Gardens Unlocked
Sunday 11th July 2021
Well what a day!
We were packed out solidly from 1.15 pm to 4.45 pm. We have done this four times now and I don't think we have ever had so many people round our garden It never stopped for a moment. So much for the COVID and Wimbledon effect!
Everybody just seemed so delighted to be out and about, not only seeing some lovely gardens but actually meeting and greeting people and stopping for a chat. One group must have sat by our pond for at least an hour talking, but were really interested in the garden, the cacti and the hedgehogs!
As we were unable to use the church hall, Jackie who runs a hedgehog charity, caring for sick and injured hedgehogs, set up a stall on our front drive in Ridgeway selling hedgehog items to raise money towards caring for them. She did quite well too, and her baby hedgehogs were adorable! They spent the afternoon in my utility room to keep them at an even temperature, but about eight children managed to see them being fed over the two sessions!
Several of the gardens have been open before and we can see how it is true that a garden is never ‘finished’. Some had only minor changes of different plantings, a new archway, a lost tree, but others had had a complete makeover. Lovely to see the different styles and atmospheres in the gardens.
One of the houses in Church Way put out some photos of what their garden looked like in 2015 and goodness how it has changed! As they have been open three times now, we could also see the many changes they had made over the last six years after the arrival of their son
And how they have made it child friendly.
The church was open and visited by many people who enjoyed the calm and quiet, the flowers and the lovely music provided by some of our young musicians.
The Allotments too proved popular, with lots of people popping in, some going for a full tour and as usual, new visitors were amazed at such a huge, open space, with fantastic views across the valley tucked away behind the houses in this lovely village.
We raised just over £1400, a fantastic amount when we were unable to provide the usual teas and delicious home made cakes, or run a tombola or raffle, all of which are usually good sources of income.
The money will be given to Northamptonshire Carers and Young Carers, a wonderful charity providing help and support to the many, many carers in Northants. They have been able to use it as a pledge in the Big Give Pledge, which could see money raised this weekend quadrupled.
A huge thank you to all the gardeners who, like us, must have spent hours trying to make their gardens look their best, and to all the other people involved, on the various committees, stewarding the church and the allotments, arranging flowers and music in church and selling programmes on the day.
A lovely day, bringing us all together again after a very strange sixteen months.
There is an item on Weston Favell Village Residents Association website displaying some of the comments made on various social media about the day.
Sue Wray
