Sandgate Community Garden Team Diary Entry for 1st December: Prime time for the pigeons to strip many of our plants.
We are now in December. The time is flying by and before we know it we will be in February and time to start the whole year of growing all over again. There is plenty to be getting on with before then. Hoping for some quieter weather after storm Bert last weekend, our wish was not to be granted as storm Conall followed quickly afterwards.
The Wednesday morning session was cancelled once again as there was rain followed by more rain. Luckily Saturday was dry and we were able to assess the storm damage. Fortunately one of our gardeners had already been up to the garden shortly after the storms to report back how the garden had fared and saved lots of plants by retrieving netting and tying or weighing them down.
This is prime time for the pigeons to strip many of our plants back to the bare stems. Whilst some suffered this fate, we are hopeful they may recover depending on how harsh the winter is as technically it is still autumn.
The winds had the effect of stripping most of the leaves from the trees, whipping them all around the garden and leaving them in great piles particularly in and around the pond. Our first task was to begin to collect them and compost them. Looking around, it was clear that many of our plants had suffered from salt burn where the edges of the leaves turn dry and brown, and the poor banana tree was simply shredded although still trying to unfurl a brand new undamaged leaf.
Thought has to go out to the creatures having to brave these storms. Happily our resident robin was pleased to see us again and particularly glad we were working on the plots. In spite of all the difficult weather we still have to feed the hot composter at Folkestone College. Nicknamed ‘the beast’, it resembles a smoking dragon as upon lifting the lid it spews out plumes of hot steam from its ‘belly’. All around the rim of the lid are many different ladybirds, all taking advantage of the warmth.
What’s next?
- Might be time to plant the broad beans
- Remove goji berry
- Order some wood chips
- Clear any suckers coming up in the middle of plots
This weeks update from the Sandgate Community Garden Diary.