Membership

Welcome to the Piddle Valley Gardens Club. We have over 60 members and an active schedule of events throughout the year, including talks, social events, workshops and visits. We have a small annual subscription of £12 which goes towards our costs. Contact Sally Condon if you’d like to join.

We also belong to:

• The Gold Club at the Gardens Group (Poundbury and Sherborne garden centres), and
• The Dorset Federation of Horticultural Societies.
• The RHS

Meetings

Our monthly meetings are held in Piddletrenthide Memorial Hall at 7.15 for a 7.30pm start – see What’s On page for upcoming dates and topics. Non-members are welcome to attend talks at £2.

2026 meetings and talks

• Mon Jan 26 – AGM
• Mon Feb 23 – Planting for Bees – a talk by local beekeeping expert, Lesley Gasson
• Mon Mar 16 – Discount shopping evening at Castle Gardens, Sherborne
• Sat Mar 28 – SPRING SHOW
• Mon Mar 30 – How well do you know your hedgehogs? A talk by Jeanette Hampstead, who runs a local hedgehog rescue
• Mon Apr 27 – Lindsay and Steve Lister from the Blooming Wild Plant Nursery give a talk on how to blend wildflowers into your outdoor space
• Mon May 18 – Dr Francis Burroughes will give a talk about ‘How to catch the eye of the judge’…good tips for the Summer Show!
• Sun June 28 (TBC) – Summer group outing (location TBC)
• Sun July 26 – Summer Lunch social, held in a members garden
• Sat Aug 15 – SUMMER SHOW
• Mon Sep 28 – David Boag, a renowned photographer, will give a presentation on nature’s garden
• Sat Oct 3 – Our Harvest Supper Social, with after dinner speaker
• Mon Oct 26 – Castle Gardens will give us a talk bout creating hedges and barriers
• Mon Nov 30 – A talk by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission ‘Gardening the Globe’, and how their plots and graves are enhance by their horticulture.
• Mon 14 Dec – Our Christmas social evening
• Mon 25 Jan – 2027 AGM

Club Officers

• President – John Preston
• Chair – Ann Jordan
• Secretary – vacancy
• Treasurer – Sally Condon
• Show Secretary – Ian Condon (ending 2026)
• General Committee Members: Hilary Latimer, Richard Cake