Dear friend,
August brings us National Allotments Week (7th – 13th August), with a theme this year of Soil Health. Below, Jen explains what we have been doing to help maintain our soil throughout the year, what we will be doing this week to get it ready for the coming months, and a little bit of advice to help you all at home.
In the summer, crops protect the soil in our veg beds from soil erosion and damage to the fine structure that worms and other creatures work so hard to create!
During soil health week we will be sowing green manures. These will look after our soil over the winter. We can then plant out green manures such as Phacelia and Clovers. These can prevent winter weather damaging our soil structure, add nitrogen to the soil in the case of clover, and if we let some flower in the spring they can provide early forage for bees.
If you want to do this at home you can either sow the seeds in pots like we have. Or scatter the seeds on your veg beds.
If you combine growing green manures and add your homemade compost to your veg beds then, voila! Happy healthy soil full of life, leaves and love 🐛🐛🐛🐛
Jenny Butcher, Horticultural Project Lead
We hope you all have a very enjoyable Summer holiday!
Best wishes,
KayleighPS. If you’d like to receive news like this in your inbox each month, join our mailing list here.
Upcoming Workshops
Saturday 9th September 10:00 – 12:30 – £45
Capture the essence of Autumn using a range of seasonal materials to create a beautiful Autumnal door wreath to enjoy.
Plan Your Own Cut Flower Garden
Saturday 9th September 13:30 – 16:00 – £25
We want to inspire you to successfully grow beautiful cut flowers for yourself and to gift to your friends and family. From early Spring bulbs to late Autumn blooms, we will share with you the simple secrets behind our cut-flower garden.
Weave Your Own Willow Bird Feeders
Saturday 23rd September 10:00 – 12:00 – £35
Join us to make beautiful fat-ball-holder bird feeders out of willow. You will learn the basic properties of working with willow, including different types of willow, preparation and maintenance plus at least 2 different styles of willow weaving
Introduction To Honey Bees & Beekeeping
Saturday 23rd September 13:30 – 16:00 – £30
Join us for an indoor session with our enthusiastic resident Beekeeper Pete (aka the Bald Beekeeper). Pete will bring his ‘virtual hive’ to give an insight into the fascinating world inside a hive, and what that means for a beekeeper.
Saturday 14th October 10:00 – 12:30 – £30
Join expert Mike, at Oliver’s Heritage Garden, for a master class in pruning garden shrubs, ornamental trees and roses. Learn the correct techniques and timings to keep your plants healthy and show off their best attributes, whether that be beautiful flowers, fabulous foliage or brightly coloured stems.
Saturday 14th October 13.30 – 16.00 – £30
An afternoon of cider making and apple tasting with Leo Jordan from award-winning Blue Barrel Cider Company. You will learn how to pick, mill and press fruit and try different heritage and cider varieties to get your taste buds on trend.
Saturday 28th October 10:00 – 12:30 – £35
Enjoy and explosive morning of fun creating your very own flower firework table display using colourful British seasonal flowers, seed pods and twisted stems all locally foraged or grown.
Guided Tours
We lead walks around St Ann’s Allotments on the last Wednesday of every month, 1:30-3pm. The 1.3-mile guided tour takes you to our Heritage Display Garden and Nursery, telling the 700-year story of how this 32-acre site changed from pasture and orchards, to Victorian pleasure gardens, to working-class allotments. Including stories of people who lived here and the grassroots campaign to save the site from redevelopment.book tickets here.
Find out more andVolunteering
Volunteering continues as usual, with plenty of opportunities to join us!
Tuesdays at the Nursery, 10:00-14:00
Digging, sowing, pruning, clearing, building, watering, harvesting! All things food and flower focused for a productive garden.
Wednesdays at Oliver’s, 10:00-14:00
Help maintain a beautiful display garden for visitors to enjoy, and promote its heritage features.
Volunteer Inductions:
This is an introductory session for anyone interested in volunteering at STAA. Receive a tour of our projects to find out what you might be interested in, and an opportunity to meet people and ask questions.
Heritage Display Garden Open Session:
Wednesday 6th September 12:00-14:00
We open the garden gates of the Heritage Display Garden to all to spend time on the beautiful garden. Join us to relax, explore, and have a go at gardening if you like!
If you have any questions about volunteering, please contact Lucy at volunteering@staa-allotments.org.uk or visit our website.
Oliver’s Family BBQ
Once again we had the pleasure of hosting a wonderful BBQ for Mr Oliver’s family and friends on the Heritage Garden, fondly known to us as ‘Oliver’s’, named after the last tenant – Mr Tom Oliver.
Another beautiful event full of memories, friendship, laughter and sunshine.
Here’s to next years event!
On The Blog
This week on the blog, regular volunteer Paul takes us back into the archives with a record of some past behaviours on Hungerhills!https://staa-allotments.org.uk/news/
Read all about it: