We managed to work on every Friday in January, February and March. Our aim over the next three months was to spend the money we had saved on plants, compost and the special perennials for the Jubilee celebrations in June.
The weather before Christmas was often not planting weather, and the plants were not going to be available until spring. We were delighted to be given hundreds of bulbs by Dobbies, which were planted in many of the town’s planters and in the park.
We were given a wheelbarrow, which is really useful in the park to move the compost into some of the flower beds.
January was busy clearing and cleaning the planters all over town. One volunteer Kate, could not work with us on Fridays because of caring responsibilities, but did an amazing job on our fern and wild flower bed at the Stump, clearing and reseeding. Another, Mike, cleared Bond Street and planted roses at the weekends. John’s patch is the wild flower meadow on Haven Bridge which we reseeded, and he planted more native bluebells and snowdrops in the green. Angela is the Art Deco garden wizard and goes when she can and keeps an eye on it. We choose Fridays to work as some of us still have part-time jobs.
We had a blitz starting at the Deco garden, and Kate blitzed the Buoy garden scattering more wild flower seeds.
We moved to the memorial Garden in February and refurbished the planters which had taken a battering over winter, replenished the old post office planters. They also suffer from rubbish and cigarettes.
The long beds in the park took a lot of work and will take more. There’s room for many more plants . The park has less litter and damage now.
We attended the Making a difference morning at the Centenary Methodist Church and met some helpful residents for a couple of mornings.
We also attended the morning at St Botolphs where our video was shown all morning on a loop.
We were in touch with Wyberton School to ask the children to plan a commemorative bed in the park for the Queen’s Jubilee in June.
We were inundated by 60 drawings and paintings, it was difficult to choose winners. We have chosen two and are using ideas from both for the final bed.
We will use succulents as the area is raised and under trees.
I have made a complaint about the flyposting in Boston by the agent for the circus. The Borough has so far removed 51 posters and many on railings and on roundabouts.
I have also been in touch with Lincolnshire County Council about the sale of advertising on roundabouts from Boston to Spalding. I have suggested that planting sponsorship of the roundabouts by firms would be preferable.
Or possibly art works like the buoys or vintage Lincolnshire machinery. The sheep on the John Adams way are partly obscured.
March has been dominated by clearing the B and M bed, used by rough sleepers . Then we tackled the raised Police beds.
The raised Police beds are a joy and have been a picture all winter for the passers by.
During these last three months our orders for the spring planting have been going into the nurseries.
Our four new planters for the park and near the memorial gardens should be arriving, our maritime bed at the flotsam buoy has gone in and looks good.
And the wonderful daffodils given to us by Boston Seeds which are now all over town, in the planters and in the park.
