Gardening
Hartlebury Gardening Club
Gardening Club Show 2021 Saturday September 4th at the Parish Hall
[November 7th 2019]
Fungi–Myths, Varieties and Food Diana Parsons
Diana set up a colourful display of many different types of fungi which filled three large tables. Some of these were part of a collection she can keep for a while and others have to be collected specially for a talk. She had featured on television and radio over the previous few days because this time of year is a good one for seeing fungi.
She told us that some people think that mushrooms are okay to eat and toadstools are poisonous but they are all fungi and unless you are confident in identifying them, you should never eat them. A Death Cap will kill you in five days – for the first three days you have vomiting and diarrhoea, it goes away on the fourth day but comes back on the fifth but far worse.
The fairy toadstool which is red with white spots, is the Fly Agaric, so called because it was said if you cut it into strips and put it in milk, it would keep the flies away. Unfortunately this does not work and would make the milk undrinkable.
Some fungi contain hallucinogenic chemicals. Apparently the Eskimos would feed them to their reindeer or their wives and would then collect their urine which would concentrate the hallucinogen. No wonder they can pull Santa’s sleigh around the world in one night!
Diana showed us how the spores of different fungi have a different appearance, size, colour and shape. We can see when spores are being produced because the gills on the underside of the cap becomes darker, changing to the colour of the spores.
Honey fungus causes great problems in woodlands but as all woodlands have some honey fungus, it is thought that it can only get into damaged trees.
Fairy rings of mushrooms gradually get a larger and larger radius as each year they grow outside the previous one. Some fairy rings are hundreds of years old.
Diana showed us some of her much used reference books some of which can be taken into the field. Her talk was very interesting and she recommended that we look around for the variety of fungi we can find, particularly in woodland areas but with the good advice to avoid eating anything we cannot confidently identify.
We now break for the winter and our next meeting: Thursday 5 March 2020 at 7.30 pm in the Parish Hall will also include our AGM. 
She told us that some people think that mushrooms are okay to eat and toadstools are poisonous but they are all fungi and unless you are confident in identifying them, you should never eat them. A Death Cap will kill you in five days – for the first three days you have vomiting and diarrhoea, it goes away on the fourth day but comes back on the fifth but far worse.
The fairy toadstool which is red with white spots, is the Fly Agaric, so called because it was said if you cut it into strips and put it in milk, it would keep the flies away. Unfortunately this does not work and would make the milk undrinkable.
Some fungi contain hallucinogenic chemicals. Apparently the Eskimos would feed them to their reindeer or their wives and would then collect their urine which would concentrate the hallucinogen. No wonder they can pull Santa’s sleigh around the world in one night!
Diana showed us how the spores of different fungi have a different appearance, size, colour and shape. We can see when spores are being produced because the gills on the underside of the cap becomes darker, changing to the colour of the spores.
Honey fungus causes great problems in woodlands but as all woodlands have some honey fungus, it is thought that it can only get into damaged trees.
Fairy rings of mushrooms gradually get a larger and larger radius as each year they grow outside the previous one. Some fairy rings are hundreds of years old.
Diana showed us some of her much used reference books some of which can be taken into the field. Her talk was very interesting and she recommended that we look around for the variety of fungi we can find, particularly in woodland areas but with the good advice to avoid eating anything we cannot confidently identify.
We now break for the winter and our next meeting: Thursday 5 March 2020 at 7.30 pm in the Parish Hall will also include our AGM.
Pat Jewkes
77th Annual Club Show - September 7th 2019
Another hot, sunny year which seems to have favoured flowers and vegetables, though some came early and had past their best by show day. The warm, dry weather has continued into September prolonging some crops and fooling others into starting again. Entries were up again and the show was well attended so a big thank you for your support! .
Awards
| C S Newton Cup | Michaelmas daisies / 3 Blooms / mixed foliage | Jenny Jones |
| The Grazebrook Shield | Flowers / Dahlias | Jenny Jones |
| M. Walton Cup | Vase mixed flowers | Jenny Jones |
| Meades Memorial Trophy | Single HT Rose | Barbara Courier |
| Brother Augustine Trophy | Most points in flowers exc. Roses | Wendy Gwilliam |
| Club Challenge Trophy | Most points in Rose classes | Lorraine Purcell |
| Fruit Challenge Cup & £5 DeBeers Voucher | Most points in Fruits | Stuart Courier |
| Coronation Cup & £5 DeBeers Voucher | Most points in Vegetables | Sally Fletcher |
| Jim Whittle Cup | Best floral entry | no winner awarded |
| Floral Art Cup | Most points in other Floral Art | Fiona Davies & Hilary Dixon |
| R L Rogers Cup | Men’s flower arrangement | Ian Purcell |
| P&J Gregory Cup | Children’s picture | no entries |
| Endeavour Cup | Most points in Children’s Art | Daisy Innes-Davies |
| J H Randall Cup & £5 DeBeers Voucher | Most points in Preserves & Cookery | Val Hardwick |
| Hughes Memorial Trophy & £10 Rowberry’s Voucher | Best in Show- vase mixed flowers | Jenny Jones |
| £10 Rowberry’s Voucher | Highest points awarded | Marilyn Harris |
Thank you to our sponsors, Rowberry’s Nursery and De Beers and to the judges, the committee and spouses who set up, cleared away and efficiently administered entries and prizes. Particular thanks to our Show Secretary, Caz Smith, whose organisation made it all run smoothly and to her husband Charlie who did most of the heavy lifting. Thank you to those who made and served the delicious refreshments, to those who ate them, those who provided raffle prizes and to those who bought tickets. Thank you to the pupils and staff of Hartlebury Primary School for their colourful and very imaginative art display.
The afternoon was well supported and there was a lovely atmosphere. Be inspired for next year’s 78th Show!
Pat Jewkes