Valley News May 2022

E E FR

Issue 179

May 2022

for Whitechurch, Whatcombe, Clenston, Stickland, Houghton, Turnworth & Milton Abbas

Bluebells at Delcombe Wood Picture: Mark Steele

Helping to inform and unite the Community

EVENTS EVENTS EVENTS

The Winterborne Stickland Solar Fund Committee would like to remind residents of Winterborne Stickland that funding is available for community projects.

Applications for funding should be emailed to sticklandsolarfund@yahoo.com Decisions are made every 2 months.

The basic criteria are that ideas should have benefit to the community. A committee of volunteers select successful projects.

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Editorial

Winterbornes & Milton Abbas Benefice

This month we begin the editorial with a tribute to Ron Shulver, who has sadly passed away in hospital in Salisbury. We send our sincere condolences to Pat, his wife. Ron and Pat have been wonderfully reliable deliverers of the Valley News from when we launched this magazine; their support for this, and the community in general, has been long and outstanding. We hope Pat might gain some comfort from knowing how much they have been appreciated by everyone who knew them.

We must now concentrate the editorial on Milton Abbas.

We have always delivered our magazine to this village as it is part of the Church Benefice. As far as possible we have strived to maximise delivery to people’s homes, but failing that they are available for collection around the Benefice.

Terry Hawker has done a superb job taking on the delivery of St Catherine’s Well in its entirety and has reliably carried out this voluntary task for many years. Sadly, for personal reasons he has had to withdraw and we would like to thank him for his support.

As the editorial is being written we are trying to find volunteers to take on this round and, at the same time, improve our door-todoor coverage in the rest of the village. We have contacted several people and organisations, including the Milton Abbas Parish Council to see if they can help us find some helpers.

If we are unable to improve our coverage then magazines will be available to collect from the Church, The Post Office, The Hambro Arms and Steeptonbill Farm Shop.

We have often tried to recruit a volunteer from Milton Abbas to join our team and if anyone would be willing to join us please get in touch – we would love to have representation from your village. And if you would like to help by delivering our magazine, we would also be pleased to hear from you. Please drop us an email at: news@valley-news.co.uk Many thanks.

The Valley News Team

The kiss of the sun for pardon, The song of the birds for mirth,-One is nearer God's heart in a garden Than anywhere else on earth.

I can remember my little Grandmother having this poem on a stone in her garden. It was written in 1913 by Dorothy Frances Blomfield (1858–1932) who was an English hymn-writer and poet.

When we moved from our cottage in Milton Abbas our friends in the Churches gave us a very generous token to spend on our new garden. We are starting from scratch and plants are not cheap these days, so their gift was doubly welcome, but oh, the joy of being able to plan a garden. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m no Alan Titchmarsh, but I do enjoy watching his programmes and Charlie and the Rich brothers.

My first job was to replace all the “special plants” I had to leave behind because I ran out of time to move them. The Rambling Rector roses on the fence either side of the little gate. Such a wonderful perfume and a real old fashioned small rose which spreads gloriously.

I first became aware of it in the Post Office garden as you walked towards Stickland Church gate. The perfume was amazing so I asked around at Coffee Pot if anyone could tell me the name.

Then the Lichfield Angel Rose. Three weeks after retiring to Dorset I went back to my old Church in Northamptonshire to conduct the wedding of a mature couple. The bridegroom’s Mum was a member of my old congregation and so delighted that her son had finally found happiness and given her two step grandchildren as well. Then six months later the gentleman was diagnosed with cancer and died shortly afterwards. Conducting that funeral was poignant as you can imagine. A little while later came this beautiful rose in thanks for my help. A play on our surname, David Austin Roses named it after the wooden statue found in Lichfield Cathedral when repair work was carried out in the nave and a statue of the Angel Gabriel was found under the tiles of the aisle. My family loved the description which said it was “Highly perfumed and inclined to spread”. For those of you who know me that is quite a good description even though I’m definitely no angel!

