Fruits of our labours

Chill in the air

It's been a fruitful year in the community garden, little by little; many herbs have been picked and grown stronger for it, the bricks of the herb spiral are hardly visible, one apple appeared on the fruit trees planted in early spring and the trees are beginning to establish.

A few blackcurrants, peas and lettuces here, some tomatoes there. Lettuces, leeks and broccoli grown in terracotta pipes it's been a year of surprises all round. The brambles are nearly vanquished. When I arrived at the centre on Tuesday green Marmande tomatoes were lined up on the patio table - mysterious. I'll have to make a lot of space on my south facing windowsills for them to ripen, now the temperature has dropped. The ones left on the plants (not many!) may ripen if the sun comes out.

Trevor, super volunteer at the IT Suite, and his wife Rita donated a compost tumbler and a big bag of compost to the garden. All the fruit trees have benefitted from this largesse, and the compost to come. The compost bins built from pallets last year have got bigger and bigger and have now become a repository for branches and twigs. A job for the autumn.

Meishu and Una from Kendale Allotments community gardens brought produce to the Downham Nutrition Partnership AGM on 11 September, which shows what can be done in smallish spaces.

Kendale display at the Downham Nutrition Partnership AGM, with tomato varieties from Dr Tattersfield's garden, white borage, herbs, calendua from Goldsmiths Community Garden and green Marmande tomatoes from Kendale allotments

A solitary Braeburn apple from the fruit trees planted in February this year

Swiftly consumed by Kerry!

Una's produce from Kendale

Rosemary, sage and mint in the herb spiral, planted September 2012

The herb spiral and brick bed, lavender still in flower 3rd September 2013

Midsummer update

Note the bucket and terracotta pipes - more later

This is the community garden in mid-February 2013 before the fruit trees were planted. We received a grant of £150 towards a mini-orchard from Capital Growth, and Elwood kindly bought and collected them from Keepers Nursery near Maidstone.

The photograph below was taken in May, with the fruit trees planted and settled in. We are now the proud guardians of three apple trees, three pear trees, a King James mulberry tree and a red filbert. The apple trees flowered and have produced fruit. The idea was to replace the brambles, which local people could pick if they dared, with something more substantial and less thorny! Removing the chain link fence from behind the palisade means that we can remove the bindweed more easily too.

The community garden benefitted last year from the Groundwork Hampton Court Flower Show re-use scheme, and again this June from their Chelsea Flower Show re-use scheme co-ordinated by Anne Marie of Lewisham Gardens.

Last year the plants were collected and distributed at St Swithun's, Hither Green Lane, and this year at Spring Gardens, Hither Green, a homeless hostel managed by the St Mungo's charity. The first articulated lorry turned up bearing large quantities of york stone, paving blocks and aggregate and the driver kindly gave us both a go of the grabber remote control - an unrealised dream until then!

Payback has paid off!

The payback team have taken the community garden to their hearts. Without their careful tending of the garden every Sunday, I would need to be there a lot more.

White borage, lovage and achillea with fruit trees in the background

Every time I visit there is a delightful new addition to the garden - this edging was made and installed by the team. The team have taken enthusiastically to planting, and the 40 or so plants I collected from Spring Gardens were in the following day. In some surprising places....

Imaginative use of the terracotta pipes, and a galvanised bucket! I hope to encourage the team to eat the lettuces and peas growing out of the pipes, which Anne Marie refers to as chimneys. The plants seem to like it and who knows, it may start a trend!

Courgette and leek, 'pipe' grown

The Apothecary Garden

Here are some photos of the apothecary garden, in full bloom. The white borage plant, bought last year from Dig This nursery in New Cross Gate (do pay a visit, if you need some herbs) surpassed all expectations.

The herb spiral, created last September

This is a garden I visited recently, in Downham. It was created and maintained by a group of disabled people, who due to funding cuts no longer tend it. I am looking at it for a project involving older people and gardening, and another to link community venues and green spaces across Downham, Whitefoot and Grove Park. Can you guess where it is?

Please visit the Downham Interagency website for details of how to get involved in these projects.

Big Dig 16 March 2013 and progress on the garden(s)

Come along to the Big Dig 2013 on Saturday 16 March 2013 at the community garden from 11am - 2pm. We have three builders' bags ready to fill and plant up with vegetables for the spring and summer, and fingers crossed the fruit trees and nut bushes will have arrived. We were awarded a grant of £150 by Capital Growth to replace the decades-old brambles with something less spiteful but still edible! The bags were donated to us by Lewisham Green Scene. 

Photo of re-using builders' bags courtesy of Permaculture

Progress at the community garden

An amazing transformation has taken place in the grounds of the community centre, thanks to the Community Payback team who have been working in the grounds and at the centre since the end of September 2012. Not forgetting the loan of Elwood's chipper (and a donation for the petrol and blade sharpening) which has been reducing vast quantities of vegetation into spreadable mulch. So much mulch.

