The Garden Gang

Despite chilly late-March Saturday afternoons, the Garden Gang started back weeding and tidying up after the winter. This year’s plans include having a booklet and badges for each child as they complete tasks. Ideas brimmed, including a Minion-like planter (made from stacks of painted tyres), nesting boxes, a who-can-grow-the-tallest-sunflower competition, scarecrows and our own compost bin. We go to Recreate, based in Ballymount (see their website recreate.ie), to get art materials, which are essentially recycled materials. Our favourite find has been the compostable window boxes! Not all of our ideas have come to fruition yet … that’s because we’re so busy!

As Easter was so late we’ve actually only started planting our seeds since early May! Each child has planted their own vegetables and/or flowers in their very own compostable window box. We’ve planted carrots, runner beans, beetroots, lettuce, kohlrabi, courgettes, herbs and scattered wild flower seeds in our flower beds. We can’t wait to see them grow.

The apple tree that we planted in spring 2018 is now established and it blossomed again this year. Our mixed hedge, which we planted in spring 2017, continues to thrive, as does our rhubarb. We all admire the splashes of colour from our tulips, geraniums and grasses.

We are all very excited to announce that the St Philip’s allotments will be on show on Sunday 9 June from 2pm – 5pm as part of the Rathmines Garden Trail. Forget Bloom and the Chelsea Flower Show – we are now on the map! As I write we have three weeks to prepare our allotment and help tidy up the paths and hedges. It is a €2 entry fee to each garden, which goes to a local Rathmines Initiative charity. Refreshments will be provided on the day by the Garden Gang. Drop in and see what we have been doing!

The Garden Gang end-of-term party will be on Saturday 22 June at 4 pm. We will recommence on Saturday 7 September at 4 pm.

We meet every Saturday during school term from 4 pm to 5.30 pm-ish at the allotments beside St Philip’s Church. The Garden Gang is for primary school aged children in Sandford and St Philip’s parishes and is free to join, with a donation of €10 per family to buy seeds etc. If you are interested in getting your children involved, contact Helen O’Kelly.

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