Then there was the Ruby Wedding Camellia which our church gave us to mark the occasion. John and I renewed our wedding vows at the morning service, which was very special, and then instead of coffee and biscuits to follow the service we had champagne and a beautiful cake. I did note that there was a larger than normal congregation that morning which I guess was down to the Champagne not my preaching! That plant had already moved with us once but was thriving against the Laurel Hedge.

Then of course there was the beautiful white Hydrangea which had been grown by a very special gardener. Mark was one of the gardeners at Stourhead and very talented. His father and my John’s father went to school together in Suffolk and then to Oxford, one studying Theology the other Medicine. They remained friends all their lives with their children growing up together. So how lovely that when we moved to this beautiful valley we discovered that Mark only lived at Mere, so a childhood friendship was rekindled.

An old friend came to lunch last week and brought me the prickliest rose you have ever seen. Now what does that tell me I wonder? For Mothering Sunday, I received Aubretia plants to drape down the wooden sleepers which frame the raised beds. I could not remember the name of the plant I wanted but knew where there was a cottage in the Valley with that name! You probably know where it is from the flowers. Now I’m busy planning the two lawn beds, the two raised beds under the bedroom windows and the long bed besides our drive. Each of these plants will give us beautiful memories to treasure and be a joy to behold. One really is Nearer God's Heart in a garden, than anywhere else on earth.

Every Blessing, Rev Sue Litchfield

Platinum Jubilee Events Here is a summary of events being held in celebration of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. More detail can be found on posters and adverts in local communities. The major national events are also included in CAPITAL LETTERS for those who wish to follow these on television.

Sunday 29th May Turnworth in Spring embracing the Jubilee 11.00 – 4.30 Thursday 2nd June TROOPING OF THE COLOUR; NATIONAL BEACONS LIT Stickland 8pm – Jubilee Quiz at The Crown Friday 3rd June SERVICE OF THANKSGIVING – ST PAULS Milton Abbas Tea & Cake in The Street – St James’s Flowers in St James’s Church Concert in Milton Abbey School Theatre Exhibition in the Reading Room Stickland Jubilee Trail Pottery demonstration by Master potter Alan White Saturday 4th June THE DERBY; PARTY AT THE PALACE Milton Abbas Exhibition in the Reading Room Flowers in St James’s Church Screening of the ‘Palace Party’ - Hambro Arms Stickland Jubilee Trail River of Hope Exhibition and Tea on the Green 8pm Live Music at The Crown Sunday 5th June THE BIG JUBILEE LUNCH; THE PLATINUM JUBILEE PAGEANT Houghton 12.00 The Village Picnic, Bake Off and events including Village photo - St Andrew’s Milton Abbas Big Jubilee Lunch followed by games – Millennium Green Flowers in St James’s Church Stickland Big Jubilee Lunch – Sports Club Whitechurch 2-6pm Community Party – School Field

View the magazine online at

issuu.com/valleynewsdt11 3

Please sign up with the a simple form on the website where residents will be able enter their email address (GDPR compliant) so can have easy access to the newsletter and local information and news. Go to www.winterbornestickland.org.uk/newsletter Please do sign up, so we can all benefit from better understanding of our community.

The Parish Council is keen to extend the coverage of the website with local and interesting information. If any residents have ideas on what we might include or have historical information, please do get in touch with the Parish Council by email wsticklandpc@gmail.com.

The last meeting of the Parish Council was on 28th March 2022 at Pamala Hambro Hall and the minutes are available at the website www.winterbornestickland.org.uk/meetings and the notice board

by St Mary’s Church, West Street, Winterborne Stickland.

Business included discussions on Winterborne Stickland Sports & Social Club, and the new ideas, meetings and village activities following the changes in the Committee members. Discussions also included the ongoing issue with speeding in Stickland. The idea of engaging with Community Speedwatch was discussed. This would allow the village to use a speed gun to track cars in the village in association with Dorset Police. It would we believe require at least ten volunteers to organise. If you would be interested please contact the Parish Council at wsticklandpc@gmail.com.

