1

Cranbrook in Bloom

2012

2

CRANBROOK COMMUNITY 2012

As the years have gone by residents, businesses and visitors to the Town have taken on board the work and pleasure involved in our In Bloom efforts.

Each year there is more interest and enthusiasm by supporters of Cranbrook In Bloom involving all ages and all walks of life.

Having so many people within our community keen to be involved, makes for a strong bond and a greater understanding of why we all work so hard to help achieve a better environment.

A Potted History of Cranbrook in Bloom efforts

1994; the first entry. Results; 3rd (Out of 3 entries)

1995-2002; We continued our efforts, but on a smaller scale than now.

2003;

A Constitution was drawn up for Cranbrook in Bloom and we began to manage our own funds. Funding from SEEDA enabled us to purchase a water bowser to help maintain the 50 planters now situated in and around the Town. We also purchased a 2000 litre container in which to store rain water from the rooftops in the Town.

2006;

After several years of trying we were at last granted, by Kent County Council, a `licence to cultivate` certain areas in the Town. This gave us the go ahead to landscape Wilsley Pound Roundabout. Sponsorship for this major project came from local businesses. Total sponsorship was £1800.

An overgrown pond was exposed in the Library grounds. We arranged for the debris to be cleared and a dipping platform erected. It is now used for pond dipping days for children and adults. Always very well supported.

2008 A very old apple orchard was this years project. Cranbrook in Bloom adopted the orchard and we have an educational pack available to use in conjunction with a visit to the orchard. A teaching area has been made and it is used frequently.

2011

A neglected part of Cranbrook, that we had tried in vain to enhance, was given a lease of life by the making/building of a mosaic bench. A previous boring looking brick wall was transformed into a seat by the addition of a tile mosaic. Designed, made and installed by volunteers it has proved to be a very popular resting place.

A great deal of work was put into the production of a free walking guide. Made possible by funding from The Big Lottery, Tunbridge Wells Borough Council, Cranbrook Parish Council, KHWP, Kent County Council and Explore Kent and 100`s of free man hours by walkers, photographers and general helpers.

3

2012 A successful launch was well attended for the free walking guides in the Vestry Hall, which included displays, by the Windmill Association, The Ramblers Association, The Woodland Trust, The Kent Guild of Spinners and Weavers and Cranbrook Museum supported by the Mayor.

2002- 2012; overview

We have progressed and expanded our presence in the town with the help of the South and South East in Bloom competition and will strive to maintain a high standard of entry within the competition with the help of many members of the community.

Clearing ragwort to find the footpath. Repairing a bridge. Bird song walk in Angley woods Musical story telling walk. The Mayor at the launch of “A Walk

In Time”

4

The Community; 2012

Cranbrook Primary School have continued a very active gardening club Six raised beds were made and installed by KHWP and volunteers for vegetable growing.

They are making a greenhouse with recycled plastic bottles.

St Dunstans Church benefited from a £400 donation following our 2011 Garden Safari. They have encouraged planting of bulbs in the churchyard.

Hartley House Residential Home for the elderly planted an area with plants donated by Cranbrook in Bloom and planted by the Beavers.

Angley School are working on a vegetable plot within the school .

Rainbow pre-school continue to tend a specified trough within the town and have a very active gardening curriculum. We donated old troughs and spent compost for their vegetable growing.

Gardening Outreach group have 3 planters in the town, which they plant up and look after. They have planted bulbs in the churchyard and garden for vulnerable elderly folk.

Spadework have grown and planted the floral displays for KB Sills, based in Hildenbrough. They are adults with learning difficulties.

Scouts and Cubs have cleared and planted outside Lloyds Bank with Jubilee colours.

The Front Garden competition will be held again this year

Kent High Weald Partnership has supported us well with arranged days of pond dipping, making bird boxes, and story telling. They contributed their expertise and resources to make the Walk Through Time such a great success.

Kent Fire and Rescue plant and tend mangers and planters outside their Fire Station.

The Garden Safari attracted over 300 visitors 2012 (360 in 2011). Made possible by 15 generous gardeners. Sponsored by local businesses.

Businesses have showed extra enthusiasm vying for our new troughs.

A local Fencing Company made troughs at a discounted price.

Travis Perkins donated all the neccesary timber for the new troughs. (Local Builders Merchants).

A local nursery heavily discounted plants for the towns floral displays.

Cranbrook Business Association made a considerable donation following an organised trip for Cranbrook and local area residents.

5

Spadework, the Scouts, and Gardening Outreach in action in town The Beavers planting pansies at Hartley House residential home for the elderly

Events attended by and organised by Cranbrook in Bloom

KHWP 20th Anniversary thank you event in Crane Valley, Cranbrook. Cranbrook in Bloom demonstrated apple pressing with the new apple press purchased in partnership with Standen Fruit Farm.

Sampling of the apple juice was a great success.

Cranbrook in Bloom Craft Fair supported by Cranbrook Town Apple Fair.

6

Our Annual presentation evening was a great success in 2011. We did not enter the South & South East in Bloom competition but we hosted our popular thank you evening for the community.

