Busy Summer in the Garden
Updated: Apr 15
It's been a few months since there's been a garden blog post, so we thought we'd better let everyone know what we've been up to with the help of our wonderful garden volunteers!
In June, the new shed was finished and installed in the lower part of the garden. Built from recycled and repurposed materials by Flash, our master carpenter and joiner, the shed provides shelter in wet weather and a space to store garden tools, as well as offer somewhere to sit and enjoy the view.
The garden has also been brought into the Rockaway yard more with additional plants, trees, salads, herbs and fruits amongst the unique structures and stunning sculptures. The Chapel of Unrest grounds have also been developed with a new pond to encourage wildlife, as well as offer a haven for spawning toads who often get squished on the nearby A37.
Food for the Vegan Cafe has been flourishing in the garden over the Summer with sugar snaps, mangetout, potatoes, lettuce and onions recently harvested, while pumpkins, squash, spinach, leeks, kale and sweetcorn are doing well for Autumn and Winter produce.
In September, a second pond was created in the garden, which the lovely volunteers really cracked on with just before the Rockaway Arts Weekend (RAW).
The newly created pond has already seen pond skaters, water boatmen and dragonflies, while the garden's soil is healthy with millipedes, beetles, worms, and other creatures. There’s also a wide variety of species who enjoy the garden, including many different types of butterflies and insects, plus grass snakes, slow worms, sparrow hawks, buzzards, woodpeckers, owls and tree creepers.
A huge thank you to our garden volunteers who make it all happen, especially Innes for his graft, ideas and enthusiasm, and Poppie for co-ordinating everyone.
If you'd like to join them and benefit from tending a beautiful green space, where you can meet new friends and be part of our community, then just get in touch via the link below, which takes you to our Garden page and Poppie's details. Tasks can be as vigorous or as gentle as you like, and all our volunteers receive a free delicious vegan lunch as a thank you for their time.
Alternatively, if you'd just like to pop by and explore the myriad paths and check out progress, or simply sit on the hand-carved bench or swing and enjoy the space, it would be lovely to see you!