Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
Green for go at garden
Allotment project gets off ground
Green-fingered youngsters got their hands dirty at the launch of the Petersburn Allotments sensory garden.
Kids from Petersburn and Dunrobin primaries planted young shoots of alpine plants in the dinosaur garden in time for the opening day of the Craigneuk Avenue allotments’ new attraction.
Others helped the staff and volunteers from Petersburn and Craigneuk by watering and replanting the many planters with an array of colourful blooms and tactile herbs and shrubs to tantalise the senses.
The Petersburn project, run in partnership with Angela Smith and staff from the Royal Horticultural Society, attracted young gardening enthusiasts from the area’s nursery and primary schools.
Sharon Craig, chairperson of Old Petersburn and Craigneuk Tenants’ and Residents’ Association told the Advertiser: “We worked in partnership with the local primary schools.
“Through the RHS we were given the opportunity to apply for funding and were awarded a grant of £500 to help to buy flowers and then we decided to put in a sensory garden.
“We also approached North Lanarkshire Council for help and asked them to donate all the wood for the project and it went from there.
“During the summer holidays a lot of the children were away.
“But three boys – Reagan and Rhys McFadyen and their pal Caiden Downie – from Dunrobin Primary spent all their free time putting planters in, along with myself, some of the committee and residents within the area.
“The three boys worked really hard and did so well. One of them is only four and you don’t realise how gentle they were with the tiny plants.”
Along with her willing band of volunteers, Sharon was thrilled to receive a cheque for £ 200 from local man Patrick Bannan towards the allotments’ funds. Local parliamentarians Neil Gray, Alex Neil and councillors Michael and Agnes Coyle also lent their support on the day.
Sharon said: “Mums as young as 17 were there with their kids.
“Everybody got involved and we were not expecting it to be as busy as it was.
“The planters took pride of place and it really involved a lot of the community, including grans, grandpas and people of all ages.
“The support from the community alone resulted in us collecting over £230 from the sale of plants, vegetables and produce on the day and I can’t thank everyone enough.”