Page 29 - LOTN Summer Issue 47 2021

FAITH AND CULTURE

Food and Faith with Margaret Bradley

The Community Garden

at St Andrew’s Church,

Braemar

n 2015 it was suggested by villagers that Braemar
should have a community garden. Two sites were
suggested, one at Mar Lodge three miles west
Iof Braemar, where there was already an area of
allotments and the other at Braemar Castle, half a mile
east of Braemar. However, both these sites were rejected
because they were too far from the village. The third site
suggested was the large, sunny, south-facing grassy area When the church was built in 1839 the site was laid out as a
in front of, and belonging to, St Andrew’s Church in the kitchen garden
centre of Braemar. The site had been laid out as a kitchen several villagers have offered space in their greenhouses to bring
garden when the church was built in 1839 and used as such on plants for the garden.
by the clergy until recently. Carole Paterson, the church The garden’s first growing season was summer 2017. This
caretaker, said that the Bishop gave permission for the site year, 2021, will be the fifth growing season. The activities are
to be developed as a community garden. overseen by villagers David Sherrard and Aimi Blueman and
On part of the site a small orchard of eight apple, pear church caretaker Carole Paterson. There are no work rotas but
and plum trees was planted in 2013. The orchard was one fifteen to twenty villagers come out regularly throughout the
of 10 Heritage Orchards gifted by the Cairngorm National summer to work in the garden, and visitors are welcome to
Park to mark their 10th anniversary. Orchards were gifted to come and lend a hand for a few hours with digging or weeding.
communities, schools, churches and youth groups within the Grown in the garden are potatoes, onions, leeks, beans,
Cairngorm Park to encourage food production. Beside the carrots, parsnips, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, kale, courgettes,
orchard the church placed several wooden benches. Other fruit radishes and lettuce. There are also gooseberry, black currant
trees were planted as personal memorials. and red currant bushes and a rhubarb patch.
Work started on creating growing beds during the winter of Children from the local primary school visit the garden a few
2016/17. Turf was lifted to form the beds with the help of the times each year to plant quick-growing vegetables such as radish
groundsmen from the Braemar Golf Club and their turf-lifting and spinach and then return in the autumn to pick the produce.
machine. Four beds were formed, three for vegetables and one Everyone is free to take what vegetables they need. The apples
for flowers, for church and village. Once the turf had been lifted, and some root vegetables are taken to the primary school so
a group of villagers dug the beds to prepare them for growing. that the children can make apple pies, apple crumble and apple
In the spring the gardeners at Balmoral Castle offered space in flapjacks and vegetable soups.
their heated greenhouses to bring on seedlings until they were Summer picnics and barbecues have been planned but may
large enough to be planted out. This continues each year and have to wait till next year. More could be planted but more
volunteers would be needed to tend to the plants. However,
Eternal rest grant unto Maria Domenica Bicocchi, a the main problem facing the garden is what to do about the
much loved contributor to Margaret Bradley's 'Food growing army of rabbits which live nearby, and which threaten
& Faith' column. Marie died peacefully at Woodend to eat all the produce. Not such a problem in the past as they
Hospital, Aberdeen on Monday 14th June. too ended up on the plate!
See over
Page 29