Upper and Lower Dicker village news

Cowbeech Bonfire Society Charitable Trust invite you to join them this Sunday 15 September to raise funds for local good causes by taking the fabulous Wilderness Walk with them. They are leaving The Merrie Harriers public house in Cowbeech at 10am. Entry is by donation.

Grab some popcorn and join go along on Saturday 14 September to enjoy a beautiful evening under the stars with an outdoor screening of The Goonies, set in Michelham Priory Gardens.

Bring a blanket and cosy-up, with views of the glowing Priory, fantastic food, a full bar, and live music to set the scene as the sun sets, this will truly be a night to remember and is perfect for families, friends and couples. Find out more about this stunning cinematic experience and book your tickets at https://sussexpast.co.uk/event/outdoor-cinema-the-goonies/

Holy Trinity Church, Upper Dicker needs help with its Eco Church Project to continue the re-wilding of the churchyard. Please join them at the next working party on Tuesday 24 September at 5pm. Meet in the churchyard. Tea and cake provided and a trip up to the pub for something a little stronger afterwards. If you fancy having a go at scything, there will be an expert on hand to guide you. They will also be strimming, pruning, removing brambles and sycamore shoots and tidying the ‘bug hotel’ habitat. Bring your tools, gloves and enthusiasm. Everyone welcome to be part of this wonderful community eco-regeneration project and enjoy spending time amongst nature in the heart of the village. For more information contact Rev Jeremy Sykes on 07714 426286 or email [email protected].

Bates Green Garden, Tye Hill Lane, Arlington update: Emma Reece, Head Gardener reports: We are fortunate to have an extremely talented and fully qualified gardening team looking after Bates Green Garden. We are all constantly learning from one another and are keen to share our ideas and practices with other interested people. With this in mind we fully support the WRAG scheme. This is a training programme run by The Working for Gardeners Association (WFGA) and it involves placing a student in a carefully sourced garden for a year on a paid traineeship. This student is mentored and trained by either the garden owner or the Head Gardener and works through seasonal tasks of a practical nature. I started working at Bates Green Garden on this very scheme in 2002 and consider myself extremely lucky to have been chosen to work so closely with Carolyn McCutchan at that time. I learnt so much and began to network within the horticultural community. Since Carolyn’s death in 2019, we have had 3 WRAGS students who have all contributed to the Garden in their own unique way. The scheme lasts for 12 months after which the student fledges off to pastures new. We are currently recruiting for our new student who will begin their training in November 2024. This trainee will work for 14 hours per week on Wednesdays and Thursdays from November and will be paid the National Living Wage. Once the Arlington Bluebell walk has closed in May for 2025, the student will replace one of those weekdays for a Saturday but only once a month. This scheme is operated by a network of Regional Managers and ours is the inspirational Sarah Farr. Please contact Sarah directly ([email protected]) if you have any questions about the Scheme and, ideally start preparing your CV if you are interested so that you can apply. No horticultural qualifications are required for the scheme but a passion for Nature within Horticulture is a must for this particular Garden. We are a friendly, welcoming bunch of people sharing a common passion for plants and wildlife. Cake too. If you would like to ask us any questions about this scheme, please come along to the Garden when we are open on Wednesdays. Harriet (ex-WRAGS) is always in the Barn and there is usually a gardener or two to be found in the borders. Do it soon though, we need to start looking through CV’s so that we can interview candidates at the beginning of October 2024. Enjoy your gardens everyone, do come for a visit and see what September has to offer here (Bates Green Farm. Entrance via the Bluebell Trail barn, Tye Hill Lane, Arlington), bountiful, colour, texture and tranquillity.