Not doing it for the judges

Monday's meeting was at the Barkly Road planter to spread some compost before the parks department came and put the chippings down to put the weeds off growing and because this is meant mostly as a shrubbery.  I can't say that I'll miss the weekly bag of chickweed the bed has been producing!

I took this just as I was leaving, everyone else is very industrious still.

Had you noticed that the baskets are out on the lamposts.  I hadn't, as Angela says, I should spend less time watching my feet and more with my eyes on the world.  They are not quite up to photographing yet.

The tubs outside St Anthony's were up and ready and this bed was mulched or chipped or whatever by Thursday - I did notice that - head up, Judith.

Then on Saturday a couple of us went over to fill the St Anthony's tubs.  This is where they are,

and here's a close up, to brighten your day.

 

The rest of us stayed and worked in the Park, on the Bowling Green Border:

 Stage 1 consultation:

 Stage 2 implementation

Stage 3 Admiration

 

The long borders in The Millenium Garden are really looking good for the attention and if you spot David twice, you're right, he put in a heck of a lot of work.



And then in the afternoon, it rained, which is just how it should be!


Today, if the weather had been organised by Yorkshire in Bloom, we would have been panicking about being ready for tomorrow and the judging.  We were saying that we could have been as ready as we ever were.  Judge for yourself!

St Mary's Joy and the Brians have their garden well in hand

a close up of a trough by the church

This cross of daffs is not very flowery, though still well marked out.  It was my first vol with Beeston in Bloom.

 This tub ...

 and this one are both outside hairdressers on Town Street.  Do you think it a coincidence that they are so lovely?

And this is part of the herbs and dragnflies garden - I think it was named for the group that donated it, rather than the contents - at the top of the park.

Linda gave out the veg seeds for the RHS initiative on Saturday so we'll tell you how that goes. And the next big thing is the plant sales - my toms are coming on a treat.

Gardening in the sun

It was lovely to garden in the sunshine on Saturday.  It is ages since I've done anything at the Cardinal Triangle and I was happily surprised at how well the paths were lasting.  I forgot my camera, which is why I'm late posting, but Linda had hers with us, so thank you for this shot where you can see that Frederic is splitting and moving the grasses, Sara, David and I are weeding and Angel is enjoying a well earned rest in the sunshine:

 

 

Where David is, the gravel bed allows for this, and aren't they lovely!

I can't decide if it's good news

The Spring Yorkshire in Bloom judging has been cancelled 'due to adverse weather conditions'.

Gardener's Delight

Not a weekend for gardening - the planned go at the Millennium Garden was snowed off.
This is what the Barkly Road planter looked like:

You can see that the daffs are trying to bloom. 

 

Indoors my seeds for the spring plants sale are through. These are Gardener's Delight tomatoes.  If you look close, you can see that the real leaves are coming through.

I did walk over to litter pick with 'Love Beeston Clean Beeston' on Thursday but it wasn't on. There is one next week.



A bit of bright in the grey





The nearest Dewsbury Road trough to me is turning into a host of golden daffodils.
This is a planting idea from the same issue of the 'Garden' that offered the free vegetable seeds.

They did an article on nigellas.  This one is Nigella damascena planted with Eschhscolzia californica.  Sarah Raven, who wrote the article, says they grow best direct sown in March or April and thinned to 30cm apart.  I'm wondering where we can try it!

09/03/13 Pruning

We met at the Millenium Garden in the freezing cold on Saturday to have a pruning lesson from Niels. We spent the first hour pruning shrubs and shearing grasses which kept us reasonably warm.



There were more of us but by the time we remembered to take any photos everyone was busy.

In the second hour Niels explained how to prune the fruit trees and bushes in the Community Orchard [this project belongs to the Friends of Cross Flatts Park but, as several members belong to both groups, the pruning lesson was a joint venture]. Because we were doing a lot more listening and standing still we were frozen to the bone by the end of the session. I was even too cold to go shopping afterwards!!!

Linda and I represented Beeston in Bloom at the Civic Hall on Wednesday evening at an event held by South Leeds Councillors to thank local volunteer groups. I've had to pinch photos from Linda as my camera battery ran out.



There were displays from lots of other groups there and it was very interesting. Linda and I got talking to members of the Beeston History group, we were trying to find out if there was nay of our heritage we could feature on judging day but I think most of our history has been built over.

Sara

We've been given judging day for Yorkshire in Bloom - it's the 15th April.
 
On Thursday some of us joined with the Love Beeston, Clean Beeston campaign and litter picked on Harlech Road and Maud Avenue. It is going to be a weekly Thursday morning thing, meeting at 10.45 at the Hamara Centre and picking for an hour.  The council are doing a big pick up and street sweep at the same time.

Saturday was the extra working party. It was also a beauuuutiful day. I took two layers off, digging out pink geraniums from the band-stand-to-be and replanting them in the bowling green border ( yes, that place again). Susan's usual steady enthusiasm kept me on task and it felt like a job done.

 

Linda and Christine tackled some of the monster grasses in the long bed and replanted them as well as sprucing the Millennium Garden.












The yellow and white beds are the ones that really show spring.



 



These crocuses, or is it croci, are doing really nicely

and though they don't stand out the hellebores are looking lovely too.