Banner Cross Eco Gardens
What’s Happening in the garden
Progress to date & our plans for the future
Vegetable garden & Produce
What we have grown & what’s available to pick
How to get involved
When we meet & tasks that can be shared.
The Eco Group have now been tending the gardens for the last 8 years.
There are 3 distinct areas:
- Allotment area at the side of church with raised beds & greenhouse
- Flower beds at the front of church & by the side of the drive. 2 beds have been planted with a mixture of tradition plants & the 3rd with self-set wild flowers & plants
- The lawn at the front of church. Sections have been left uncut to allow wild flowers & grasses to flourish
Vegetables fruit & produce
This area of the garden has been tended by the Eco Group for 8 years.
We have installed 3 raised beds & a green house.
The raised beds are currently planted with broad beans, kale, cabbage, kalettes, potatoes, runner beans, greens & sage.
The beds closer to the rear car park have also been planted with rhubarb, gooseberries & blackcurrants We also have blackberries chives feverfew, lemon balm & mint.
In the greenhouse we are growing tomatoes cucumbers & chilies
At the time of writing, we have the following ready for harvesting:
- Tomatoes
- Broad beans
- Potatoes (these are self-set so please take care when lifting)
The runner beans & cucumbers need a little time to mature.
The rhubarb picking season has passed & the crowns should now be left to rejuvenate.
The gooseberry bush again produced a mass of fruit but these have now been picked
Flower beds
We have 3 established flower beds.
Since Covid the main bed at the front of church has been cut back & replanted with a mixture of perennial & annual bee friendly plants & flowers .
Several of the existing bushes and trees have responded well to pruning. The fuchsia has provided a glorious display of flowers.
The bed in the corner suffered greatly when the gas supply was connected from Ecclesall Rd South. Unfortunately we also have a meter in the centre of the garden. We are working to raise the garden around the meter to provide some screening with taller plants
The soil in this area is very poor & in some places only a few inches deep. Beneath much of this area is a concrete slab which dates back to the time the site was a farm. Not the best place for a garden!
We have created a wild garden in this area by allowing native species to seed & transplanting other natives from other parts of the garden. Log piles & habitat for insects have also been created in this area.
We are also considering removing the remainder of Chinese Privet in the corner of the garden which is completely overgrown.We have established a compost bin ( recycled from the school room development ) in the corner which is nicely screened by the existing bushes.
Flower beds
The rockery along side the drive has been cleared of large amounts of ivy & planted with a mixture of perenial & annual flowers. This provides a lovely back drop to the bench which was moved to the front of church & is in regular use.
The Lawn
This is our latest project.
Pre Covid a border was created alongside the railings & planted with wild flower seed. Whilst this initially succeeded & produced a variety of wild flowers the area was sprayed with weed killer. Either by contractors or the Council.
A log pile has also been created alongside the railings & saplings have been woven into the railings to provide a temporary screen,
This year we decided to leave some of the lawn uncut to promote wild flowers, plants & grasses. The idea was to leave the areas on the edge of the lawn uncut & to establish an island of longer grass with a mown path to follow around. We are going to review the design / layout in the Autumn.
Our plan is that we will sow large parts with perenial wild flower seed. This will provide a succession of flowers & interest from Spring to Autumn. Best of all the seed is available from a Sheffield charity – Pictorial Meadows who provide seed used in the Rotherham verges & were also responsible for the wild meadows at the London Olympics.
Our plans will be brought to the Church Council meeting in October.
Other News
We are making an application to Methodist Insurance for a grant of £1500 to help with improving access to the garden for the local community. The closing date is the 29th July. Yvonne & Hazel are working hard to produce an outstanding application. Results due to be announced 31 October.
How to get involved
During the summer we have been meeting monthly to undertake tasks in the garden. Everyone is welcome regardless of ability or fitness.
The date of the next meeting is 10.30am 17th August
Or if you prefer next time you are in church have wander out into the garden
Tim Wilson
Eco Garden Group
19th July 2022