Rather Exciting News

Hello,

In my post below on my guerrilla gardening activities I mentioned my involvement in something rather exciting later in the month which I have no doubt had you all intrigued. Well I can now put you all out of your misery.

On either the 20th or 21st of August Richard Reynolds and the folk from Sky TV are coming up to Glasgow to film a very ambitious guerrilla gardening project a mere stones throw from my home in the city centre for a show presented by Noel Edmonds -yes the bearded TV monarch of Swap Shop fame!

The area chosen is rather overgrown and uncared for but has the potential to be a rather fine stretch of land for the whole community to enjoy. Which is why we need your help. I've agreed to take on the ongoing maintenance of the land after the cameras go but it's going to take a team effort to have something worth maintaining.


Obviously I would be delighted to accept any offers of long term help but even if you just fancy giving guerrilla gardening a go or getting your mug on telly you're welcome to come along. The dig will take place in the evening so you don't even need to take time off work -unless you work shifts. Whatever your level of interest or motive for coming along your help really will be appreciated and it should be a good and rewarding evening.

For those who have been struggling to get a troop together this will be a great opportunity to meet potential recruits and for those who prefer to work solo the area is large enough to allow you to take ownership of your own patch in the longer term.

If you'd like to come along please email me for details or keep an eye on the Guerrilla Gardening forum for further updates. Should anyone wish to take a look at the area before committing themselves it is the lane the adjoins Stirling Street and Parson Street near St Mungos R.C Church.

Should you know anyone who might be interested please direct them to this post or to the Guerrilla Gardening forum. I'd also be very grateful for any links to this post to try and attract as much help as possible.

Cheerio

Guerrilla Gardening Help Required

Hello,

The snap at the bottom is of a rather overgrown planter on Wilson Street which I intend to tidy up and replant, anyone who wishes to join me will be more than welcome. I've been having a whale of time turning my own rundown patch of dirt into something attractive to look at and am looking to spread the joy.

The snap at the top shows the state of my patch before I staged my horticultural coup and the middle snap is how it looks at present only seven weeks later. Whilst I have had a few setbacks the vast majority of people have made an effort to keep the area clean and put their rubbish in the bin.

The point I'm ambling towards is that this stuff is enormously empowering. Rather than whine about what other people or the council should be doing you can make amazing changes on your own. I have contacted the council three times regarding the state of our bin area and they've done sod all. Had I not taken responsibility for it, things would still be as bad as they ever were. Maybe worse now that a nest of rats has appeared round the corner. I know it's not a fashionable opinion but I've taken something of a shine to the baby rats. Honestly they're really quite sweet from a distance.

If an area seems well cared for most though by no means all people will respect it and moderate their behaviour accordingly. It really is up to you whether or not you live in a shithole or not. Grumbling about council tax and refusing to pick up litter you didn't drop is a waste of time. There is a lot of debate about what the role of the state should be, a lot of complaining about the nanny state but maybe if we didn't persist in believing payment of tax and council tax absolved us of all responsibility they might stop sticking their beaks into matters that don't concern them. You can't very well behave like a child and complain when you're treated like one.

Since I took up guerrilla gardening I'm no longer bothered about not having a garden. Why should I be given that I now how a whole district to garden? If anything I've got too much garden for the time and resources available to me. You don't have to stick to flowers. On my patch at present I'm growing cress, beetroot, radishes, carrots, salad onions, mint and sage. Nothing like what I'd need to be self sufficient but almost enough to ensure that I need never buy one of those horrid plastic coffins of overpriced herbs from the supermarket again. Once I get the dill, chives, parsley, mace and coriander going Tesco will be another sucker down. My sage and mint plants both cost less than one coffin of herbs and provide me with more herbs than I can possibly use. I'm not opposed to the existence of supermarkets and acknowledge that they do provide some foods cheaply but they really do take the piss with herbs and spices as anyone who shops in Asian grocers will know. Sow a few herbs or something easy like radishes on a bit of land on your way home from work and you can have freshly picked veg for tea for virtually no effort.

This doesn't need to be expensive at all. B&Q do seeds from 39p a packet, Poundland to a fine set of gardening gloves for a pound, people with gardens usually have cuttings to spare and tools to borrow, gardening magazines seem to exist to give plants away for the cost of postage and do loads of special offers. Even setting yourself the budget of a fiver would make a huge difference to an abandoned strip of land somewhere. Buy a cheap set of gardening tools from a pound shop or supermarket, blow the remainder on cheap seeds and get sowing. Tell everyone what you're up to and wait for the cuttings to flood in. Join the Guerrilla Gardening forum and keep your eyes peeled for the frequent offers of freebies and seed swaps.

Should any of you in the Glasgow area fancy a go at a spot of guerilla gardening I am involved in something rather exciting later this month and would appreciate a bit of help if anyone wants to give it a go. You don't have to be an experienced or knowledgeable gardener at all and the old gardening lark is a hell of a lot easier than some folk like to make it seem. If you're busy this month I've got loads of stuff I want to get started and would be delighted with any help anyone might want to offer from coming out and getting their gloves dirty to donations of seeds, cuttings and unwanted tools. Please feel free to email me if you'd like to help.

Cheerio