July newsletter

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Hello everyone

The last month has been very busy for the community garden team. We had our Southeast in Bloom judging on 1 July, this time with a new judge. This has meant that it had been all hands-on deck. New vegetable beds have been added and planted which involved moving a few tonnes of compost. A new rockery and alpine area was added to the pond area and a rather large pile of woodchip helped to make a new storage area for us by the poly tunnel. The flower beds were cleared of weeds and lots of new plants added. The wooden planters and benches were painted and stencilled and any overgrown areas cut back. The judge made some complimentary comments, but we won't find out how well we've done until the end of September. However, the garden would not look as fabulous as it does without the help of all our wonderful volunteers who have worked so hard, so a massive thank you to all of them.

Have you had a look at the vegetable beds recently? All of this hot weather (and lots of watering from the volunteers) has really helped them to get going. The courgettes have gone a bit mad, and the squashes are now starting to sprint up their rambler frame. Lots of different tomato plants have gone in and are starting to flower. Don't forget to have a look in our free produce box when you're passing as anything that is ripe will go in there. We politely ask that people don't pick their own.

Our Chair, Michael, has been busy talking at various events recently sharing his knowledge and love of growing. You may have seen him at the Andover Food Partnership event in the Augusta Park Community Centre the other week.

Keep an eye on our Facebook page (Rooting for Andover Poppy Community Garden) for upcoming events, including some for the children to do over the summer holidays. We'll be having a plant and create session on 26 July which will involve planting seeds and making bug houses. There will be a butterfly count on 5 August - all those lovely new wildflowers bordering the garden means we have lots of them flying around. Rooting for Andover will also be involved in the Augusta Park fete on 16 August. We'll be lighting up the BBQ and supplying burgers and hotdogs as well as having some creative and garden related sessions for the kids.

If you ever want to join in, our garden club sessions are on Monday evenings (6 to 8pm), Tuesday morning 10am to 12 noon and Saturdays (10am to 1pm). Everyone is welcome and no gardening experience is required. All sessions are weather dependent.

We love to hear from you so if you have any feedback or questions about the garden, then please do let us know.

Kind regards

Vicki, Michael and Maureen.

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