Exotic Offcomers or aggressive invaders?
  In recent years it has become evident that native species are at risk of being displaced by new species imported from "abroad".  This is not just the result of climate change allowing species to broaden their natural range, but the result of unwitting or sometimes deliberate introduction.  The ubiquitous Rhodedendron or Sycamore are two very familiar examples; the Rhodedendron from the Himalaya by Victorian explorers and the Sycamore from Mainland Europe possibly by the Romans.  This is a worldwide problem that has led to international concern.
  "Target 10: Management plans in place for at least 100 major plant species that threaten plants, plant communities and associated habitats and ecosystems"  (Global Strategy for Plant Conservation 2002 - World Conservation Union  Convention on Plant Biodiversity)
  Locally the two most obvious land plant species are the Himalayan Balsam Impatiens glandulifera and the Japanese Knotweed Fallopia japonica.  Their names are a giveaway for their origins but they are spreading and displacing natural species.  The touch me not Balsam Impatiens noli-tangere is the only native English Balsam and largely restricted to N.Wales and Cumbria and is the main food plant for the endangered Netted Carpet Moth Eustroma reticulatum, which itself is restricted to small areas of Cumbria.  Even this small example of the danger of its spread underlines how much damage these invaders can cause. 
"Vomiting alien needs to be stopped
  A bit like a Busy Lizzie on steroids, this native of the Nepalese mountains escaped from the sedate environment of the garden flowerbed."
  An article by the Swindon wildlife trust assigns the above headline to Himalayan Balsam due to its very effective seed dispersal mechanism whereby a spring loaded seed pod hurls up to 800 seeds out to some 8 metres with considerable force - enough to damage your eyes according to one writer. 
  It is a tall and robust annual producing clusters of purplish pink (or rarely white) helmet-shaped flowers. Also called Jumping Jack, Policeman's Helmet, Indian Balsam and the "bee bum plant". This last because when a bee enters the helmet shaped flower that is all one can see of the bee. It has become naturalised, especially on riverbanks and increasingly in waste places and has become a problematical weed. Himalayan balsam tolerates low light levels and, in turn, tends to shade out other vegetation, impoverishing habitats. It is sometimes seen in gardens, either uninvited or grown deliberately, but care must be taken to ensure that it does not escape into the wild. 
  If we can deplete the seed bank then control is possible since the seeds only remain viable for about 2 years.  Early in the season, removal of the plant even at ground level should avoid any addition to the seed bank.  Pulling, cutting, grazing, repeated mowing or chemicals can all be used but must be applied several times in the season and over at least 3 years. 
  Japanese Knotweed, Fallopia japonica, is the other local threat.  However, this time it spreads not by seeds, but by fragments - vegetative propagation.  A fragment of root as small as 0.8 grams can grow to form a new plant.Gardeners would love it if their best loved plants could be propagated as easily as this plant!   This plant can grow as much as 2 cms per day and will grow in any type of soil, no matter how poor.  Towards the end of August clusters of cream flowers develop and then produce seeds that are sterile.  The plant dies back between September and November.  It is commonly found today along railway lines, riverbanks, roads and footpaths, in graveyards, on derelict sites or anywhere that it has been dumped, dropped or deposited.
  Japanese Knotweed forms dense clumps up to three metres in height. It has large, oval green leaves, clusters of cream flowers and a stem that is hollow and similar to bamboo.  Usually in early spring (although it can be later in the year) the plant produces fleshy red tinged shoots. These can reach a height of 1.5 metres by May and three metres by June.  Beneath any stand of Japanese Knotweed will exist an extensive underground root (rhizome) network that can extend several metres around and beneath depending on ground conditions. 
  Once established, Japanese Knotweed shades out native plants by producing a dense canopy of leaves early in the growing season.  Although Japanese Knotweed is not toxic to humans, animals or other plants, it offers a poor habitat for native insects, birds and mammals. Indeed  the Japanese have a series of recipes for various parts of the plant!
  Under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 / Wildlife (Northern Ireland) Order 1985 it is an offence 'to plant or otherwise encourage' the growth of Japanese Knotweed. This could include cutting the plant or roots and disturbing surrounding soil if not correctly managed.  This makes it a much more difficult problem for us to take action about.  Even if we felt that we wanted to control it, our actions could well lead to its spread due to the ease of it propagating from any left over pieces.  Specialist advice is recommended for its control. 
  And here's an idea for next year for you or your children.
FIND YOUR OWN INVADERS
What to do:
1.  First, find an old, fuzzy, worn-out sock that will fit over your shoe.
2.  Go for a walk in the garden, the park or the country.
3.  Walk back and forth through an area where plants are growing. Don't trash the flowerbeds!
4.  Take the sock off and examine the kinds of seeds that are stuck to the sock.
5.  Now, to plant your sock. Line a shoebox with a plastic bag.
6.  Fill the shoebox with potting soil.
7.  Cut a slit down the side of your sock.
8.  Then flatten your sock and plant it with the seeds pointing up. Cover it with a thin layer of soil and then water it.
9.  In a week or so, the seeds should begin to sprout.
10.  Try different environments because you get something different every time.
What's going on?
The seeds caught on the sock will germinate and grow. Some seeds attach to the sock more easily than others. These are the types of seeds that catch on the coats of animals and are then transported to other areas. Plants such as burdock have hooks to which the seed is attached. These hooks easily get caught in the fur of mammals as they pass by the plant. At some point the seed will fall, often a considerable distance from the parent. If conditions are right the seed will germinate and grow into a new plant.  You can even play with different temperatures, soils, watering regimes etc to see what grows.

