Hi everyone,

I know I always say this but we’ve had a great couple of weeks in the garden. The Golden Buds toddler group went out in glory with a teddy’s bears picnic, a MASSIVE potato harvest (honestly! such an amazing amount of potatoes off a couple of plants! such tiny green fingers!) and an unnecessarily hot fire on the hottest day of the year. I’m just sorting out booking for next term so get in touch!   And we’d love some more help, the new term starts 6th September and it’s just a couple of joyful hours a week!

 

   

 

The Golden Club finished on a bang on the same scorching hot day with marshmallow fondue, water fights and next level pond dipping – i.e children dipping themselves in the pond.  It’s been a magnificent first couple of terms and we’re full for September but plan to run all year round so get in touch to get on the list! And if that sounds like fun… then why not come and help out?  We’d love more help and it’s only 3 hours and very very fun.  Term starts 6th Sept

 

 

 

      

 

And now it’s the summer holidays so that means Golden Adventure days for 5 to 12 years oldsand we’ve already been busy making cool stuff, starting fires, munching pizza and commuting on a time travelling turtle – and there’s spaces available on the 16th, 23rd and 30th August.  (and of course we’d love help making these as fun as possible- get in touch to come and volunteer!)

 

We ran our first Inclusive Family Adventure Day yesterday and ….. it was FANTASTIC!   17 children from 9 (mostly) local families sang, toasted snacks on the fire, played parachute games, made pizza, lazed in homemade hammocks and enjoyed the new and absolutely fabulous sensory trail built by our volunteers in the edible forest.  It was a joy or as one participant said “really, really, really amazing”.  We’ve got space next week on the 4th (but we’re full for the 18th) so get in touch if you have a child with additional needs or a disability . It’s just a £5! Bug thanks to the Bristol City Council BCR Well Being fund for giving us the cash to make this possible, and keep an eye out for the SEND a Welcome folks working to make the community accessible for everyone.  Also (you’ve guessed it!) we’d love some more help on these days!  4th and 18th of August – just 4 hours of your time or just the morning or the afternoon to help give these families a cracking time in the garden. Let me know!

 

   

The garden is looking great!  The dragonflies are out on the pond, our new butterfly I.D sheets are being put to good use. Our beds are full of veg – purple beans! golden beetroot! black tomatoes! red potatoes! It’s been a great year for our veg.  Except the carrots. Don’t mention the carrots…  

   

       

 

And we’re got a date for our Harvest Fair Saturday 17th September 1-4.  Please pop it on your diaries.  We always need more help! more music!  more cakes! and more idea to make our events lovely.  If you’d like to help organise it please let me know!  Apologies for the local clashes with other events.

 

AND finally a massive thanks to all the folks that make this possible! the amazing team of volunteers that get so much done, keep the garden looking amazing, and grow so much tasty stuff AND the folks that help out with our kids activities!! You know who you’re great!  And if it’s not clear above …. We’re always looking for more help so if you fancy helping any of the kids’ stuff this summer or with the new terms of the toddler groups or after school club then let me know!  It’s all lovely and many hands make light work!

 

See you in the garden!

 

Lucy

Hi everyone!

Hi everyone,

Firstly… The fair! What a great day! nearly 800 folks (yes 800!) through the gate and we raised a whopping great £2100! Whoooop! Thank you everyone who came and enjoyed the punk badger, origami, clay sculpting, willow weaving, facepainting, plant buying, rat splating, cake and pizza munching, not falling in the pond and more! The weather was perfect a glorious sunny day- And I especially liked the downpour of rain that came at 4:10 – just when I was wondering if anyone was planning on going home 🙂

Thank you every who came to make the day so lovely and a thousand thank you’s to everyone who helped on the day. You are amazing!

