As always this was well attended, perhaps people turned up to see if the new chairman could make a fool of himself, following the successful tenure of lan Betts. Like all good shows, it never started on time. This was in part due to the slight hitch with getting the computer and projector to talk to each other.
However, I would think those who attended would agree that the efforts were not in vain as the photographs scrolling behind the top table were very impressive and showed Tottington Wood in all its glory. At this point, I must extend my thanks to Ann Simpson who kindly agreed to stand in for Maggie who was in Cornwall on holiday.

Following the business and a break, guest speaker John Knight from WSSC gave a very interesting and enlightening talk on wildlife gardening. Given the current heat wave, here is a very good tip - when mowing your lawn, leave the grass at least an inch long; not only will this mean that it remains greener for longer but hopefully it will enable birds like the robin and blackbirds to find some worms in the damper soil. What would anyone think about the next tip on slugs?

Rather than put pellets down, how about picking them up, no - not putting them over your neighbour's fence, but in your compost bin to help with the process of breaking down its contents.

This last point did get a discussion started and at least left the audience with something to think about. With May now gone, the lazy days of summer approach, but when I turned the calendar on June 1 st, it suddenly dawned on me what I had agreed to - three weekends on the trot at shows, Mrs BC thought I had gone mad (is that a huge 'yes'! hear?)

- Chris Burchell-Collins