Grow Your Own - free workshops, activities and a sweet new treat

Learn to Grow Your Own

Free workshops, stalls, demonstrations, activities and competitions are lined up for the annual ‘Grow Your Own’ show at Nottingham City Council Nursery at Woodthorpe Park on Saturday September 5th.  The event will run from 10am to 3pm and entry is free.

Meet representatives of local allotment associations selling their produce, and buy winter vegetable plants grown at the Nursery.  

Free workshops

If you are interested in finding out more from the experts, you can plan your visit around our programme of free workshops.  There is no need to book - just turn up on the day.

10:15 –11am Permaculture for beginners – Paul Paine Ecoworks/WEA (Polytunnel)

11:00 Chicken keeping for beginners- Teresa Benham, Hens for Pets (Meet at her stand)

11:15- 12pm Garden Growing with Children – Tracey Lloyd, Windmill Community Gardens (Polytunnel)

12.00 Summer fruit tree pruning - Marc Richmond - Fruit Tree specialist (Meet at his stand)

1:00 Chicken keeping for beginners - Teresa Benham, Hens for Pets (Meet at her stand)

1:15- 2pm Vegetable Plot design - Jo Tarrant, Allotments Officer (Polytunnel)

1:30-3pm Trug making for beginners – Clare Bull, Willow artist (Location TBC)

2.00 Summer fruit tree pruning - Marc Richmond - Fruit Tree specialist (Meet at his stand)

2:15- 3pm Growing veg in small spaces – Clare Selwood, Arkwright Meadows Community Gardens (Polytunnel)

Prizes to be won

Children are invited to enter a competition for growing edible crops in an unusual container. There's also a Schools competition for a trug containing at least three types of produce grown in the school garden. Just bring along entries before 11am on the day.

Honey Show

This year’s event incorporates the annual Honey Show of Nottinghamshire Bee Keepers’ Association, whose beehives are housed in the kitchen garden at Woodthorpe Park.

There will be the opportunity to see live bees, buy local honey and pick up information about bee keeping.

Find out more

Apprentices' veg garden

Another new attraction this year is a large vegetable garden created by Parks apprentices on land that was previously overgrown.  They have been working a couple of days a week on the plot - learning new skills and finding out how to grow healthy food on a shoestring.  After hours of hard work clearing, weeding, rotavating, raking and digging, they have designed the garden and planted and tended a wide variety of crops.  Come along and have a look!