And we’ll be open again and selling more lovely plants (lots of our flowers and squashed ans pumpkins weren’t ready back for the fair due to the rather bracing spring we had). We’ll be opening again as part of the city wide Get Growing Trail! Saturday 4th June 11-3. We’ve got loads of different squash, tomatoes, aubergines, salads, and flowers and all sorts. Come and say hello and eat some cake. They’ll be pond dipping and the play house for the kids 🙂

Our Tuesday after school Golden Club is now up and running and loads of fun. We’re full at the mo but we plan to run ALL year whatever the weather so please get in touch to get your small folk on the list for September and beyond. We pick up from Bishop Rd Primary School and provide snack, slug hunts, epic den building, fires and fun times!

And no need to wait until next term… this half term Captain Claire and I will be back for a Golden Adventure day! Tuesday 31st May 10-4 £26 including pizza from the frog. Our theme is… birds – so we’ll be bug hunting for food, nest building and having a go at flying! Booking essential.

It been a busy few weeks and one of my favourite times of year – standing in the garden we can practically feel the plants growing around us as the soil warms up and the garden gets greener It’s a great time to come and get involved! And we’d love some more help with our lovely Golden Buds Toddler group if you’ve got a spare couple of hours on a Tuesday morning!

And we’re currently harvesting broad beans, rhubarb, spinach, chard, lettuce and even a bit of aspargus! Come and have a munch!

See you in the garden,

Lucy

P.S You’re receiving this email becasue you have at some point shown an interest in the Golden Hill Community Garden. Just let me know if you’d like to be taken off the list

Lucy Mitchell
Community Project Worker
07506 905 394
ghcgarden@gmail.com

Hi everyone!

  

Hi everyone

Hooray for spring and the things of spring!  Each day new green seedling poke there heads and announce themselves to the world!  We’ve got lettuce, beetroot, cabbage, chillies, melons, tomatoes, peas and all sort of flowers showing their green faces in the polytunnels this week.  We’ve had some miserable Wednesdays of frost and floods and freezing winds this March but yesterday at last it was warm enough to start planting some stuff in the ground! Here’s to our fifth growing season and it’s a great time to get involved.

 

  

 

Other exciting news is that we are now taking bookings for our latest venture the Golden Club. An afterschool club for year 1 to year 6 every Tuesday in term time!  It’ll run from 3:30 – 5:45 cost £8.75 and we’ll be picking up from Bishop Rd School.  It’ll be a joyous mix of outdoor fun –den building, nature exploring, veg growing, making, crafting, fire starting, and generally hooning around playing silly games.  Kids LOVE our adventure days and here’s a chance for them to come every week!  We’ll be running free tasters 12th, 19th and 26th April get in touch to book your place!  And we’ve just got our last couple of spots left for the adventure days in Easter 29th March and 5th April so get in touch to snaffle them up.

          

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But that’s not all!  On the 30th of March we’ll be starting a fab ceramics project with a wonderful local artist. Happening every Wednesday 1:30-2:30 in the Balehouse for get in touch or just come along if you’d like to find out more!  

 

AND a date for your diary – our lovely Spring Fair will be on the 7th May – write it on calendars now!  In pen!  And we’ll be happy to accept any and all donations for plants for our plant sale if you’ve over sow anything. In fact, why not chuck a couple of extra seeds in with us in mind!

 

See you in the garden!

 

Lucy

 

Lucy Mitchell

Community Project Worker

07506 905 394

www.thegoldenhillcommunitygarden.com

 

 

 

 

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Hi everyone

There’s lots and lots going in the garden at the moment- mainly…. SPRING!! Whooop!  and THE FROGS ARE BACK!

 
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There’s. So. Many. It honestly feels like a wonder of nature and I half expect David Attenborough to pop out from the undergrowth.  But they won’t hang around for ever! they’re here to mate before they head back to their allotment homes. So get yourself down here in the next couple of weeks and bask in the gentle and soothing sound of the croaking of hundreds of happy frogs.

 

Coming up as well in the Easter holiday we’ll be running our next Golden Adventure days 29th March and 5th April. It’s pirate themed but salty seadogs and landlubbers welcomed equally!  More of the usual games, crafts, games, pizza and silliness but with added ARRRRRRRs and maybe a parrot, and definitely a plank!  5-12 year olds £25 each and £20 for additional siblings including snacks and lunch.  Booking essential!  

