With our last regular gardening session of the year now completed, let’s look back at 2024 at the station – and beyond!
The group began the year on a competitive note at the Rotary Club Quiz. Having won the previous quiz the team were out on the defensive, and the competition was fierce. We came away with a respectable 4th place out of 18, and had a really great evening to boot!
Work began back at the station with regular volunteer gardening sessions. Seed heads that were left for winter interest and any extra growth was pruned away to reveal the fruits of our autumn bulb planting.
In March we began work clearing the southern flat bed on platforms 1 & 2. This was in preparation for a new sensory bed that would refresh the area and combine with our aims to bring the joy of plants to all. Funding this work was secured as a grant from Siemens Mobility Ltd as part of their East Coast Digital Programme, and along with this came the commitment to help out with the planting at our 2024 Makeover day…
Makeover Day arrived, a nearly annual tradition now where the All Aboarders partner with GTR, Network Rail, local councillors, rotary and other supporters to spruce up the station. This year we also welcomed Siemens Mobility staff to help with the installation of the sensory bed. The new bed was designed and supplied by our friends at Garden on a Roll and gave instant impact. Many hands make a big impression on one of these days with lots of other jobs being completed including the planting up of 5 new square troughs, treating the existing troughs, painting the sign posts, installing new heritage posters in the waiting rooms & general gardening tasks.
Also in March we were pleased to be featured in a new poster for the recently renovated Howardsgate poster booths. The posters are organised by the Welwyn Garden City Society on different themes, this one is on the history of the towns Railway Station.
Our Pride bench, originally installed in 2021, had suffered from the effects of the weather. In April the bench was reinvigorated by staff using mental sheeting and vinyl wrap, specially designed to fit the space. We think it looks fab!
Through summer we continued to plant and prune and most importantly water! The sunny weather gave us some truly incredible displays
July brought a visit from the Anglia in Bloom judges, who were assessing the station as part of the overall BID entry. The station was on top form and the judges seemed pleased.
Whilst the Anglia in Bloom were touring the platforms they asked if we had ever considered planting in the gravel areas. We quickly decided this was a great idea and began planning. This was to be a dry garden with little to no soil so plants would have to be resilient to thrive in this position. We look forward to seeing how this experiment progresses!
August saw another judging session, this time for Britain in Bloom. We had been entered into the National competition because of last years success in Anglia in Bloom which was a real privilege.
The All Aboarders volunteers enjoy a good coffee and chat so we decided on a change of scenery. We enjoyed a great day out to Cambridge Botanic Gardens, travelling by train of course. The group had lunch at the cafe within the gardens and were taken on a very informative tour. The glasshouses were particularly interesting as they were split into various climatic regions, and also handy to dodge the afternoon showers.
Autumn brings our attention back to trees and shrubs as they change colour in such a delightful way. We are blessed with our own mini woodland area on platforms 3 & 4 where the mature pines and hedges stand over large beds. Next year we plan to turn our attention to these areas and use shade loving shrubs and bulbs to maximise them. In preparation for this we spent a few october sessions clearing, relocation and pruning plants and then topping up the compost.
The last update of the year was to refresh the troughs ready for spring. Most of the bedding was still looking pretty good but it wouldn’t survive the frosts, though we were able to save some to overwinter in sheds. Bulbs, new bedding, bulbs and small hardy shrubs have been added to keep interest over winter and into spring. We can’t wait to see them flourish next year.
A huge thanks to all our volunteers and supporters, we couldn’t do it without you!
All Aboarders 