2021 Progress
by Caroline McDonnell
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A review of progress made over 2021 in the Wymondley Community Garden written by Caroline McDonnell.
Caroline took over as Chair of the Community Garden in October 2021 but has very much been involved as a core team member since the very first conversations around it’s inception in 2019.
Living almost next door to the Community Garden, Caroline can regularly been found working on the the patch or just enjoying a cuppa on the communal seating area in the garden.
As I scroll back through my photo gallery I’m reminded of the huge progress we made in 2021. It wasn’t always easy with periods of imposed lockdowns and gathering numbers restricted.
In January we had snow and freezing temperatures but local resident, Cherry, braved the elements to do the Big Garden Birdwatch. We are preparing to take part again this year and are crossing our fingers for milder weather that weekend!
In February we continued to prepare the ‘middle plot’ ground for grass seeding, this was a massive task made easier thanks to one of our volunteer gardeners, Laura, loaning us a rotavator. The daffodils under the apple trees made an appearance, and we laid lots of bark on the new paths.
In March the grass seed was sown once the ground was softer, and the glass for the greenhouse was installed! This was a super exciting addition to the garden and throughout the summer we grew tomatoes, peppers, chillies and germinated sweet peas in there.
In April, with the arrival of some sunny weather we turned the soil in the vegetable beds, put seedlings in the greenhouse and planted our Woodland Trust hedging along the Graveley Road border.
While digging the soil under the trees we found a few interesting objects! We weeded here ready for more paths to be laid. Finally the grass started to grow!
In May the garden was buzzing with activity; villager and bee keeper, Derek, caught a swarm of bees in the hedge alongside the garden! Our paths were completed and the new lawns had their first mow. Vegetables like potatoes, lettuce, barlotti beans and onions were also planted in the in the veg patches.
In June we had an explosion of poppies! We think they grew so prolifically for the first time because we disturbed the seeds while moving and levelling all the soil which meant they were able to germinate successfully. They were stunning and we hope they come back again in 2022.
We planted some flowers around the seating area, these included dahlias, cosmos, penstemons, hebes and lavender.
In July the garden flourished; the grass continued to thicken up, the plants blossomed and our vegetables grew. It was wonderful to see the fruits of our labour coming together.
In August we launched Garden Club. Our first session was such a lovely sunny morning full of activity, fun and laughter. Oh and we got loads of gardening done too!
Some of the villagers also took part in the parish Scarecrow Festival.
In September, our local resident, Nicky kindly gifted a lawn mower for the Community Garden. Shortly afterwards, the cord snapped! But this was easily replaced and is a handy bit of equipment to have.
In October, autumn came and the garden started to change colour. We harvested vegetables, built raised beds and planted bulbs. The raised beds are vital for our garden to improve accessibility to all of our visitors and gardeners giving them a space to plant in without having to stoop to ground level.
In November we held our first ‘themed’ gardening club when our volunteer gardener, Nicky, taught us how to plant and grow living Willow. We ‘planted’ an arch over one of our pathways and fashioned some porthole style ‘windows’ for it once it begins to grow. Tow of our other gardeners, Damian and Emma, started work on a pond. We are so excited to add this to the garden to lure in lots of wildlife!
In December, our gardening club met to make festive wreaths and to spread some Christmas cheer. The Great Wymondley Men’s Breakfast club met up one morning on the Community Garden and strung fairy lights which looked fabulous. They then used the area on the 21st December to host the annual carol singing event. It was a lovely, merry evening.
At the end of the year we launched our new website and started writing some blogs. Do visit our home page to read about some of the gardening club sessions from 2021 and our section ‘Ask the Gardener’ to learn more about the kind parish residents that are helping with the Community Garden project.
I am so excited to see what 2022 will bring and how the garden will evolve. We have lots of plans in the pipeline already and are applying for various grants and funding.
We would love to see some new faces from the parish come and join in the fun. We hold a gardening club every third Saturday but we always have a list of things that could be done if someone wanted to come to help at another time. The garden is open at all times too for some outdoor socialising, a walk to see the wildlife or just a sit down for some peace and quiet. All are welcome!
Our gardening club sessions are held from 9am-12pm on the third Saturday of every month. Free to attend and all ages and abilities welcome.
Wymondley Community Garden 