 |
Ramsbury & Axford Community
Village Diary - August 2008 |
 |
| Welcome Community Organisations News & Events Contact Us Village Map |
| Please may we have items
for the September Diary by 18 August. They can be left at the Post Office; or sent by email to diary@ramsbury.org |
||
|
This is the time of year when many go on holiday (while others like me have already been) and hopefully will see many interesting things in the countryside. I have been to the Italian Dolomites where there was a great variety of wild flowers. Some like the gentians are not often seen in England, although small ones can be found on the Isle of Wight near the Needles. There were others which were very like our garden plants. One such was ladies mantle (Alchemilla Mollis). In the Alpine meadows there was a smaller type in the damper areas amongst the grass. There were several types of small pink orchids much the same as our common spotted and early marsh orchids. I have been told there are some in flower near the sports field tennis courts at present. The real holiday gem, however, was seeing a group of ladies slipper orchids growing by the roadside. These are very rare in England but like most orchids they need a limestone or chalk soil. In this country the small blue flowers of the alpine clematis are only seen in gardens but there it was growing in the pine woods, while their dames violet was a much deeper mauve than in England. Lily bulbs in garden centres are often quite expensive but in the alpine meadows an orange one was just starting to flower in late June, along with the pink sainfoin, scabious and a lot of blue salvia. These meadows are cut for hay - such a variety for their cattle compared to the plain grass fed to our animals. In our gardens we expect plants to grow that are accustomed to mountain air or hot Mediterranean conditions. It is no wonder they do not always thrive. However, many of our wild flowers are not true natives, which all goes to show how adaptable many plants are, and they need to be, when one considers how our climate varies from year to year, with hot dry summers one year and cool wet ones another. May the present one yet warm up. Are you finding any ladybirds in your garden? I have seen a few but not as many as in the past; fortunately, there is not too much greenfly about on which they feed and the black fly that appeared early has not developed. May August be a month for enjoying the great outdoors, be it at home or away Rosie Pauline One of the classic sights of a summer evening is a group of swifts flying and screeching over the rooftops of the village. As the sun sets, so they fly higher and higher, to a height of between 3000 and 6000 feet, grabbing catnaps on the wind, prior to returning closer to the ground with dawn. The young birds that are part of these groups may not touch the ground for the first two years of their life. By the middle of August they will probably all have gone south again. With all the young birds around it is time to award the 'super cute' prize. The top three contenders for me would be the Tufted Ducklings on the Manor lake, a Little Grebe chick on the river or the baby Wrens chasing their parents around the garden in the couple of weeks before they are fully independent. Special sightings have included a Spotted Flycatcher, a Kingfisher, a marauding gang of seven Long Tailed Tits, and a Thrush doing impossible aerobatics at dusk in pursuit of a moth. Shock of the month was a Sparrow-hawk taking out one of 'our' young blackbirds before our eyes. This was appalling in one way, but impressively dramatic in another. Paul Swan Rainfall for the month to 18 July was 2.55 inches, average 1.97 inches. |
||
 |
The black wheelie-bins and orange sacks will be taken on Tuesdays 12 and 26 August. The black boxes and green wheelie-bins will be emptied on Tuesdays 5 and 19 August. There will be skips at Aldbourne Pond on Tuesday 5 August and at the Ramsbury Surgery from 8 am to 10.30 am on Tuesday 19 August. Ramsbury FC The men’s side this season will be playing in the Plaister Auto Wiltshire League, competing against various Wiltshire teams including a local derby with Marlborough Town Reserves. We aim to keep you updated monthly with scores and home fixtures (see calendar), so please come down and offer your support! See www.wiltshirefootballleague.com, http://ramsburyfc.bravehost.com or call Chris Roberts (captain) on 07825 941407. Offices to rent - Ramsbury Memorial Hall Two recently refurbished offices in the Lychgate are available for rent - total area 222 sq.ft. Lease includes toilets, kitchen and some additional storage space. Contact Robert Osmond 520568 or Gilbert Mills 520243.
