Sandgate Community Garden

Happy New Year!

Fortunately we did not suffer much in the way of damage following Storm Bella last week, just a snapped sign and a few covers escaped – it could have been much worse.  Neither have we experienced much in the way of frost compared with much of the country.  The pond had a thin covering of ice, but it quickly melted.  However it is being hinted that we are to experience much colder weather in the weeks to come. 

The rainfall for December was 123.7mm locally, which seems quite a lot, although not as wet as October with 230.4mm.  The driest month last year seems to be April with just 13.5mm of rain.

We are still keeping an eye on the pond, and removing any debris that falls or gets blown in, as this can affect the water quality.  Now a year old, we are starting to see the fruits of our labours as regards pond wildlife, and we have seen plenty of water snails as well as dragonfly larvae this week whilst fishing for leaves.  Dragonfly larvae can live in the pond for up to five years, depending on their type, until they emerge and fly away; such an incredible metamorphosis.  We shall continue to monitor what appears in the pond with great interest.

Apart from observing the pond wildlife, we occasionally put up the outdoor camera to check on the nocturnal visitors to the garden.  During December we were visited by various foxes, identifiable by their different tail shapes.  There was no evidence of any badgers which we did see in the warmer months.  On investigation it seems that the badgers are preferring to stay tucked up underground during December, although not hibernating, whilst the foxes are out and about marking out territories and generally making lots of noise as mating season approaches.   As well as foxes, we saw a few unidentified flying objects, which could have been anything, and a couple of locals bringing their veg peelings up to our compost bins!

The compost bins have now been labelled 1, 2 and 3 to help identify which bin is doing what, and so gardeners and locals know where to put garden pruning or kitchen fruit and veg waste.  There are some photographs below showing the system.  Bin number 1 is always the current active bin for fresh additions, and you can see it has identifiable leaves and peelings.  The next picture shows the top of bin 2, with probably about three to four months old compost inside and brandling worms in evidence, still working on it.  Bin number 3 has previously been turned out from bin 2, and is ready for use.  To recap – always put any fresh additions in bin number 1.  Our healthy compost is vital to the garden and it now seems that the RHS is in agreement; Chelsea Flower Show gardeners will now also be judged on the health of their soil, at last the importance of good soil structure is starting to be recognised, but there is still much to be done on that subject in the UK.

It might seem that there is little to do this time of year but that can depend like most things on how much depth you wish to go to, or how long that piece of string is, there are always things to be done. 

What’s next?

• Clear the last of the oca

• Clear the last of the parsnips

• Mulch where the oca and endives were

• Keep bringing the wood chips up from the lower wall.

• Hoe along outside edge of the fence line and the outside wall

• Cut back sedge grass and bramble on bee hive path

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We all hope you had a great Christmas however you managed to spend it under the circumstances of tier four.  It has not been quite how we envisaged this Christmas but it was possibly better than being stuck in the cab of a lorry over the holiday period.   One of our gardeners volunteered to spend much of her time collecting gifts and food from Sandgate and delivering to some of the drivers.  It was a drop in the ocean, but at least a few got to appreciate that others were thinking of them, well done and thank you Theresa.

The continuing story of the autumn was the roll of fleece ordered months ago being delayed and delayed.  A further message arrived saying the fleece would now not arrive until mid-March, way too late to protect the plants over the winter months, and then as if by special Santa post it arrived on the doorstep just a couple of days before Christmas.  Incredible!  The broad beans and peas are now tucked up under the fleece blanket ready for any cold and windy weather coming their way.

We had a donation of a few Cerinthe seedlings which have been planted, and a very kind person in Enbrook Road had obviously been clearing their garden and splitting up large clumps of plants, and instead of composting them, had kindly left plants in their driveway for anybody to take and make use of.  This was most appreciated and we had some for a section of the garden we are developing near the bench, of perennial flowering plants for bee and insect life.  If you are considering clearing parts of your garden before the spring, please bear us in mind for any unwanted plants; if we cannot use them in the garden they could be very useful for one of our other projects such as Incredible Edible.

