The call is out for gardeners of all ages, and experience, to get involved in the fourth annual Big Dig Day from Saturday 21st to Sunday 29th March 2015. The day will see people across Bournemouth and Poole, don their wellies and get stuck in at their local food growing garden.
The Big Dig Day is run by the Big Dig network [2], at Sustain: the alliance for better food and farming and looked after locally by Bournemouth and Poole’s Sustainable Food City Partnership. Eight gardens from both towns are taking part and encouraging people to come along, get involved and hopefully enjoy it so much they become regular volunteers. The gardens are all running different activities from digging and planting to oven building and chicken feeding and wherever you are in Bournemouth or Poole there will be a garden taking part close to you.
Sarah Watson from the Sustainable Food City Partnership said “We’re so excited that we have eight community gardens involved in this spring’s Big Dig across both Bournemouth and Poole so no one is too far away from their local garden to get involved. It’s such a brilliant way to get to know new people, access fresh fruit and vegetables, and gardening together just makes you feel really good. So we’re also encouraging people to go and find their own tranquil haven to go back and use again and again.
Many of the gardens rely on volunteers to run the gardens so extra hands are always welcome and in many cases essential to the future of this rich network of food growers, which range from groups working with children, to projects in parks and on a number of sites that were previously derelict and unloved. So just go along and get involved!”
Rebecca from the SMILE Community Garden at Tatnam Allotments in Poole said “This will be our third Big Dig in the three years since we set up our garden and it’s been great to welcome more and more people to see what we do and get involved. There’s always loads to do so we can always find jobs for everyone from new growers to experienced veg lovers”.
Big Dig Events:
Saturday 23rd March:
Urban Herbs, Boscombe 10:00 – 15:00
Rossmore Library Garden, 11:00 – 15:00
Tatnum Organic Patch: 12:00 – 17:00
Alderney Community Garden: 13:30 – 15:00
Sunday 22nd March:
Churchill Gardens, Boscombe 13:00 – 15:00
Thursday 26th March:
New Leaf Allotment, Throop 11:00 – 14:00
Saturday 28th March:
SMILE Community Allotment, Tatnum Farm Allotments 10:30 – 14:30
Sunday 29th March:
Slades Farm Community Garden, Ensbury Park 14:00 – 16:00
Anyone looking to take part in a local activity can visit the website www.bigdig.org.uk/bournemouthand poole for more information on how to get involved.
