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Category: News

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News from the Compost heap – January 2024

We hope you had a wonderful start to the new year and are looking forward to the upcoming gardening season. We have some exciting events planned for you in the next few months, so mark your calendars and don’t miss out!

Christmas Party Success!

We want to thank everyone who attended our Christmas Party last December. It was a great success, with over 60 members and guests enjoying a festive feast, Mini quiz, live music, and Dancing.

We hope to see you soon at our events and wish you all the best for your gardening endeavours. Happy gardening

Spring Show 2024

Firstly, we are thrilled to announce our Spring Show on 23 March 2024, where you can showcase your beautiful blooms and compete for prizes in various categories. The show will take place at the River Village Hall, admission is free for all.

Timetable:
9:00 to 10:45am – Bring your entries and set them up.
11:00am – The judges will start their work
2:00pm – The show is open to the public.
03:30 – 4:00pm (Estimated) – Awards ceremony, auction, raffle.

You can find more details and complete the entry form on our website: rivergardeners.com/event/spring-show

Relaunch of the River Photography Competition!

We are launching our FREE annual Photography Competition for 2024, the competition runs throughout the year with 3 separate shows to show-case your work.

There are a number of categories to choose from (you can enter as many categories as you like) for the first show:

1. Frost

2. Reflections

3. Human Form

4. Light and Shadow

5. Nostalgia

6. Up in the Air

The Show dates are as follows (entry’s to be received by Wednesday before each show)

23 March 2024

06 July 2024

14 September 2024

Entry form and more details available here: https://rivergardeners.com/photography-competition-2024/

Quiz

Secondly, we invite you to join us for a fun and friendly Quiz Night on 13 April 2024, where you can test your General Knowledge and trivia. The quiz will be held at the River Village Hall from 7 pm to 10 pm, and tickets are £3 per person, with teams of up to eight. It’s an American Supper Style evening, so bring your own food & drinks.

You can book your tickets online, but hurry as spaces are limited: rivergardeners.com/event/quiz/

Dates for your Diary

Summer show: 06 July 2024

Autumn Show: 14 September 2024

AGM / Coffee Morning: 02 November 2024

2024 Show Schedule

Our 2024 Show Schedule is available to download on our website here:

Download
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Kings Seed Catalogues 2023 – Available now!

River Gardeners’ Association are offering Members and Non-Members alike an amazing 30% discount on orders from our supplier, Kings Seeds.

Continue reading “Kings Seed Catalogues 2023 – Available now!”
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News from the Compost Heap – Summer 2022

Show Secretaries Corner:

At the time of writing this we are in the middle of a heatwave, with the hottest days of the year expected very soon, it has been quite a while since any rain fell and the gardens are in dire need of it, having said that we had a lovely Summer Show in July our visitors were able to see a colourful array of Flowers, Vegetables, Floral Art, Cookery, Photography, Craft and Children’s entries. We welcomed some new exhibitors and helped them to display the items that had been grown or made.

Read more: News from the Compost Heap – Summer 2022

Our next Show is the Autumn Show which takes place on Saturday 17th September at River Village Hall, Common Lane, River. We are looking for more adults and children to exhibit, if you can bake we have Cookery Classes for you:-

Easy Malt Loaf (using this recipe)

  • 350g (12oz) self-raising flour 1
  • 70g (6oz) currants
  • 60g (2oz) sultanas
  • 30g (1oz) sugar
  • 30g (1oz) dark brown sugar
  • 2½ tbsp Oval tine
  • 4tbsp golden syrup
  • pinch of salt
  • 300ml (½ pt) milk

Preheat oven 325F/160C/gas 3

Grease and line a 1kg (2lb 4oz) loaf tin. Sieve flour into bowl, add dry ingredients and mix. Slightly warm milk & syrup together, add to dry ingredients. Mix batter well & pour into tin. Bake on preheated baking sheet for 1-1½ hrs. Place on cooling rack, leave to cool. Ease sides with flat bladed knife & loaf should tap out.

5 Halloween Decorated Fairy Cakes

  • 3 Pieces Bread Pudding (use own recipe)
  • Small Wholemeal Loaf – using 500g Dough
  • Soft Fruit Jam – Approx. 500g Jar
  • Stone Fruit Jam – Approx. 500g Jar
  • Jar Jelly – (small)
  • Jar Pickles
  • Jar Chutney (matured)
  • Bottle of Home-made Cordial – Approx 750mls in clear glass bottle
  • All Bottles and Jars must be clear, clean glass

Attach a plain stick-on label to container with name of contents & date of preserving. Entries must comply with the recipe – if given.

You can enter as many of these classes as you like, but only one entry in each class per person.

Floral Art

If you like arranging flowers, we have Floral Art classes you could enter:-

  • Beginners:- An Arrangement in a Wine Glass
  • “Halloween” – An exhibit, up to 75cm wide
  • An Arrangement using Foliage, Grasses & Berries, up to 75cm wide

Young Peoples Entries

For our younger members of our Village, we have classes for you, prize money is given to the 1st, 2nd and 3rd places.