The Incredible Edible alleyway off Chichester Road in Sandgate got a weeding and general tidy up.  Not much going on here for a while but there are herbs and a few swede plants.  Now we are past the shortest day, it will not be too long before we can start planting and sowing seeds again.

Looking back to this time last year it seems that we were busy making the pond and putting the liners in place, it has come a long way since then.  We were also busy wheelbarrowing wood chips to the garden then as we are now, and discussing how much we were looking forward to the arrival of the bees.  What a difference a year has made.  We all wish you a happy New Year, and look forward to seeing how next year will compare with this.

What’s next?

• Review any damage from Storm Bella

• Continue to barrow wood chips up to the garden to store

• Start sorting out the seeds for next year

• Start work on tidying the wheelbarrow area

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The Sandgate Community Garden bee hives at Christmas

Christmas Greetings from Ray and Chris, your friendly beekeepers. 

You may be thinking that this is the time of the year when we are sitting by the fire in our Christmas onesies with a box of chocolates and a glass of fine wine… Well that may be the case but we want to assure you that we are still working hard to ensure our bee colonies remain safe and healthy during the cold, damp winter months.  We now have an opportunity to scour bee books, magazines and catalogues to research ways to improve our techniques and equipment ready for the spring. 

The worker bees (all female) will now have foraged the last of the pollen, mainly Ivy, Rosebay Willowherb and Himalayan Balsam and this has been packed away in the hive to provide a source of protein.   All the male bees (drones) have been expelled from the hive to die, this is because the drones serve no purpose during the winter and are voracious eaters of the precious stores.

The queen has stopped laying eggs and her last brood will live for six months (rather than the usual six weeks) and take the colony through the winter.  In order to do this they have to be well-nourished and free from disease.  The colony should have garnered about 20 kilograms of honey during the late summer for the bees to live on.  All our colonies have been checked and supplemented with a sugar syrup to make doubly sure they have plenty of food.

It may surprise many of you to learn that honey bees do not go into hibernation but remain very busy within the hive.  They will have clustered into a ball around the queen, their duty being to keep her fed, warm and healthy.  Warmth is generated by the presence of the bees themselves but it can be increased by the bees shivering to produce heat.  The bees will each move around from the centre to the outside of the cluster and back again to keep each other warm and to regulate the temperature within the cluster so that the queen is neither too hot nor too cold.

Although it may seem strange, colonies of bees survive better and use less food if the winter temperature stays very cold, between +5 and -18 degrees Celsius.  At higher temperatures the cluster of bees breaks up and their increased activity means the consumption of more stores so the bees need to work harder outside the cluster to keep their temperature above +7 degrees Celsius.  Sometimes the bees will not have enough honey stores or perhaps during an unsettled winter they will become too cold and weak to access their nearby supplies and the colony will unfortunately perish.

It is very important at this time of year not to open the hive unnecessarily so a procedure known as ‘hefting’ is used to estimate the amount of stores inside.  Many beekeepers on Christmas Day quickly open the hive to add extra food, regardless of the hefting process, so that our bees share in our festival of goodwill and also enhance their chances of survival.  The food of choice is called fondant and Ray and I have made our own, not because we are tight fisted but because we can be assured of the purity and integrity of the ingredients.  The resulting fondant is pushed into an open container and placed either directly onto the frames or above the crown board.  The fondant is firmer than honey and is simpler and quicker for them to digest.

Ray and I are still visiting the hives on a more than weekly basis to identify any issues.  This involves checking for damage caused by wild animals (woodpeckers in particular) or damage caused by the weather.  We are also checking for any signs of activity, disease or distress.  On a warm winter’s day, we would expect to see some of the bees flying outside but near to the hive.  They will be busy removing any dead or diseased bees, collecting water or doing what is politely called a ‘cleansing flight.’

Wishing all the Sandgate Community Gardeners a Happy Christmas and a Healthy and Safe New Year.  With love from Ray and Chris xxx

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The flat wheelbarrow tyre got fixed with a new inner tube and is up and running again, able to trundle yet more wood chips and compost around the garden.  We still have mulching to do in various places, and by Christmas with any luck, the whole of the garden will have been covered in some sort of mulch.   The squirrels have been making their own mulch from spent acorns from the small oak tree within the garden.  Having eaten the acorn, they drop the debris all over the place, or carry off the acorns and dig holes to bury them in.  They never find all of their buried treasure so no doubt we will be in for a few saplings coming through in the spring.

