YAWA: Your Events Guide for September


September sees us slowly slipping and sliding into Autumn, but I'm ever hopeful for an Indian summer this year to make up for some of the dull days we've had over the past weeks. In a few days I'll be launching this quarter's Out on the Streets, to explore what's in your neighbourhood re public planting. But before that gets started, let's see what the You Ask, We Answer team have found in the way of events to tempt us outdoors this month.

4-6th: The Gardening Show - the closest national show to me and based at the Royal Bath & West showground at Shepton Mallet. It includes the National Dahlia and National Giant Vegetable championships.

5th: Chippenham Gardening & Allotment Society Annual Show. Our very own produce, cookery and handicrafts show which I entered for the first time last year. It's also the annual Gardeners' Question Time garden party at Harlow Carr.

5 or 6th: Dig Together Day. Lots of awareness raising events for local gardening clubs and societies across the country.

8th: Widecombe Fair - a traditional Dartmoor agricultural fair, immortalised in song.

10-13th: Heritage Open Days - a marvellous chance to have a look round our architectural and cultural heritage, absolutely free. Lots of the places aren't usually open to the public, so there's a chance to be nosey too. Use the link to find out what's open in your area.

12-13th: Thames Festival, London. A free event celebrating the capital's river and including Sing for Water on the 13th, the fantastic fundraising concert I sang in last year at The Scoop. Martyn's partner will be singing there on the Sunday.

18-20th: Harrogate Autumn Show - a last garden show hurrah for our northern contingent.

19th: Egremont Crabapple Fair. This village event in the Lake District, dating back to 1267, is home to the World Gurning Championships aka competitive face pulling. If you think a member of your family is in with a chance for this title, the link will show just what they'd be up against. Stiff upper lip it ain't!

22nd: Autumn equinox and NAH's birthday :)

23rd: Britain in Bloom winners announced - judged to be the places with the best public planting in the country. I'll be explaining further as part of this month's Out on the Streets.

26-27th: Malvern Autumn Show - the last outdoor RHS show of the year. I went last year and met Patient Gardener and Beholder's Eye for the first time :)

27th: World Stone Skimming Championships. The former slate quarry at Easdale Island in Scotland is judged to have the best stones - at least three bounces on the water and the longest distance skimmed will bag you the prize.

Phew - that's it for this month, unless you've got anything to add of course. The picture is of the Naturalistic Planting area at Garden Organic last week.

Comments

  1. Helen/patientgardener31 August 2009 at 09:07

    Its not really slipping and slidding here in Porthmadog. The wind is howling and its raining loads

    ReplyDelete
  2. HappyMouffetard31 August 2009 at 11:30

    So many things - thanks for bringing them to our attention, VP. what are you entering in the Chippenham Show, or is it a closely guarded secret?

    ReplyDelete
  3. Flighty31 August 2009 at 18:15

    Plenty going on by the look of it! xx

    ReplyDelete
  4. Juliet31 August 2009 at 19:15

    One to add - it's organic fortnight from 5-20 September, with the organic food festival in Bristol from 12-13.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Susan Tomlinson1 September 2009 at 02:25

    Wish I could be there!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Scattered Gardener4 September 2009 at 00:09

    Dear VP, thanks for the reminder to post about Sing for Water - I'm also taking part again this year and for the first time, have set up a just giving page for donations at www.justgiving.com/scatteredgardener
    Hope you don't mind me posting this on your blog. It's such a damn good cause! Thank you.

    ReplyDelete
  7. VP7 September 2009 at 10:56

    PG - oh no! And I was hoping you'd see North Wales at its best. Judging by your posts you've made the best of things though.

    HM - it was a closely guarded secret - I learnt last year you keep things firmly to your chest until you're putting your entries out. You'll see one of the results today :) I also entered my apples, raspberries, a jar of raspberry jam, plus 3 photos and I'm very pleased with how they all did :D

    Juliet - well spotted. I'd totally forgotten, though we usually try and visit the event in Bristol. I also forgot that I'm singing on the 13th!

    Susan - it would be brilliant if you were!

    Scattered Gardener - good luck for Sunday, it feels so strange not to be singing there this year, but we did our SFW event in Bristol this year. I'll be singing those songs (only 1 of them's the same as your set on Sunday) on Saturday night at Hullavington's Harfest.

    ReplyDelete

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