A good year for funghi

This year I have been surprised at the wide variety of funghi flourishing in the garden.

I suppose it must be something to do with the damp weather and the relatively mild temperatures that we are having at present.

Here are two quite spectacular examples that I photographed under the ash tree.

On the subject of ash trees, I was alarmed to read recently about 'ash die back', a fungal disease that has devastated ash trees on the continent.  A nursery in Britain was found to have imported some infected trees, but the Government's Food and Environmental Research Agency moved swiftly to quarentine these and believe that this batch does not pose a danger to British trees.  There is the possibility however that other imported diseased trees have not been spotted.

Symptoms of the disease include black spots on the bark that turn into cankers, and branches turning black before they drop off.   Ashes tend to shed branches fairly regularly so it should be possible to keep an eye out for the problem.   However at present it seems there is no cause for immediate alarm, but it is to be hoped that the disease does not manage to take a hold here.

To read more about this click here

Great Waldingfield Community Engagement event

What is community engagement?

Have you ever taken part in a quiz or done an exam when you have felt that the person setting the questions was a bit further ahead in the textbook than you?

I suspect that there were times when the participants in the community engagement event in Great Waldingfield on Monday evening felt a little bit like that! (For more information on this process click on the Community Engagement 2012 tab above.)

Once we got beyond the first questions about what the community liked and disliked about the village, things got a bit more difficult.   I had been concerned that many people really don’t know much about what councils do on their behalf, whether at the Parish, District or County level.  This view proved to be correct.  Usually the activities of the council only become a matter of concern when things go wrong, and I have to say you can’t blame people for this. Dustbins and planning, housing and environmental health, aren’t really that entertaining.

However, it is clear that some would like to know more,  and councillors and officers present  learned from the session that we need to get better at communication.  This means going further than reaching out to people in the old fashioned ways (parish magazines, noticeboards etc.)  We have to make more use of websites and e mails.  I couldn’t help thinking also that it IS a pity that we no longer send out Babergh Matters, which at least gave people the opportunity to read about the activities of the council round the District.  Some councillors felt that it was a waste of money, but, following this exercise,  I am not so sure.

The event was by no means a disaster.  Despite the handicap of some lack of knowledge, members of Great Waldingfield Parish council, the public, and officers and elected representatives from the County and District Councils, managed to have a lively conversation from which all of us learned something, and which will send some useful messages back to Babergh .  These opinions, taken with others from around the District, should assist us in setting a strategic direction for the Council in the years to come.

The next community event will be held by Chilton Parish Council at the Christopher Centre in Sudbury at 7.30p.m. this coming Monday, 15 October.  An event for Acton will be held on the evening of 19 November and we are still arranging something for Little Waldingfield.

I have prepared some information for people who would like to know more about the council’s activities prior to these meetings.  Please e mail me if you would like a copy.  Parish Councillors will receive the papers whether they want them or not!

News on Acton telephone problems

 Thanks to Acton correspondent Margaret Maybury for the following information:

'I have just spoken with the engineers working on the major telephone fault in Acton.

The fault is on the Sudbury Road between the entrance opposite THE CROWN INN and a bend in the Sudbury Road.  Simon, the engineer, informs me that the main underground cable has a fault and needs replacing.  However, due to the fibre optics there is not enough room to add another cable so the engineers at either end of the cable, talking by radio link, are putting in a new overland cable lying at the edge of the road so we hopefully will have telephone by tonight.  The old underground cable will be removed and a new one put in.  The engineers will be working all day and all night (I did warn them about cable theft) to rectify the situation and full telephone service will hopefully be in two days time.'

Congratulations to Cockfield

Yesterday it was announced that Cockfield has won the Suffolk Village of the Year Competition.

Villages that enter the competition are judged on community spirit,  general appearance of the village, the parish council, the natural environment and any other factors that impress the judges.

Given that the village is very widely spread out, comprising eight separate clusters around eight greens,on the face of it this award seems a particularly great achievement.  Perhaps however the fact that the village IS rather spread out is a contributory factor? I am sure that whatever the key to success, hard work and determination are somewhere in the mix.   It is certainly true that there is a great deal going on in the community, from the preservation of wildlife meadows to computer classes for beginners.

Congratulations to all concerned.

Silk in Little Waldingfield

Thanks to Andy Sheppard for the report below

The Little Waldingfield History Society held its first and very successful public talk on Wednesday 3rd October at the Parish Room.

