Spring Has Sprung in the Garden

Spring has sprung and the gardens are full of horticultural promise.  This is one of the most exciting times of the year it has to be said - not that other times are dull by any means.  But it is now that we starting to sow seeds for the vegetable garden and for selling.  We are also fine tuning the vegetable garden beds after the garden volunteers have mulched and, weeded and edged them.  They have been rotovated and raked and now are being warmed up with fleece soon to be sown and planted.

During the winter months the Garden Volunteers have done much clearing cutting back and grubbing out.  These are essential annual tasks and if we do a bit each year soon we shall get the woodland under control which will allow for more diversity and in turn support more species.  Nettles and brambles are good for wildlife but not when they are taking over everywhere.

We will soon be putting the fantastic brush wood that was produced from coppicing the hazel in the woodland to good use.  Brushwood is ideal for staking the herbaceous perennials in the knot garden as attractive structures can be built without the need for string.  I am running brushwood staking practical workshop on 15th April 2016 1.30-3.30pm – see the What’s on guide.

We have nearly finished putting up wire supports along the inside of the Walled Garden and planted the fruit trees that are to be trained.  The next task is to neaten up and cut out wall borders, some with the idea to plant up, and some more narrow ones just for the trees.  The trees are still very young and will be headed back and this coming growing season shall produce the first branches for us to train.  The apples and pears will be espaliered and the peaches, cherries and plums will be fan trained.  There are also some climbing roses and other ornamental climbers to go in too. 

I’m looking very forward to seeing these fruit trees as well as the orchard that was planted by garden volunteers, mature.  We would have seen this from day dot – a very satisfying horticultural thing. 

Without our army or garden volunteers we wouldn’t be anywhere near to improving and developing the gardens at Fulham Palace and so we are very grateful.  Thank you for your time, enthusiasm and commitment.

Lucy Hart

Head Gardener

A Year as a Garden Volunteer

It’s been a year since I started volunteering in the garden at Fulham Palace. Recently I thought back to my first day as a volunteer. Being shown round the garden by Chris R, my steel toe capped boots spotlessly clean and very little knowledge of any plant names at all. Iris unguicularis. What did he say? ! That was the name of the pretty, purple flowering Iris, Chris pointed out to me. Could I remember it long enough to write it down? (No as it happens). It did however spark an interest in botanical plant names which has stayed with me and although my knowledge barely scratches the surface, I do feel I have learnt about many plants and my confidence as a gardener has gradually increased over the months. 

My admiration for the Fulham Palace Garden Apprentices has grown; for instance they have to learn 15 or more new plant names every couple of weeks, as well as any new plants that they have to learn for their college courses. I am happy if I can manage to learn one new plant during the course of a week! Give it a try.
It has been memorable how our visitors notice changes being made to the garden and their enthusiasm for Fulham Palace is infectious. Sometimes though we have to explain that various things are not allowed within the Fulham Palace grounds; such as cycling, ballgames, dogs (with some exceptions) and tree climbing; often the chance to interact then turns into a lovely discussion of the ancient trees within the grounds or horticultural techniques and I am delighted when I can pass on any knowledge I have acquired.

For some time, we have been anticipating the arrival of new fruit trees which will be planted around the walls of the walled garden. All the holes have been dug and the preparation work finished. It was then with great anticipation and excitement that a call came over the radio announcing the arrival of all the fruit trees one recent Saturday. It was lunchtime, but no matter! We strode to the front gate, wheelbarrows in hand, wondering what would greet us. As it turned out, all of the precious plants were carefully wrapped up and parcelled in boxes. We loaded our wheelbarrows and slowly walked back to the walled garden. Once there we removed all the packaging and checked that everything was in order, before carefully placing the plants, which have been container grown, ready for planting. It really is fabulous to know that people will be able to enjoy those plants for generations to come.