Pepperpot News, Coffee Morning, Quiz & Farfield
  The Sedbergh Pepperpot Club Coffee Morning took place on Saturday October 7th at the URC Rooms and as usual it proved to be a popular event. As well as the expected rush for the cake stall at the beginning, there was a steady stream of people throughout the morning until the raffle was drawn. Lots of Pepperpot members came along to help to prepare and serve the coffee and to man the stalls. We are very grateful to all of them and also to the people who kindly put their hands in their pockets as well as bringing contributions for the stalls.
  At around 10.30, by kind permission of the Elders, the Pepperpot Music Makers set themselves up in the Church - quite a feat in itself with the variety of instruments that are included. They played a varied programme of items devised by Ann Wright and Judith Bush. This included solo pieces as well as items from the whole orchestra. Amazingly some of those involved had been playing with the group only from the beginning of the new school year. The concentration was intense, but it was clear that everyone was enjoying performing to such a large and appreciative audience.
  There will be another opportunity to hear the Pepperpot Music Makers in performance, playing seasonal music on Sunday December 3 at Farfield Mill from 1.30 to 2.00 before an afternoon of workshops for children.
  The Coffee Morning made a very useful sum for the Pepperpot fund for young musicians - and so did the Musical Instruments Quiz.
  The quiz was devised initially for sale on the Pepperpot stall at Sedbergh Market Fayre and it sold like hot cakes. The deadline for solutions to be received was extended to October 31 so that it could be sold in other places such as the Coffee Morning and also to members of the Westmorland and Haffner Orchestras who have had fun puzzling over the clues. There were a few totally correct entries, so a draw was made by someone unconnected with Pepperpot and appropriately the £10 prize was won by Ann Cook who, with her husband Martin, ran the Ocarina Workshop during Sedbergh Festival 2000 which helped to initiate the Pepperpot Music Makers. An additional consolation prize of £5 was awarded to Zoe Craven who is still at school. She named just one instrument incorrectly, but it happened to provide the correct letter! By coincidence, Zoe was one of the very first youngsters to play with the Pepperpot Music Makers.
  There are still some copies of the Musical Instruments Quiz available at 50p if you did not get one before - please telephone 21196. It might be something to amuse your family and friends over the Christmas period!                                                                         Shirley Smith

  The Pepperpot Music Makers Orchestra has now been in existence since October 2000. It currently has sixteen members, plus a few adults, and the instruments range from flutes, violins and recorders to a cello and a double bass as well as a glockenspiel and other percussion instruments.
  Did you know that Sedbergh Pepperpot Club owns several orchestral instruments? These have been kindly donated by people from Sedbergh and Dent and others all over the country - from Beaconsfield to Coldstream - and even from places as far flung as Canada and Australia. Several of these instruments are currently out on loan to members of the orchestra, two others are lent to students whose homes are in Sedbergh and another two are being used by teachers who are tutoring sections of the Westmorland Youth Orchestra. Two brass instruments have now gone to the Town Band.
  So . . . . . . . .if you have an instrument lying unused at home and would like to have the chance of it being played again, please consider donating it to Sedbergh Pepperpot Club.
  Before lending out an instrument, we make sure that it is in good playing order. At present, as well as those on loan already, we can offer to lend an oboe, a clarinet, a half, a three-quarter or a full size violin to anyone who would prefer to borrow rather than to hire or to buy. We charge nothing for the loan of an instrument, but simply ask for payment of the annual insurance premium.
  The Pepperpot Club is also keen to encourage children to take up orchestral instruments, especially strings which allow for the greatest opportunities throughout life for making music with other people. Please enquire about the awards that are available to subsidise music lesson fees, especially in the early stages or if progressing from shared to individual lessons.
  While reading this, you may have been wondering how the funds are found to make all these things possible. The answer is that we have Pepperpot Members, Friends and Sponsors and, to keep the orchestra up and running, help from external sources, although this is increasingly difficult to find.

