Planting a Lime Tree

Oh woe is us. The caption we have for this photo is ‘Gardening Club plant a lime tree at Broadwell’.  People aren’t named and there is no date given. But of course, the photo has clues.

Gardening club plant a lime tree at Broadwell

The photo almost shrieks ‘70s’ at us. First of all it is a colour print and they weren’t common prior to the 70s. The two pushchairs in shot are both McLaren Buggies of that era – from a time when push chairs were lightweight and portable.

Easily recognised is Peggy Gye.

The unmistakable Peggy Gye

She certainly looks the right sort of age – about 50 – for this to be the 1970s. We have ideas for the names of others, but nothing is certain so we won’t make suggestions.

Instead we ask for help. Can you name any people here?

The day before they felled the limes

Our dateline today is 1987. Grove farm estate is under construction and a new road, Grove Road, needs driving through it. A line of lime trees is more or less on its route and they have to go. A quick thinking person had discovered that the trees were to be felled and snapped a photo, just in time.

The Spring, Market Lavington in 1987 – the day before they felled the limes.

It is a grand photo, capturing that snapshot in time – and not only with regard to those wintry lime trees.

On the extreme right we have some corrugated buildings which had been a part of the farm. That, of course, has all gone and the wonderful Community Hall occupies the spot. Overhead there is a wonderful myriad of cables and the lime trees are just beyond the wires which cross the road. There’s a period ERF lorry, probably delivering materials for the building work. Pearce, the lorry owner was a builder’s merchant. Lavington School can just be made out above the cab of the lorry.

The garage has gone too. The housing known as Shires Close stands there now. But we are reminded that back in 1987 we could buy petrol branded as Elf in the village and that it cost somewhere either side of £1.50 – and that would be for a gallon which works out at about 33p for a litre.

Something was on offer for free at the garage. This probably meant you had to buy a can of oil and then you got a little bonus.

Amongst ‘free’ offers the garage made there was a little sports bag which is still used by our curator.

‘Free’ gift from Shires Filling Station