It has been an interesting year, lots of fun and laughter and some hard work. Lots to learn and lots to do. Seeing the garden go through an entire year and looking at it now, in better shape I think than it was last year, I am proud of my contribution, small though it has been. I still polish my boots, which keep me warm and dry, though they are now well worn and I miss the Iris unguicularis, which had to be sacrificed for the new fruit trees, but I am excited about all the things to come, as the next 12 months unfold. I hope you get a chance to visit us soon and enjoy the garden as the year opens out and the flowers begin their magic. If you are thinking of volunteering, well, after a year I can’t recommend it highly enough.

Happy gardening.

Paul Russell                                                                                                                                                                                    Garden Volunteer
 

Fulham Palace Honey

As we promised previously, Fulham Palace Honey is now on sale in the Museum Shop. Our bees have been working very hard all  year to let you have a sweet September!

This years batch is particularity tasty and the price is £9 for Fulham Palace Volunteers and £10 for general public.

Due to high demand and limited supplies sales are limited to one jar per person.

Drop into the Museum and enjoy Fulham Palace Honey for your breakfast tomorrow! 

Thanks to all the Volunteer Bee Keepers, Gardeners and Volunteer Gardeners who have helped in the production of the Honey.

And thanks, most of all,  to all the busy bees!

Marlen Armendariz

Volunteer Communication Assistant

Guest Blog – Ronny Nicholas, Garden Volunteer

Although May was not as idyllic as I would like it to have been (or remember it being in previous years, but memory is such a trickster), we seem finally to have entered the “Fulham Palace at springtime” period. The Walled Garden is looking increasingly gorgeous – a delightful combination of the practical and the beautiful – a thriving and attractive market garden (fine work by the apprentices), the magnificent wisteria, the knot garden and our new apple orchard, to mention a few examples.

So why does the garden look so charming? It’s all down to the gardeners – full time and volunteers.  To illustrate how the Wednesday volunteers make their contribution, ask me about tree circles, go on, anything. Well, making tree circles is hard work, but so satisfying. When finally you stand back (bent over, massaging your aching back), to view that (almost) perfect circle of cleared space encompassing the lucky tree, it is a thing of beauty and symmetry, thus making the surrounding area look much better; and it’s good for the tree. What more can one ask? Now just to confuse the issue, our new apple orchard has tree squares, don’t ask me why. Nevertheless, they are also very snappy and the young trees are doing well, displaying their bright green new leaves. Roll on the first crop of delicious apples. I could also wax lyrical about path edging, long arms, half moons and raking, but not this time. Suffice it to say, that the beautification that results is worth it.

Now, something much cuddlier: Lucy, our Head Gardener, is on maternity leave, having given birth to a son. Hurrah! While she is away, Jason Peters is the Acting Head Gardener and has settled in well. We wish them both the best in their respective endeavours; I’m not sure which will be more demanding!

Finally, something almost as cuddly – the Fulham Palace Garden Produce Barrow (or barra’, as they say in the North End Road market). It is a thing of joy and beauty, thanks to Pauline McCormack, who found it and the volunteers who helped to repair, prepare and paint it. It resides in the Walled Garden, displaying a delightful range of edible and ornamental produce from the Walled Garden. As summer progresses, we will be selling a range of produce, freshly harvested by the volunteers from the garden. It is very satisfying and enjoyable to be part of this project. I feel a sense of pride for all those involved and it is for such a good cause – to pay for our new rufty-tufty baby tractor, all glowing orange and amazing attachments. So come along to take a look and buy some delicious, beautiful produce. All proceeds are invested in the garden. Do yourself good and help Fulham Palace achieve its noble ambitions.

