Monday 10th December 2012 – Raised Beds Allocated
The Committee met to allocate raised beds and to plan activities for next year.
Sunday 9th December 2012 – Last Garden Task Of The Year
We held our last garden task of the year. We cleared away frosted nasturtiums, tobacco, Cosmos and achocha and finished tidying the garden for the winter.
Monday 19th November 2012 – 2013 Raised Bed Applications
A reminder that the closing date to apply for a raised bed to grow your own vegetables in 2013 is 1st December 2012.
To apply, read the Tenancy Agreement and complete a Raised Bed Application form and send it to us by 1st December 2012.
You must be a member of the Grapes Hill Community Garden Group to rent a raised bed – join using our Membership Application form.
Saturday 10th November 2012 – The Dirigibles
The Dirigibles played at our fundraising gig at The Belvedere Centre. It was a great evening!
See some pictures of the event on Facebook.
Sunday 4th November 2012 – Garden Task Cancelled
Today’s garden task has been cancelled due to heavy rain.
We will have one last task on Sunday 9th December to clear away the nasturtiums once they’ve been frosted and do any other end of season tasks, such as sweeping up the last leaves.
Sunday 21st October 2012 – A New Path
We spent the afternoon working in the garden and, as well as tidying up and potting up spare Golden Lemon Balm, Marjoram and Chinese Chives plants, we put in a new stepping stone path by the bottom ash tree.
Friday 19th October 2012 – Friends of Norwich In Bloom Presentation Evening
Jo and Jeremy went to the Friends of Norwich In Bloom Presentation Evening at The Assembly House and received a big pile of awards, including an RHS ‘It’s Your Neighbourhood’ award (Level 5 Outstanding), a certificate and carved wooden bowl as prizes for Anglia In Bloom’s ‘Best Community Project’ and individual certificates for several GHCGG members, for help on judging days. We also received certificates to mark Norwich’s success in both the Anglia In Bloom and Britain In Bloom competitions, in which our garden played its part.
See pictures of the awards on our Facebook page.
Our members Rosemary and Peter Salt were also at the awards and Rosemary won several certificates for their lovely garden on Connaught Road.
Tuesday 9th October 2012 – 2013 Raised Bed Applications
The closing date to apply for a raised bed to grow your own vegetables in 2013 is 1st December 2012.
To apply, read the Tenancy Agreement and complete a Raised Bed Application form and send it to us by 1st December 2012.
You must be a member of the Grapes Hill Community Garden Group to rent a raised bed – join using our Membership Application form.
Sunday 7th October 2012 – Autumn Sunshine
We had an enjoyable and productive afternoon in the garden, with several new volunteers. We widened the Chamomile Path, potted up Garlic Chives seedlings, transplanted Golden Lemon Balm and Chives, weeded the meadow and trimmed the lavender hedge. It was a beautifully sunny autumn day.
Monday 17th September 2012 – Public Meeting
In the evening we held a public meeting at The Belvedere Centre.
Tuesday 11th September 2012 – Anglia In Bloom Best Community Project Award
Today we were awarded the prize for Best Community Project at the Anglia In Bloom Awards 2012 in St. Ives in Cambridgeshire.
See the Eastern Daily Press for details of the awards, which also included Mancroft Ward, of which we are part (Urban Community and Most Improved categories) and Norwich (City category).
Sunday 19th August 2012 – Almost Too Hot To Garden
Today we managed to do some gardening in spite of the heat (26°C). We sowed Yellow Rattle (Rhinanthus minor) seeds in the meadow, weeded, removed docks from the meadow, pruned the Wisteria – and watered for the first time this year. Many plants are flagging in the current hot, dry weather as the ash trees take lots of water from the soil.
Sunday 12th August 2012 – Poetry In The Garden
We had a day of glorious sunshine for our Poetry In The Garden event featuring Norwich Poetry Group and wildlife poet Richard Bonfield. We also enjoyed music by Lucy & Dee (and a friend).
Thanks to The Reindeer pub for letting visitors use their toliets and to everyone who helped at the event.
View some photos on Facebook – more will be posted soon.
Saturday 11th August 2012 – Three Men Went To Mow…
It’s that time of year again – time for the annual cut of the wildflower meadow. Patrick, Richard and Jeremy spent the morning cutting the meadow. We removed the cuttings as this will reduce the fertility of the soil and reduce competition between grasses and less vigorous wildflowers.
Thursday 2nd August 2012 – Britain In Bloom
This morning judges from Britain In Bloom visited our garden as part of their route around Norwich and received a warm welcome from members of the Grapes Hill Community Garden Group.