Keith Parker, pictured, a longstanding village resident who has spent his entire career involved in the Silk Industry, gave us a fascinating insight into the world of silk weaving and production and into the life of the domesticated silkmoth, Bombyx Mori, which in latin means "the silkworm of the mulberry tree; apparently this tiny animal is the most genetically altered of all domesticated species and is now totally dependent on man for survival!

Keith brought with him a selection of the most wonderful silk pictures, fabrics, weaving shuttles and antique printing blocks for us all to touch and feel, which was a great hands on experience.

To the untrained eye the silk pictures looked like photographs, which he had personally designed on a computer system whose fore-runner he was the first to establish in this country back in the 80's when working at Vanners, who he also advised moved their silk yarn processing and weaving operations to Sudbury and Haverhill after the passing of the Spitalfields Act of 1774.

Finally Keith also brought with him a huge selection of silk offcuts and cones containing silk threads that he had collected over many years which he then kindly put up for sale to raise much needed funds for the newly established society - there was quite a rush forward by the ladies of Little Waldingfield at this stage keen to grab a bargain.

Everyone had a most enjoyable evening which the Society aims to replicate at our forthcoming talk on Suffolk Witches, by Pip Wright, to be held at the Parish Room on Oct 31st, or All Hallows Eve (Halloween).

An afternoon with the WI

I spent a very pleasant afternoon yesterday with Great Waldingfield WI.  I am pleased to see that the branch is still going strong, having welcomed in some additional members from places such as Lavenham and Acton where the WI no longer meets.

The ladies asked me to speak about what it is like being a District Councillor.  It was quite difficult to cover this subject properly in the time allotted and I do hope that I made some sense!

 I talked a little about what makes people stand as local government representatives in the first place.  It is an irony that although it is often difficult to find volunteers to take on the role, it is also quite difficult to persuade them to give up when the appropriate time comes.  This means that it must be quite an enjoyable occupation, and I certainly find it so

Part of the talk was about the hazards of political campaigning.   Dogs, slippery doorsteps, savage letterboxes and garden gnomes all make doorstepping a dangerous activity.

I explained that the role really falls into two parts:  what you do for the whole area, and the work that is done to help people with their problems in the Ward.  Often it feels as though the two jobs have little connection with one another.

There was time for questions and comments at the end.  I heard from members about what worries them in the village and I will be feeding these concerns back to the relevant people.

I was made extremely welcome and the tea and accompanying refreshments were as good as anticipated!  A kind donation was made which I will be passing on to Gainsborough's House.

Thank you so much ladies.

News from Branchlines Community Woodland

The Branchlines Annual General Meeting will be held on October 19th in Great Waldingfield.  The Chairman David Taylor has written an update on the woodland's progress and an abbreviated version is published below.  Future plans will no doubt be reported at the AGM.

'Nearly all our young trees and hedge plants survived the summer, which was unusually wet this year. The same weather conditions have further filled the pond and encouraged lush growth of grass. Of the trees we planted, currently the tallest is a silver birch.

An increasing variety of wildlife is present in the wood and it is encouraging to hear favourable reports from villagers about how it is developing as a place to walk peacefully and enjoy nature.

A few trees did not come into leaf in spring and were replaced. Damaged stakes and tree shelters were also replaced. The new hedge along the top bank was initially cleared of nettles with the hope of encouraging more varied vegetation and flowers. This bank has been named ‘Rose Bank’ after Shirley Rose, who did so much for the village and the wood. A gap in the old hedge by the entrance gate was replanted to help screen the stream off from the access road. A Scots Pine was planted on the mound. The steps and disabled entrance gate were gritted.

In June, a ‘royal oak’ was planted by the chairman of the parish council to commemorate the queen’s diamond jubilee. The oak was grown from an acorn on a royal estate and donated by the Woodland Trust. It is situated by the benches along the access road and has a temporary label. A good number attended the ceremony and ate some specially commissioned jubilee cake.

The ragwort was cleared again by hand this summer during one of our monthly working parties. Three log seats have been created, one on the mound, one by the pond and one by the meadow. The paths and seating areas have been mown. More native plants were put into the pond’s shallow margins, where they have flowered and attracted a variety of dragonflies and other insects.

George Millins continued his work to establish populations of common lizards and slow worms. There is now a series of habitat piles along the top ride where the morning sun shines. The piles may look a bit scruffy at first but they soon weather and merge in.'

David Taylor, chairman