Regarding the planning application with Churchill Court, members of the council met with the development manager and whilst there seems to be no issues, it was discussed that we would like the path to the sports field to be better than it is now and possibly lit with solar ground lighting (light pollution friendly). We would be looking for planning restrictions on construction traffic routes to and from the site.

The Parish Councillors also agree unanimously to join the Dorset Deserves Better Campaign aiming to revise and advise Dorset Counil’s planning strategy.

Please go to www.dorsetcan.org/ddb.html. We are joining a growing number of Parish Councils and organisations in Dorset that feel that Dorset Council's draft Local Plan needs more thought to be inline with residents’ thinking and preservation of our green belt.

Revisions have been completed on the Flood & River Management Plan and this now moves to the next phase of consultation.

The Parish Council has a number of of vacancies and we would be pleased to discuss with any resident possible interest in joining.

If you would like to express possible interest please contact us by email at wsticklandpc@gmail.com.

By way of other news, our congratulations to The Crown on its great new look. We also will be welcoming the Scouts to the WSSCC building this month – great news! Also we believe that the Youth Club will start at the WSSCC on 14th April.

The next Parish Council meeting is on Monday 25th April at 19:30 in Pamela Hambro Hall. Be really good to see you.

More information can be found on the website www.winterbornestickland.org.uk.

Milton Abbas Surgery Surgery Closures The surgery will be closed on Saturday 30th April and Monday 2nd May for the Early May Bank Holiday and also over the Jubilee Bank Holidays, Thursday 2nd, Friday 3rd and Saturday 4th June.

The surgery will also be closed on Thursday 12th May for Practice Protected Learning from 1.30pm – 4.30pm.

We apologise for any inconvenience caused. For out of hours care or advice during closures, please call 111. In the case of an emergency, call 999.

Please see our surgery website or follow us on Facebook for future surgery closures.

Time for a Cuppa 2022 Time for a Cuppa week will be 1st to the 8th May and is the perfect occasion to get together with friends, family or colleagues over a cuppa and some cake, while raising vital funds to help families facing dementia. For more information or to receive your free fundraising pack, please go to www.dementiauk.org/get-involved Did you know that May is National Walking Month?

Walking is an easy and accessible way to improve physical and mental health and even a 20-minute walk can reduce the risk of a number of preventable health conditions, including certain cancers, depression, heart disease and Type 2 diabetes. Why not set yourself the challenge of walking for 20 minutes every day during May? Or perhaps now you have mastered the habit of going for a walk, you would like to challenge yourself further? Why not take a look at the NHS running plan for beginners - Couch to 5K. See www.nhs.uk/live-well/exercise to download the weekly programmes.

Whatever you end up doing, let’s keep on moving forward. Do something today that your future self will thank you for!

Plant and Veg Swap With the increase of food and energy bills, we at Milton Abbas Surgery would like to encourage our patients to consider growing their own veg. You do not need a huge amount of space or any special pots – vegetables and plants can grow in any kind of container – cans, ice cream tubs, even wellington boots! It’s also a fantastic way to keep busy outside in the fresh air, and get the kids involved too. Why not take a look at these two websites for inspiration and tips: www.gardenersworld.com/plants/vegetablecrops-for-beginners and www.rhs.org.uk/vegetables We would also like to set up a plant/seedlings swap at the surgery where people can donate any spare seedlings or plants they have, and then anyone who comes to the surgery can pick up a plant on their way out. So, if you have anything spare please, or you can sow a couple of extra pots in your green house, we would be very grateful. Nothing will go to waste as if they aren’t taken we can use them in our surgery allotment.

Then later in the season, if anyone has any excess veg that they would be willing to donate, we can set up a veg swap too!

Winterborne Stickland Parish Council As part of our ongoing communication in the village the Parish Council would like to expand the village website www.winterbornestickland.org.uk by adding a directory of: • Local clubs and associations • Local businesses • Local meetings This will be a free service to inform parishioners of what is happening and available in the village and surrounding area. We hope that this will be an ongoing update with notices available to send to those who sign up to the village newsletter on the website.

