Long Meadow Way Permaculture Garden

13/05/2025

A film about hope and how we can flourish in difficult times. Worth watching and will perhaps make more understandable what I have written here and why there was a garden at my home in Downs Road, and around and next to the flats in Long Meadow Way, in Hales Place. I am a speck; we are all specks, but we can achieve things we didn't even know we were doing.
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It was recently the International Permaculture Festival of Ideas online. Although registered I didn't manage to attend during the zoom sessions (due to Covid, other stuff) but the links were provided for people to watch the recordings of discussions, films etc. That film was in there. There are loads of these projects happening around the globe. At 3:30am tomorrow morning I've set my alarm so I can join a "campfire " talk and discussion with a permaculturist whose focus has been going to places on the planet where disaster has occurred and rebuilding via permaculture ethics. Along the years, permaculture education has been growing outwards, from those who could do design courses to them flowing it on, and on. A big focus by some was refugees and those hit hardest by colonialism. Others are focusing in Western countries, creating community at grassroots, in areas such as those affected hardest by capitalism. I am a speck. I never managed to do the complete design course, only part of by offering to assist someone who had done one (taught by Bill Mollison) teach her 1st course done for free so she could hone her teaching skills. I lack a lot of skills, still have much to learn, and had times when I struggled to put meals on the table for my kids when they were growing up. But have somehow worked in spreading what I have when I could, which I saw last Spring inspired someone to go create a community garden on land where a secondary college is. It isn't totally smooth sailing as a change in principal was to someone who didn't comprehend it how the previous one did. They lost a section of the garden. But students are engaging, (plus food and ideas and support shared) and they still have a considerable area left. I showed Petra what I did know and she has gone beyond that. Seeds planted.

I know what the Machiavellian monsters do. They can wipe it all out with the touch of a button or via their media etc divide us from the shadows. But still there are these specks spreading seeds of hope, coming in to do so where damage and destruction is. It keeps the flickering nearly extinguished candle of hope in my heart, spirit and soul alight. The meek shall inherit the Earth. The common people are the salt of the Earth.

With love,
Diane aka the green lady
(wounded and damaged too, by experiences during my life, but being in gardens helps me in more ways than one) 💐 🐝 🦋

'Together We Grow' tells the inspiring story of a thriving hub helping to build resilience into its local community by farming in urban backyards, sewing wit...

16/02/2025

Ages ago I lodged a complaint regarding the housing officer who took over from the fabulous one we had worked with, and her manager. This did not yield satisfactory results until recently when a local counsellor for area suggested that resolution may be found in resurrecting the community garden or, at the least, sowing wildflowers there. With an offer to lead on this project. So stay tuned for further information and let's hope this comes to be.

05/09/2024

Back on 16th August we loaded one more skip with the last of the hardcore and other fly tipping from the woods near the laneway off Copinger Close. A big thank you to Steve Turley (who responded to our urgent plea for helpers) and Hal Dorrington for volunteering. Plus to Rory Thompson who has helped with the mammoth task of removing it all from the woods, hauling it up an embankment, as well as skip loading.

On 29th August we loaded yet another skip full of hardcore etc in Beecroft Close. This had been amalgamated using 'Charlie' again, our hand pulled trolley truck that carries 700 pounds and is proving very useful. We can thoroughly recommend it to anyone wanting to shift heavy stuff. Again, a big thanks to Rory Thompson for all his hard yakka.

We anticipate this to be the penultimate skip before we can declare our 10 year mission, of ridding the wooded areas of Hales Place estate clear of any known historic fly tips, as complete. But you never know, vegetation comes and goes revealing different things at different times of year.

This skip was graciously and generously discounted by East Kent Recycling, who recycle 98% of waste processed, with hardcore being made into Type 1 aggregate for nearly all building/road foundations.

