Healthy soil is important

By Victoria Plum

I bought a packet of (A for anemone) Anemone Blanda Blue and a packet of (C for Chionodoxa) Glory of the Snow from Johnny Walker who talked on the A to Z of Bulbs at the November meeting of Reepham & District Gardening Club.

I noticed that all the packaging for these bulbs, of which he brought loads for us to buy, is recyclable – how sensible that is.

I have learned to look for the symbol on all packaging, and interestingly the compostable tubs of Ronaldo ice cream (made in Norwich) have decayed well in my compost bin, as have the salad bags from Eves Hill Veg Co and the picnic kit from Castle Rising nursery.

My big, double-skinned, plastic hot bin is now working well, and I have been emptying it in mid-November.

The compost is a bit on the wet side, but I put that down to all the grass cuttings this wet year, although I have added plenty of torn-up corrugated card as a dry component.

Bought compost is sieved and so a more uniform, dry and easy-to-handle product results.

I don’t think you need a photo of the compost I have been moving from the bottom of the unit – I am sure you can imagine it.

Soil health is vital. I used to think of soil as something inert that just stopped the plants from falling over, but an understanding of the various worms and invertebrates that work it (work being the operative word) is fascinating.

My understanding now is that if I look after the soil by adding humus then it will look after my plants – and if they are healthy, they will be resilient and grow well. Hence the compost.

The next gardening club meeting is on Tuesday 14 December, earlier than the usual meetings, at 7 pm.

We usually all bring a plate to share but to avoid too much moving round the room, for Covid safety the committee ask you to please bring your own snacks. Further information will be on the website in due course.

There will also be a brief presentation by Thomas Courtauld, Deputy Lieutenant for Norfolk, on the Queen’s Green Canopy. This is a commemorative tree planting initiative to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee next year, which I’m sure will be of great interest.

Oh, yes – and there will be a quiz. Hooray!

Above: Ronaldo ice cream tubs and compostable items, including “plastic”, at the top of the bin, ready to rot. Photo: Tina Sutton