Sustainable Gardening

Planting trees

So far… we have planted four new trees:
Amelanchier
Olive

Davidia involucrata (Dove Tree)

Hawthorne

A photo montage showing a newly planted Amelanchier (it is a sapling, protected by two stakes, and is pictured with the church doorway behind it); an olive (which is already in full leaf, with the sun shining on it); a photo of two pen planting a Davidia involucrata, also known as the Dove Tree, which is also just a sapling, so doesn't have any distinguishing features yet; and a close up of a Hawthorne, with red 'haws' and green foliage.

Slabs, compost and fertilizers

a 'before' and 'after' picture of some concrete slabs that have been replaced by lovely stone stepping stones

We have dug up some concrete paving slabs, and replaced them with stone stepping stones.We have added literally tons of peat free compost and mulch to our rather sad soil, in an effort to improve it.

We never use chemical fertilisers, but more complex organic natural fertilisers like ‘Fish blood and bone’, or in the summer, chicken pellets or a seaweed based fertiliser.

These break down slowly over weeks and support beneficial soil microbes and worms, so will gradually improve our soil health.

All our planting is designed for maximum biodiversity, with as large a range of pollinator friendly plants as possible, and we aim to have something in flower all through the year.

One of the gardening team with a wheelbarrow full of peat free compost, and a spade.

In the future, we are hoping to make some compost heaps for our garden waste, and to harvest some rainwater. We are also hoping to make a bug hotel.