PUBLICITY

In the spring edition of LOCAL, a magazine produced by TWBC and delivered to every house in the TW area, featured an article about “A Walk in Time”.

We are asked to write a piece for the Parish Council Newsletter which is published quarterly and we provide a report to let locals know what is going on.

Both the Kent Messenger and Courier featured our events with the Safari making the front page headline. They also include pieces under the villages section.

BBC Radio Kent always mention our events on the radio. Even mentioning

that it would only rain in Cranbrook in the afternoon of our Safari but visitors would enjoy a fine day whatever the weather.

BBC 1 News came to film in Cranbrook and get our views on the drought

situation because we were part of the South and South East in Bloom. The recording went out on the BBC News at 6 o’clock and 9o’clock on 5th March2012.

Blooming Cranbrook 2011/12- Horticultural Achievement

What a year so far, a gardeners nightmare. First the cold, then the drought and at the moment of writing, a monsoon, can it get any worse before judging day ?

BBC 1 filming Linda watering a trough and our water supply

7

We have a new sub committee who have taken over the planning and planting of the street boxes. Through the winter we had a good display of winter pansies with miniature daffodils, snowdrops and polyanthus.

The miniature daffodils worked much better in the boxes than the larger ones in other years. When the pansies were taken out in the Spring many were passed on to the Residential home while others were replanted into such areas as the permanent bed at the Southern entrance to the town.

We replaced most of the street boxes. Our chairperson went to work with her usual enthusiasm, as a result we had wood donated by Travis Perkins made up into over 50 variously shaped boxes by our local fencing company, and we have been able to greatly improve on the reservoirs. Many of the old boxes have found new homes. The Army Cadets again mixed the compost with John Innes, water retention gel and slow release fertiliser for us before re-bagging it. These new boxes have now been planted with Euphorbia Gloria, Serena Angelonia (purple) Isotoma Auxilaris and Callibrachoa in deep red or purple.

The new herb box continues to be popular with passers by, still being looked

after by David & Joe who live near by. It is stocked with Basil, Sage, Tarragon, Chives and Mint.

Cranbrook Scout Group are now in their third year of planting and tending the

bed in front of Lloyds Bank in the High Street. A second group of Beavers have started an ongoing gardening project for Hartley House Residential Home, instead of the traditional Bob-a-job fundraising.

An apple box donated by a local farmer is now planted with a Golden Hop surrounded by variegated geraniums, Vancouver Centennial & ivy leafed trailing geraniums Villetta Red hanging over the edge, it seems to glow with colour even on dull days. The box is then home to the towns festive Christmas tree for the festive season.

In the Forge Orchard we were able to have five large cypress trees removed to let the light back in to the fruit trees, this along with the gentle pruning should help to rejuvenate them.

Wild flower seeds scattered on the old Council Office site along with meadow

grasses.

More primroses, cowslips and foxgloves have been planted at the Copse.

The Gardening Outreach group planted daffodils from the troughs into the

churchyard.

8

ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY

In Cranbrook we are very fortunate in having so many people, both official and volunteers, who care about keeping this historic little town a pleasant place in which to live.

Local Councils, Kent County Council, Tunbridge Wells Borough council, Cranbrook and Sissinghurst Parish Council

Volunteers from various groups, school and church representatives, Scouts, Outreach Group, Cadets, Cranbrook in Bloom Committee.

KCC is responsible for maintaining highways, verges and grass areas, not covered by other groups. They are responsible for the appointment of the Community Warden.

TUNBRIDGE WELLS BOROUGH COUNCIL

They are responsible for the general public environment, Street furniture, and rubbish

collection and re-cycling. They endeavour to promote responsible dog ownership and

bins are provided for the collection of dog bags.

Spring flowers Winter trough and an autumn front garden

9

Members of the public are encouraged to report any incidents of graffiti, which are erased within 24hours, this can be done at the Weald Information Centre, to the representative of the TWBC (there have been no incidents this year) Fly posting and tipping are dealt with in the same way.

Green waste is collected every other week from houses, composted and resold to the public.

PARISH COUNCIL

We have a Councillor who is responsible for environmental issues. Earlier this year the annual litter pick around the town was organised.

Above and beyond the call of duty for the local refuse collector weeding the high street with the twins. Parish Council litter pick

CRANBROOK IN BLOOM

Provide most of the horticultural work in the town. The troughs are replanted twice a year. In the spring they are emptied and filled with peat free compost, this year John Innes was added as well as water retaining gel, this is mixed up for us by the Army Cadets. Capillary matting is used and this year wider bore hole watering pipes and plastic baskets have been re-cycled and used in the base to raise the level of the soil, the aim is to reduce the amount of water required. The shopkeepers have all been asked to put their saved water into the troughs.

Watering is done by a sub-contractor, using the CiB bowser, which was obtained with a grant from SEEDA. Water is collected from the rooves of the shops at the back of the High Street.

The spent compost is used as mulch by members and given to the Rainbow pre-school along with some of the old troughs.

