Come and help making planters at The Mill garden. We have already created a woodland area and a linear mini orchard. The next task will be creating a vertical garden to maximise the space. On Saturday, 4th of Feb from 10am-1pm we will be making planters at the Mill with recycled scaffolding boards where we will be growing sun-loving vegetables. If you want to share your DIY skills or want to learn how to make planters for your own garden come to The Mill  on Saturday.

We are very grateful to the Mill for giving us a grant to be able to carry out this work.

pressing the juice of the apples

Early that day we collected the apples from the beer garden of the Ferry Boat Inn Pub on Ferry Lane, who have kindly given us the permission for picking their apples for the second year running. We also scrumped the pears from a neighbour’s garden in Edward Road. Mainly it was everything apples – apple cakes, apple poems, apple games and apple juice and a small bit of juice mix of pears and apples.

Even the hairdresser from next door to the Mill couldn’t help himself being fascinated with the juicing process. There weren’t many haircuts that day…

There were drumming classes, poetry readings, hair garlanding and dozens of people stopped to get involved as they walked past. One couple were house hunting in the area and said they couldn’t believe what a friendly community this was and they decided this was the place they wanted to live.

Garden squads at work

BAG Garden squad held their annual bulb planting event on the 5th of November.

Thirteen keen gardens gathered together to plant 650 bulbs, of which 300 were donated by Waltham Forest council.

In previous years we have planted bulbs in Coppermill Lane, Edward Road, the playground in Coppermill Lane and in front of Stoneydown park. This year we concentrated in the garden of The Mill, as well as Blackhorse Road, Tenby Court, the bottom of Northcoate Road, and added more bulbs to the land in front of Stoneydown Park.

The bulb planting activity is part of the garden programme taking place on the first Saturday of every month.
Until April 2012 the main activity for the garden squad is to develop the garden at The Mill to create a welcoming outdoor space at our new community venue.

Thank you to everyone who took part on the day and with organisation as well as OrganicLea for getting the bulbs to us supper fast.

To get involved in the garden squads, email sustainability@blackhorseactiongroup.org.uk or pop in to The Mill and sign up for gardening activities. Check the Whats On Calendar on The Mill website for uptodate times.

There were helpers of every age

Renewing the Mill planters with bulbs

We hope to have some raised beds ready so that some of the seedlings can be planted out in the community garden.

Saturday 15th May from 11am til 1pm at the Douglas Eyre community garden, next to the sports pavilion, off Coppermill Lane. (closest stations Blackhorse Road and St James Street)

We also hope to start regular Saturday morning work days from May onwards, so that people can just turn up and get involved.

Blackhorse Road area residents gathered together on Saturday (April 10th) to learn how to grow vegetables from seeds, at BAG’s new community garden site off Coppermill Lane.
Thirty participants of all ages, from toddlers to pensioners, sowed pumpkins, tomatoes, beans, lettuces, herbs, and also ‘companion’ flowers like sunflowers and nasturtiums.  They then had the chance to swap seeds, cuttings, and gardening advice with each other, whilst enjoying a cup of tea and the spring sunshine.

Residents have been asked to raise the seedlings at home, and then bring at least some of them back to the next workshop on 15th May, where they can learn about the next stages, potting on, and planting out.  We hope to have some raised beds ready so that some of the seedlings can be planted out in the community garden.

The next workshop will take place on Saturday 15th May from 11am til 1pm at the Douglas Eyre community garden, next to the sports pavilion, off Coppermill Lane.

The gardening group also hopes to start regular Saturday morning work days from May onwards, so that people can just turn up and get involved.

For more information, or if you have a source of topsoil / compost  / scaffolding boards (!) contact Caroline on 07958 058677 or gardeninginfo@blackhorseactiongroup.org.uk.

Dear local gardeners,

Please come to BAG’s next gardening event – a seed sowing and swapping event.

