May 2021

17 Buckden Roundabout May 2021 Village News May 2021 As lockdown eased in April, we were able to re - open for browsing on the 12 th . It ’ s been fantastic to see so many of you back in the library building itself! Hands Face Space is the key to safe re - opening. We have hand sanitiser stations throughout the library, ask all visitors to wear a face covering (unless exempt) and are limiting cus- tomer numbers to allow for good social distancing. In addition, you can still do the following: • Request books from the library catalogue using the normal on line reservations service or via Customer Services (contact details below). Normal charges have been reduced to 50p per reserved book. • Use our Select and Collect service to request a selec- tion of titles based on genre or author. Using the form available on our website or by calling Customer Ser- vices you can tell us what you like to read and library staff will select books based on your choices for you to collect at the door. • Book an appointment to use the library computers. Note that this is still for essential use only to access public services. Our opening hours remain the same for now: • Tuesday - 2pm - 6pm • Friday - 10am - 2pm Can ’ t get to us? Then we can come to you. Our Library at Home service is operating and can deliver books to you. Get in touch with Buckden library or our customer service team on the number below to find out more. Village Hall, Burberry Road, Buckden Tel: 0345 045 5225 www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/library News from the Knot Garden The Spring weather had been kind until the cold spell at the beginning of April but the gardeners have been able to con- tinue the Spring work. The cutting of the laurel hedge is finally complete. The snow- drops have made a magnificent show, they have spread so well that we have been able to split some groups and extend their range. The ‘ wild ’ daffodils (Narcissus pseudonarcissus) round the viewing platform are also multiplying and made a lovely show round the mound. Bee orchids look to be doing well this year. The garden is also a haven for insects and we were particu- larly pleased to see a Brimstone butterfly on 23 rd March. The ladybird population has exploded this year with clumps of them emerging from hibernation and making red patches on the box hedging. The acanthus is in the process of being tamed. As new plants grow from the spreading underground roots this will be an ongoing task. The beds are in the process of being weeded, a new row of wild strawberries has been created in the bed by the church- yard wall. This is going to be backed by a lavender hedge once the lavender cuttings are big enough to be transplant- ed. By March the hop plants were sprouting enthusiastically by the southern arbour. We will try to make sure they don ’ t overwhelm our newly planted climbing white rose, Rosa alba, the White Rose of York. The other roses have been weeded, pruned and fed. They had put on a lot of growth during the summer and some had become very leggy. The pink apricot blossom was a welcome sight as the tree had struggled in last year ’ s hot, dry summer. The winter snow and frosts have not affected any of the plants but has caused damage to some of the older terra- cotta plant pots. One pot containing rosemary has complete- ly shattered and as this is one of a matching group of 4 pots we are looking to replace all of them. The team have been researching their replacements and approaches are being made to suppliers to ask if any of them are prepared to do- nate some. Visitors are always welcome, particularly on a Tuesday morning. We hope readers will come and leave a donation at the same time. The Knot Garden from the Church Tower—Lesley MacAndrew Smell from Buckden Landfill site? You may have noticed an occasional smell in the village when the wind comes from the north - east and this is likely to come from Buckden Landfill site operated by FCC. When the odour is evident, anyone can phone the Environ- ment Agency ’ s 24 hour 365 day incident hotline on 0800 80 70 60 and report it. This reporting helps the EA work with the landfill operator in identifying the cause and agreeing what needs to be done about it. The EA staff who answer the call are very friendly and take a few details like: your address, where you think the smell is from (possibly Buckden Landfill PE19 5UH), how you would describe it, its strength from 1 - 6, how it is affecting your day, whether you can smell the odour inside your home and what the weather is at the moment. The more reports of the odour are made, the more compre- hensive and better the information the EA has and, hopefully, the quicker it will be dealt with. Steve James—Buckden resident