  • 7 years and under – A4 Collage using leaves, seeds and flowers etc
  • 8 to 15 years –A Hat for Halloween OR A4 Collage of a Spider in its web
  • Up to 15 years – Largest Sunflower Head
  • Up to 15 years – Photography “ Halloween”
  • Up to 15 years – Photography “Its a Bugs Life”

It is FREE to enter any of the above classes, simply fill in the online form at:- rivergardeners.com/entry-form by 9pm on 14th September or email me [email protected] to let me know which classes you would like to enter or if you have any questions.

Dates for your Diary, 2022:

  • Deadline to enter Autumn Show – 14 September @21:00
  • Autumn Show – 17 September (Kings Seeds catalogues available, discounts on all orders)
  • Swap Shop – 25 September @ 14:30
  • AGM, Afternoon Tea & 2023 Schedule Launch– 08 October @ 14:00
  • Christmas Afternoon Tea – 03 December @ 14:00 – 16:00

Volunteering

We are always keen to welcome new volunteers onto our friendly Committee. There are a number of defined roles (Secretary, Catering Officer, Committee Member) within the committee, but also the opportunity to just be a part of the team as a general committee member.

Minimal free time is required as we only meet about six times per year (currently virtual) as well as show days and any special events we run.

Find out more here: https://rivergardeners.com/volunteering-on-our-committee/ or email: [email protected]

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Spring Show 2022 – Success!

Thank you to all those who Exhibited and Visited our Spring Show today, we had a great turn out of Exhibits and visitors!

A Special Thank you also to all our Judges, Committee Members and Helpers, whom without we could not have put on such a great event.

Continue reading “Spring Show 2022 – Success!”
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Coffee Afternoon Success!

On 05 March 2022 we held our Coffee Afternoon / Table Top Sale at River Village Hall.

We were very surprised and happy to see so many people attend this event, the room was full of cheerful chat and smiley faces. We would like to thank everyone that attended this event and also all of our committee members and helpers. There were many homemade cakes on sale and tea, coffee & biscuits were provided free of charge.

Table showing some of our past exhibits
Coffee Afternoon in full swing

We would like to thank our friends at River Co op for donating some fabulous raffle prizes, which was much appreciated. As a result, the raffle did very well, raising much needed funds for the club.

We would also like to thank the Hawkinge Gardeners Society for the extremely generous and unexpected donation that was made as a result of the unfortunate closure of their club. We would like to extend an invitation to their members and families to any of our future events.

Three local businesses (Primrose Fayre Catering, She sells Refills by the Seashore & Mary’s Crafts) attended our Coffee Afternoon running sales tables, and we hope to see them again at future events.

We were also pleased to see Cllr Beaney attend our event, engaging with many of our visitors. Dover Community Radio was also in attendance and have been helping us promote our events on their local radio station, a big thank you to their team. (listen to a recent advert run on DCR below!)

Recent advert by Dover community Radio advertising our Coffee Morning
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River Gardeners’ Sprouts Again!

It is nearly Spring again and we are already looking forward to seeing you all at one of our events. After nearly 2 years, we had our first event in December last year. We held a coffee afternoon and we were pleased to see so many of you there.

We are holding another coffee/tea afternoon on Saturday 5th March at 14:00 – 16:00 at the village hall and there will be free tea coffee and biscuits and a selection of home-made cakes for purchase. There will also be some local businesses with stalls and a raffle. Come along and see old friends and enjoy a cup of tea on us.

We are also intending to hold our shows this year starting with :

  • Spring Show: 09 April 2022 @ 14:00 – 16:00
  • Summer Show: 02 July 2022 @ 14:00 – 16:00
  • Autumn Show: 17 September 2022 @14:00 – 16:00

Why not come along and support local entrants or enter one of the many classes yourself, Whether it is growing, cooking, arts and crafts as well as photography there is something for everyone young and old, Everybody is welcome. Email us at [email protected] for further details.

We are also looking for volunteers to help at our events as we are short on numbers and we are also in need of a secretary if anyone is interested.

About RGA:

River Gardeners’ Association is a local, friendly club for amateur and ‘armchair’ gardeners of all ages. Our members’ interests include growing fruit, vegetables, plants and flowers, home produce, crafts, floral art and Photography.

We hold several shows each year in River Village Hall which are open to all members, with separate sections in the shows for children. New members are always welcome.

Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rivergardenersassociation

reach out on email: [email protected] 

Visit our website: https://rivergardeners.com/

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Over 100 Exhibits for RGA “Virtual” Summer Show!

River Gardener’s Association brings Summer Colour with their fun “Virtual” Summer Show which went live on Saturday, A Local Secondary School along with local residents took part in the online event. Visit: rivergardeners.com/virtual-summer-show-2020 or search “River Gardeners Virtual Show” to access the Show for free.