If you wish to be included in the directory please can you send a brief summary of your club, business or association to wsticklandpc@gmail.com for the attention of Councillor Dunn. This will also form the basis of a ‘welcome pack’ to those who move into our lovely village and surrounding parish.

The Council is in the process launching an email-based newsletter with details of planning applications, local news, clubs, events and matters of local interest.

news@valley-news.co.uk ads@valley-news.co.uk St Mary's Church Stickland Annual Parochial Church St Mary's Church, Winterborne Stickland will be holding their Annual Parochial Church meeting on Tuesday 17th May at 5.30pm in the church.

This is an important meeting for the whole church. It is an opportunity for members of the congregation/village to elect the people they would like to be on the PCC (Parochial Church Council).

The congregation can ask questions and comment on the finances of the church, the state of the church building, or about any matter of concern to the parish. If you wish to know more, please speak to Rev'd Lewis or either of the current church wardens, Michael Trevett or Heather Somerville. Notices about this meeting can be found displayed in the church porch.

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visits, British achievements such as Concorde, the QE2 and the new aircraft carrier, the Olympic Games, as well as family gatherings.

The second act, lasting 90 minutes, will feature a series of local performers including internationally acclaimed tenor, Hal Cazalet, who will sing iconic hit tunes, two from each decade, drawn from the wealth of UK chart music during the Queen’s reign - ranging from the very first UK number 1 in 1952 by Al Martino to Adele in the 2020s.

The music will be pre-recorded, in order to achieve consistency and smoothness of presentation, but all singing will be live on the night, together with the team of dancers..

Audience participation will be encouraged by being invited to join in singing selected songs. £10 tickets available from https://www.eventbrite.co.uk Children free. Parking free.

Winterborne Scouts come to Stickland Following many years of productive activities the Scout Troop (10 ½ - 14 years) is moving from the Whitechurch Village Hall to The Winterborne Stickland Sports and Community Club (WSSCC) on the Turnworth Road immediately north of the Stickland village. This will provide much greater scope for outdoor activity as well as spreading the scouting offer further across The Winterborne Valley area. The troop will meet during term time at 6.30 pm Paul the Scout Leader said, “We are open to new members as we have some vacancies at present – scouting is a fun activity for boys and girls where there are fabulous opportunities to engage in all sorts of challenging things for all abilities. Plus there is the scope to make new friends from the local villages out of school.”

WSSCC new chair – Anna Way - said, “We’re thrilled to be able to welcome the Valley’s own scouts to our facilities at the club and we hope this is the beginning of a long-standing relationship.”

Winterborne Scouts have 2 other groups meeting during term time in: • Milborne St. Andrew – Beavers (6 – 8 years) at the Milborne St Andrew Sports Pavilion at 5.30 pm • Winterborne Whitechurch - Cub Scouts (8 – 10 ½ years) at the Dunbury School Hall, in Dolway Lane at 6.30 pm.

All groups meet on Friday evenings

Turnworth in May Sunday 29th May 11.00 a.m. - 4.30 p.m.

2022 and Turnworth is back in the swing of our usual special church fund-raising day on Sunday 29th May. We are trying to raise money, particularly, for a much-needed electrical refit of the church and lighting improvements. We do hope to see you here in Turnworth on that day. There will be plants and produce for sale, bric-a-brac, music and the chance to relax with friends and family in the beautiful garden of the Old Rectory with tea and cake. Free parking and free entry.

Milton Abbas Local History Group At the April meeting of the Milton Abbas Local History Group we were treated to a presentation by local volunteer, Henry Cole, who works with a team to look after the Commonwealth war graves in our area, including those in Whitechurch, Hilton, Milton Abbas and Stickland. We learned of these graves in our churchyards, the stories of the people, and how their memorials shall not be forgotten. Henry also showed the documentation which tells the stories of each memorial. Henry has photographed the condition of each of the memorial stones to monitor their condition over time, they are made of Portland stone which has lasted quite well for over one hundred years, although lichen and weeds have taken their toll.