• Members pay £6 annually or £10 for two at the same address. In return they receive newsletters and lists of events such as concerts, plays, operas, ballets, open gardens etc in a range of places from Keswick to Manchester as well as places nearby. Transport is in the minimum of cars or sometimes a coach. Everyone who goes contributes a £1 'peppercorn' for the fund for young musicians, over and above the cost of the outing.
  
• Friends contribute £5 each year to support the cause
  
• Sponsors contribute a minimum of £20 annually
  
• Company Sponsors are invited to contribute even more
  

  In contrast to a few recent years, weather conditions for this year's bonfire night celebrations were perfect. Thanks to the generosity of some local traders a larger than usual bonfire blazed away; the only down side was that it threatened to burn for too long and late in the evening steps had to be taken to extinguish it to avoid any risk to the public. It was certainly appreciated by a large crowd on a cool, dry evening. Fortified by a wide range of food and drink, the crowd were also treated to a spectacular firework display with musical accompaniment.
  For the children there were also the turnip lantern, pumpkin lantern and best guy competitions. The high standard of entry meant that the judges' task was difficult, but results were as follows:
Pumpkin Lantern
1^st Thomas Hinson, 2^nd George Hinson, 3^rd Emma Hopkins
Turnip Lantern
1^st Will Teal, 2^nd James and Alice McLoughlin, 3^rd Neil McLoughlin
Guys
1^st Alisha Hoult, Joshua Dodd and Jazmin Dodd, 2^nd Lilly Davies, 3^rd  ??
  The Gala Group acknowledge, with gratitude, the contributions of all those who helped to create such an enjoyable evening. Part of the enjoyment comes from the chance it gives to meet people and as such it is one of the key events in the Sedbergh social calendar. As you may have read elsewhere, the viability of the Gala Group is under threat and more active help is needed to ensure the survival of events such as Gala and Bonfire Night.

  A Roman Industrial site in Botchergate, Carlisle
  One of the most recent archaeological 'digs' in Carlisle has been the excavation in Botchergate by Oxford Archaeology North. Ian Miller gave us an account of their findings.
  Botchergate (the old A6 leading northward into Carlisle) is almost a mile south of the site of the Roman Fort. This area had been an old burial ground (roman or local?) which in the 2^nd century AD, was deliberately covered over with a very thick layer of clay to form a base (for a building?). Unfortunately some of this had been damaged by later building works and service trenches put in for later use of the site.   
  One special T shape area was investigated and proved to be of great interest. A series of small hearths covered the area and soil samples were taken; these showed small flakes of iron. This had clearly been an industrial site with residues of bracken and straw nearby which were probably used for firing. A metre-long trough containing some solidified metal was uncovered and was believed to be part of a high temperature furnace used to smelt lead ore; this would explain the large number of hearths. It is unique to the north-west and only two others are known to exist.
  Lead was very valuable mainly because of its possible silver content.  A variety of artefacts were found including a lead rod, a whorl, a lead strip and some lumps of slag containing galena. Archeo-magnetic dating showed that the last time the furnace was fired was in 133 AD - nearby coins were dated 128 AD.
  However it is believed that the site was abandoned quite suddenly and left to the weeds. Twenty or thirty sherds of 3^rd century pottery were found and some coins - copies of Roman coins - with a high lead content!
  There are several questions to answer - 1) Where did the ore come from? 2) Why was it so far from the Fort? (fumes?)  3) Why was it abandoned so quickly? 4) What was the lead used for? there was certainly a flurry of military activity around this time together with the building of Hadrian's Wall and new roads etc. and lead would be needed for lead sockets for posts, lead sheeting and the construction of bath-houses etc.  5) Who were the metal- workers? The local craftsmen?  It is certain that the market was strengthened and trade was increased by the needs of the Roman Army and this benefitted the indigenous population.
  We thank Mr Miller for his very informative talk and await the written report with interest.