Wednesday 25th July 2012 – Garden Wins Biodiversity Award
Last night Grapes Hill Community Garden won the Group Award at the Norfolk Biodiversity Partnership Awards, which were held at the Abbey Conference Centre at Carrow in Norwich.
The garden was described as a “visionary project to create a community garden from a tarmac area in the heart of Norwich”.
Fran and Jeremy attended the awards, along with Rev. Philip Young, who nominated us. Earlier in the day Radio Norfolk visited the garden and Fran and Jeremy were interviewed in the garden.
Saturday 21st July 2012 – Garden Donates Plants For Home-Start Family Fun Day
One of our neighbours in the St. Benedict’s View Business Units is Home-Start Norwich, a charity supporting families in the Norwich area who are struggling with issues such as social isolation, mental or physical health problems, bereavement or just the usual stresses and strains of bringing up a young family.
Home-Start are holding a Family Fun Day on Wednesday 1st August at The Forum, which will include children’s games, cakes and a lucky dip.
We have donated some spare herb plants from the garden to sell at the event.
Tuesday 17th July 2012 – Garden Receives Green Flag Award
We are pleased to announce that the garden has been awarded a Green Flag Award today.
The award recognises well-managed, high-quality green spaces. Any green space in the UK is eligible to win this award providing it is freely accessible to the public. Previous winners include parks managed by local authorities as well as those run by community groups and trusts. The scheme was set up in 1996. For more details see www.greenflagaward.org.uk.
Monday 16th July 2012 – More Photos on Facebook
You can see more photos of our First Birthday Party on Facebook here.
Tuesday 10th July 2012 – Anglia In Bloom and Birthday Photos
This morning judges from Anglia In Bloom visited our garden as part of their route around Norwich.
And this afternoon we put some photos of our First Birthday Party on this website and on Facebook.
Sunday 8th July 2012 – First Birthday Party
We celebrated the garden’s first year of being open to the public with a party in the garden from 3pm – 9pm.
Food and drink were provided by The Green Grocers, storytelling was by Sarah and Barrie and the music was from The Dirigibles, Tom Conway, The Proposition and ‘Joe Tozer & Nick Zuppardi’ and many others.
The weather improved steadily through the afternoon, after a start when we were glad of the shelter provided by our gazebos and tarpaulins. Star of the show was, as always, the garden, which is looking great.
We will post photos on this website and on Facebook soon.
Tuesday 12th June 2012 – Grapes Hill Goes To Sandringham
Two GHCGG members, Ieuan and Jeremy, went to went to Sandringham yesterday, representing Grapes Hill Community Garden Group, to see Her Majesty at the Diamond Jubilee Garden Party.
It was a great afternoon, with tea, sandwiches and cake, a look around the gardens, a chance to people watch and even a brief glimpse of the Queen. And the sun shone, which was even more unusual…
See coverage of the event in the Eastern Daily Press.
Saturday 9th June 2012 – Strangers’ Hall Garden
Members of the Grapes Hill Community Garden Group had an interesting and enjoyable tour of the garden at Strangers’ Hall in Norwich, complete with tea and biscuits in the garden. Many thanks to our hosts for arranging the visit for us. See the photos on Facebook.
Wednesday 6th June 2012 – Latest Photos and Plant List
The latest photos of the garden are on Facebook.
We’ve also planted a few new things in the garden, such as a Goji Berry (Lycium barbarum) and this year’s Achocha plants, one of which we hope will grow up the pergola in the space occupied last year by a Cobaea scandens.
See our updated list of plants in the garden.
Sunday 3rd June 2012 – Garden Task Cancelled Due To Rain
This afternoon’s garden task has been cancelled due to rain. This is the first task we’ve ever had to cancel in the year and a half that we’ve been working in the garden.
Sunday 20th May 2012 – Afternoon In The Garden
On our garden task we planted sunflowers, Caucasian spinach (Hablitzia tamnoides) and Swiss chard plants, weeded and mowed the lawn.
Thursday 10th May 2012 – Public Meeting
In the evening we held a public meeting at The Belvedere Centre.
Monday 7th May 2012 – Norfolk Gardens and Green Spaces Festival
Grapes Hill Community Garden events are listed on the Norfolk Gardens and Green Spaces Festival website.
The Norfolk Gardens and Green Spaces Festival runs from 18th May to 27th July 2012 and brings together events being held in gardens and green spaces throughout Norfolk during the Diamond Jubilee celebrations and run up to the Olympics.