If the stones do lose their attribution then they are reported and replaced. So far this season all our presentations have focused on local history as researched by our own members, and the rest of our programme of talks, which can be found on our website, is also by our members on local history, we will be discussing topics from Anglo-Saxon to grammar schools.

Our research is currently looking at local field names and how they have changed (or rather not) over the last 700 years, parish boundaries and how they were remembered by 'beating the bounds' (there is an entry by the Churchwardens of Whitechurch in 1763 of doing this with seven boys), roads and turnpikes, Lloyd George Domesday survey, and records in the county justice system. If there are topics which you are interested in why not get in touch? You will find these and many other topics on our website blog, including the story of Fisherman's Grave.

Do come along to our meetings and find out about our shared history. Details are always available on our website. https://miltonabbashistorygroup.com/

DEADLINES for the JUNE Edition Adverts Articles

TUESDAY 10th MAY SUNDAY 15th MAY

Pamela Hambro Hall 100 Club April May 1st 157 Jim Fisher 1st 106 Jim Fisher 2nd 184 Angela D'Silva 2nd 193 Jane Robbins 3rd 124 Margaret Cox 3rd 128 Ros Jones We still have a few spare 100 club tickets - please contact me if you would like a ticket. prizes are £25, £15, £10 each month.

Hazel Lappin 880969

Church Services in May Sunday 1st May 9:00am Turnworth (Communion) 10:30am Whitechurch (Communion) 10:30am Stickland (Morning Worship with livestream to facebook) Sunday 8th May 9:00am Stickland (Book of Common Prayer Communion) 10:30am Milton Abbas (Communion) 10:30am Clenston (Book of Common Prayer Communion) 4:30pm Houghton (Cafe Style) Sunday 15th May 9:00am Milton Abbas (Book of Common Prayer Communion) 10:30am Stickland (Communion with livestream to facebook) 11:30am Whitechurch (Cafe Style) Sunday 22nd May 10:30am Whitechurch (Morning prayer/worship) 10:30am Houghton (Communion with livestream to facebook) 10:30am Turnworth (Morning Worship) 6:00pm Milton Abbas (Soulspace) Sunday 29th May 10:30am Benefice Service at Milton Abbey (Communion) Communion : Music/prayer/reflection & sharing bread & wine Book of common prayer : A gentle & traditional language style service Cafe church : Food/interactive/craft Soulspace : Short/contemplative with reflection and silence Morning prayer/worship : A mixture of many of the above without communion

The Platinum Jubilee Concert - 3rd June The concert to be held in the theatre at Milton Abbey School will provide an entertainment that celebrates HM The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee via popular music, dance and film.

The thrust of the show will be to make use of a wealth of talent from around the area, and to link the whole evening together with a compere/MC who will maintain continuity and keep the audience engaged The first act will include video streams projected in HD, consisting of British and Commonwealth notable events filmed during the reign of Queen Elizabeth to include the Coronation and significant Royal family moments, such as newsreel of previous Jubilees, births and weddings, tours and major events., sourced from public domain original data. Existing soundtrack will be interspersed with ‘pop hits’ of the time. Examples of content will include Royal 6

C.W. ABBOTT & SON

Bedding and Vegetable Plants Pea Sticks & Bean Rods Perennials and Shrubs Stockists of Kings, Franchi and Fothergill Budget Seeds Potting Compost Large selection of Pots Langton Long, Blandford Forum, Dorset DT11 9HR Telephone 01258 452513

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(especially Allium sphaerocephalon), borage, catmint (Nepeta) Cirsium rivulare, foxglove (Digitalis) and most herbs will throng with all manner of different wild bees, whilst the bee-friendly autumn plants are Bugbane (Actaea simplex), Caryopteris, Dahlias (singleflowered) and ivy which give bees a source of nectar well into autumn.

Remember, plant in clumps as bees like a banquet, not a snack.

