The nature garden, if you haven’t heard of it, is a small, natural oasis for people, animals and plants
in the heart of the village, at the back of the Village Hall.
It’s 3 years, give or take, since work began. Take a stroll around it now, and you’ll see a decent
hedgeline, flourishing ferns and shrubs, and at long last a good clutch of bulbs. The dogwoods,
which haven’t done much until now, are suddenly thick enough to add strong yellow and red to the
muted winter tones. It’s an encouraging glimpse of what the garden will be like when it ‘grows up’.
You may have noticed the woodchip at the bus stop gate. It was donated by a local tree surgeon a while
back, but it’s been too wet to shift much of it onto the paths where it’ll help suppress the grass. If you
have an hour spare (and a wheelbarrow) it’d be lovely to see the pile go down.
Last year we spread plenty of mulch on the woodland beds. This did a good job of keeping
down the grass, especially on the mound, but elsewhere it’s proving quite formidable. Again, if
you have a spare moment to weed around a dozen or so plants it’ll reduce competition for nutrients
and moisture.
Plans for this coming year are deliberately low key: to make sure the plants we put in last spring get
established. Occasional weeding, watering if dry. Feel free to fill up the can at the big butt and give
any thirsty plants you see a drink!
On a financial note, the nature garden continues to be funded by grants we received from TOE and our
county councillor, plus donations from local businesses. We hope you enjoy it!