Shredded vegetation spilling over the top of the compost bins!

We now have four compost bins in the community garden, all nearly full to the brim and the team will be constructing more for the hall garden. The team have been clearing the areas around the perimeter fence and taking the chain link down. The community centre can now be seen!

The front entrance, swept and kept tidy

Shrubs pruned and edging tidied

Transformation of the community centre grounds from a wilderness

The team have also helped at the centre, moving furniture, cleaning and redecorating.

Here are some photos I took of the garden, towards the end of October, in the late autumn sunshine.

The path to the gate, edged and swept

Garden Party

Goldsmiths Community Centre Garden Party

On Saturday September 22nd from 12 to 4 pm all are welcome to enjoy Goldsmiths Community Centre's Apothecary Garden to mark the end of the Hubbub media resource project and to raise funds and awareness for the Goldsmiths Well Being Room.

Creating the herb spiral

As suggested by the CEL students who took part in the Hubbub project the themes of the garden party are Well Being and Making Connections. This will be an opportunity to find out more about the Well Being Room at Goldsmiths Community Centre, and what health and Well Being services are available locally and at the Community Centre.

Clay oven for delicious pizzas!

Healthy hot food will be available fresh and hand made from the pizza oven, and a range of traditional home made produce like cakes, lemonade, ginger beer, chutney, pesto and hummous will be on sale.

There will also be a book stall, bric-a- brac and raffles.

Come and enjoy the last of the good weather in a beautiful garden setting. See you on Saturday 22nd!

SPONSORED BIKE RIDE

The Goldsmiths Community Centre Well Being room is a project that's been running since 2009 and making a positive difference to the local community of Downham.

The Well Being Room is a hub for health and well being in Downham. It provides sign posting to local health and well being services as well as offering low cost complementary therapies.

To support this Rowland Smith and Elwood Amey who run the project are taking part in the Question Challenge bike ride . . .

WHO? Elwood and Rowland as they run the Well Being Room, also other members of DUCK Cycling Club doing their own fund raising challenges and joining in just for fun.

WHERE? Visiting all the places that sound like questions within cycling distance of London, so….starting at: HOWE, Norfolk, then WARE, Hertfordshire, then HOO, Medway, ending at WYE in Kent.

WHEN? Friday 5th October to Sunday 7th of October 2012

WHY? Why not? Cycling is a great way for people to keep fit. Elwood and Rowland want to use this challenge to show that anybody can take up cycling AND enjoy it AND raise some money to support a great project.

If you'd like to support a health project that's been making a difference since 2009 please visit the Charity Giving website http://www.charitygiving.co.uk/questionchallenge and make a donation to support the Goldsmiths Community Centre Well being Room.

Permaculture comes to Downham

What is permaculture? I've been finding out! Here's a quote from the Permaculture Association.

"Permaculture works with nature to make a better world for all. By observing the natural world we can see a set of principles at work." 

As a recent convert to sheet mulching (see my previous posts Cardboard Conundrum and on lasagna gardening) and a long time foe of waste, I am curious to know more about it. I will find out shortly!

Contact organicgardener@yahoo.co.uk for more details and to see if there are spaces available.

PLEASE NOTE PERMACULTURE WORKSHOP HAS BEEN POSTPONED TO 15th SEPTEMBER, 11am - 3pm to coincide with Edible Open Gardens Day.

Composting workshops at Goldsmiths Community Centre

Last week I attended the first of a series of free composting workshops. My garden is not really big enough for a compost heap and I've made do with a wormery instead.  What goes into a wormery is very different from compost ingredients. Once the compost bins had been built (out of old pallets) on Bring a Plant Day I was given loads of stuff to start it off, from chicken and guinea pig litter, grass clippings, newspapers and cardboard, tea bags, prunings and all sorts - even two bags of horse manure! 

Under construction

The compost bins - week one

Week three - doesn't show the huge pile of grass clippings yet to be added

I now have so much stuff that I am leaving it to rot down in black bin bags, in the empty compost bin, before adding it to the existing pile. The heap itself looked a bit dry the other week so I stuck a hosepipe in the middle of it. 

As I found out on the composting workshop that was the wrong thing to do! A closer inspection revealed slimy lumps of grass clippings and other bits of vegetation all stuck together and excluding the air. I must have a funny sense of smell as I thought it smelled quite nice, but Kristina with her professional 'nose' detected sulphur - not good.

We learned what can and cannot go into the compost heap, and the very good idea of preparing a mix of carbon (twigs, newspaper) and some nitrogen (green waste) before it goes on the heap. I think at first I had so much stuff that I just chucked it on willy nilly, ending up with a dry looking top layer.  If I haven't been at the centre for a week or so it sure mounts up - I think I may have been too successful in persuading everyone to 'donate' their waste.