Give your plants lots of water in hot, dry weather to help produce nectar. If possible, install a water butt to provide rainwater. With your help, we will hopefully reverse the current trend and will once again have bees gracing our gardens.

The Valley Gardening Club Spring Show After having virtual shows for the last two years, it was so good to return to the Pamela Hambro Hall to celebrate Spring and have a ‘real’ Spring Show.

As you could see from last month’s front cover, the standard of entries remained incredibly high and our independent judge was impressed by the quality of the exhibits.

Congratulations to all of the class and award winners and thank you everyone who contributed in any way towards the show.

Cup Winners: Grown Daffodils (The Bob Steele Trophy) Hazel Steele Cut Daffodils (The Ivor Billett Trophy) Rosemary Hennicker General Section Philippa Smith President’s Vase Richard Marchant Cookery Cup Philippa Smith & Jerry Kelsey Photography Cup Lynne Rainford Photography Best Photo Lynne Rainford Photography - Public Vote Results Class 39 Snowdrops 1st Richard Marchant 2nd Mark Steele 3rd Hazel Steele Class 40 View from a favourite walk 1st Lynne Rainford (Best in Section) 2nd Hazel Steele 3rd = Jerry Kelsey, Mark Steele Class 41 Skyscape 1st Lynne Rainford 2nd Mark Steele 3rd Philippa Smith Class 42 My Favourite Photo 1st Lynne Rainford 2nd Hazel Steele 3rd Mark Steele Coming up in May Thu 12th May Members’ Discount Evening Wed 18th May Talk: The Kitchen Garden at Kingston Lacy.

- given by Head Gardener, Andrew Hunt More info at sites.google.com/view/valleygardeningclub Mark Steele, Chairman

A Perfect Day with Hetty (This story by Chrissy Adamson has been included with her permission. It shows the kind of article that Valley News would be pleased to receive from any of our local residents.)

The clip clop of Hetty’s hooves on the tarmac road was music to my ears. We had only lived in this idyllic village for six months and already I had found my perfect heaven. With its beautiful church and pretty stone cottages, roses around porches and wildflower gardens, Edenfield had become my much-loved home.

My next-door neighbour had been relieved to find someone willing to exercise her beautiful, retired bay hunter, standing at 16.2hands and as gentle as a kitten.

As we headed out of the village along the winding roads, a dense grey mist was hanging low on soft green meadows. Rabbits were bobbing around on the grass verges paying no particular attention to us and several deer were grazing, much of their bodies camouflaged by the mist, creating an ominous ghostly impression.

A solitary stag, large antlers pointing skyward, gazed over, momentarily statuesque as he observes us. An impressive sight, complementing the already beautiful view, and a far cry from my previous red brick home in suburbia where it would have been necessary to walk ten minutes just to catch a glimpse of the moon.

On reaching our first accessible meadow I turn Hetty in the direction of a rusty old 5-bar gate, and, like all good hunters she allowed me to lean forward, precariously, to unhook the tricky bolt-like contraption. The experience of this handsome mare proved to be invaluable as she moved forwards slowly, allowing me to push the creaky gate out of our way. Once through, this gentle giant turned and, with expert precision, moved slowly forwards, forcefully nudging the gate with her magnificent strong chest, until it was almost back in place. Then, with one mighty barge she slammed it shut before turning gently back to continue our journey, totally unfussed and unaware of my feelings of admiration for her.

As a child I had a dream to be invisible, to walk through nature without causing birds to fly or deer to bolt. It was only when I rode my horse, many years later, that my dream was realised. As all riders know, wildlife pays much less attention to those astride a horse.

As we cantered along a treelined bridleway, an occasional low branch, perilously close, forced me to lean down to Hetty’s neck to avoid an inevitable swipe across the face. A buzzard, most likely oblivious to us, is flying ahead swaying gracefully from side to side.

For a moment I escape from reality, take myself back to childhood, and imagine that it has chosen to join us.

We exit the bridleway to an open field with far reaching views.

