Page 58 • The HERALD • 20th April 2023 v THE NEXT HERALD IS OUT ON 11TH MAY v Fred Hurst 023 8084 2191 or 07761 467217 • Grass Cutting • Garden Clearance • Hedge Cutting • Fallen Trees Cleared • Mini Digger Hire with Operator • Property Clearance • Small Demolition • Tractor Flail Cutting FULLY INSURED v FREE QUOTATIONS ✿ DOWN THE GARDEN PATH ✿ BLACKFIELD GARDENING CLUB MEETING by Patricia Hedley-Goddard only grow in a relatively small area on the south eastern tip of South Africa which is called the Cape Floral Region. e Cape Province of South Africa is one of the richest oral habitats on the planet with a huge variety of bulbous plants growing there. It is home to 60% of the South African Bulb species, most of which do not grow anywhere else. Originally bulbous plants from the Cape of Good Hope were introduced into European Horticulture during the early 17th century between 1600 AD and 1850 AD. During this period around 180 European explorers brought back collections, o en for wealthy families to include in their gardens. eo self-educated himself on Nerines, by reading many many books by various authors who had written and illustrated the bulb and its owers, and the more he read the more fascinated he became. His few ‘dead looking’ bulbs gradually grew in size and variety, and with careful nurturing eo has currently brought the collection up to around 1300 pots. eo has bred many new varieties with a colour spectrum ranging from white through the pink, orange and mauve hues. Some of them have quite spectacular blooms, and some glisten when held under the light. During WW2 many of the special collections of plants in grand houses were neglected because the gardeners were all away ghting in the war. Sir Peter Smithers bought many of these neglected bulbs and hybridised the Nerine stock producing better bulbs. eo managed to buy the stock for the De Rothschild collection at Exbury, and there are now 1200 di erent Nerine varieties. e older the bulb the better the ower. e bulb becomes dormant in the summer with all its leaves turning brown and needing to be removed On Tuesday 14th March, the monthly meeting of the Black eld Gardening Club were entertained by a fascinating presentation from eo Herselman highlighting BULBS from South Africa. It was obvious from the very beginning that eo was passionate about his subject, despite, originally, before arriving in England, having no knowledge of the subject. Originally eo was a tobacco farmer in Zimbabwe, but with the political upheaval in 2006 he found himself being driven out of the country with nothing but what he could pack into a suitcase. He lost everything. Fortunately his wife had been working in the health care sector in England, and they were able to set up home here in Hampshire. eo was employed by Nick De Rothschild and eventually was given the task of caring for the Nerines which were housed in one of their greenhouses. It had been supposed that because eo was South African he would know about South African bulbs. In reality eo had been farming tobacco several thousand miles away, and did not know what a Nerine was or how to care for them. South Africa, being the huge land mass at the southern end of the African continent, has many di erent climates, and the Bulbs around May time. e bulb needs to be baked hot in the sun during the summer, and the newer bulbs forming in the clump are produced in the centre of the clump, pushing the older bulbs outwards. ey need poor soil, and rain in the winter. ey can survive outside all year round in the very south of England if positioned next to a south facing wall or a warm sheltered spot. eo grows all of his in greenhouses. eo also has a collection of orchids and other South African bulbs in his Greenhouses in Exbury. One of his collections, which was donated, is a collection of Lachenalia. ese cannot take our cold winters, but they need winter rain. ese bulbs have delicate small bell-shaped owers cascading down a stem and they ower in March. Some have coloured stems, others di erent coloured bells all on the same stem. ey are not nearly as showy as the Nerine, but have a fascinating colour range and are very pretty. Some plants are all green, including the ower, some have spotted leaves with di erent coloured stems. Insects fertilise some of the varieties and others will not reproduce in U.K. New stock has to be sent over from South Africa. However, Lachenalia’s have a 7 month owering season depending on the variety. A question and answer session followed eo’s delightful presentation. eir next meeting will be on Tuesday 9th May for a talk by Mike Tuck titled ‘Woodcarving and Walking Stick Making’. All meetings take place on the second Tuesday in the month and start at 7.30pm at Good Shepherd Church, o Roewood Road, Holbury SO45 2JP. ey look forward to seeing members and visitors (visitors £2). Enquiries please call: 023 8024 3795. Apply for a Green Grant to Improve Nature and Wildlife bricks, hedgehog homes or movement corridors. • Reducing carbon emissions: Encouraging more walking and cycling, supporting locallyproduced food and goods, promoting ‘reduce, reuse, and recycle’, disposing of litter responsibly, supporting clean energy. • Connecting new groups to nature: Supporting ideas led by and/or engaging typically underrepresented groups in the New Forest National Park. Enabling new experiences in and around the National Park for audiences from di erent communities, ages, backgrounds, experiences, and identities. e NPA is keen to hear ideas and projects that have been developed by young people, although applications must be submitted by an adult. Applications must be received by Friday 28th April. Applications will be approved by the end of May so grants will be available from June onwards and should be spent by 31st March 2024. Find out more about SCF projects and how to apply for grants: www.newforestnpa.gov.uk/scf habitat such as introducing bird and bat nesting/roosting opportunities, bug hotels, bee e New Forest National Park Authority (NPA) is inviting community groups and schools to apply for funding for projects that help climate and nature. As part of this year’s New Forest Awakening Festival which ran throughout March, the NPA is o ering grants of £150 to schools, youth groups, and other organised groups and charities based within the New Forest National Park. e grants, available from its Sustainable Communities Fund (SCF), are for projects which improve wildlife and habitats, reduce carbon emissions or connect new groups of people to nature. Grants are available for activities that achieve any of these aims: • Improving opportunities for wildlife and habitats: Providing new habitat – such as creating new ponds or wetlands; introducing native planting, wild owers and other pollinators to attract bees and butter ies. Or enhancing existing
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