On Saturday, 04 July 2020 local hobbyist’s club “River Gardener’s Association” hosted their 64th Annual Summer Show online bringing a splash of summer colour to local residents from the safety of their armchairs. Due to the CoronaVirus outbreak, holding “Virtual” Shows has become a necessity over the past few months with Public Gatherings and community events currently not-possible amid risks of spreading the virus in enclosed indoor spaces. The forward Thinking committee didn’t let COVID-19 stop proceedings though, and the idea of a completely online show was born.

First Prize in the Category “Setting Sun”

River Gardener’s Association hosted the much loved competition on their website, the first time in the 64 year life-time of this now family favourite event in many Riverites’ calendar. The Local response was overwhelming with over 100 entities across all categories including Photography, Cookery, Crafts and Horticulture. The Photography Class from a local Secondary School also submitted an excellent range of Photographic Exhibits, which were then judged by Mr C Allen a local photographic expert. Alongside the amazing Photographic work, there were Summery Floral displays and examples of the freshest local produce. Some contributors even got busy in the kitchen making jams and chutneys. 

River Gardener’s Association Show Secretary said: “I had thought that we wouldn’t have a Summer Show this year due to Covid 19 but we had over 100 entries in the Virtual Show. I would like to thank everyone that took part and now if you are sitting comfortably, I invite you to sit back and enjoy the Virtual Show.”

The Online Summer Show is now available online for anyone to access and enjoy for free, visit: rivergardeners.com/virtual-summer-show-2020 or search: “River Gardeners Virtual Show” if your interested in getting involved with our next Show, please contact us at: [email protected]

River Gardener’s Association in brief:

River Gardener’s Association is a local, friendly club for amateur and ‘armchair’ gardeners of all ages. Our members’ interests include growing fruit, vegetables, plants and flowers, home produce, crafts, floral art and Photography. River Gardener’s Association is based in River near Dover in Kent.

River Gardener’s hold a number of shows each year in River Village Hall which are open Members and Non-Members with separate sections in the shows for children. New members are always welcome.

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News from the Compost heap: June 2020 edition.

“Virtual” Summer Show

Unfortunately, with the COVID-19 situation still causing disruption we have taken the decision to cancel our Summer Show to protect the General Public Health, inline with current Government Guidelines. In its place, we plan to hold our Second “Virtual” Show (this proved to be a success for our Spring event, which you can see here: https://rivergardeners.com/virtual-spring-show-2/) We’d like to encourage as many people as possible to enter this Fun, Free Online event. You don’t need to be a member or gardening expert to take part. All you need is a digital camera or Camera Phone. All you need to do is take photos of your “Exhibits” and send them to us at: [email protected] by Wednesday 01 July 2020. We will then collate all entries and publish our “Virtual” Summer Show for all to enjoy. The Exhibit Categories along with full instructions are available on our Website at: https://rivergardeners.com/virtual-summer-show-2020/ We are hoping that Autumn Show can go ahead as planned, pending further Government advise and we will confirm this nearer the time.

Quiz 2020

The ever popular Quiz we had planned in May was unfortunately postponed due to the pandemic, however we will be looking to hold this later in the year – watch this space for more details!
We hope you are all staying safe and well and we all look forward to getting back to normal as soon as possible.  

The River Gardeners Team!

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Virtual Spring Show

Although we have sadly had to Cancel our Spring Show in an effort to do our bit to prevent the spread of COVID-19, we haven’t given up hope of letting our eyes feast on the Dazzling Daffodils, Creative Craft, Fabulous Photos or Beautiful Bakes!

We’d love all our Exhibitors, members and friends to Photograph, or send in some words about the Exhibits they were preparing for our Show!

We will collate them together and share them on our website and here so that everyone can enjoy a “virtual” Spring Show on Saturday 04 April 2020

Simply email your contributions to: [email protected] with your Name before 04 April 2020.

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COVID-19: Effects on our Events

An open Letter from the Chairperson

Dear Members, Exhibitors and all Visitors,

As you are likely aware the situation regarding the spread of COVID-19 / Corona Virus has deteriorated over the last few days and Government publications indicate this is likely to get worse in the coming weeks and months.

With the above in mind, we the River Gardeners’ Committee have taken the difficult decision to Cancel our Up-coming Spring show, which would have taken place on 04th April 2020 as well as the “Floral Art Masterclass” which would have taken place on 03rd April 2020. Although cancelling any of our events is always a last resort and a difficult decision to take, we feel it is the right thing to do for the protection of the local Community to help curb the spread of the virus – particularly to those in the high-Risk Groups.

In addition, we are delaying our “Quiz with a difference” which was due to take place on 16 May – a new date will be released for this in the coming weeks.

Please do keep checking our website / Facebook Page for further updates. You can also join our Mailing list at: https://mailchi.mp/52a03523fb41/river-gardeners-association to be notified about all our events, news and important information.

We would like to take this time to Thank you for your patience during this time, and look forward to welcoming our members, exhibitors and hopefully new-faces to our events as soon as possible.

Kind regards,

Paul and the RGA Committee

Chairperson