|
|
|
|
On Saturday 2 August at 2 - 5 pm in the Jubilee Field. Attractions include the Ramsbury Silver Band, traditional stalls, dog show, classic cars display, refreshments, car boot sale and duck race on the Kennet. Grand Draw and Sporting Draws at 4.30 pm. Grand Draw £2 per book of 5 tickets and Sporting Draw (fishing, shooting, golf, tennis etc) £5 per book of 5 tickets on sale now from Michelle Beckingham 520719 or Bridget Treherne 512406. Entrance adults £1, children 5 - 12 years 50p and under 5 free. Free parking. Axford Church Services On 3 August at 8 am Holy Communion service (BCP) but please note that Evensong on 10 August is cancelled. Methodist Church Sunday 3 August 10.30 am Rev Andy Warren Holy Communion ( Aldbourne will join us) Ramsbury WI The August meeting will be a visit to Ramsbury Brewery followed by supper at the Crown and Anchor. Members should meet in The Square at 6.15 pm on Thursday 7 August for transport to the brewery. Members joining us for supper should be at the Crown by 8 pm. Horticultural Summer Show The Summer Show in the Memorial Hall is on Saturday 9 August from 2 - 4.30 pm. The schedule is available from the Post Office, Di Barnett on 521363 (Contact for queries) or on the ramsbury.org website. The 'Young Person's Press Article' is again included. Class 124 (maximum 250 words) (11 years old and under) requires an entry for a "Review of the Street Fair" and Class 125 (12 to 16 year olds) covers a "Report on what you would like to see at a Summer Fete". Winners will each receive a cash prize, plus a trophy and publication both in our 'Newsletter' and the local press. Hope for Heroes Hope for Heroes is a charity set up to collect funds for the tri-service rehabilitation centre at Headley Court treating the limbless as a result of wounds sustained in Afghanistan and Iraq. Can you help by giving one hour to collect for Hope for Heroes at the Membury Service Station who have given special permission over the weekend 9/10 August? Please contact Ben Tottenham at Vicarage Cottage, Back Lane or call 520308. Ramsbury Amenity Group Guided Walks Sunday 10 August to Coombe Gibbet 4 miles and Sunday 24 August to Park Farm (No 13) 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 each month and everyone is welcome. Shared cars and dogs on leads. For further information call Sheila Morgan on 520501. Axford Bingo There will be Bingo in Axford Village Hall on Wednesdays 13 and 27 August. Ramsbury Flyer The next visit to Newbury will be on 14 August leaving the tree at 11.30 am and returning from Newbury at 2.30 pm. Fare £3. We hope to visit the Newbury Show on Saturday 20 September leaving the tree at 9.30 am and returning from the Show at about 4 pm. Fare £3. Book for both with Muriel Lye on 520555. The Community Bus also has its own page - just follow the link. Serenade for a Summer Night A musical evening will be held on Sunday 24 August at 6 pm in the Memorial Hall. A quartet of professional artists (Michael Bauer, Adrian Scott, Nan Christie and Graham Bond) will perform operatic arias, songs and songs from shows. Drinks, canapés and concert £15 per ticket in aid of the charity Hope and Homes for Children. Tickets available from John Dutton, Coombesbury Farm House, Ownham, Newbury, RG20 8DE or tel 01488 608216. |
|
|
|
The members of the Ramsbury Horticultural Society greatly enjoyed their visit to Sir Martyn and Lady Arbib's garden at Howe Hill on Tuesday 8 July and are most grateful for the hospitality that they received. The Coffee Morning on 28 June and donations for The Arthritis Research Campaign raised £1,695. Marion Young would like to thank everyone involved for their continued support and generosity. Thanks from Holy Cross to all who helped clean the church after the scaffolding was removed. The windows have been repaired, the stonework is back to its original honey colour and a new sound system is fitted. To see how dirty the stonework was there is a small 4 inch square under the arch by the lectern which was not cleaned. The work was completed on time and to a high standard by stonemasons, stained glass window experts, the scaffolders and the conservator; all small English businesses. |
|
|
|
The Horticultural Society is running a trip to the National Amateur Gardening Show at Shepton Mallet on Saturday 6 September. Cost around £15 to £20 for entry plus coach. Please call Sheila Glass on 520409. The first two films of the new Roxy season will be La Vie En Rose on 12 September and The Bucket List on 26 September. Full programme details will be available shortly and also on www.ramsbury.org A five mile charity walk in aid of Hope and Homes for Children. Meet 10.30am on Sunday 28 September at the car park just north of Alton Barnes on the Lockeridge road. Bring a picnic. Please contact Louise Andrew, 4 The Square, Ramsbury or call 521210 for more information. Bella Voce choir needs you! Bella Voce would like to extend an invitation to all adult male and female singers to join them in rehearsing for their Christmas repertoire and for Vivaldi’s Gloria which will be performed in Holy Cross Church in March 2009. No auditions are necessary – all that is required is a love of singing. Please call Rita Weston on 520369 for further information and to register your interest. The Diary is published in paper form, and is incorporated here by
kind permission of the Ramsbury Amenity Group. |
|
|
Information on this site is provided in good faith. If you are aware of any information which is incorrect, please contact the Webmaster © Ramsbury and Axford Parish
Council 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 & 2011 |