Community garden in Glasgow hopes to boost wildlife
The Conservation Volunteers (TCV) charity have been working hard in Yoker this month to create Glasgow’s first ever community forest garden.
As part of the charity’s Rewilding Project, the forest garden will be home to 40 different species of plants and will be open to the public.
Directing the volunteers has been TCV Senior Project Officer, Camilo Brakow, who said: “The Rewilding Project is all about getting people in touch with their surrounding green spaces and making those spaces better for both people and wildlife.
“Yoker doesn’t have very much in terms of wild planted areas, so we have tried to create a space which will be a rich habitat for birds, bugs and hopefully much more wildlife within a year.”
Not only will the forest garden be beneficial to local wildlife, but each plant in the area will produce edible fruit for the surrounding community to enjoy.
“There will be plenty of apple and pear trees in each corner, and also more unusual fruits such as currents and hazelnuts in the centre of the plot,” Camilo added.
As it will be home to plants which spread nitrogen throughout the soil, this means the garden is self-fertilising, with no need for chemical assistance.
Camilo, 33, went on to explain: “We’ve also added native fungi into the ground so when the fungi and the trees form a mutualism, this actually allows plants to share nutrients across the entire garden.”
Sitting between the main cycle path to Loch Lomond and a Yoker housing estate, the plot of land used for the forest garden is constantly surrounded by people but, until recently, had not been touched for many years.
Volunteer Juliette Walsh, 51, said: “The organisation always tries to develop spaces which have a lot of potential but aren’t currently being cared for by anyone.
“This spot, which is owned by Glasgow city Council, was perfect for us because there is a lot of foot traffic passing by on a daily basis and it’s actually next to a community allotment, so people with an interest in gardening are often close by.”
Unlike community allotments, however, forest gardens require minimal upkeep once planted, as each plant takes care of itself.
“They produce their own food and fertiliser, so the biggest job is actually harvesting the food once it grows,” Juliette added.
The planting of the forest garden will end at the beginning of February and it is hoped to produce its first harvest by the summer season.
