Since 2005 members of the Northwood Residents’ Association have cleaned the Horse Trough at the corner of Rickmansworth Road and Copse Wood Way and planted it with brightly coloured flowering plants to cheer up a rather dull corner.
As there are no drainage holes in the trough care has to be taken when choosing suitable plants, this being especially important in the early spring before the adjacent tree comes into leaf to provide some shelter from the rain. The solution we have employed is to keep Spring bulbs planted in large plant pots in our own garden, then move them to the horse trough as the flowers come into bloom.
In 2010 we installed in the trough pots of lovely multi-headed pink tulips which looked glorious in the sunshine as we drove past at midday on Sunday 11th April 2010. Imagine our horror on Tuesday 13th when we discovered that six of the seven pots had been stolen.
Whoever stole those pots of tulips must have come prepared as the pots were buried in soil and quite heavy to transport.
And so to 2011. We decided to give it a go again this Spring and grew eight large pots of miniature daffodils in our own garden. On Wednesday, 30th March, we installed them in the horse trough. To discourage would-be thieves, we wired each of the pots to a plank of wood which then fitted into the base of the trough. Once this arrangement was in position, we were able to fill all around the pots with soil, completely disguising the fact that there were any pots at all, the daffodils looked as though they had been planted directly into the trough.
And surprise, surprise, by the following weekend two of the pots had been relieved not only of their daffodils, but of the soil as well!
Northwood residents, please take every opportunity to remind your neighbours that the flowers in the horse trough and those planted in the ground on the corner of Copse Wood Way are provided by the Northwood Residents’ Association for the benefit of all who pass that way. And, if you have any information regarding their theft do call the Safer Neighbourhoods Team on 020 8721 2545.
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