The last of the snow was melting away today so we took the opportunity to get in the Garden and finish off some jobs. We started by rearranging some of the herbs in herb bed number two. This involved pulling out some more mint and putting it in pots so the roots do not take over. Only got two more herb beds to go!

Pat carried on deadheading whilst Jen collected all our seeds together and put them in order of when we should plant them. The kids water the bulbs in the polytunnel and then wheelbarrowed enough woodchippings to cover the last of the fruit cage floor. Well done! Phil was left in charge of shed storage. The tool shed had been cleared out two weeks ago put hadn't been put together. Phil purchaced some nifty garden storage and now 99.9% of things are back in the shed.

After lunch there was a massive group effort to clear the polytunnel of grass that had crept in under the polythene, broom the floor and worktops and unwinding the hose to check for leaks. This will be followed up next week by laying down more weed control matting and covering it with woodchip.

After our fantastic team effort it was only fair to use up the last of the snow by starting a massive snowball fight OVER the polytunnel! Two teams competed to throw snowballs over the polytunnel to hit the other team with some spectacular direct hits!

Fantastic turn out today of all the old crew! And with so many people on site so much was achieved.

We had a team of people getting more woodchip for the fruit cage floor, another team cutting back all the mint and fruit bushes with the new securters and gloves, whilst another group started tidying up the herb beds. These beds need some TLC as the mint roots have overtaken the whole bed. We dug out the mints and potted them up then buried the whole pot in the ground to contain the roots. Fingers crossed!

The last of our spring bulbs went out today and the rhubarb we had in a large pot was put back in the ground. The pot worked but the rhubarb grew so thin. All the while Phil was beavering away emptying the tool shed to make way for new storage units.

*** Today we set up the Kid's Forum! ***
The juniors of the Garden will have a chance to meet four times a year to discuss things they would like to see in happen in the Garden. They came up with some fantastic ideas which they shared with us and we are planning to help them achieve the best ideas this year.

We also had a really informative meeting with Voluntary Action Mid Surrey (VAMS). Julie was extremely helpful with giving us advice on how to recruit more volunteers, charitable status and other funding opportunities. We look forward to working with her closely during the next year.

Claire served up a lunch of hot soup and bread which was enjoyed by all!

Happy New Year and I hope you have all had a wonderful festive time!
We reopened the Garden on Saturday 5th January to get the 2013 season up and running.
First jobs today included weeding the bean bed and topping it with manure followed by harvesting the parsnips and leeks. Some of the parsnips had started to rot underground due to the awful weather we have been having. But they did grow as expected and smelt delicious as soon as they came out the ground. Perfect for some parsnip soup.
The leeks on the other hand have stored better under the ground but grew round and fat rather that long and straight! They were such a sensitive seedling that we found it very difficult to get them growing outdoors. The seedling really needed looking after and went out into the ground quite late compared to other crops.
We then had a hunt for the secateurs! We could not find them anywhere! This prompted us to really look at the mess and storage in the polytunnel. We then spent the rest of the day putting the polytunnel in order and getting round to taking things up to the the skip.
We also checked on our spring bulbs and they seem to be pushing through. Plus some wildflower seed mix has started to germinate! Winter pansies are also adding a welcome splash of colour :)
Oh! News for 2013.... We have permission to build a toilet on site! We had our first builders quote today. Exciting stuff!