EVERYONE is welcome to join our gardening group. We have a large beautiful property, about a city block, to care for. Our property requires a lot of maintenance and labour and we are never finished with the tasks that need doing. The company is good, the work satisfying, and there is food to enjoy with friends.
We have approximately 100 trees on our the site. Most of the trees are deciduous trees and that means SO many leaves to be raked in the fall. Many are used as mulch on garden beds and around trees but there are many more that need to be collected . Please contact me if you would like to help by filling a green bin or a leaf bag. We could use the help!
Our trees and bushes are almost all large and mature and need regular attention from a tree service. Our arborist comes regularly and assesses the safety of our very large trees.
There are 14 apple trees which are pruned using volunteer labour. It’s done in the dead of winter. But if it’s a sunny day, it’s actually fun. If you are interested in helping with this task, please let us know.
We have veggie garden beds near the parking lot that are in need a makeover. Our large mature trees have enormous root systems that are growing into the garden beds. This makes growing vegetables challenging as the hornbeams enjoy the nutrients from the mulch and compost we place on the beds. We have begun placing raised beds with a barrier underneath to improve veggie planting outcomes. I will be ordering four more beds in the early spring.
Watering our gardens in summer is an annual imperative especially with each year’s prolonged dry spells. Systems to water gardens, on timers, have been set up for the summer season for the past several years. It is a time consuming enterprise (it takes a minimum of 3 days to set up) and there are challenges in making this work well.
Lastly, snow. Although we don’t suffer like most of Canada with huge snowfall amounts, the snow has to be dealt with. If you are willing to show up early in the morning and clear sidewalks we would love to hear from you. We do have a snow blower to help with the work load.
The grounds crew meets the third Saturday of the month, from 9am to Noon, rain or shine but not in snow or ice or drenching atmospheric rivers. Not everyone in the group has gardened extensively but we all enjoy each other’s company and the gift of working together in the outdoors, making the grounds look better. There is far too much to do on our enormous property but our little group chips away at the weeds, leaves, pruning, watering and tidying. Our loyal volunteers make a positive difference to our property. Thank you all you lovely, gracious people for continuing to volunteer your time. And please consider joining our team. We would love to have you with us.
Patti Turner, Grounds