Our March permablitzes are coming around fast. Following our planning meeting on Thursday 15th March from 7 – 8pm, we have our weekend gardening meet-up scheduled for Saturday 17th March from 2 – 4pm and our weekday event set for Wednesday 28th March from 10am – 1pm.
Both our monthly permablitzes are focused on us getting out into the garden to do the step-by-step activities needed to create and maintain our Forest Garden and raised bed planting area. The idea is for our methods to work towards us creating a sustainable, permanent culture that not only creates a productive communal garden, but that also brings people together to grow, learn, share and feel closer to the natural world from what we’re building as a group.
Because it’s early days for our project, our volunteer activities revolve around developing the soil, planting beds, composting and capturing rainwater initially – so our jobs are evolving like this:
- Sheet/lasagna mulching to extend the flower beds in the Forest Garden area
- Cutting back grass, nettles, brambles etc – throughout the garden, especially at the back of the barn and tennis courts
- Maintaining the (hay bale and plastic) compost heaps / making compost
- Creating rainwater capture & dispersal points – water butts, irrigation hoses etc.
- Making signs for the composting areas – inside & out
- Building raised beds (to go beside the barn)
- Planting fruit trees and small shrubs
- Developing seedlings for planting out
- Planting perennials – like comfrey beside the compost bins
- Planting in guilds
- Creating plant (public info) signs
- Pruning
- Composting – trench etc
- Mulching – cut and drop, sheet etc
- Picking, Eating, Sharing – food, knowledge and recipes…
As always, donations to the project and plot are gratefully received – whether you’re volunteering your time or any material contributions.
We’re currently in need of these items so please donate as much as you can at any time, not just for our permablitzes:
- brown cardboard (for compost and mulch)
- compost material (green or brown organic material)
- carpet (made from natural material/wool) – to cover the soil
- tarpaulin/ plastic sheeting – to cover the soil
- Cloche and cold-frame material (to help us make some cloches/ cold frames!)
- Wood – for bedding material, raised beds, and ultimately a garden shed!
- Compost bin signs – for inside and outside reminders
- Planting containers, tyres etc – for us to use to plant in
- Wooden pallets – for us to build our raised beds from them
- Water butts, hoses, watering cans etc
- A shed!
Everyone is welcome to join in.
We run a permablitz on the 3rd Saturday and last Wednesday of every month.
To find out more or confirm your attendance please contact us or email: [email protected]
We’ll provide some tools, guidance, drinks and a friendly atmosphere.
What you need to bring:
- Please wear old clothes and suitable footwear appropriate for the season.
- We advise you to bring your own gardening gloves, especially with children.
- Having your own secateurs/ pruners and trugs may be useful.
- Please bring some basic gardening tools to use and anything you can contribute to our mulch and compost.
Look forward to seeing you in the garden!
