Wednesday 4th March 2026 - Grow Gurnard & Old School Meadow, Cockleton Lane, Gurnard. GG #1070

 Another season beckons! As we work very much with the seasons our tasks will change too as we go into March, and this week sees the start of this change. 

We were kept busy though with lots to do. Grow Gurnard goes from strength to strength, each time we return new features have been installed and hedge and fruit trees planted. This occasion was extra special as the 'Coat of Hopes' made an appearance as part of it's tour of the Country. A source of optimism it gets added to with new patches, indeed ours was added, adding to the stories of communities and people of the UK.

Our session was about hope too, as the group hope to grow lots in their new vegetable beds. We helped create some more, using the no dig method, on what is very stony ground, with cardboard, woodchip and well rotted manure. That'll get the worms active eh!

Other parties of GGers were to be found edging the pond in the Old School Meadow. This had been formerly a mould for fibreglass boats so was devoid of life but now covered with hessian to encourage mosses, and plants in general on these pond margins. Light pruning of hedges and bramble along with soaking up some of the sun's rays... we were very lucky with the weather.

Wednesday 25th February 2026 - Victoria Recreation Ground, Newport. GG #1069

 This last couple of months we have been busy helping the IW Council and specifically their Tree Officers with tree and hedge planting. All thanks to an IWC project funded by the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) via The Tree Council's Trees Outside Woodland Fund.  Today was the last of these 6 weeks as the season changes and we enter spring. 

The sunny springlike warm weather certainly was welcomed both by us lot, we had a good turnout of volunteers, and also users of the 'Rec' who as they passed by made many positive comments. 

The trees were selected for flowering and fruiting varieties and included Hawthorn, Rowan, Crab Apple and Cockspur Hawthorn. They were planted in the ground using the same technique as previous weeks, see Los Altos and Foxes Park blog posts. The ground however was much easier digging here! We also uncovered several finds of what must have been a refuse dumping area, a midden, see the photos and descriptions below.

 We all hope that these trees will be left unmolested to thrive and provide an avenue of blossom each spring. They are being protected and supported by stakes and cages.

The Pavillion

We believe the white jar to possibly be a marmalade pot, the three brown vessels are of course Bovril jars,  a 'Harlene for Hair' bottle,  1 Gartons HP sauce bottle and 1 'gin' rabbit trap

Wednesday 18th February 2026 - Los Altos Park, Sandown GG #1068

 A reprieve from the heavy clay soils of last week as we returned this Wednesday to Los Altos to complete the native hedge planting we started a couple of weeks ago. 

The threat of a heavy storm kept us focused to get the task completed and we made it, all planted and mulched. We look forward to seeing the hedgerow in it's full glory in years to come. 

Here is a link to some history of the location!

Thanks to Dave for the photos

Wednesday 11th February 2026 - Brown's Golf Course, Sandown GG #1067

 Terry's photos

Another new venue – we are being spoiled!!  This week we continued with the tree planting project that Tony, the IWC Tree Officer, is overseeing, at Brown’s Golf Course in Sandown.  Some standard trees have already been planted in the south eastern corner of the site and we were to plant a hedgerow mix parallel to the existing hedge which runs along the north-west/south-east boundary.  As we have done in previous weeks, the holes were dug and compost, water retention granules and mycorrhizal funghi were added.  The whips were planted in groups of six (of any one species) in a random pattern with a rose planted at intervals. 

Thank you to Terry for the photos.