The snapped tree was very efficiently cut down by the kind Saga gardeners/groundsmen with a chainsaw, and all the debris removed.  We managed to find some of the larger pieces to put around the edge of the pond giving the wildlife some extra cover and hiding places. 

This week we made a start on harvesting some of the Oca, or New Zealand yam.  The Oca was planted way back in April and put in spaces around some new Aronia bushes and just left to get on with it; so a great crop for filling in spare spaces.  The tubers begin to swell from early October and can be harvested from mid-November – ideal for a mild area, as they suffer from hard frosts, but can be grown in pots which can be sheltered.  It will be interesting to find out from the volunteers if they feel the crop is tasty enough to be grown again from spare tubers next year.  It can be eaten raw or cooked like a potato.

The wild garlic patch has appeared again and ready for some harvesting.  During the summer when it retreats underground, the space was overgrown with summer squashes, but now it is back and claiming the space, absolutely brilliant made into a pesto. 

The Park is looking very beautiful with all the lights in some of the trees for the Christmas period and not wishing to be left out we have been having a go at making a few decorations of our own to hang on one of the gates and the oak tree.  The shortest day or winter solstice is just over a week away now, and the garden is dozing, 

What’s next?

• Will the fleece ever arrive?

• Continue with the wood chips and mulch

• Continue to remove old and rotting leaves from around the base of plants

• Weed spinach tunnel

• Plant spare lavender

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We had another message from our fleece supplier to say that there will be yet more delays to it being delivered and without a reason why – perhaps as with the situation with the shortage of seeds this year with so many people growing whilst in lockdown, there is now a national shortage of fleece! 

Who knows?

We have had some interesting weather this week and spent time having to put back covers over plants, and discovered that one of our trees had snapped and was hanging precariously over the broad beans and onions.  No time to do anything about it this weekend, we shall see what can be done on Monday!  It is clearly colder, but we still have asparagus shoots popping out above ground, and petunias in flower.  There is a picture below of a huge collection of snails found hibernating inside a plant tray.  When we started work last year, there were very few slugs and snails to be found but it is clear they are being attracted to the garden like the rest of the wildlife and it is important to keep the plants clean of old and rotting vegetation around their bases so as not to make them too welcome!

We are still trundling barrows of wood chips up the hill to the garden, and one of our barrows has developed a flat tyre, probably in protest.  It is a great way to keep warm though, all that shovelling and barrowing about.

It was thought that we had finished with planting for the year but were donated a few Artichoke roots.  We now have two types of artichoke, and they are completely different.  With the Globe Artichoke, the flower is the edible part, and with the Jerusalem Artichoke (just planted), the root or tuber is the edible bit.  If you do not like the tubers, the flowers are great for the bees, so it is worth having a go.

Docker brewery has now released two new brews made from the dried Hythe hops, which includes our hops from our plants.  There is a ‘Hythe Pale Ale’ and ‘Dark Matter’, names chosen by the community, and which feature pictures of growers on the cans.  Some of you may recognise the individual on the can picture below!   Docker say that the beers are ‘more delicious than we could have hoped’, and information on where to find the beer can be found on their Instagram or web site.  There was a rumour that the beer can be also be found in the Sandgate Village shop – how convenient.  The first Hythe hops brew was from Hop Fuzz, and was a green brew from fresh hops, so this new beer will be different.  10p from each can sold is being donated by Docker to the Bumblebee Conservation Trust – such a worthy cause.

What’s next?

• Is it worth mentioning the fleece?

