Growing Together: Summer at Midlothian Community Hospital Garden
A guest blog by our partners Cyrenians
It’s been a couple of months since our last up-date and wow – what a few months it’s been! Everyone has been so busy working away in the garden while the growing season peaked…and the garden really has never looked so beautiful. It really is a huge
testament to all of you for the hard work, energy and creativity you bring to the garden each and everyday…thank you all so much!
Warm welcome this month to Mairi – some of you will have seen Mairi in the garden often with her camera getting up close to the insects and wildlife. For 3 years Mairi has been popping into the garden in her own time to observe and photograph the wildlife
she sees. Providing the gorgeous folder packed with interesting information and photographs we have in the workshop with just some of the incredible species she’s spotted! Well we are delighted Mairi would like to join us as a formal volunteer so we’ll
be seeing her most weeks now – so do stop and say hello, as I’m sure she’ll be able to share an interesting find she’s had in the garden. Mairi – we’re delighted you are joining the team! And thank you so much for sharing your incredible knowledge about the
wildlife we are hosting.
As ever it has been a really busy July/August in the garden. The flowers have been spectacular and the veg, mainly incredible but some has needing a little more nurturing but generally, even after a challenging very dry and warm summer, something to be
really proud of. Thank you all for everything you do to take care of our precious bounty.
Volunteers has been working so hard to keep on top of the weeds, mow the grass (even according to our no-mow may regime) – thank you all! It was complicated but we’ve seen great results of wildflowers spreading because they were given the opportunity too and when the bee’s arrived, well they arrived in force bringing all their relatives with them.
Watering has been an on-going challenge but with careful management we’ve managed to keep the most needy crops watered and bring on enough seedlings to fill the gaps. Ripening of fruits has been particularly unpredictable, harvesting apples in early August for the first time – along with brambles! And the grape harvest is the best yet along with the apple harvest. We were saddened when our plum tree draped in plums was cleared the night before our market day stall but luckily the forest garden has had a bountiful harvest too so lots of delicious fruits from there to fill the gap. As ever, with any of our produce, please please please remember to harvest some to take home. Leave enough for the markets on the 2nd and 4th Thursday, other wise please enjoy at home – you all work very hard for this!
This summer we’ve had the added enjoyment of inviting lots of patients from the hospital over to the garden for ‘Garden Club’. Thanks to our fabulous Patient Buddies, the patients and staff and sometimes family members have been taking part in lots of meaningful and therapeutic gardening based activities. Volunteers have been ever so creative leading sessions in weaving with
flowers, sowing seeds, pricking out and potting on and planting their very own succulent trays as well as getting a little messy when it comes to a group collage and hammering flowers to leave behind their print. Patients and staff alike are really benefiting from these sessions and it’s all thanks to this fantastic team of volunteers making the sessions so relaxed and fun.
Back in July we were also fortunate to host the Sure Start Summer Gathering. It was a lovely day with 65 children and parents – some of which were discovering the garden for the first time. A highlight for them was definitely being able to harvest potatoes to take home, feedback was that they all absolutely loved them!
Tuesday last week was also a highlight when Chris from the Orchard project lead a Summer Tree Pruning and bud Grafting workshop – it was lovely to have some many of you able to attend.
Along with all of this volunteers have been keeping the fortnightly sales cart well stocked, serving anything up to 20 customers a time. And working away in our new build area by the wee shed. It’s really coming along with the planters painted and the path almost complete. It won’t be long until we can start planting…phew…It’s been busy busy busy so THANK YOU ALL for doing all you can to make the garden the magical place it is.
Other News
Orchard Project Volunteer of the year awards
Fab news we heard today – A huge congratulations to Rona for being runner up in the Orchard Projects Volunteer of the Year awards 2026 – a British wide award!!! This is a real testament to the hard work, passion and dedication Rona has shown over the past four years to our Forest Garden Project – helping with design and planting, then nurturing it every step of the way as well as guiding those who are keen to learn along the way. We are so lucky to have you Rona – thank you so much for all you do in the
garden and the knowledge you share to make the Forest Garden the incredibly special place it is. You really deserve this! Check out the post…
Moth Surveying
We have been really lucky to have Ian Malcolm from the Natural History Society of Edinburgh come into the garden on numerous occasions over the past month with his moth trap. Leaving it in the garden over night with a battery powered bright light, he has been capturing moths and recording what he finds. On one night he caught 35 of the very same species…a grass moth, it must have been the right time for them to all be in that particular stage of their life cycle. He is sending all of his date over to a national database where this information can be captured to help create a bigger picture for south east Scotland. We are hoping Ian and his colleagues may come to the garden next year to do a larger wildlife survey for us…we’ll keep you posted with this.
Other wildlife sightings
Some more fab wildlife news – a badger was captured on the wildlife camera last week. We have been suspecting one for a while but it was caught on film. Please ask to see and we’ll show you the wee video…we’re all delighted (sorry my tech skills can’t attach
right now!). And round by the forest garden pond again. It really is a haven for wildlife just there.
I think that is all our news for now, other than to say a HUGE THANK YOU to all you AMAZING volunteers. It is such a special community you have built and we are so lucky to share it together and with all of this amazing wildlife…I really do feel like its time for a group hug!!!!! Thank you all!!!!!!
Big group hugs!!!
Michala, Hannah, Kat, Kirsty and the rest of the Gardens Team
Midlothian Community Hospital Garden