Tending a raised planter

Valued volunteer David helping Alex with her raised planter.

Ladybird basking in the sun earlier this week

Iris recently transplanted into one of the large planting boxes

Quote for the week......

"I grow plants for many reasons: to please my eye or to please my soul, to challenge the elements or to challenge my patience, for novelty or for nostalgia, but mostly for the joy in seeing them grow" - David Hobson

Planning and preparing to grow their own......

A welcomed visit from some early pollinators

How to make a hanging gutter garden

Old plastic guttering can be recycled and reused as planters. As the guttering is shallow it is best to use plants with shallow roots such as; lettuce, strawberries, radishes and some herbs.

After cleaning the guttering attach end caps to and drill a series of small holes in the centre along the length of the gutter. This will provide drainage after watering and rainfall. Attach the lengths of guttering to a wall or sturdy fence using plastic guttering clips, taking care to ensure there are enough clips to take the weight of a fully planted length of gutter. Add soil and plant with shallow rooted varieties such as lettuce and strawberries.

Alternatively the guttering can be hung from beams using steel wires as detailed in the picture below, accredited to: http://nestinstyle.com/garden/how-to-make-a-hanging-gutter-garden/ .

An enjoyable visit from Your Housing Group Workington

Central and Hindpool Neighbourhood Manager and CIC Director Steve Robson (centre) meeting Emma Shield (Volunteer Coordinator) and Gordon Henry (Project Manager) from Your Housing Group in Workington. They are in the early stages of developing a local food growing scheme in Workington, working with the community to help make locally grown food more affordable and accessible, and thought it would be beneficial if they could visit similar schemes locally.

A splash of colour around the lawn edging

Our mini beast hotels have survived the winter

Its beginning to feel like spring

Its beginning to feel like spring, a set on Flickr.

Meanwhile back in the undergrowth.......

Iris in the water feature area

Growing herbs together

Designing, planting and sharing a herb garden can be interesting, fun and economic. A bed of herbs can look and smell fantastic. Herbs are pretty tough plants, are easy to grow and can be used in an assortment of ways - for flavouring food, for their relaxing scents, for their medicinal properties or simply for decorative reasons. There are a large variety of plants to choose from; annuals/bi annuals such as basil, coriander, parsley, chamomile, borage, dill and marjoram and perennials such as mint; fennel, oregano and thyme, rosemary, lavender, lemon balm, hyssop, chives and sage. With so many varieties - what plants do you choose?

Perhaps one way to make the choice easier is to have a themed herb garden,  for example:

1. A wildlife themed herb garden:

Herbs to attract wildlife could include; chives, fennel, hyssop, lavender, rosemary, thyme, mint, borage, rosemary, teasel and angelica.

2. An Italian cooking themed herb garden:

Herbs could include; basil, parsley, oregano, rosemary, thyme, marjoram, fennel and sage.

3. A French culinary themed herb garden:

Herbs could include; lavender, tarragon, sorrel, thyme, fennel, rosemary, parsley, oregano, and chives.

4. An English kitchen themed herb garden;

Herbs could include; chives, chamomile, lemon balm, dill, parsley, oregano, thyme, basil, rosemary, sage, borage and assorted mints.

Top tip:

Some herbs such as mint and lemon balm are vigorous and can spread rapidly. To help keep them under control, you can plant them in a large pot and then put this into a herb bed.

For more detailed information about growing herbs please visit:

Garden Organic website here.
Royal Horticultural Society website here.

Transplanting and re potting bulbs

Valued volunteers Alex and David transplanting and re potting bulbs.

Growing potatoes

Basic advice for growing potatoes:

Plant your chitted potatoes when the soil has started to warm up, usually late March or early April (chitting simply means encouraging the seed potatoes to sprout before planting)

Start by digging a trench about 10 cm -15cm (4-6in) deep - The depth of the trench may vary slightly dependant on the variety of potato you're planting. Potatoes grow best in a rich fertile soil, with plenty of organic matter incorporated. 

Plant them about 30cm (12in) apart with 40-50cm (16-20in) between the rows. Handle with care so you do not break the shoots and gently place them into the trench so that the shoots are pointing upwards and  cover lightly with soil.

As soon as the shoots appear you can cover them with a small ridge of soil so that the shoots are just in so buried. You can do this at regular intervals and by the end of the season each plant will have a small mound around them about 10cm (4in) high. You could also add a layer of hay, straw, leaf-mould or grass clippings.

Harvesting:

Your home-grown potatoes should be ready from June until September, depending on the varieties and the growing conditions. 

For more detailed advice for growing potatoes please visit:

Garden Organic: http://www.gardenorganic.org.uk/factsheets/gg9.php
Allotment UK: http://www.allotment.org.uk/grow-your-own/vegetables/potatoes
RHS Grow your own: http://www.rhs.org.uk/Gardening/Grow-Your-Own/Veg-A-to-Z/Potatoes

Various bulbs beginning to flower

Our little friend is back

Thawing out after an overnight frost

Various garden tasks you can begin during March

• By mid-March you can begin to mow lawns and trim lawn edges
• Cut back buddleia
• Plant summer flowering bulbs such as lily, anemone gladioli

You can start to sow and grow various vegetables including:

• Lettuce – Easy to grow and suitable for container growing
• Leeks – Easy to grow, winter hardy and suitable for large pots and raised planters. Begin sowing under cover (March – April) and plant out in June or when the plants are about the same thickness as a pencil.
• Radish – One of the fasted and easiest vegetables to grow. Suitable for close growing in growing in pots containers. They can be sown from March until August.
• Parsnips – Suitable for large pots, containers and raised beds. They do not like to be transplanted so it is best to sow them direct in their growing position during March or April.
• Beetroot - Easy to grow and suitable for close spacing in containers and raised beds.

Quote for the week......

"No matter what happens, no matter how far you seem to be away from where you want to be, never stop believing that you will somehow make it. Have a unrelenting belief that things will work out, that the long road has a purpose, that the things that you desire may not happen today, but they will happen. Persist and persevere, your desired path remains possible". — Brad Gast