• Sort out the wheelbarrow

• Sort out the tree and subsequent damage

• Keep bringing wood chips up to the garden

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The celeriac seems to have gone down very well with all the volunteers, and various soup recipes have been exchanged, just the comfort food for the cooler weather – we shall definitely be growing that again next year!  Not frosty or cold enough for the parsnips yet.  They sweeten up with a good dose of frost, even so, being tucked up deep in the earth it is always a surprise how they are until they get dug up, you never know how well they have grown or if they have suffered from canker.  We had a sneaky peek at the tops of a few of them but are saving them for Christmas – something to look forward to!  The slow grow coriander is also going down well and appreciated – such good flavour compared with the ‘soapy’ taste from the supermarket.  Mixed with carrots in a soup, or added to a curry or stir fry, it gives a certain amazingness!   

Talking of amazing, Chris, one of our gardeners, and partner Suzy, have been getting some lockdown exercise every day by barrowing six loads of wood chips each, all the way up to the garden and laid down on the paths.  It is all looking neat and tidy, and they are benefiting from the fresh air and workout too!  No lockdown bellies for those two!

It was only mentioned last week that it is never a good idea to directly sow peas as the rodents find them in no time and make a meal out of them.  It seems they found where they and the last broad bean sowings were growing inside their modules, up off the ground and seemingly in a safe place – but no!  They were found, dug up and eaten!  Rodents must be able to sniff them out at a distance.  If we can get them to a certain point of growth, then they have made it and can be planted out safely – it is just getting to that stage.

Some things we will go out of our way to feed.  We put up some bird feeders this week, and it will be interesting to see how long it takes for the local bird population to realise they are there.  The feeders did not need refilling on Saturday, but apparently a couple of birds were spotted having a look at them earlier on in the morning.  As time goes on, there is less for them to find in the garden and so we need to help them now. 

We had a request from the Parish Council to take on a couple of planters on the seafront which could do with a bit of TLC.  Inspired by last week’s seminar on Kent’s Plan Bee and what could be done to support insect life, we opted for some hardy flowering perennials, and some spring flowering bulbs.  The planters do not look like much at the moment, but will be added to and changed over the seasons to give as much flower that bees like as we can cram in there.  It is work in progress for now.  

What’s next?

• If there is any chance the fleece turns up, then we will be busy laying that down!

• More wood chips to bring up to the garden

• Will the bird feeders need a refill?

• Still more plots to put compost down Compost needs putting down on the plants up against the wall

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The last sowings of Broad beans have now been planted and are already starting to romp away, a little disconcerting for the end of November.  It is still not too late to sow or plant broad beans, or garlic if you fancy giving it a go.  The autumn peas were planted too.  Some of them will be for pea pods, the others for early pea shoots.  Never good to sow peas direct as they often attract rodents and get dug up and eaten before they get the chance to sprout.  We have not tried autumn peas before now so it will be interesting to see if it is worth the effort compared to spring sown peas.   We have noticed that the pigeons have turned their attention to the cabbages and purple sprouting, so plants had to be covered with netting once more.  We had hoped to get away with them uncovered.

One of the Oca or New Zealand yam plants was lifted to see if they are ready, but they still seem a little small, and will be left alone for a few more weeks to get bigger with any luck!  However the leeks and celeriac are ready and we should all be able to have just one or two, enough to make a soup or a welcome addition to a meal.  The winter purslane or claytonia is ready for picking, that is if you have the patience as it is quite tiny and very fiddly to collect.

Following a couple of birthdays, we had carrot muffins and beetroot brownies to share – so many excellent recipes out there, and always grateful to be eating cake on a cold morning to help make the work that much easier.

The assumption was that our new fleece covering would arrive this week, but it has now been delayed again, so our fingers are remaining crossed for the continuation of this milder weather for the time of year.

At very short notice we were offered a free delivery of wood chips from a tree surgeon working locally.  Rather than have to take the chips back to his yard, he was looking to find homes for a few deliveries.  Although wood chips are a waste product, a load can cost in the region of £100 by the time you consider the transport costs and time for a driver to load up and deliver.  We gratefully accepted a load, and have started to lay down more paths as well as add a layer to the current compost bin as it could do with some drier, ‘brown’ content as it is too ‘green’ or moist.  This should help to make the balance.

