 49 points narrowly edged out Clive Adolph on count back. Thirty-four members and guests played on the day, generously sponsored by the Ramsbury Brewery. The next event is the President's Trophy at North Wilts on Thursday 17 July.
	ADVANCE NOTICES The Royal British Legion will be holding a Table Top Sale on Saturday 5 July, for which donations would be most welcome, and a Disco on 26 July. Ravensbury Players 'A Little of What you Fancy' - Public performance of Rehearsed Play Readings on Saturday 12 July, 5 - 8.30 pm in the garden of Harefield House, Crowood Lane, Ramsbury. Tickets £3 available from Midway Stores & Post Office. All Sorts Crafts and Gifts fayre will be taking place on Saturday 12 July between 11 am and 3 pm in the Memorial Hall. Items on sale include woodwork, jewellery, hand-made cards, craft supplies, painted glass/porcelain, knitted items, bridal accessories and more. Free entry and charity tombola in aid of Cancer Research. Gardens open in Ramsbury will take place on Sunday 13 July between 2 pm and 5.30 pm. Please look out for details and, in particular, our ‘Summer Newsletter’. If you would like to receive it by email, please email us at hortsoc@ramsbury.org. Alternatively just download it from www.ramsbury.org. Mildenhall Village Fête is on Saturday 6 September. The Diary is published in paper form, and is incorporated here by kind permission of the Ramsbury Amenity Group.