Crossfields' Big Planting Day – this Sunday!

Plastic bottle greenhouse for The Wonky Prong

The Crossfields Food Growing Project is hoping to build a greenhouse out of recycled plastic bottles – and needs your help!

A notice went up around the estate before Christmas, and so far around 200 bottles have been collected, but five or six times that many are required to build the greenhouse, so please keep collecting!

The greenhouse will be used to grow seeds for the community garden and also for growing free plants to put in your window boxes.

Please drop off used bottles to Tim at no.8 Castell House – just leave in a bag outside his front door. Only clear or green plastic (large or small) is required, please no opaque white bottles!

The greenhouse might look like this once completed (though Prince Charles may not visit us!). If you'd like to find out more about The Wonky Prong, or get involved, check out the Wonky Prong blog for contact details.

The Wonky Prong

The WONKY PRONG, otherwise known as the Crossfield Estate Food Project, made a great leap forward yesterday despite the rain, as a small army of enthusiastic children helped to shovel several tonnes of soil into the raised beds. Runner beans, mangetout peas and tomatoes were also planted along the fence around the community garden. Next step is to mix in some compost and then start planting! If anyone would like to get involved and help grow and eat food contact Tim at squaregardener@gmail.com

Deptford Community Garden's next meeting: 4th October

Everyone is invited to a meeting about the proposed Deptford Community garden next to Crossfield Street to help decide how the garden should evolve.

Date: Tuesday 4th October
Place: St Paul's Church
Time: 7.30pm

Clare and Harry from the Don't Dump on Deptford's Heart campaign, hope you can join them to talk about how the garden can be organised and come up with ideas for how it should look and be maintained – and see what can be achieved before the next Thames Tunnel consultation on 15th November.

A public meeting with Thames Tunnel representatives will take place on 15th November at 7.30pm in the Salvation Army Hall in Mary Ann Gardens. 

Meanwhile, the expert who recommended London should have the £3.6billion "super-sewer", Chris Binnie, has said there may be a cheaper alternative. Binnie led the study group in 2005 which led to the present plans, but now says a number of factors have changed since this research was done. Read the BBC report here.

Deptford Community Garden wins funding

At the Evelyn Assembly today, the Deptford Community Garden was one of seven projects voted to receive funding. The campaign has been allocated £500 to cover costs for publicity and initial planting. Watch this space for news of the first public meeting.
See our recent post for more info or go to Don't Dump on Deptford's Heart.

Don't Dump on Deptford's Heart Update: Deptford Community Garden

We've received an update from campaigners Harry and Clare Richardson at Don't Dump On Deptford's Heart who are trying to save the triangular green between Coffey St. and Crossfield St – currently under threat from being claimed for a huge access shaft to the Thames Tunnel super-sewer. See www.dontdumpondeptfordsheart.co.uk

They are proposing to install a Community Herb Garden and Orchard on the site and aim to begin before the upcoming consultation with Thames Water on the 15th November. They hope that such an immediate and substantial voluntary effort from the community will demonstrate the strength of feeling about retaining this green space and create a symbolic barrier to Thames Water's proposals. Harry and Clare said, "It will also provide an ongoing focus for the campaign, which might play out over a long period of time, with the garden continuing to raise awareness and galvanise support for protecting this open space.

"It is also intended that the garden will go on to provide Deptford with a wonderful green facility long into the future, turning this often overlooked space into a valuable resource that is open to all to visit and to garden in. It is especially hoped that local schools will get involved and that it will become a place for young and old to share the satisfying activity of gardening, growing produce and supporting local wildlife."

To date the Community Garden has gained support from local landscape architects Roundfield with the offer of free consultancy and garden design, plus free website delivery from local designers Studio Raw. They also have the support of Deputy Mayor Alan Smith to use the site, advice from the council on setting up an accountable body to manage it, and approval of Father Paul at St Paul's.

The next step is to publicise the activity, invite public involvement and raise some money to help get things started.

IF YOU WANT TO GET INVOLVED:

1. VOTE FOR THE GARDEN AT THE EVELYN WARD ASSEMBLY THIS SATURDAY
The Evelyn Assembly will be allocating its funds at a public meeting this Saturday. Those attending will be voting on various proposals from other parts of Evelyn Ward. The Community Garden is asking for £500 to cover the cost of printing to publicise it as widely as possible and to kick off a fund for plants and seeds. The proposal needs people at the meeting to vote for the garden to get funding since it will be competing with many other causes.

Date: Saturday 17th September
Time: 10.30am for registration. (No vote if arriving after 11am)
Location: 2000 Community Action Centre, 199-201 Grove St. SE8 3PG

2. COME TO OUR OPEN MEETING TO HELP PLAN THE GARDEN
There will be a meeting (details of time and place to follow shortly) to describe the plans so far and to gather ideas from local residents about the best way to develop the garden. The meeting will decide upon a steering committee and fix a timeline for getting the garden installed. Everyone is welcome, keen gardeners and absolute beginners alike, whoever wants to help make the garden a success.