On Monday some of us attended the virtual summit – Kent’s Plan Bee, to find out about the plight of insects throughout the UK, and how Kent ‘s council is able to respond and help wildlife in the county by making a few changes to how the parkland and grass verges are managed.  We were surprised to learn that Kent has over 130 miles of bee and insect friendly planting along the coastline, which is linked to a network of wildlife zones throughout the county.  We also heard from a local farmer concerned about farming methods having such an impact on wildlife numbers and how he is putting in place some steps to change the way he farms.  Some of the plans are still at early stages, and it has made us think about things we can add to the garden to help out.  We already have wildlife areas, but one thing that did strike us was that it was important to have something in flower in the garden all year round.  We have more ideas to work on, and are going to work towards a ‘neighbourhood with the best buzz’ award.

What’s next?

• We still have strawberry compost bags to open

• We have beds waiting for a layer of compost mulch

• Continue to barrow wood chips up to the garden

• If the fleece arrives, start to put it over the plants

• Continue to keep the weeds down

• Collect last few leaves blowing about

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There are still some people who are yet to find us in Enbrook Park, and it can be quite lengthy to explain exactly where we are too!  However, not any more as we have appeared on the maps at the entrances of the park – so there is no excuse, we are on the map!

Again this week we have been very busy clearing beds and fallen leaves, putting down new compost and paths, and planting broad beans.  The fleece needed to protect the plants from wind and frost is yet to arrive in the post, so thank goodness for the continuing mild weather.  The sun is lower in the sky these days, when it can be seen; the days are shorter, and the plant growth is very much reduced and slower.  The addition of fleece further reduces the light by 15 to 30%, and worse with a covering of fallen leaves, it is all important to keep the plot tidy.  Such moist warm weather has been perfect for fungi, and we are noticing some of the most amazing fungal structures – they do no harm within the garden, and are thought to be of great benefit, so we leave them be wherever they choose to pop up.

A welcome bonus has been a few raspberries; they are still fruiting in November, and as young plants need time to mature for a worthy crop – all in good time.  They are autumn raspberry varieties, hence the late fruiting at a time when all other soft fruit finished some time ago.

The hops have lost all their leaves now and are just showing their climbing stems, so it has been time to cover the crown of the plants with a good layer of compost to protect the plant from winter weather and feed the roots for next year when new growth will appear in the spring.  We have now heard that Docker brewery are about to release the Hythe Pale Ale from the scheme hops, and a further brew has been started to make a Christmas stout, we are looking forward to trying it all.  We will let you all know where and when any of these beers can be bought.

Talking about buying local goods – some of us were pleased to buy the new Sandgate bags from the Sandgate Society, made of cloth, not plastic, for a bargain price of £3 with a competition winning picture of the beach on the front.  Beautifully wrapped they make a brilliant present and perfect for us to carry our tools and veg.  All the profits go towards local projects – an even better reason to make a purchase.

What’s next?

• Plant the peas in the prepared bed, and find another space for more

• Tidy up around the tool box

• Continue to pick up leaves and weed

• Spaces for posts to be put in

• How is the pond doing?  Continue to get out any rotting leaves

• Separate recycled compost from the grow bags and add to the compost pile

• If the fleece arrives, cover the new plantings

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Such a contrast to the weather in the last few newsletters, this week we have had some beautiful sunny and warm weather, encouraging more gardeners to get to the garden and make the most of it, especially as we are now in another lockdown.  However this one is very different to the first where we could only work on our own – this time we can follow community garden rules for food gardens, which explain in detail how we can work in the space.  We certainly feel glad that we can carry on as long as we are careful, and we know of the benefits the garden brings to mental and physical health.  How timely that we should receive yet another certificate from the RHS Britain in Bloom, in recognition of how important community gardens are, and how valuable our work is in such difficult times as we have experienced this year.  Always glad to receive a certificate and we shall have to consider where it could be displayed!

Just as we are being given such an accolade, we are then contacted by a Social Prescribing Service for West Kent.  We are being asked to be part of a support service to help people reduce social isolation and loneliness and improve health and wellbeing.  We will be very glad to register.

In the meantime, there is still much to be done.  The first of the fleece covers have been put down and more has been ordered, to protect any vegetables overwintering, to shelter from the wind and frost.  It takes a while to get to know your fleece and what should be avoided.  For this garden there is no point buying a lightweight fleece of less than 30g m2 as it will tear and be useless in no time at all.  It is also wise to make sure the fleece has good UV tolerance as the sunlight makes the fleece turn to dust and simply disintegrate in less than a season.  Who would have thought that fleece can create such a minefield of issues.