Sunday 6th May 2012 – How Does Your Garden Grow
We had a stall at the ‘How Does Your Garden Grow’ event at Gressenhall Farm and Workhouse and spread the word about the garden to visitors.
Meanwhile, back in Norwich, we also had a garden task in the afternoon.
Saturday 28th April 2012 – Plantation Garden and Narthex Garden
Members of the Grapes Hill Community Garden Group braved the cold and damp for a very interesting and enjoyable tour of The Plantation Garden, followed by a visit to the Cathedral Garden behind The Narthex at St. John’s RC Cathedral. We finished off the tour with tea and cakes inside The Narthex. Many thanks to our guides, Janet and Zanna. See the photos on Facebook.
Our next GHCGG Members’ Tour will be on Saturday 9th June at Strangers’ Hall garden. To take part, you must be a member of the Grapes Hill Community Garden Group – join using our Membership Application form.
Wednesday 25th April 2012 – Spring Photo Gallery
View our Spring 2012 photo gallery.
Sunday 22nd April 2012 – Sunshine and Showers
April showers didn’t dampen our spirits as we weeded, planted and sowed seeds on our afternoon garden task.
See the photos on Facebook.
Sunday 25th March 2012 – Gardening In The Sunshine
We enjoyed a sunny afternoon in the garden, where we continued the spring weeding and tidying.
We also worked on the meadow, removing over-vigorous plants to create bare patches for sowing cornfield annuals. It’s good to see some of the perennial wildflowers we sowed last spring have established themselves, including Sorrel, Yarrow, Bladder Campion and Oxeye Daisies.
Wednesday 21st March 2012 – Another Tree Sponsored
Thanks to Aran Services Ltd for sponsoring our “Stella” cherry.
Friday 16th March 2012 – Norwich 1850 – 1950
In the evening Peter and Rosemary Salt gave a very enjoyable and well attended talk at The Belvedere Centre, featuring old photographs of Norwich.
It was also a chance for people to discover more about the garden, by looking at our display boards and chatting with members of the Garden Group.
Sunday 11th March 2012 – First Spring Garden Task
We held our first spring garden task today, on a beautifully warm and sunny afternoon. The recent rain, followed by sun, has caused plants to start growing and the garden is changing every day. Daffodils, Spring Squills, Tulips and the first Anemone blanda are in flower.
We cut back a lot of our herbaceous perennials and herbs, to make way for new spring growth. We also weeded and turned the compost. Garden Group members also worked on their raised beds, preparing the soil and planting the first seeds. And there was tea and cake…
See the photos on Facebook.
Thursday 1st March 2012 – Norwich Eco Awards
Last night three members of the group went to the Norwich Eco Awards ceremony at Norwich City Hall. Chris Higgins, the Sheriff of Norwich, presented the awards.
Grapes Hill Community Garden Group was a commended entry in the Eco Community Group category and our Chairman, Jeremy Bartlett, was awarded the Eco Hero award for his work in the garden and also at The Belvedere Centre. Read the Evening News article here.
Sunday 26th February 2012 – We Put Up Nestboxes
This afternoon we put up four of the nestboxes built last Sunday at ‘Look Forward To Spring’, one on each ash tree. See photos on Facebook.
We also have a second photo album from ‘Look Forward To Spring’.
Sunday 19th February 2012 – Look Forward To Spring
We had a lovely sunny day for our ‘Look Forward To Spring’ event. Lots of people visited the garden and enjoyed lovely homemade soup and cakes and warming cups of tea.
We built nestboxes, had a seed swap and there were opportunities to learn about the garden, the RSPB, Norfolk Master Gardeners and Norfolk Master Composters.
And we also raised £59.21 for the garden. Thanks to everyone who came along, and to everyone who helped run the event.
See the photos on Facebook.
Sunday 29th January 2012 – Fruit pruning and winter tidy up
Over twenty people came along to our garden task, the first of 2012. We pruned fruit trees and soft fruit, swept the paths, planted Oxeye Daisies in the meadow and had tea and cake.
Most of our new raised bed tenants came along and were given a Master Gardeners growing pack, with a free packet of seeds. They will receive help and advice on growing vegetables during the coming year.
Sunday 15th January 2012 – Floranova Donates Vegetable Seeds
Thanks to Nick Belfield-Smith of Floranova for supplying us with free vegetable seeds.
Thursday 12th January 2012 – Annual General Meeting
Our Annual General Meeting at The Belvedere Centre was well attended. We reviewed the last year, decided on dates for events and garden tasks and elected new committee members.