WEST HILL BLOG No. 100 A milestone ...

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A warm welcome to you and thank you for reading the 100th West Hill Blog. So much has changed about at West Hill since I started writing these Blogs in March 2017 & I hope you have enjoyed our journey thus far. 

Everything we do at West Hill Blog is about giving opportunities and experiences to those who are visually impaired, disabled or are in need of a safe space to learn new skills. 

The site takes on a beauty of its own depending on the weather & light levels. This week however with high pressure has been glorious with clear blue skies, luke warm sunshine & long shadows

 View from the meadow in early morning
Long shadows in the forest 


Trying to stay warm is priority, so digging the bank has been ideal though nothing could prepare us for the mountain of concrete rubble we unearthed
The bank will be planted with perennials in the spring that have been divided from the main border in the Sensory Garden. But given the extent of Creeping Buttercup & Couch Grass the border will remain covered until April
My thanks to volunteers Liz, Nick & Annabelle for helping me with this task
Ruairi has been busy taking hardwood cuttings
Cuttings of two types of Buddlia, Leycesteria, 
Sambucus & Cornus
 Max has found his vocation in life ... cleaning the tractor!
I've been busy 'putting the garden to bed' that is to say cutting down perennials, weeding, dividing & planting. 
Before
After
Moving the giant Salvia 'Phyllis Fancy' 
 Giving the Salvia a heavy mulch
I am still tackling the veg garden. Challenging, brutal, back breaking are words I would use to describe this task. The soil is full of Creeping Buttercup which means the whole patch has to be systematically dug by fork. Add to that the lumps of concrete, bricks & plastic I am unearthing, it is a huge task, but gradually with 2 hours digging a day, the end is in sight.
Max & team also helped to build a new leaf heap... After all, leaf compost is Gold Dust to a Gardener
Max supervising operation as everyone else works!
New Leaf heap
Organic matter is so important when gardening hence the amount of time we spend collecting organic matter. 
Three heaps here ... left; last years leaf mould, centre; current vegetation so next years compost, right; last years compost. 
The secret I have found is turning the heap once a year to aerate the matter ... then it turns into gold dust!









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