Sandgate Community Garden Team Diary Entry for 8th May: Moths and moles, golden oregano and the need for more space!
Yippee! We have had a drop or two of rain this week, some 17.8 mm apparently, which has freshened up the gardens beautifully – still not enough of course, but it has helped.
The tomatoes have now all been planted in two beds with a few along the wall. By the end of the week the courgettes and summer squashes got planted too with space for just a few more. Some of the French beans got planted, but there are more.
We have winter squashes, and outdoor cucumbers coming along fast, and they all got re-potted and put back into the cold frames to come on for another couple of weeks. We need to clear more space for these things first, and with winter leeks, spring onions and chard coming along, goodness knows where they are going to go as there are no more beds available for a while yet and we shall have to try to keep them in their modules for a few more weeks.
The alleyway between Meadowbrook and Chichester Road seemed to be growing some fabulous forget-me-nots and dandelions in gigantic proportions which needed clearing to let the plants we want to keep a chance to breathe. It is hard to imagine the small area had twelve bags of compost spread about at the end of last autumn; however the growth is looking lush. There were some queries on Facebook about one of our plants looking particularly good there, a golden oregano (pictured below) which has made large cushions of growth and is fabulous. It will probably need splitting up later in the year so we shall have to spread more of that around the area.
Always keen to look out for insects and creatures not noticed before in the garden; what we believe is a mint moth (photo below) was spotted on a gooseberry bush. We do not think it is interested in gooseberries but probably making its way to the herb bed. A cheeky mole has made its way under the wall it seems and popped up all over the place along the back of the garden. Much as we love wildlife, the hope is it will either stay in that direction or go back under the wall again; however we probably will not be that lucky.
The Incredible Edible plant sale and seed swap happened on Saturday in Cheriton High Street where a massive £406 was raised!! We took ten crates or boxes of plants to the sale. It was wonderful to be able to clear space from having to look after these plants, however the saving of plants begins all again as we work towards our own community garden sale later on in the year at the Sandgate Sea Festival. Just time to breathe for a little while and make the most of the temporary space.
What’s next?
- Those hops did not get any attention this week – check for new shoots
- Finish planting out the last summer squashes and French beans
- Think about sowing next batch of lettuces
- Make more space – take out purple sprouting
- Take out the last chard bed
This weeks update from the Sandgate Community Garden Diary.
