March 2022 News
At the start of the month, we teamed up with Prenton Rugby Club to offer a Volunteering and Garden Workshop in their Community Garden. The workshop covered the topic of ‘How To Grow Hardy Annuals for Containers’. The first half of the session was indoors, followed by a practical demo in the garden polytunnel.
As well as meeting for their fortnightly sessions, the WEN Crafters took their hand made creations to the Hoylake Parade Community Centre Eco Fair. Thanks to the members of the group who made so many lovely items to sell at the fair and raised £112.70 for WEN. Also thanks to Ali, Margie, Karen, Jill, Val and Carol for helping on the stall and the Crafters and members of the Green Hub at St James who came along to the fair. The Crafters also donated a story cushion as second prize in the raffle to raise funds for Ukraine.
The stall of handmade items created by the WEN Crafters from donated and repurposed materials
Ali, Margie and Karen at the WEN Crafters stall
At Falkland Road, the WEN Reclaimers painted planters and the noticeboard, removed a tree that had fallen in the wind and made the area safe. Karen ran a Volunteer Day – weeding, putting up a fence panel and dealing with the wood from the fallen tree. Thank you to all who came along.
It has been lovely to welcome new visitors and returning members to the Green Hub at St James Community Garden. The tree nursery is still providing free tree whips to anyone in the area for any final tree and hedgerow planting this season. Thank you to the Green Hub attendees who bring such tasty offerings to share! Recent treats included Chinese pizza and pear and ginger cake. Yum!
Enjoying the sunshine and good company at the Green Hub
Free tree whips from the tree nursery
It’s not all about the food and socialising at the Green Hub though. This month’s tasks have included watering the seedlings in the greenhouse, sowing lupin and sunflower seeds that were gathered last year and preparing the wildflower bed and sowing wildflowers. There is still curly kale, rainbow kale and a few leeks in the training area available for community garden users to harvest. We have also been busy preparing the site for an Easter Egg hunt for the St James Centre.
Meanwhile, next door at the Bee Wirral Elemental Project at Landsdowne Place, we’ve been marvelling at their planting and enjoying chats in the polytunnel with members of the men’s eco therapy group. Maria, WEN’s Horticultural, Wildlife and Conservation Trainer, has been helping the group members to learn about allotment growing and the benefits of connecting with nature. This month the group cleared sedge and grass from the beds around the pond area, encouraging the wild flower perennials to emerge and providing a food source for pollinating insects. They have moved willow branches to a sheltered part of the site and potted up strawberry and pea planters for sale. They stacked logs to create an invertebrate habitat and planted some shrubs for shelter to support ground nesting birds and small mammals in the wildlife area. One of the volunteers covered the soil with cardboard in the fruit bush area to suppress weeds and provide a natural material that attracts earthworms. Peas, onions and broad beans have been planted out in the raised beds. The men also started on the pond maintenance and looked at the range of invertebrates living there.
Bee Wirral Elemental Project members potting up strawberry and pea plants for sale
Pond maintenance and planting peas, onions and broad beans
At March’s Flower Club, the group had a talk about creating a cut flower patch. They then selected seeds and potted them up to take home. The group also made arrangements in recycled yogurt pots using both seasonal garden flowers and foliage, with a few stems of commercial flowers. The next WEN Flower Club is on 30th April. If you would like to join in, please text Maria on 07708 832418 or email harpercainflowers@yahoo.com
Floral arrangements at the WEN Flower Club
