| The Garden Restaurant Gardening Projects |
| A very frosty start to Friday |
| Built in the 1600’s. |
| The Butchery Garden Thurs 08th December |
| I am lucky l finished the worm farms on Wednesday because, by Thursday’s arrival, we had challenging weather so far as a harsh cold snap which is set to last till the weekend. It’s here again today, hard frost but thankfully, no snow. I had to go out quickly yesterday morning and buy some insulation for the farms, which l did in the form of shredded hay and shavings, mixed those with coffee grounds and spread them out in a 2″ thickness layer on top of the farm topsoil, wetted down and covered with a weed mat. This will encourage a top heat and keep the occupants safe. The East Kent Coastal weather snap isn’t brutal like some other areas in the UK, but the worm farms are still adapting to the new change, and the residents still need to settle in. I will open the farm lids only when we have warmer air than now. They have enough food in the farms to keep them occupied, and the new insulation materials will also break down in time to be edible. Also, yesterday was the first day of our new gardening gig for our friends. They live in the street a block away from us. We can see their hallway window from my bedroom. That’s the thing about Sandwich town. Everyone is so close at times. The houses were built within the original walls and rampart defences, so the homes were crafted and constructed to almost overlap each other. It’s the quirk of living in a medieval location. Our friends’ house is a Grade II listed building built in the late 1600s and refronted [modernising to accommodate new architectural developments but still keeping with the Tudor style] 200 years later. They live on the Butchery, an old street filled will older houses. They have no front garden, which is usual for many houses in Sandwich town centre. Aside from what you can see in the photograph are a few hanging baskets and some vertical planters. They can have those due to the nature of the lane itself, whilst we cannot because our pavements are for pedestrians only, not plants. Their back garden, however, is a different story. Typical to many of the courtyard gardens l have encountered on the old houses here in the town. The Willow garden is long and slim and enclosed by walls on two sides, whilst their garden is surrounded by three walls and is a slightly off-square, wider and oblong shape. It is more expansive than mine and Edwards, who is next to me. They did have a gardener for a while, a young lady; however, she was struggling to maintain the garden and lost her passion for it around June of this year, and by September, she no longer wanted to keep the job. So here we are, Suze and l, in the minimum three months after their gardener was doing a half-hearted gardening role for them, looking at the challenges ahead of us. We did a recce visit yesterday, taking photographs of all angles and all plants [because it is 1] overgrown and 2] bustling plant-wise] alongside some small starter tasks like raking, gathering up fallen leaves, testing the soil for waterlogging, checking out what needs to be done and how and more importantly when considering the weather we are now facing. We estimated that the first main job was to ‘de-clutter’ the garden – clearing the dead plant life and making some clear space where we could. This particular task alone could take us both perhaps eight or nine hours over two days and taking out maybe a dozen bags of green waste. The next task will likely be in mid to late January, which is the pruning and trimming, which will have to be aggressive, given how far the garden has fallen by the wayside. The final part of the garden is getting it back to a level of sustainability for either the owners themselves or Suze, and l should they wish to keep us active. As a side job to everything else we have going on and as a portfolio piece, if you wish for our new business endeavour, “Earthly Comforts”, this first job will not be a bad start. I also have some compost consulting appointments coming up in the new year. This could be a fresh start to something bigger. The gallery below shows you the task ahead of us in a basic fundamental way. Today l will be working on identifying everything the garden has planted there, and l will enjoy a more leisurely day. Although that’s just regarding being outside gardening, Suze and l have to hand deliver 23 letters for the committee. At least we’ll get our steps in one way or another. |
| Our friends have a lovely ornamental garden with some nice attractive pieces of statues and garden features, much of which is currently hidden due to the overgrowth of the plants and the shrubbery. Three stages are required: Clearing away the debris, Pruning, trimming and cutting back, Turning the garden into a lovely colourful canvas again |
| Thanks for reading, see you next time. |
| Earthly Comfort Designs available on my Redbubble Store. Collections – Earthen Wurmin, Inspired By Nature and The Autistic Composter Please Pop Along and Check Them Out. |
Earthly Comforts 
It a big place. But I’m sure you guys will work your magic here like you did in Willow. All the best
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I am sure we will 🙂
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👍🏼👏🏼👌🏼
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Your garden is beautiful!!
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This isn’t my garden Kristian – the main image is – but the garden in the photograph gallery is the garden we are working on.
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Oh, yes. I did read that, Rory. I misspoke. I meant your pictures of the garden are beautiful! It looks so tranquil!
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It is tranquil where they are, the beauty of living on a lane despite being in the centre of town, it can be deceptive at times.
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They are so fortunate to be getting you and Suze to reconstruct their Garden of Serenity! And I am happy for you both to have a new, profitable venture to occupy your attention.
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Thanks Betty – well as they say one door closes and another opens 🙂
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Mossy patio… JB is loving that job already😂😂😂
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You know me so well 🙂
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Wow, Rory! You and Suze are hardworking people. Your friends are lucky to have you.
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Thanks Eugenia, yes Suze and l are hardworking,. we share that trait.
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