Saturday 10th April from 2.30-4.30, next to the Douglas Eyre Sports Pavilion, Coppermill Lane, E17.
(Go along the side of the Pavilion and the community garden is to the right of the football pitches)

Come along and:
Find out how to grow vegetables from seed
Sow some seeds to take away
Bring some seeds to swap with each other (if you have them)
Learn more about the plans for our local community garden on the playing fields, and have your say.

The event is free and open to all local residents – children are welcome if accompanied by an adult.  Hot drinks will be available.  We will be outside so please dress warmly if it is chilly.

The event took place on Saturday the 5th of Dec 2009 but we had so much to plant that we had to leave the bushes and canes healing on the ground and carried out the planting the following Saturday.

We got a nice selection of apple, pear and plum trees and also a variety of soft fruit bushes i.e. black, red and white currant bushes and raspberry canes.

We introduced the day with the concept of the tree guild. This is a harmonious cooperative association of multifunctional plants around the tree which provide mutual benefit for each other, making less work- and more food and flowers, for the gardener.

Following that model in Spring/Summer will be completing our guilds and will be plating plants around the trees such us bulbs, wild garlic, dill, fennel, bee balm, calendula, nasturtiums, rhubarb, perennial spinach and broccoli; clover, comfrey etc which will attract beneficial insects; increase soil fertility; provide diverse yields of food; reduce human intervention and produce natural mulches.

All in all we had fantastic planting days and it was a nice way of celebrating the National Tree Week!

Blackhorse Action Group Gardening Project –  Food growing and wildlife gardening events

Grow food, learn about wildlife gardening, meet your neighbours, and get your hands dirty!
We invite all local residents to a series of local food growing events on our two new community garden sites near Coppermill Lane.

Various days throughout the year
Free or very low cost
email

Thanks to everyone who showed up for our community garden/harvest celebration on the Douglas Eyre playing fields.
The apple press was a particular hit with the look on some of the kids faces when the juice poured forth worth putting the event on for alone. The BBQ didn’t kill anyone, and the apple bobbing was as ever a reliable bit of fun.

Many residents discussed options for the community garden, including taking part in a PASE exercise.  PASE stands for plant, animal, structure, event – with people writing their choice for each on a post it note (i.e. what events could be held, what animals could be kept, what structure built).

The prize for the most outlandish animal suggestion goes to whoever said we should keep an elephant!

Those not chatting, quaffing juice, or manning the bbq were busy building a compost heap (below).
Made from used palettes – kindly donated from a company down by Tottenham Hale – its a first step towards a working community garden.

By the end of the day, limbs were aching and hands unused to a hard days work blistered but hopefully its the first of many events.

If youre interested in anyway in helping with the community garden whether that’s planning, or the digging when its set up, please email foodgardeningandenvironment@blackhorseactiongroup.org.uk.

Thanks must go to the Hornbeam Centre’s fruitpicking project for the use of their wonderful Apple and Pear press.  For details on how to help out with their project visit the website.

Our FREE gardening workshop was a great success with residents happily planting out their veg and flowers to take away.

BAG applied for a grant to encourage residents to get out and garden, and this was the first event we’ve put on with the money we received.

For more information, to take part or if you have any ideas for future gardening events email Caroline.

More events are planned later in the year and next summer so stay tuned.

Want to grow some food and flowers?

Come to BAG’s first FREE beginners gardening workshop on Sunday the 7th of June.

There will be containers for everyone to plant out with organic vegetables and flowers. Once you’ve finished, take them away and enjoy.

THE WORKSHOP WILL TAKE PLACE ON THE 
DOUGLAS EYRE PLAYING FIELDS, 
2.30-4.30pm.

The Workshop is completely free and open to all, but numbers are limited so please book in advance by emailing Caroline.

The workshop was funded courtesy of Grassroots Grants.

ORGANISED BY BLACKHORSE ACTION GROUP AND ORGANICLEA,