The Orchard Project are starting another community orchard outside the lovely Friern Barnet Community Library, in partnership with Yvonne, their growing coordinator. As part of their volunteer engagement, they linked up with Lynne, who is coordinating growing outside St John's Church across the road, to plant two mini-meadows. So Subham and I walked intothe a lovely network of people dedicated to supporting nature and food in Barnet, including Shiri from the Finchley Pollinators, and a host of local residents supporting the initiative.

Subham and I got stuck in with tools, digging up turf for the first mini-meadow. Subham and I carried the turf over to a big tree on the green and deposited it on the bare soil around the base. We then gathered together with small handfuls of seeds to sprinkle on the patch, followed by a bit of consolidating (stepping on the seeds to stick them down so they don't blow away and have a better chance of rooting). We then bashed in stakes with a sledgehammer - including a swing or two by MP Catherine West! - and put string around to protect the patch, with a sign.

Then it was over the road to a long poor soil patch outside the church where nothing grows - perfect for wildflowers and meadows! We roughed the patch up with rakes and then sowed seeds and trampled a bit to round off. And for those that wanted it, there was a bit more engagement in the Library after, with apple juice, vegan apple cake, fruit tasting and chitchat.