On the FLOWER TRAIL

A criminal in their midst? Thankfully the village had its own Miss Marple

- Sheelagh Mooney

How many baskets and window boxes do we need this year?' Betty, the Tidy Village campaign chairperson addressed the group gathered in the stuffy village hall meeting room on a damp afternoon in spring.

'I'd estimate two dozen flower baskets and around 20 window boxes for the cottages, and maybe a half dozen extra for around the clock tower,' Tom, the bespectacled, quietly spoken treasurer said, jotting figures in his book.

'We don't need to worry about the individual cottages though as the residents will look after their own,' Sheila the secretary pointed out.

'I favour sticking to the traditional red and white colour scheme,' Betty stated emphatically.

Retired army colonel Matthew nodded solemnly, twiddling his bushy moustache. 'I agree, you can't go wrong with red and white begonias.'

'Well, a bit of colour might be...' Niall, a recent arrival to the village, tentatively interjected.

'Now we don't want the village dressed in a riot of colour,' Matthew interrupted.

'Shall we just order the usual tried-and-tested begonias from the garden centre?' Betty continued, indicating that any suggestions beyond the reliable begonias would not be entertained.

A few attendees secretly felt that the annual village planting scheme could do with an update to bring it into the 21st century, but they knew better than to express such sentiments to Betty, Sheila or Matthew.

Tom, the newest member of the committee, never seemed bothered either way, so there was no point appealing to his aesthetic senses.

Betty had been chairing the Tidy Village committee forever and, while she was a diligent organiser, creative she was not.