Springing into life at Denmarkfield Allotments!

Read on to hear about our upcoming Growing Workshop and Allotment Open Day on Saturday 24th May (TICKETS: https://tinyurl.com/39ersk9v) and all that's been happening down at the plots as nature really takes off for the season!

A new shared plot at Denmarkfield Allotments, with the help of many hands is beginning to, quite literally, get off the ground. Set right in front of the Bumblebee Bothy - our communal gathering space which has been glowing golden in glorious sunshine - this half plot is now home to a few raised beds of different heights, a couple (rather fittingly!) with the air of a beehive about them. These were crafted by the fantastic guys at Stanley and District Men’s Shed, who took up the mantle of still-being-worked-through plans with gusto and grace, including a rainy yet cheerful delivery service from Jake and Dougie, pictured below. Quick to help and equally so to raise a smile, we hope to work more with this great bunch of volunteers in the future, and we are so grateful to Alec and all the guys’ support of the project thus far.  

In March, the Friends of Denmarkfield met one Sunday to take on a variety of tasks around the plot, this blank slate becoming a hive of activity, creativity, and teamwork. Making use of natural materials, we explored making a raised bed edge with willow, created a microhabitat in the corner in the form of a log pile, and filled the Men’s Shed planters with a variety of materials – including cardboard, sticks and leaves – in the spirit of hyggekultur, which will hopefully break down over time and feed the compost and plants being grown up top.

Oh, and these guys built us a sink!! A round of applause for our wonderful volunteers.

An approach championed by Charles Dowding, raised beds are a form of ‘No-Dig’ gardening, which over recent years has attracted attention and followers like early bees to the first flowering plants. (If you are interested read more here: https://www.charlesdowding.co.uk/resources/beginners-guide).  

It encourages the regeneration of soil structure by adding organic material on top of undisturbed ground, emulating natural processes of decomposition, and essentially allowing composting and growing to work in tandem. The soil at the allotments is a product of the land’s history: stones linger below the surface, a relic from when it was a riverbed; compacted but fertile after decades of farming, worms are doing their work just as arable 'weeds' arrive to fill the space.  

In rewilding, we go in for natural processes. We also go in for people. These raised beds will provide scope for people to attend horticultural workshops or take part in communal growing, encouraging the sharing of knowledge, skills, and – eventually – produce! Different heights create options; working happily down on haunches or standing, no back-bending. This space will hopefully be tended by people of different generations and backgrounds in the months and years to come, sharing not only the knowledge and connection present within allotments in general, but the nature-rich surroundings of Denmarkfield in particular...  

Look up, and you will no doubt see and hear the ever-enigmatic skylarks, lifting spirits as they rise through the air, or your eye might be caught by the awkward bobbing of a grey heron walking through the neighbouring wildflower meadow, like a dinosaur wading through the wilderness. Zoning out, you can let the sound of the new bridge traffic fade below the buzzing of queen bees out on a mission or the recently arrived and trilling grasshopper warbler. You may lose yourself in watching the buzzards see off a crow (or is it the other way about?) or feel your inner child come forth as you rescue a mammoth worm bulging from the earth.  

Goldfinch hanging out on the allotment fence, reproduced with permission from Marcus Tyler.

So, what is next? As pockets of activity begin around the plots – onions, leeks, and tatties are in, like a soup recipe calling forth, some rhubarb for dessert? – we are busy organising a Growing Workshop on Saturday 24th May. Chilly mornings but a memory, with lots of seeds still to be planted. In partnership with Perthshire Seed Library – a rich and valuable source of knowledge as well as locally grown, open-pollinated seeds - this will be our first public allotment gathering.

From 10.30am-12pm there will be a workshop, ‘Sowing Seedy Companions’ facilitated by Seed Library volunteers who generously come with expertise and experience to share. From 12pm-1.30pm, the allotments will be open-gate and drop-in. Come and see what’s happening, have a wander, and grab a cuppa. There may even be some seedlings left to swap so please bring any you’ve got at home you’d like to share! With free activities including a scavenger hunt, pop down with the kids for an hour of nature-based fun.  

The workshop will explore companion planting (how flowers and herbs can work together with vegetables for better growing and more biodiversity) with a focus on sowing successional (in stages, throughout the season, to allow continuous harvesting) and later season crops (think: pak choi and rocket). Covering topics such as spacing and watering, we will get stuck in with sowing seeds and transplanting seedlings, creating beds of veg, herbs, and flowers on the community plot but also leaving you with a seeded pot to take away. The event is free, with an optional donation to cover costs of the event and support the Seed Library.

Please visit this link to book your spot: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/growing-workshop-with-perthshire-seed-library-plus-allotment-open-day-tickets-1335357844259?aff=oddtdtcreator  

Alternatively, email Laurie at: laurie@denmarkfield.co.uk.  

This workshop will help you to think about and plan your growing space so it works for the plants, for pollinators, for you. If you’re not sure where to start when it comes to growing, here is a great place. This is absolutely a workshop suitable for beginners but there is ample opportunity for those with more experience to refresh and share their knowledge – always there is a rabbit hole to dive down! All are welcome. If you have a spare small pot or tray (e.g. when you’ve used up your mushrooms from the supermarket) please bring it along, but not to worry, we will have some to provide. If you have spare seeds or seedlings at home that are surplus and you would like to share/swap, please bring them with you!  

When you walk past the allotments towards the river, check out our new Bug Kingdom, created with the help of our Rewilding Rangers who met one morning during the Easter Holidays to create this masterpiece. In the past week, red campion has come into flower on top. Thank you to the children & adults who built it! We will host 2 more Rewilding Rangers sessions in the summer holidays, one on Wednesday 9th July and another on Wednesday 30th July. Details to follow soon but expect a chance to don your citizen science cap or get crafty as we explore the plant and animal life inhabiting Denmarkfield. 

N.B. Donations for the allotments of wood, compost, manure, gardening tools, seed/seedlings are very welcome – all the better if you can drop it off. We are also looking to add guttering and water butts to the Bumblebee Bothy – if you, serendipitously, know of any to spare, please get in touch!  

Further Dates for the Denmarkfield Diary... 

Sunday 8th June: our Friends of Denmarkfield session will be a Balsam Bash. Help us reduce the impact of this invasive species onsite.

Wednesday 2nd July: we will be hosting a kids storytelling and crafting activity at the AK Bell Library, and another on Thursday 24th July at the North Inch Community Campus Libary to celebrate this year’s Summer Reading Challenge theme of Story Garden: Adventures in Nature and the Great Outdoors. Keep an eye on our social media or the Culture Perth and Kinross ‘What’s On’ website for booking soon! There are some other great events coming up, for both adults and children, encouraging us to think about our own stories and what the environment means to us. Why not see what’s coming up at your local library?  

Sunday 6th July: will be Denmarkfield’s 4th Anniversary Party, an Open-Day style event and round-up of the year passed, it will also tie in with National Meadows Day (Sat 5th July). Keep your ear to the ground for more exciting info on this coming soon!  

Please don't hesitate to get in touch | laurie@denmarkfield.co.uk | 07425070906