Wendell Park Gardening Friends

We will be holding our 2019 Annual General Meeting on at 6.30pm Monday 14th October upstairs in the Duchess Pub, 320 Goldhawk Road, W6 0XF  (watch this space as the venue may change!)

We will give a brief report on the year’s activities and the financial position of WPGF and try to address any queries, concerns, comments or suggestions you might have.  We look forward to seeing you there.

 If you are unable to attend but have any issues you would like us to raise, please contact us by email at admin@wendellparkgardeningfriends.co.uk

We were delighted to welcome two groups of Corporate Volunteers who, under the watchful eyes of idverde’s Green Space Development Team set to work on repainting the park railings by the Hartswood Road entrance.  They also helped remove some of the stubborn ivy that was clinging to the railings at the back of the St Saviour’s Vicarage.

We look forward to getting involved with further teams of helpers in due course as the railings restoration project is one that will need to be delivered over the course of many months, if not years!

 

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We are delighted to announce that Wendell Park has been awarded Green Flag status, a tremendous achievement that richly rewards all the hard work put in by idverde and by WPGF over the course of the last two years. You can read about it on LBHF’s website here

Keep Britain Tidy’s Green Flag scheme – now in its 23rd year – uses strict criteria to identify parks with the highest standards of cleanliness, horticulture and facilities.

It recognises and rewards well managed parks and green spaces, setting the benchmark standard for the management of recreational outdoor spaces across the UK and around the world.

Expert judges visit all the applicant sites and assess them against eight strict criteria, including horticultural standards, cleanliness, sustainability and community involvement.

A flagpole with our Green Flag will be put up this autumn.

We’re delighted to share the news that Wendell Park Gardening Friends won the ‘Improving our Environment’ category in LBHF’s Civic Honours. The winners were announced in a ceremony at Hammersmith Town Hall on 12th June.

This is an award for everyone who’s helped us make the park even greener – the volunteer gardeners; those who’ve donated money so helping us to raise £10,000; local businesses who’ve given us equipment; the 28th Hammersmith Scouts Group who planted bulbs; the pupils of Wendell Park School and support from the local council, to name but a few.
This is a community project – our aim is to make the park a better place for everyone to enjoy.  And just as gratifying as the award are the comments and compliments we get from passers-by.  It’s worth the hard work digging, planting and watering to know that our efforts will be enjoyed for years to come.

So thanks to everyone – see you in the park!

Congratulations to Frances and Caroline for setting up a lovely stall on Starch Green at the May Madness festival.  They managed to sign up quite a few new members to WPGF as well as raising nearly £70 from the sale of plants, seeds and homemade cakes and jam to help buy more plants, compost and tools for the park!

We received another large delivery of shrubs and plants on the 10^thMay, fortunately after a day of heavy rain which made it much easier for the volunteers to dig them into the south border.  This has made a great difference to the appearance of the western end of this bed and several gaps have now been successfully filled in.

On the north side of the park, pupils from Wendell Park School have planted seeds at the eastern part of the narrow border which runs between the dog exercise area and Cobbold Road and these are doing well, particularly the sunflowers.   The Gardening Friends have also planted a small herb garden at the western end of this border which transformed this formerly overgrown area into a very interesting corner.

The ideal growing conditions of the last few weeks has also benefitted the weeds which have sprung to life and are aggressively colonising the borders. We are doing our best to keep them under control and are hoping that as many volunteers as possible will come to help with weeding, feeding and watering on Saturday 1st June from 10am and on every 1st Saturday of the month over the summer and autumn.

Great excitement in the park today when a swarm of honeybees paid us a visit. Fortunately our local Bee Keepers Association representative was on hand within twenty minutes to find them a new home!

The snowdrops planted last year have been flowering in the southern border since Christmas and have now been joined by celandines and crocuses whilst a lot more bulbs are pushing through the soil’s surface and will form a colourful swathe beside the path. Bulbs planted by the local scout group will soon be brightening up the northern border and the Gardening Friends have put a low willow edging here, the willow comes from trees cut back by the Council on Wormwood Scrubs.

During the last few weeks a considerable amount of ivy has been removed from the border between the dog area and Cobbold Road which will help the roses flower more easily during the summer, there is still some digging to do here and children from Wendell Park School and also cubs and scouts from the 28th Hammersmith Group will then be able to help with the planting. Ivy is also been removed from the Cobbold Road gate pillars.

More bushes, shrubs and plants have been ordered which will fill out the south and north borders, they should arrive Friday 1st March and we will be planting them on that day and the also the morning of Saturday 2nd March, volunteers are most welcome to come and help.