Innovative Learning Week Allotment building at Vogrie Country Park 18/2/2015

As well as the normal Sunday project this week; we managed to get our dirty hands on a generous grant from The University of Edinburgh’s “Innovative Learning Week” fund. With this money we joined forces with Volunteer Midlothian to put on a special Wednesday project.

Cyclists cycled (mostly), the minibus trundled and the public bus chugged out of Edinburgh to meet the glorious Spring Sun, a sneaky wheelbarrow also managed to hitch a lift.

We converged on Vogrie Country Park. Some set to work digging over a new veggie bed, finding golden nuggets as they went (potatoes), others dug post holes, and yet more painted the posts. We introduced some new faces to the Dirties sandwich and the organised brutality of Ratchet-Screwdriver, both of which were surprisingly well-received. After lunch we resumed with more of the same as well as mulching paths and sinking the posts with “post-crete”.

By the end of the day, the allotment looked strikingly different, all geometric patterns and mountains of hard-earned soil. Wind-beaten, tired, smiling faces made their way back into the city, from the minibus we saw evidence of our last project, stripping ivy at Dalkeith, which was a lovely chance to show off!

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Credit to John for post & pics 🙂

Pishwanton – Sunday 8th Feb

I had a fabulous time with the Dirty Weekenders last Sunday (the 8th Feb) at Pishwanton Wood (I think I was the only one who giggled at the name though). It was a beautiful crisp day, sunny but with snow still on the ground – excellent conditions for hacking away at trees, hammering posts into the ground, and weaving a new fence. I cut down a tree for the first time in my life (granted, they were pretty small trees) and it made the most satisfying crackling noise as it went down. I think everyone should try cutting down a tree with a blunt bow saw at some point in their life; it shows you the real meaning of hard work. We took a break for some delicious sandwiches and many biscuits and admired the peat-roofed buildings where the Life Science Trust do their work (agriculture classes, et cetera). The Dirty Weekenders are a great group of people – they’re not afraid of hard work and they come equipped with humour, snacks, and a lot of work gloves. I had a really wonderful time at Pishwanton Wood and I can’t wait for the coming projects!

Thanks for writing Robin & great photos Cameron

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