The first Marquee erection of the year last night presented a real challenge for those involved. There was a good turnout of helpers but - how to put the new marquees together?
The basic structure of interlinked metal poles was similar to the old marquees but there were several critical differences and the printed instructions which were provided by the manufacturers were very unhelpful in several important areas.
As a result it took much longer to put together the first marquee at the Village Hall and some "fudging" was needed to avoid taking it down and starting again. Eventually the team could move on to erect the second one at Pear Tree Farm. This went much more smoothly and suitable steps are being taken to make future constructions much simpler.
Thankfully, the weather was excellent and the liquid refreshment provided helped to reduce any frustrations caused along the way..
This year’s Open Gardens event, held in aid of the Church in Denton on Sunday 23rd June, was heralded as a great success by everybody who attended, The excellent weather helped, but it was the 14 gardens on display and their owners that were the real stars. And a wonderful set of Scarecrows was also on view.
A very nice guide to the gardens with a useful map showing their locations was available from the Village Hall where refreshments were served.
As several owners commented, the event provided them with a useful excuse to tidy up their properties but the results made it all worthwhile. A number of very productive vegetable plots were on view but it was the gorgeous flower displays that really caught the eye. The prize for the best Scarecrow, representing “Miss Havisham” it seems, went to Sally Barber.
Over £1,300 was raised fot the Church. Well done everybody involved.