Our buzzard rises skyward and begins to circle effortlessly, appearing to watch us. Will he join us to our destination? He chooses not to. A church spire in the distance points to a sky heavy with grey clouds and the promise of rain. I care not if the heavens open, drenching us as this too would be just another gift of nature.

Hetty knows we are homeward bound and with ears pricked firmly forwards she increases her pace into a gallop, gouging up earth from her thundering hooves and thoroughly enjoying what will be the last mile or two of our hack. I must slow her pace to enable her to cool down before we reach home, so I put gentle pressure on the reins. She is unwilling, takes her time but, as always, her trustworthy character can be relied upon and she slows to a trot as the heavens open. The resulting downpour drenches us, cooling her down and soaking me to the skin. As always, a fabulous ride. A dry stable for her and a warm bath for me will mark the end of another fulfilling day.

Save Our Bees (This article by Chrissy Adamson has been included with her permission. It shows the kind of article that Valley News would be pleased to receive from any of our local residents.)

Many of our bee species (bumblebees and solitary bees) are declining globally.

Please help bees by growing flowers and shrubs that are rich in nectar and pollen, facilitating a feeding ground throughout the year.

You can, of course, plant borders up in the autumn if you like, ready for the following year. But many people like to plant in spring and summer to see flowers bloom that year.

If you provide the best plants for bees you will see, on warm sunny days, several different species of bees visiting your garden and you can sit back and listen to the gentle hum of them feasting as they busily stock up on all of that wonderful nectar.

Before planting or sowing seeds, choose your location. Take a walk around your garden or green space. Are there gaps in sheltered, sunny positions where you could fit in a bee-friendly plant? Do you have plants which never seem to have any insects visit them and which you'd be happy to replace with something better? We've selected some of the very best plants for you to choose from that will ensure you have something flowering from early spring through to late autumn and even into winter.

Best bee-friendly winter plants are crocus, hellebore and winter heather (Erica carnea) which will provide food for late-flying and early emerging bumblebees during colder months. Aubretia (Aubreta), bugle (Ajuga), spotted deadnettle (Lamium maculatum), lungwort (Pulmonaria) or snake's-head fritillary (Fritillaria meleagris) are perfect spring plants which will provide food for early bumblebees and solitary bees. The perfect summer plants are Allium 8

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Compiled by Nick Donnelly There are two sets of clues, Cryptic and Concise, but remember, you cannot mix the clues as the cryptic answers are different to the Concise ones.

Answers will be given in the next edition.

CRYPTIC Across 1. Stakes laid; peas were involved (8) 5. Run through Sprite and beer (6) 10. Typical Leo, for example, concerning article X (1, 4, 2, 3, 5) 11. No. 5, say, shipped wirelessly (5) 12. Control power back up (9) 13. Clickers, usually in pairs, throws over a mesh (9) 15. Smoothed and walked in line (5) 16. Fashionable bird man at typical hides (5) 18. Show over English mix-up, regardless of which way (9) 20. Band insinuates unwelcome guests (9) 23. Steal away European prune with drug (5) 25. Influencers without responsibility invest in bed whips (4-4, 7) 26. Register bent, stripped and lean (6) 27. Stuck around for audition, tied over a number (8)

CONCISE Across 1. Non-believers (8) 5. Composer (6) 10. Greed(15) 11. Decree (5) 12. Ms Aguilera (9) 13. Guilty alongside someone(9) 15. Heathen (5) 16. Composer (5) 18. Stretched (9) 20. Bread that is 18 (9) 23. Confess (5) 25. Constancy (15) 26. Adoring (6) 27. Brown haired (8)

Down 1. Loud sounds from oysters with no resources (5) 2. Hesitation after sex in the Spanish lounges (7) 3. Retreat from society by risk assessor holding onto name (9) 4. Submit to tirade Fergie delivers (5) 6. Salah before words loses French theme (5) 7. Officer, held in great respect, with British and European extraction (7) 8. Cockney who's a bit bruised, one hears (4-5) 9. Cutter features with a set in primarily arctic waters (8) 13. One is in charge of the Tower of London where prisoners eat?

