Secret Garden Launch and Bonfire Night

On Saturday allotment members and friends from the community joined us for a double celebration – the launch of our Secret Garden and Bonfire Night.

Secret Garden launch

After a year of building and planting our Secret Garden was officially launched with a tea party.  Tea and cake was available and there were craft activities for the children.

We had visitors from Groundwork, the charity that has been working with Tesco on the Bags of Help scheme that funded the Secret Garden.

 

Bonfire Night

As darkness fell, the Secret Garden party gave way to our Bonfire Night extravaganza!  As well as the usual fireworks, bonfire and supper the Woodcraft Folk were there to help members toast marshmallows, make damper bread and roast cinnamon apples over the fire.  And of course, the Secret Garden looked fabulous with it’s new lights.

  

Well done to everybody involved for all the hard work to create two events for Members, family and friends.  More photographs are available on our Facebook page.

The Secret Garden is taking shape

Our Secret Garden is taking shape.  Thanks to our local community we won a community grant from Tesco Bags of Help scheme.  Since then we have planned and built our new Secret Garden. The garden, designed by two of our members, will be a calming space for members and visitors to relax in.

The Garden Design

Secret Garden – initial sketch design

The theme for the garden was ‘secret’ and ‘woodland’ and the aim was to create the garden using as much recycled material as possible.

Concept design – recycled doors

Creating the garden

The main structural elements were put in place by contractors in March to ensure the garden is safe and accessible.  Since then volunteers have been bringing the garden to life. They have planted a willow tunnel and a fedge, recycled donated plants and built features such as the hazel pole fences, hanging picture frames and windows to peek through.

     

 

Thanks

We would like to thank everybody who has helped to create the garden so far, but especially our members Jane and Damien for all the hard work.  We would also like to thank the 19th Bromley Scouts who built the two bug hotels

Next steps

We hope to have a formal launch party for the garden in the summer when the plants have grown. Before then there’s still a lot more work to be done ranging from weeding to woodworking.

If you would like to be part of the team creating and maintaining this wonderful new community garden please speak to a committee member.

Save

Save

Bags of Help – Thank you for voting

We were thrilled to be awarded £10,000 in the first round of the Tescos and Groundwork community grant scheme ‘Bag of Help’.

We will keep you posted on plans for the upgrade to the Secret Garden, but in the meantime here are some photos from the garden – showing early spring flowers and dried grasses and seed heads.


dried seeds heads
Hellebores
view down garden