Sandgate Community Garden Team Diary Entry for 14th April: All hands on deck and only time to chat if we were busy with a job as well. 

Things have picked up at a great pace this week with some lovely sunshine and warm days; we managed to get in two whole sessions at the garden.   Where we used to have plenty of time to chat and pack away early if all the tasks had been completed, this week it was all hands on deck and only time to chat if we were busy with a job as well. 

One of our gardeners had a sort out at home and brought some garden chairs up to the plot so that it was sheer luxury to sit in the sun on a proper chair sowing the courgette and squash plants.  More trays of radishes and spring onions got sown as well as more pots of leeks.  The calabrese, lettuces, spring onions, bulb fennel, and a few onions got planted. We were delighted to see that the potatoes are showing through the soil. The gooseberry bushes are in full flower as well as the honey berries.  The time sped by this week and there are still outstanding tasks which will have to be moved into next week.

On Thursday there was a visit from two of the Green Councillors, Rebecca Shoob and Polly Blakemore to our hot composter situated in the grounds of Folkestone College.  They were interested in finding out how the composter works.  We are always pleased to show off our great composter and are looking forward to the day when we have lots of compost to share with the wider community. 

What’s Next?

• Repot lots of the pot plants

• Take up much of the lemon balm overtaking the orchard area

• Sow more seeds

• Lots of flowers to prick out and pot on

This weeks update from the Sandgate Community Garden Diary.

Sandgate Community Garden Team Diary Entry for 7th April: The rainfall for March was another massive number, 148mm.

It continues to be wet and windy with a few sunny periods.  We dodged the rain on Wednesday morning to plant out the early cabbages, beetroot, spring onions, and kohlrabi.  Saturday saw the planting of the coriander plants and the sowing of many zinnias.  The carrots and parsnips got sown in situ, being the only seeds we put directly into the ground unless you count potatoes as a seed!  With the amount of rain showers we have been getting, at least we are saved the job of having to water all the new plants in.  Some of the new plants got a covering of fleece to keep out the wind and give some protection from pigeons. 

Not surprisingly there is a massive amount of slugs and snails on the plot, hiding in all the nooks and crannies; however it seems we must have a thrush on site as there is a place strewn with many broken snail shells, so it is pleasing to know that nature is trying to help us out at times.

We had a small patch of celery which did very little last autumn and so we left it there as a cover crop, but it seems to have suddenly woken up and got growing again after a long winter slumber, and so before it goes to seed we cut it out and rescued what there was to eat.  It is surprising how some things have come through the winter and are proving to be still alive; even the lemon verbena has just begun to sprout new shoots.  The hops are really starting to climb, and so we have to pinch out many of the surplus shoots.  Instead of composting them, they will be steamed and eaten as apparently they are similar to asparagus which will be a bonus if true!

Apart from all the planting and sowing of seeds we are STILL tackling the millions of sycamore seeds.  Below is a photo taken of one sycamore seedling sprouting out of the wall at the brook end of the park, which only goes to prove quite how resilient they truly are.  The battle continues.

What’s Next?

• If the weather is good, start to sow the squashes

• Sow more spring onion seeds

• Sow more leeks

• Pot up and remove lots of lemon balm

This weeks update from the Sandgate Community Garden Diary.