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Under-used, neglected or disused areas of land have been transformed into allotment style gardens where local residents can grow their own fruit and vegetables, writes RBKC Environment Manager TERRY OLIVER. Started in 2009, the community kitchen gardens initiative has proved really popular with local residents. There are no allotments in the Borough so this project has helped fill this niche, and allowed residents to try their hand at growing their own. Over the last year more sites have been developed, creating over 300 raised plots being used by over 600 local residents and community groups. Each plot is about 3 metres by 3 metres, which provides a small but manageable size plot.
The kitchen garden project has been successful at bringing the local community together. “It has given me and my family such an enormous sense of pleasure to be able to grow and harvest our own food,” says one resident. “It is an absolutely brilliant use of disused space and the rewards, though sometimes a little slim in my case! are extremely worthwhile. The satisfaction of growing your own is amazing and hopefully will continue for a long time to come.” While another says: “I have not only enjoyed learning to grow salads and vegetables, I have also very much enjoyed the friendliness of other plot holders and feel that we have a great sense of community”.
An essential part of the kitchen garden project is providing free gardening support, advice and training to plot holders and interested residents. Therefore two part-time community gardeners are employed during the growing season (March to November) to run a programme of garden workshops, events and provide gardening support. This allowed plot holders to plan what they want to grow, receive free expert advice and practical gardening tips. This support has also helped plot holders establish garden clubs for their kitchen garden sites. The Council is keen for each kitchen garden to have their own garden club which will help manage and oversee their kitchen garden, allow them to fund raise and run their own garden events and help make the kitchen garden project more sustainable and self sufficient over the long term.
Last year, 2011, was the launch of the Brighter Kensington and Chelsea Scheme (BKCS), Community Kitchen Garden Vegetable Plot competition, which forms part of the larger BKCS summer competition. The kitchen garden competition was very successful last year and will be repeated again this year. The competition is open to all kitchen garden plot holders and prizes are awarded to the “Best Plot”, the best “Community Plot” and the best plot at St Quintins Avenue kitchen garden. Apply to nicolaheywood@gmail.com
Slow Sunday it’s all in the mind
Not forgetting: Slow Sunday will be part of the Open Garden Squares Weekend for the first time this year, at 2pm on 10th June. Slow Down facilitators will run free sessions “to encourage Londoners to step back from the hubbub to explore the pleasures of slowing down”. This free 30 minutes of calm will take place in selected gardens and squares. Simple exercises on slowing down and developing mindfulness which helps people move out of ‘automatic pilot’, bringing awareness into every day activities. Explore your senses by listening, looking and smelling the world around you.www.opensquares.org www.slowdownlondon.co.uk www.beingmindful.co.uk
No tickets for Chelsea? Fringe fest comes West
No tickets for the Chelsea Flower Show? Don’t despair because spreading out to include us in the west, The Chelsea Fringe starts next week as ‘a new festival of flowers, gardens and gardening across London’. Among the local action, Westbourne Park Road’s The Idler Academy will have a 
generous coating of chlorophyll. The Grove of Idleness is designed by Angela Newman and Annie Guillefoyle. Also in our neck of the wood will be the special Bicycling Beer Garden (above) which will be touring garden Fringe events. The travelling garden with the boozy theme will feature a trailer laden with planted beer kegs, cans and bottles (the seeds have just been planted), which will be towed around town by bicycle. Also, as previously written about, a floating forest will bring the still waters of the Grand Union canal to life with 600 floating slices of tree trunks (right) by The Dock Kitchen, Portobello Docks, Ladbroke Grove. Events are on from 19th May – 10th June. http://www.chelseafringe.com/west-london
Helping children at risk in the neighbourhood is what Rugby Portobello Trust is all about. At a fundraising meeting this week its director, Mark Simms, outlined the different things the charity does to help change the lives of people in the borough. There is a Magic Mums club to support young mothers – and also an award winning contraception and sexual health clinic. Four nights a week RPT runs a homework club which supports about 40 young people with the help of local volunteers (more needed by the way, if you would like to help with a spot of reading, writing or arithmetic). “It is packed to the rafters,” says Simms. Volunteers also do one-to-one academic support for all ages, primary school to university and adult literacy. Pluse, there is an Into Work project for prison leavers – with a job they are 80 per cent less likely to re-offend. All that, plus a youth club four nights a week offering trampolining, a music studio, cookery and a gym. Homeless too are helped. There are currently 60 young people living in RPT’s hostels and others are being supported in their homes. Another programme nurtures future football, rugby and cricket stars. “We must be doing something right”, says Simms proudly of RPT, “Last year we had 750 young people on our books, and this year we have 1150″. www.rugbyportobello.org.uk
