Common blue butterflies on our wildlife banking areas

Its good to see our poly tunnel is still being well used

Growing well together in 2017

A beautiful start to the day at the office

Looks like a new pull cord is needed for our lawnmower

Our lilac shrubs in full flower

A little maintenance to one of our lawns

Another welcomed visit of our friends from Ramsden Infants School

Preparing a planter for reallocation

A welcomed return visit from Ramsden Infants School

Attracting birds into your garden

Do you want to attract more birds to your garden? The following plants can help to provide a valuable food source for a wide range of species..........

Holly – song thrushes, redwing and blackbirds

Ivy – robins, wrens, blackbirds and starlings

Hawthorn – blackbirds, chaffinches, greenfinches and redwings

Honeysuckle – thrushes and bullfinches

Rowan – blackbirds and starlings

Teasel – goldfinches, bunting and sparrows

Sunflower – long tailed tits and nuthatches

Shrub  rose – mistle thrush and blackbirds

Quote for the week

“If you don't like something, change it; if you can't change it, change the way you think about it.” – Mary Engelbreit

What to do in the garden in May - free advice and top tips

Not sure what to do in the garden, looking for some inspiration? The good news is that there is a wealth of free advice on the internet. Websites such as Thompson and Morgan, The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) and Gardeners World. For free advice and top tips please follow the links below.

Thompson and Morgan

Royal Horticultural Society

Gardeners World

Our voluntary project coordinators availability 2017

Due to a change in circumstance Graham, our voluntary project coordinator, will only be available on weekday mornings between 9am and 12 noon. He will also be taking time away from the project between the following dates:

Friday 7^th April – Monday 24^th April

Friday 26^th May – Monday 5th June

Friday 21^st July – Monday 4th September

Friday 20^th October – Monday 6^th November

Daffodils and dandelions - spring is in the air

What to do in the garden in April

Wondering just what to do in the garden in April, the Sunday Gardener may have the answers.

The Sunday Gardener – an independent website offering free down to earth gardening advice and tips.

Spirera Arguta (bridal wreath) flowering in our planted borders

First sighting of juvenile common lizards this year

New buds on some of our young trees

Say no to the mow and help wildlife

Mowing your lawn less, and letting parts of it grow long, will not only save you time but also help to give nature a home - benefiting to a wide variety of wildlife species including: hedgehogs, lizards and slow worms, butterflies, dragonflies and birds. It does not need to be the whole lawn, perhaps just around the border or a section in the centre, creating an area where wildflowers can flourish.

More information can be found on the RSPB website here

Todays task - maintaining our lawn egding

Our recently reviewed and updated grow your own scheme user policy

The benefits of companion planting

What is companion planting?  - it is creating planting schemes which have a mutual benefit to each other. It is not only about natural pest control but also about helping other nearby plants by improving nutrients in soil and compost, providing a little shelter from wind and helping to attract a variety of beneficial insects. It can also help improve pollination of fruit and vegetable crops.

Details of a good companion plant guide can be found on the Thompson and Morgan website here.

Not a bad start to the day at the office

A productive time in the poly tunnel

Early crops in some of our raised planters

Helping to attract beneficial creatures into your garden

You can attract a variety of creatures into your garden by building a minibeast hotel  -  everything from bees to hedgehogs and ladybirds. They can be fun and interesting to make and built using items such as; wooden pallets, dry leaves, logs, bark, twigs, bricks and old tiles.

For details of how to build one please visit the RSPB website here.

An early bee enjoying dandelions on the banking area

A varied allocation of planters so far this year

What to do in the garden

If you are wondering what to do in the greenhouse, in the vegetable garden or in the flower garden Gardeners World may have the answer.

For top tips and gardening advice please visit their website here.

Something a little different - a nice end to the day

Hyacinth flowering in one of our planters

How much food can you grow in six foot?

How much food crops can you grow in a small space? That is the question Vertical Veg will be trying to find out over the next couple of months.

You can follow their progress on their blog page here.

Iris flowering through our slate chippings

An early peacock butterfly

Helping our pollinators

Butterflies are in decline and need help. One way in which we can all help is to plant and grow wildflowers. They not only look good but attract a variety of pollinators such as butterflies, moths and bees. Many varieties will also self seed after flowering.

If you would like to know what to sow the Butterfly Conservation Trusts secret gardener has some wildflower seed suggestions and details on how to grow them. For more information please visit their website here. 

A miserable day outside so its time for indoor garden planning

Re-potting nasturtiums in the poly tunnel

Tidying and removing weeds from raised planters