Sunflower competition results and a big thank you

Hi everyone,

Firstly thank you all for turning out and making it such a great day. I'm sure from the conversations going on next year will be even more competitive! Dad would be so chuffed!

A special thank you to Helena for helping out (in the pouring rain!) on May Day Bank holiday when the scrawny, starter sunflower plants were sold at the May Fayre, raising £150 for the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation.

Another special thank you to John the Gardener aka John Le Measurer for being the judge and delivering the results. He did a wonderful job in a most professional manner, suffering even more of the English weather as it rained all day on the designated measuring day and he also had to contend with ladders and scaffolding!

Last, but not least, thanks to my Uncle Ken for making the trophy, hand turned out of Yew, which I hope will be cherished by the winner and handed over (maybe!) next year. Keith from the Rose and Crown informs be that Yew never dies - that makes it an extra special trophy.

Anyhow here's what you've all been waiting for . . .
. . . . . . THE RESULTS!

5th - Siobhan Pierce, Braintree - Height 2.49m Flowerhead 18cm

4th - Rose & Crown, Bocking - Height 2.78m Flowerhead 29cm

3rd - Brian Bell, Rivenhall - Height 2.93m
Flowerhead 18cm

2nd - Clare Avery, Bocking - Height 3.58m
Flowerhead 23cm

1st - Andy Duzniak, Braintree - Height 3.74m Flowerhead 26cm





Here's Andy with his trophy!

A photo of the champion with his sunflower, scaffolding and all, will be published shortly. John Le Measurer is kindly going to take a picture for me, because as you know I've carelessly broken my arm!

Andy said his success was down to "good soil and luck", but he did attend Writtle college and spends a good deal of his time at his allotments!

Anyhow whatever method he used, Andy has made that German offering look like a tiddler! Well done!

The Rose and Crown took the biggest head prize with a whopping 29cm, so we could also get some tips from Keith and Margaret!

We'll start all over again, and slugs be warned, next year at the May Day Fayre and JLM says we're aiming for at least £500 for the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation. Thanks again and well done everyone!

The Simonds

Message from Cathy re the Simonds Set of Sunflowers

"Nathan's sun flower's snapped off where the cord holding them up cut through the stems." Doh! "I have got two left, one might win a prize (the booby) unless it dies (and it is on its way) by then. Although my other one has done quite well and is as tall as a person that person is me so no prizes there then"

There's still no news on Amy's . . . . . . . . . . .

The day of reckoning is looming - John the Measurer will be in touch to visit the contenders with his measuring tool on Sunday . . . . . . .

News update

Siobhan sent this picture of her sunflower for everyone to admire. She says "It's a little limp now but you should see it when its fully erect!"


Also the news today from Birthday Boy Brian Bell is that the Rivenhall Rambler is now about 9 ft and is just coming into flower . . . . . . .


No news yet from the Simonds lot - maybe there's a sly one coming up from behind!

Bets are now being taken

Hi everyone

As you may know we raised £150 for the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation in Dad's memory by selling the sunflower plants etc on May Day Bank Holiday. Let's get a bit more dosh for this worthwhile charity by placing our bets on the winner. The possible contenders are listed below:

The Avery Amazon

The Super-Duper Duzniak

The Rose & Crown Monster

The Rivenhall Rambler

Siobhan's Silent Secret

Gill's Giant

The Best Bacon

Any of the Sly Simonds Set

Get your bets placed by Monday 27th August. £1.00 a go. The winners get half the takings shared out. Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation gets the other half. Payouts at the presentation.

Blooming marvellous

This sunflower in a Berlin allotment is head and shoulders above the rest at 3.5 metres (11.5 feet). The tallest ever is reported to have grown to a lofty 7.76 metres (that's nearly 25.5 feet in old money!) in Holland in 1996.

They're not saying what the secret is so I guess we'll just have to keep talking to ours nicely!

Change of last measuring day

Hi everyone

First of all our judge John the Measurer will measure the contenders next Sunday 19th August. If you think you might be the winner let me know so John can call you and arrange to visit and measure your specimen.

We'll present the winner with their prize at the Rose and Crown pub in Bocking on Bank Holiday Monday (27th Aug) around lunchtime so hope you can make it.

The latest progress on the 15 or so surviving sunflowers is as follows, see picture gallery at the bottom for proof !

Andy Duzniak - A monster!!
Keith & Margaret, Rose & Crown - 105 inches at the last measure (a couple of weeks ago) but peaked a bit early - its got the droop! - see picture as proof!
Alison Bacon - not very good - better luck next time Mrs Bacon - possible contender for the booby prize!
Cathy Simonds - not as big as Cathy and she's only 5' 1" !
Saville Family - one surviving out of three but very spindly - slug sabotage again! - about one leaf remaining! - possible contender for the booby prize!
Nathan & Jo - was doing well on the last report. Need an update
Gill Kelly - about 7 foot - flowered already - about 7 foot - see picture gallery
Siobhan Pierce - apparently one survived the slugs after all and is "enormous"! - waiting for a measurement and picture on this one (it's in Siobhan's front garden so you could take a peak when passing by Safeway)
Miller Family at Maldon - it was actually "Chris" that survived the storm. "Rosie" was the biggest until then but she got blown over :-( Not a contender.
Clare Avery- another monster and only just coming into flower. Clare's been doing more than talking to it I think! - see picture gallery.
Jane Kelly - several alive but no contenders
Amy c/o Cathy Simonds - need an update on this one
Jackie and Nick Payne - not a bad effort, has flowered and peaked already though. Not a contender this year
Harry Adams - donated to Brian Bell who has a sunnier garden
Brian Bell - doing very well - a possible contender - see picture
Hanson family - one tiddler and the rest sabotaged by slugs

Well thats the news so far - hope to see you at the Rose and Crown, Bank Holiday Monday (28th August) for the presentation. (Please don't laugh when you see me and my injuries!)

Love Jane

Picture Gallery

I didn't take the measuring stick to the Rivenhall contribution but it was well above Brian's shed on 23rd July - so who knows how big the Rivenhall Rambler is now!