Volunteers at Carey November 2021

The Volunteers at Carey’s Secret Gardens only started in July of this year and I sometimes need to pinch myself as to the progress that has been made both with the scheme and the impact that it has had on the garden.

Volunteer days are currently on Wednesdays and Saturdays and when you first join, you are given a full tour of the garden to ensure that you are aware of all of the logistical and, health and safety issues in the garden, we also share the amazing history and ecology of Careys Secret Garden with you.

At the moment, we have a core team of about 10 volunteers who have so far donated over 540 hours of their time in the garden! This is quite an incredible effort and reflects their hard work and commitment to the garden as well as, I hope, their enjoyment.

Volunteers working in the Food Forest at Careys Secret Garden

We even have some of the team coming to the garden weekly now,  although this is not always possible due to professional/private commitments.

The hard work of the team has made such a difference and you may have noticed it around the gardens yourselves? We make sure though that the work is varied and not a monotonous slog of weeding (although of course a bit of that is a help too!). So far we’ve deadheaded, bulb planted, fruit picked, composted and meadow mowed as well as the basics of keeping things tidy.

Digging in to help out!

Volunteer team planting bulbs at the entrance to the walled garden at Careys

Just this week, the Volunteer team were responsible for planting over 600 bulbs which should look amazing this coming April/May and our apprentice Mandy has been relaying her experiences to the team to help us all improve our Horticultural knowledge. 

So if you would like to try volunteering at Carey, then please do. It really is a great experience and the feedback from our individual Volunteers has been very positive. Not only this, you will be provided with an endless supply of tea, coffee, and biscuits and you can be guaranteed of working in a very supportive, inclusive, and friendly environment.

What’s it like being a volunteer?

“The team have been really welcoming & so generous with their knowledge & time. They’re clear on what they’d like you to help them with, let you do things you might know very little about & encourage you to enjoy rather than endure the time in the garden. Their passion for what can happen there is infectious.”

2022 Update: Our volunteer programme is currently full. Please email hello@careyssecretgarden.co.uk to go on the waiting list.

November 2021