10

CONSERVATION ACTIVITIES

One organisation devolved from TWBC is very important in this area, Kent High Weald Partnership.

They help in the development and maintenance of the Crane Valley Nature Reserve (Wetland Mire) where various events are held during the year.

In the boardwalk area is information about local plants. Bat walks are a popular feature.

. . Goldman Sachs “team building” in the Crane Valley

Last summer they held a 20th anniversary event in which there was a blacksmiths demonstration, making smoothies using pedal power, wild about art competition, building of bug homes, charcoal making, a man making pots and water carriers from seedpods and green crafts including the making of bows and arrows. This was followed later with a BBQ using local produce.

11

DEVELOPMENT OF COMMUNITY GREEN SPACES

Forge Orchard, which we manage, is also used as an outdoor learning area, using seats made from felled trees. Activities during the year have included wildlife talks, nest box building, bug hunting, and weaving willow into bird feeders as well as apple pressing, apple bobbing and apple crafts..

Pond dipping sessions have been held at the Library pond with KHWP to explore what lurks in the brooks beside the books and find out about mini beasts and making bugs to take home.

There is a board with nature information.

Plaques on local buildings of historical significance provide local heritage information.

Crane Valley with the apple press. Smoothie making Hurrah jobs done - weeding the roundabout again.

12

CRANBROOK PORTFOLIO 2012. Our fundraising events for 2011/2012 have been

Craft Fair/Apple Fayre in the town on 29th Oct 2011. £697.00

Cranbrook Business Association £500.00

Cranbrook Parish Council donation £1500.00

Tunbridge Wells Borough Council; £750.00

Sponsorship/Donations/Shop Counter Pots £443.00

Garden Safari sold 301 tickets £1500.00

Rotary Club Donation: Fun Day £100.00

Cranbrook B&B Association £100.00

We also applied for and received a Lottery Grant which was be used for the “A Walk in Time” project with Kent High Weald Partnership. £10,000.00

************************************************ Volunteer hours 1704 x £6.10 £10394.40 Volunteer hours 35 x £20 £700.00 Donations of materials and services £1240.00 TOTAL £12334.40

Pond dipping at the library Tree pruning at Forge Orchard. Appley Ever After at Forge Orchard

13

Diary in date order

August Mosaic toilet seat grand opening August 10th Walk this way improving public rights of way with the Kent High Weald Partnership. August 27th KHWP anniversary in Crane Valley August Pond dipping and dragonfly art at library pond September 9th Appreciation evening with the Mayor of Tunbridge Wells September Weeding round-a-bout. October 13th Primary school gardening club started October 15th Apple picking at Forge Orchard for craft Fair October 16th Change over plants from summer to winter October 26th Re-planting the troughs October 19th Photography training for walks and website October 29th Craft Fair and Apple day January 4th KHWP coppice in the Crane Valley January 11th Cranbrook footpath walks improving access January 13th CIB AGM February 5th Walk in Time meeting. March 5th Linda on BBC TV news March/April Forge Orchard conifer removal and pruning. Five conifers cut down. April 10th Bird Song Walk in Angley Woods April 12th Story telling walk April 14th Grand launch of A WALK IN TIME in Vestry Hall and guided town tours. April 15th Goudhurst Walk with the Ramblers Association April 21st Wild flower seeds scattered. April Spring cut back and weeding on the roundabout. May 13th Emptying the troughs from winter May 16th May 17th May 18th May 19th Preparing and lining 50 new troughs May 20th May Replanting for the summer May 25th Spreading woodchips in Forge Orchard June 5th Cranbrook Street Party June 8th “Appley Ever After Event” in Forge Orchard with KHWP June 10th Safari Telegraph 2 for 1 offer June 12th Goldman Sachs replace board walk in Crane Valley June 20th Horses and Water Courses in Crane Valley with KHWP to cut back Invasive horsetail.

14

CONCLUSION AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS

The Forge Orchard project will be on-going for some years and we plan the following:

Identification of all the fruit varieties, many of which are extremely old

Sending apples off for juicing to be sold under a Cranbrook label

Making pies or chutney from some of the tasty varieties.

Holding another successful Apple Fair in the town

Welcoming schoolchildren to the orchard with our special education packs

Continued horticultural enhancement of verges, woodland and public areas.

Continued promotion of the town, working with the tourism forum.

Around the town: We will continue with our enhancement of the Crane Valley and the planting up of verges at the entrances to the town and the churchyard with colourful bulbs. There will be the important cycle of renewing the tubs with seasonal plants and the retention of perennials, which can be re-cycled again the following season. No doubt, the very popular garden safari will be pencilled into calendars as will the Cranbrook Fun Day in which we enter a float. CiB is looking to link up with the Swattenden Centre to provide an education pack for children who go there on activity weeks. . CONCLUSION: Cranbrook in Bloom members, together with the many community groups and individuals, will continue to be proud of their town by enhancing it with more areas of planting with flowers and trees. There has been much praise for the work already done and we feel that such an attractive town, as Cranbrook deserves to look its best florally all year round. It not only brightens the town for residents but also for the many visitors who come from all over the world.

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24