In the past Ben and Mark from Spalding who are supported to live with greater independence by ubu, had achieved great volunteer positions at a local community garden project. Ben and Mark had their own vegetable patch there and worked with expert gardeners to grow and nurture vegetables. There was a head gardener who was very supportive and trained everyone to do their work really well.
Ben and Mark need a lot of physical support to do their work but it worked really well and they enjoyed the experience, being in the community and meeting other gardeners with similar interests. They loved nurturing and watching the vegetables grow…Unfortunately, due to funding being withdrawn along with other austerity measures, their supported work was forced to end in September last year. It was a great disappointment.
However, being resourceful people, Ben and Mark decided, as they have a good sized back garden to their home to create their own garden patch. Using photographs to communicate what they wanted to do and the plants they wanted to grow, Ben and Mark set about making their own vegetable garden.
They have been enabled by ubu team members along the way whenever they have needed a little support to get things done. As you can see from the photographs Ben and Mark have been very productive gardeners and if this carries on we shall need a market stall to sell all the extra vegetables they can’t use for themselves!
Ben and Mark are currently growing a great range of vegetables including carrots, leeks, garden peas, marrows, butternut squash, lettuces and broad beans. But they haven’t stopped there. Oh no…they have expanded into fruit growing too with raspberries, tomato’s and strawberries, some have which have already been harvested and eaten. We are all feeling healthier already.