After this load there is a fairly substantial amount of hardcore left to get rid of along the footpath beside Long Meadow Way. Plus some in the area adjoining Farleigh Road where the tall Poplar tree is. There's still an awful lot to do. Cut down/pull out weeds just about everywhere. Especially the invasive Asian barnyard grass, continued attempts to control horsetail, as well as cutting down all the trees that have rooted near buildings and paths almost everywhere.

As usual we'd love more volunteers. Mark, as a recovering mental health service user with an almost lifelong diagnosis, can't stress the importance of engagement with volunteering and its benefits to mind and body. It's been a lovely summer so far and much hay has been made.

For those still of the opinion that we're doing the council's work and denying opportunity for fully waged workers, we remind you that the council have no money. Plus also we busy beavers, of whom there are many out and about in Canterbury, cannot wait for some imaginary workmen to appear and tidy up essentially after us. If we don't do it no one will and our communities would descend into utter filth. Meanwhile the kids are growing up and some play in it. What will they make of it all if everything looks like a tip?

We're also happy to travel to other areas of the city if people/groups want help with similar in their areas.

24/06/2024

https://youtu.be/KqwyOKRMSW8?si=m-mctb1EzfTSPWEK

"Every seed saved will set us freeHold on tight to the source, we have all that we need"Written and performed by Naima Penniman (https://www.instagram.com/na...

15/06/2024

Wildflowers, globe artichokes etc are still growing where the community garden was in Long Meadow Way, Hales Place. I'm grateful that they aren't being mowed down. This gives the rare bee and all the other life that was feeding and living there a good chance, as well as is a delight for people. :-) Permaculture works, continuing itself once established. As it is in line with Mother Earth. XO

23/02/2024

The garden is gone but there are signs of some plants returning. Such as globe artichokes and wildflowers. The crocuses are out on the road side corners, a sign of Spring. Mel Dawkins has said that the area will be treated as a wildflower meadow and agreed not to use heavy mowers but strimmers to put paths through, maintain. This was good news and gives a chance for the seed which would have fallen and perennial plants to return. So there may be some surprises in Spring! If anyone would like to take photos of what pops up and share them that would be lovely.

03/10/2023

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=347992064248103&id=100071119356205&sfnsn=scwspmo

31/08/2023

Rachel, one of the permaculture teachers, asked me to post about this upcoming Introduction to Permaculture course for her. Looks good plus permaculture is life changing.

Learn the basics of Permaculture Design on this two-day Introduction to Permaculture and be ready to try it out in your garden, your workplace and your life.

27/08/2023

News from our umbrella group, The GREEN Team Canterbury, about the invasive species barnyard grass.
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=328441569536486&id=100071119356205&sfnsn=scwspmo

25/08/2023

We just found out that some at the Council only want to give us a gardening licence for Stage 2 of this project, the community garden which was begun later, and not the original Stage 1 in front of the building which was established in 2018 and has retrospective permission.

If everyone who supports this project could please contact housing officer Sophie Coates' supervisor Tracey (sorry don't have surname, starts with F) to ask for the pots to remain around building and Canenco to leave a strip around plantings and pots for us to cut, that would be really helpful.

Also. to allow our water tank to remain in the clothes drying area, which is unused by residents. Please pass this along Thanks. This project is now part of UCA School of Architecture's ongoing Retrofit study and is a blueprint for positive change re: climate and biodiversity emergencies.

The really short lawns most are used to have a history not many know. The rich and powerful started them, to show prestige. We're so rich we can waste agricultural land. This got copied by those who held them as celebrities, from the so called middle to lower classes. Yes, some lawn is nice but it doesn't need to be mown within an inch of its life ending up dry and dead during heat and drought. It uses lots of fossil fuels and the ride on heavy mowers compact the land. Dandelions come with their deep roots to loosen the land then pesticides are used to eradicate them, although they just go once they've done.

Sure, our project isn't always perfect. It's a challenging site with a lot of wind directions and sun. But we're doing our best to help turn around a ship taking us to annihilation. We're succeeding too, what with a rare bee in the garden, which has only been sighted and recorded 25 times in the UK. Time is ticking away. Our council needs to support this effort.