Abundance Day happens every year in October when we celebrate our harvest and the winding down of our beautiful garden. We always hope for a nice sunny day, a “golden autumn” so to speak, but this year we were not so lucky. Sunday 14th October was one of the ugliest, rainiest day of the month.
Elder - for health and magic
Growing as a small deciduous tree up to 20 feet in height, the centre of the twigs is generally hollow, filling with a corky pith as they become older. Leaves are pinnate in opposite pairs of 5-7 leaflets. Fragrant umbels of creamy flowers appear from late May and throughout June and are of approximately uniform size.
Hawthorn - the May blossom.
A shrub or small tree that can get to 15m in height, but is often a lot smaller because of its use in hedging in part because it is covered in thorns. The leaves are about 6cm long and are dissected, appearing before the flowers. Flowers are white, but sometimes pinkish and have a heady aroma. They form clusters on the tree in the month of May and are followed by reddish fruits in the autumn.
We've got a new stage thanks to Wolf's!
We're hugely grateful to Wolf's & Selco Beckton branch for donating the materials and doing all the building work for free to construct our new stage.