After the workshop finished I forked most of the slimy stuff out and put it on top of the cardboard mulch, then filled the holes left in the heap with little twigs. Next time I will inspect it and do a more thorough job - possibly starting again from scratch!

There are still spaces on this great free workshop, on Wednesday 8th, Friday 10th and Wednesday 15th August. I learned a lot, and so will you! Contact Kristina to book: kristina.binns@lewisham.gov.uk

Summer Holiday Workshops

We have an amazing variety of workshops this summer!

Thanks to the generous support of Lewisham Council we will be running workshops for children, families and adults over the holidays from 25 July to 17 August.

Where?

Room 3, the community garden and reception at Goldsmiths Community Centre, Castillon Road, SE6 1QD [map].

Permaculture Kids Club comes to Goldsmiths! 
PLEASE NOTE THIS WORKSHOP HAS BEEN POSTPONED UNTIL
15th SEPTEMBER 11am-3pm

As part of the project we are offering a one day Permaculture ‘taster’ workshop for a maximum of 15 parents and children, by Ruth and Suriya who host the Permaculture Kids Club at Grow Mayow Community Garden, Sydenham.

A herb spiral

What is permaculture? It's a design approach to any human activity and is a combination of Ecology, Architecture and Organic Gardening. 

Who is it for?

Parents with children age 6-11

Maximum 3 places per family (eg 1 parent + 2 children). There are 15 places in total. Light refreshments are available, please bring lunch (to share if possible!).

More information/booking
Read all about the principles of Kids' Permaculture here 
Email: organicgardener@yahoo.co.uk

or jane.hearn@goldsmithscommunityhub.org.uk

Build a Bug Hotel in the community garden 17 August 10-2pm
PLEASE NOTE THIS WORKSHOP IS NOW FULLY BOOKED

What is a bug hotel? If you look it up on Google there are horror stories of hotels and bed bugs, but this is different; a home for bugs to shelter, live and reproduce in that we will design and build ourselves.

Who is it for?

Parents with children age 6-11

Maximum 3 places per family (1 parent + 2 children, 2 parents + 1 child). There are 15 places in total.

Where?

Room 3 at Goldsmiths Community Centre, Castillon Road, SE6 1QD [map].

More information/booking

Contact Jo Cooper: jo.cooper@pre-school.org.uk or on 020 8695 5955 option 3

Composting workshops starting 25 July, on Wednesdays and Fridays

There are 15 spaces available on each workshop, which is just over an hour long. The workshops have been arranged at times to suit everyone.

Suitable for adults and young people age 16+

It’s best to book so you don’t miss out, but if you haven’t booked you’re welcome to see if there’s space to join us on the day.

More information

For more information about the workshops contact kristina.binns@lewisham.gov.uk
Alternatively call 020 8314 2145 to leave a detailed message. 

BOOK YOUR PLACE ONLINE NOW (opens new window)

Love Food Hate Waste workshops and information stall starts 25 July

We waste a staggering amount of food in this country, due to confusion over date labels, buying too much and not using cooked or uncooked food in creative ways. Learn how to love food, and hate waste!

There are 15 spaces available on each workshop, which is just over an hour long. The workshops have been arranged at times to suit everyone. It’s best to book so you don’t miss out, but if you haven’t booked you’re welcome to see if there’s space to join us on the day.

Suitable for adults and young people age 16+

On Wed 15th August there will be a Love Food Hate Waste and Recycling stall in reception from 1.30pm.

Where?

Room 3 at Goldsmiths Community Centre, Castillon Road, SE6 1QD [map]. Room 3 opens on to the newly created Goldsmiths Community Garden which grows herbs and medicinal plants for the learning and enjoyment of all. 

More information

For more information about the workshops contact kristina.binns@lewisham.gov.uk
Alternatively call 020 8314 2145 to leave a detailed message. 

BOOK YOUR PLACE ONLINE NOW (opens new window)

Recycling
Unsure about what should and what should not go in your recycling bin? Come along and find out!

The recycling stall will be in the community centre reception on the following days/times:
Wed 25th July 10am
Wed 1st August 1pm
Fri 3rd August 3pm
Wed 8th August 1.30pm
Fri 10th August 11.30am

Where?

Reception at Goldsmiths Community Centre, Castillon Road, SE6 1QD [map].

More information

For more information about the information stall contact kristina.binns@lewisham.gov.uk
Alternatively call 020 8314 2145 to leave a detailed message. 

Interested in food and cooking? There are lots of activities at the community centre this summer from Limelight Family Learning Centre and Delicious Nutritious UK!