Ronny Nicholas
Garden Volunteer

A last word before going on Maternity Leave

So many people have said to me early May is a lovely time to have a baby.  That I can see is very true – I have the summer months ahead, future birthday parties can be outside and its not such a problem if the heating breaks down.  What people don’t realise it's not the greatest time to go on maternity leave if you’re a Head Gardener.  There are far too many exciting things going on that I want to be involved in.  We are planting out the vegetable garden, the glasshouse is brimming with stock that we have sown, the knot garden has burst into action with spring basal cuttings to be taken, the grass has greened up and looks amazing now its had its first cut and our new venture of a mowed labyrinth is ready to be set out.  I will simply have to visit often and use Fulham Palace for the wonderful child-friendly haven that it is, as well as enjoy the horticultural developments that the Chrises (the garden supervisors) and the apprentices are getting on with.

Reflecting over the past year in the gardens we can safely say its been action packed.  We now have a fantastic composting unit that will help us manage our green waste effectively and efficiently.  We have a new orchard and have walled trained fruit trees varieties growing on in nurseries for Autumn planting as we speak.

We have our new tractor arriving that we have been able to purchase through the community’s support of our plant and produce sales.  We now have a very smart barrow to sell from based in the Walled Garden, and this project is now being run by some of our fabulous garden volunteers.

I look very forward to returning early in 2016 and planning the vegetable garden for its 4th year amongst many other things.  I’m very grateful to Jason Peters, my maternity cover, for holding the fort, leading the team and for continuing the development the Fulham Palace gardens.

Lucy Hart
Head Gardener

Walled Garden Plants and Produce for Sale

We are delighted to announce that we are now selling plants - both ornamentals and edibles, and as they become available, freshly harvested vegetables and fruit from our charming barrow in the Walled Garden.

Make sure that you visit regularly, since the produce - all of it grown in our Walled Garden - will vary depending on seasonal availability.

A huge Thank You! to all of the volunteers who have worked so hard on organising this new initiative and restoring our beautiful new barrow!

Guest Blog – Ronny Nicholas, Garden Volunteer

Hello, I’m Ronny and I have (rather uncharacteristically) agreed to do a blog about my Wednesday stint at Fulham Palace Garden. Never having written a blog before and not being a reader of them, I’m wondering what you, the reader, would like to be reading about. While you think about that, a bit of background to set the scene:

Like many of you, I used to make the occasional visit to the Palace garden. While the walk was enjoyable, it made me sad to see the state of neglect around the garden in general and the collapse and decay in the Walled Garden in particular. Therefore, imagine my pleasure when I saw a notice in the Palace asking for volunteer gardeners – I knew that this would be the perfect opportunity for me to help bring this garden back to its former glory. So, I had my interview with Lucy Hart and here I am writing my first blog.

Well, that was some 2 ½ years ago and what a difference the efforts of all of the volunteers and the permanent gardening team have made – all that edging, raking, mulching, composting, pruning, tree circling, sowing, pricking out and potting up, planting out and watering, not to mention levelling what looked like giant molehills in the Walled Garden, have worked wonders – with the garden overall being cleaner, more attractive and far better managed, an increasingly beautiful Walled Garden, replete with fruit and vegetable beds, a new apple orchard, beehive (and delicious honey) as well as ambitious plans for even better things.

It is interesting that on the day in the garden, my focus is essentially set on the tasks set and less so on their consequences. It is only when I pause to think, as now, about my involvement that I recall the large amount of wonderful stuff we have achieved. Go on, give everyone involved a big round of applause.

Anyway, enough of the reminiscing of an old man and a little about what he managed to do today. Well, what we did was very apposite to what I have been writing about – we weeded and tidied up the garden of the Gothic Lodge. One of the very first projects (if not THE first) we had was to clear up and prepare this patch of ground.  It was a nightmare – a large patch of horrid rubble, bottle and rock strewn clay. Boy it was fun, not! And look at it now – a pretty, colourful garden that many of us would be happy to call our own. As a metaphor for how Fulham Palace Garden has blossomed (pun intended) I can find no better example to end my first post. Onward and upward……

*Please note, the Gothic Lodge garden is private, and there is no public access.