(9) 14. Sublime film material engrossing the man (8) 15. Strong, ignoble eastern cartel is between bud and fruit (9) 17. Outshine primarily in certain areas largely applied locally (7) 19. Six nil left hospital department homicidal (7) 21. Venomous creatures with others (5) 22. Creep in field is from the East (5) 24. Exactly half displeased, leading to removal of restrictions (5)

Down 1. Pull mightily (5) 2. Service of remembrance (7) 3. Sporting discipline (9) 4. Fun (mostly in Ireland) (5) 6. Dances (5) 7. Taking notice of (7) 8. Continuous (9) 9. Words to an Opera (8) 13. Lived with (9) 14. Manufacture (8) 15. GBS play (9) 17. Milk based food (7) 19. Storm (7) 21. Consumed (5) 22. Stringed instrument (5) 24. Sample (5)

DEADLINES for the JUNE Edition Adverts (Business and Events) TUESDAY 10th MAY ads@valley-news.co.uk Articles and all other copy SUNDAY 15th MAY news@valley-news.co.uk

View the magazine online at

issuu.com/valleynewsdt11

Late submissions may not appear until the following edition

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Polly 'Bs' Local lady doing: Holistic Treatments, Massage, Reflexology, Indian Head Massage and Ear Candling.

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Greetings from Corfe Mullen

RDA needs more volunteers - and you could be one of them

Well hallo again, and I hope you all had a peaceful, pleasant Easter. As I write this, Easter has only just begun, with today being Good Friday, and I heartily wish I was joining some of the many church services you have in the Valley. But due mainly to ill health, I am unable to come. Does anyone remember the long walk from Whitechurch to Stickland village green on Good Fridays, to remember Jesus's crucifixion? It was so good to meet with everyone on the village green for that service. Sometimes the weather would be kind - other times pretty miserable! And I remember, too, my son Ian 's determination to carry the big heavy cross along some of the way. Such an opportunity to witness to our Faith. If anyone else remembers those times, why not write into the Valley News.

Are you comfortable being around horses?

Would you like to help and support children with disabilities?

If your answers are “Yes” and “Yes” you are just the sort of person Milton Abbas Riding for the Disabled (MARDA) is looking for so please read on.

We operate two groups – one on Friday morning between 10am and 12noon and another on Tuesday between 5 and 6pm. Each group session is held at Luccombe Riding Centre.

The Friday group works with children with learning difficulties from Beaucroft School, Wimborne, whereas on Tuesdays we have a smaller group of private, individual children with similar conditions.

Each child usually needs three volunteers - one who leads the horse and two side-walkers who are looking after the child.

You will, no doubt, be aware that multiple Paralympic Gold Medallist, Sophie Christiansen, began by riding at her local RDA group when she was six years old. Clearly, not all our children are going to be Olympic Champions, but they will benefit so much by the time they spend with our horses.

The joy of seeing a child who may initially not even wish to be anywhere near a horse and is gradually encouraged (as much by the horse as the volunteers) into mounting and riding the horse is very satisfying.

We have only recently re-started MARDA after a lengthy lay-off as a consequence of Covid and, inevitably, some volunteers have not returned to us, so we need new people to come and join us. This way we can ensure continued support for the children who are trusted into our care, and in time give more children this great opportunity to take part in riding therapy.

So, if you think you can make a positive contribution to the lives of a group of children, please contact me, Sue Hodder on 07739 469946 or email suehodder01@talktalk.net and I will be happy to give you more information. I am standing by my phone right now!

Flowers are beginning to blossom out in the garden and we have a superb show of tulips this year. It'll soon be warm enough to sit out on our patio and enjoy the sunshine - hopefully with friends this year, after the two sad years we have had. Any old friends from Stickland are welcome to join us! With lots of love to you all.

From Heather.

news@valley-news.co.uk ads@valley-news.co.uk April’s Pink Full Moon rising over Lady Caroline’s Drive Mark Steele

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