Everyone loves a garden transformation, and through an ACE Monmouth mentoring initiative, Sally and Colin Meadows of Rockfield, Monmouth, have done just that during 2024.

Sally and Colin Meadows at the start of the project
(ACE)

In February, Sally’s front garden was a lumpy, bumpy, weedy lawn that involved lugging the lawnmower through the house to cut it. At the same time, she had always wanted to grow her own veg, but was not sure how to go about it.

By June, Sally was harvesting cauliflowers, lettuce, carrots, beetroot, broad beans and even her first courgettes from her former front lawn. By mid July, broccoli and Kale were ready with many more harvests coming down the line. “Who needs grass when you can grow your own food?” says Sally.

So how did this come about? In the ‘Green Zone’ at the ACE Monmouth Festival in September 2023, four local gardening experts put themselves forward to mentor 4 local people to create or improve a garden for nature, health and wellbeing. Cherry Taylor, of Cherrysnodiggarden who specialises in No Dig gardening, was one of those who volunteered their time for free as a mentor.

“It has been the most rewarding experience for me, and I have become good friends with Sally, who I have enjoyed supporting through the creation of her no dig front garden this year.” ACE is all about bringing the community together to tackle climate change, and this project is a wonderful example of that. Sally is now growing amazing chemical free veg in a wildlife friendly way, and even has enough to share some with her neighbours.

Sally says “Using the no dig methods Cherry shared with me made the whole task so quick and simple, and at the same time it was good for the soil and the veg I was growing, and ultimately for me too. It’s been very rewarding both foodwise and for the soul.”

Some of the produce from their garden
(ACE)

Other mentors in the ACE project have been Cheryl Cummings (a now retired Chelsea medal winning garden designer), Jen Bara or The Cycling Gardener and Sam’s Wildlife Gardening, each helping a local person garden in a more planet-friendly way.

Cherry offers a mentoring service, and she also has some spaces left on her “No Dig Basics” workshop on Saturday 14th September. This is run from her no dig garden 4 miles outside Monmouth near the Hendre. See her website for details (www.cherrysnodiggarden.co.uk).

ACE Monmouth (Action on Climate Emergency) is a volunteer-led town council partnership. If you want to get involved, check out their website (www.acemonmouth.org), join their Facebook Group or sign up to the newsletter.

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