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AND coming up next term we’re pleased to announce our newest venture!  a brand spanking new and exciting after school club – Golden Club!   Running every Tuesday picking up form Bishop Rd School and drop off for other schools. For Year 1 to year 6.  Loads more info to follow but we’ll be running 3 free taster sessions 12th, 19th, 26th April so get in touch to get names down for that! 

 

I’d like to give a special mention to the parents and toddlers of the Golden Buds toddler group who have carried on coming ALL winter through winds and rain and are now all officially ‘Tough Buds’!  Now it’ll just get warmer and more lovely!  We’re changing the times of our sessions so they’ll now run 9:30-11 and a new lunch time picnic session 11:30-1 with all the same fun activities but with more harvesting and eating!  Get in touch to get your name on the list or come to a free taster!

 

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Now it’s onwards and upwards to the warmer weather, seed sowing and growing, biscuit munching and chatting.  It’s a great time to get involved! And we’re back to our summer opening times 10-4 every Wednesday

 

See you in the garden!

 

Lucy

 

Lucy Mitchell

Community Project Worker

07506 905 394

 

ghcgarden@gmail.com

 

Please note I work Part time usually Tuesdays and Wednesdays

Hello everyone!

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HI everyone

 

Hi everyone,

     

Sooo coming up in the garden… we’re running adventure days tomorrow AND Thursday, we’ve got a new term of Golden Buds starting next week. The morning is full but there’s space in the afternoon 1:30-3 group and we’re offering FREE TASTER SESSIONS. Though most excitingly on the 7th of November is our Bonfire Night 6-7:30.  It coincides nicely with the fabulous fireworks put on by the amazing Bishop Rd School PTFA next door and is much less hectic for little folks who can’t manage a crowd.  They’ll be soup and cake for sale and a gurt big bonfire.   We don’t advertise this publicly or shout about it too loudly as that would be a bit cheeky but all our friends and their friends are invited into the garden to enjoy our warm welcome (and other people’s fireworks).  Bring a torch and cake donations very welcome!
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Hi everyone

So!  The Harvest Fair! What. An. Amazing. Day!

Here are the stats*

People through the gate: 400

Total monies taken: £973!

Minutes of glorious sunshine: Only the whole flipping day!

Number of facepainters going like the clappers: 3 

Faces painted: 64

Magicians on site. 1 fabulous one

Number of cakes donated: LOADS and we sold out!

Number of pinecone/apple bird feeders made with the Growing for Gold Crew: 37

Veg monsters created: 33

Apples bobbed to comic effect: countless

Number of children falling in the pond. 0 (an all time low/personal best)

Number of people hurt: 0 (except me who got stung on the face by a wasp)

Number of musical acts rocking it on the solar powered Tower of Power stage: 6!

Number of punk badgers: 1.  Which is the right amount.

 

  
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All in all a lovely event made possible by our fabulous teams of volunteers at each station. Hats off to the folks doing the pizza, cake, pond, crowns, soup, bobbing, painting, gating and the rest!  We always need more people helping at our lovely events and helping to put on them on. So if you’d fancy joining the fab folks on ourevents committee then let me know.  It’s a few chatty meetings to spread out all the jobs so it’s all pretty painless and definitely mostly fun.

And then we only went and won a massive cup! The RHS Britain in Britain in Bloom folks gave us The Gordon Ford Trophy for being the best entry in the It’s Your Neighbour catergory in the South West.  Out of 600 entries! Whoop!
The Golden Buds sessions are a joy and we’d love to have some more volunteers so if you’d like to come help out on Tuesday mornings with digging, dipping, singing and crafting then let me know AND we’ve still space in our afternoon group and are offering free taster sessions.  

 

AND …remember our cosy Bale House is available to hire from £10 an hour and I’m about to start taking bookings for the Golden Adventure days running in the half term Tuesday AND Thursday! More info on them here   but let me know if you’re interested to get first dibs on those places.

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Happy autumn and see you in the garden!

Lucy