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Good causes

Other series followed Ground Force: Charlie’s Army did for urban waste ground what Ground Force did for private gardens. It was during the filming of these programmes that Charlie first encountered the British Trust for Conservation Volunteers (BTCV): “They were wonderful at organising community involvement. They came along with experts, professionals, first-aiders and volunteers. For the first series we had around 20 volunteers for each project – and do you know, nine out of ten of those gardens remain unvandalised, which is really gratifying.”

She recalls a widow who had remained a recluse for 20 years since her husband died, and who got involved as a volunteer in one of the gardens. “Her life changed: suddenly she knew local mothers with young children and teenagers, where before she had been frightened to go out. That’s one of the great things about BTCV.”

Charlie’s other favourite good cause is DreamFlight, a charity that was begun by a retired British Airways employee and is now supported by BA. A flight to Orlando, Florida is arranged annually for severely disabled and terminally ill children: “The plane is completely decorated inside and the children are given lovely treats and sweets on board. Everyone from check-in staff to doctors and nurses who accompany the children give their time voluntarily. Volunteers like me accompany the children to the Florida theme parks and we go on the rides with them, even if we’re scared to death!”

Traditional approach

We couldn’t discuss gardens without asking Charlie to give us her thoughts on the dry summer and whether anything we do now, in the autumn, will help with a future dry spell. “I can see that gardeners will go back to the old way of planting shrubs and trees in the autumn, into warm earth with more rainfall, so that the roots have a chance to establish themselves during the winter months. Containerised plants have spoiled us, allowing us to plant any time, but because the plants are in leaf, they need more water to become established.

“We will go back to biennials, planting these also in the autumn so that they are established by the time the warm weather comes along – Canterbury bells, sweet William and foxgloves, for example. You will find that the seeds from plants that seed themselves are much better at surviving dry periods than the packet seed you plant into ideal greenhouse conditions and then put into the garden. When the going gets tough and water is short they say, ‘Hey, what’s this? We can’t survive here!’ Seeds from poppies, forget-me-nots etc. dropped by plants can grow in the unlikeliest places.”

Finally, what does a gardener known for her water features suggest we do when water-saving is paramount? “Obviously if you have wildlife, fish and plants, depending on your pond you should keep it topped up, and the hosepipe ban does allow you to, but there is no need to have a fountain spraying that just evaporates the water into the air. Reduce the flow to bubbling only, but otherwise turn it off. Water features in bowls should be turned off and disguised with a few plants – any algae will soon disintegrate in the air.”

Further information

Through BTCV you can become part of the largest green volunteer force in the UK. BTCV encourages, trains and looks after volunteers and community groups improving their local environment.  From wildlife gardening in central London to footpath maintenance in the Scottish Highlands, they have projects all over the UK so there’s bound to be something on your doorstep. Volunteers come from all different backgrounds and are aged from under 8 to over 80.  No experience is necessary – just enthusiasm.

Besides helping our wildlife and the environment, it’s a great way to get fit, have fun and make friends. Tel: 01302 572244 or visit www.btcv.org

DreamFlight – tel: 01494 792991 or visit www.dreamflight.org
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