AT least ten homes at Middleton-in-Teesdale are opening their gardens for good causes this year.
The village hosts an open gardens event every second year to complement nearby Romaldkirk where gardens are opened in the alternate year. It is organised through the National Garden Scheme (NGS). Middleton organiser Joanna Tait said the event two years ago had raised £900, of which £700 went to NGS and £100 each to the village tourist information centre (TIC) and Middleton-in-Bloom.
Between 60 and 70 people visited the gardens around Middleton in 2017.
Mrs Tait said: “We were very pleased -“it was a lovely day. The better the weather the more people we have. We are looking forward to welcoming people to Middleton.”
She said people can get tickets for the event on June 15 at the tourist information centre where they will receive a map of the gardens they can visit between 11am and 5pm.
Refreshments and a plant stall will open at the Masonic Hall between 2pm and 4.30pm. Among those who will be taking part this year are Graham and Pam Phillips, who are involved in Middleton-in-Bloom and live just outside the village at Cassell Bank.
The couple moved in about 20 years ago when the small garden consisted of little else but a lawn and some bordering. The rear overlooks Holwick.
Mrs Phillips said: “Out garden is tiny but we like the view. We bought the view rather than the house.”
The garden has been transformed into a neat area populated with hardy geraniums, delphinium and a Japanese maple, which survives well despite the garden being exposed to winds coming across the valley. Mr Phillips said: “When the [delphiniums] blue spikes are in bloom it is a beautiful sight, but unless it is tied back it gets obliterated by the wind.”
The couple will also be selling bulbs and plants on the day.
Anyone who would like to take part in the NGS open gardens day in Middleton-in-Teesdale can contact Mrs Tait on 07974 444222.
![A COUNTY councillor is backing a campaign to get a pedestrian crossing in Staindrop. Frustrated parish councillors in the village summoned their county council representative Cllr George Richardson to their latest meeting to discuss several issues, including the call for a safe way to cross the A688. Earlier this year their request for a crossing was turned down by the county council’s highways officers. Parish council chairman Jonothan Raper described the reasons for the refusal as “spurious” and called on Cllr Richardson to support their campaign. He added: “One of the arguments they made was there is no clear line of desire when they studied the village – well this isn’t a clear line of desire because there isn’t a crossing, people cross whenever they can. “When the lollipop person was there, one of the things I noticed was people would walk all the way down to the lollipop person to cross the road to go to the shop or to go to the school.” He added a problem of parking at the primary school is exacerbated because people are too afraid to walk their children across the road. Cllr Richardson said he had supported previous attempts for a crossing point with the first being made about 15 years ago. He added: “We went fairly well down the road with that and they looked into it. The only recommended place was where the bus stop is and to get the visibility splays, people on the other side of the road would lose their parking. “That didn’t go down well so it just died a death.” Cllr Raper said he suspected the real reason for the officers’ refusal was the cost of installing a crossing. He added that much of the cost could be recovered from savings made on not having to employ a lollipop patrol. Cllr Raper said: “A lollipop person only provides a benefit of crossing for three hours of the day. You are getting 21 extra hours of crossing time [with a pedestrian crossing].” Cllr Richardson said he would raise the issue with the county council’s cabinet member for highways, Cllr John Shuttleworth.](https://teesdalemercury.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/georgeR-120x86.jpg)
