FLOURISHING gardens at Wellesbourne allotments finally opened up to visitors after Covid put a halt on previous events.
The open day was part of the National Garden Scheme (NGS), with the Warwickshire allotments among a handful of featured gardens promoted by the scheme.
The NGS Open Days have raised more than £60million for Macmillan Nurses, Hospice UK, Mind Marie Curie, Carers Trust, The QNI and Parkinsons UK.
Wellesbourne’s own village allotments attracted around 370 visitors and raised a record £3,800.
Event manager Ken Manning said: “This is our fifth NGS Open Day and whilst it’s a challenging and exhausting experience, the pleasure visitors gain and the charitable donations we are able to make from the event is reward enough for us all.”
Among the event highlights were plot holder Marion Allerton’s traditional Open Day Tea Tent, the ‘People’s Vote’ for 2021 Best Scarecrow – won by ‘Covid Nurse Sally’, live music from Stratford-based Amicantus choir and Gardening Question Time with broadcaster and horticultural expert Prof Stefan Buczacki.
Donations from the event also went to various local organisations including Wellesbourne Lions, Barford and Shipston Scouts, Myton and Shakespeare Hospices, Warwickshire Wildlife Trust and the Rugby Autism Network.
Allotment chair Ian Hope added: “The joint efforts of our volunteers in preparing for the Open Day was genuinely heartwarming to witness, all working together toward a common cause.
“We have continued to demonstrate that the power of allotment gardening is to do good. It is both rewarding and, through our toils, an act of faith in the future.
“Our relationship with the soil is intrinsically healthy, providing relaxation, elevating the morale and mood, whilst demonstrating wider pastoral care in the community.”