All the wooden boxes got their final coats of wood treatment for the year, and the compost area is nearing completion.  Two more packets of broad bean seeds have been sown as have the last of the autumn peas.  They have been quick to germinate and we will soon be planting them out once we have put down more compost on the beds.  The leaf compost bin is nearly full already but leaves fished out from the pond are not added until any wildlife has had the chance to escape back to the water.  

Now is a chance to look at the bare bones of the garden and review how the permanent plants are growing.  Last autumn we planted the smallest of twigs claiming to be gooseberry plants – they had been decimated by sawfly and looked very sorry for themselves, so we got them for pennies, a real bargain as they now resemble good sturdy plants and should be cropping next summer.

You really would have thought that the brassicas would have been given a break from caterpillars by now in November, but unfortunately they are still enjoying making holes in the leaves – even in the vegetation of the High Street planter!   Unbelievable!

What’s next?

• We need to consider a wild flower seed bomb for behind the compost area

• Continue to spread compost

• Continue to collect leaves from the ground and in the pond

• Put the fleece down if it has arrived in the post

• Clear some of the spent salad areas

• Clear some of the finished flowers and compost

• Put a thick layer of compost on the hops.

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As we are heading into November & with shorter and cooler days now our bees are safely beginning to cluster for warmth in their hives.  We have been seeing the last of the Ivy flowers and with temperatures now below 18 DegC the start of the winter formation ensues with a loose cluster of bees which gets tighter as the temps drop further. They behave like penguins in the Antarctic & switch positions to ensure that the outside layer of bees do not get too cold. 

Bees use their indirect flight muscles to generate heat in the depth of winter and so the reliance in available food stores to survive.  The average colony can consume over 20kG of honey stores during the winter and so Chris & I have been checking on the colonies and supplying syrup for the bees to convert into their winter larder.  Lifting the corner of the hive to gauge the weight is called hefting and to assess the available internal honey stores and the need to feed. If any more food is needed, then baker’s fondant or wetted sugar can be placed for the Dec/Jan period.

The beekeeper will not open the hives for routine inspections right around to March next year and so to preserve the heat within the hive. 

The brood in the colony will be decreasing as the queen reduces her egg-laying to the point whereby there will be no brood to be fed by the end of November.  The curve below is a useful reference to the volume of adult bees throughout the year in comparison to available brood which can be seen to drop off at the end of November leaving the winter workforce to live through the winter period until the next March, when the first of the new season bees will be hatched.

The hives are also prepared externally for potential green woodpecker attacks through the hive wall and with reduced entrances with mouse guards to avoid the temptation of mice looking for a winter home!  They must also be well anchored from the Channel gales that we are likely to endure.

The winter period is a time for the beekeeper to look ahead to training needs & the participation in several Zoom Beekeeping informative sessions, cleaning and also the preparation of equipment & hardware in readiness for the 2021 season & hopefully a happy & safe one at that.

With thanks & regards from Chris & Ray – The SAGA Beekeeping Team.

How very timely that we should receive news from Kent County Council about Kent’s Plan Bee with an invitation to the official launch online.  This is a virtual summit to discuss the council’s action plan for pollinators to reverse ‘serious declines in forage and habitat which harms them and us’.  Please take a look at the information on the poster shown below in the photographs, for information on how you can register for this important, free summit.

Not much movement from the bees in the garden this week, and not much from the gardeners either, thwarted by wind and rain.  According to a local rain gauge, we have had 230.4 mm of rain in October; apparently the average rainfall for this month is around 60mm.  We usually complain about the lack of water, but certainly not this month as it seems we have had more than our fair share!

What’s next?

• Tidy the space around the new composting area

• If it stops raining, finish wood treatment on compost bins

• Sow last of the broad beans and few last peas

• Continue to fish leaves out of the pond and leave on the side for wildlife to get back in pond!

• Continue to tidy space ready for the big compost spread.

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