By Tim Hewitt, St Mary’s Head Gardener/ Community Gardener
You will notice a couple of well dug areas around the churchyards at the moment. We thank GoodGym and other volunteers for this, as these areas are being prepared for our major bulb planting.
Normally, I try to avoid digging as it just results in more weeds. However, these areas had become overgrown and we do have a plan to make them long-lasting areas of nectar-rich flower which will benefit wildlife, be beautiful and lower maintenance in the long term.
We also welcome the enabling works for our building development, at last. One of the first jobs is to remove the fine Horse Chestnut tree to the North of the church. This is sad, but necessary, and will give us wood chip for months ahead.
The Cosmos, Chrysanthemum and Nerine are reeling around like the last guests at a good party. Their time is nearly up though.
Quotation of the Week
I like this one from Gardens Illustrated 1896, regarding the relatively new plant we now curse as bindweed, “This beautiful plant grows very strongly in nearly all soils, almost too much so.” No kidding!
Workshops at St Mary’s
I am planning a series of two-hour paid workshops, bookable on Eventbrite, costing £35. There will be 10 spaces for each workshop. While many of our offerings will be free over the next several years as part of our National Lottery-funded ‘Creative Church’ regeneration project and activities, these will not be part of my Lottery-funded sessions, but might be of interest to the congregation and local community. They will all take place in the churchyards and the St Mary’s Welcome Centre.
Upcoming workshops:
- Bulb Planting: 20 November from 10.30am-12.30pm
- Rose Pruning & Care: 8 January 2022 from 10.30am-12.30pm
Volunteer Times
St Mary’s offers weekly supervised volunteering in the churchyard at these times:
There’s no need to book; just turn up, preferably with your own gloves. Tools and expert instruction will be provided!
Burials in Bloom 2021-22
