By Hannah Corcoran, Deputy Editor 26/27
My friend battles with her umbrella as we hop off the number 2 bus. A five-minute walk later and we reach Redcatch Community Garden in Knowle, tucked to the right of the entrance to Redcatch Park. Visitors at this time of year are instantly greeted with wildflowers at the garden’s entrance.
Made up of 90 regular volunteers and 23 paid members of staff, Redcatch Community Garden (RCG) is a charity that brings local people together to learn, socialise, and improve their wellbeing.
Summing up what they do in one sentence is tricky: art therapy, pollinator projects, music nights, workshops, parties, and even weddings. A typical day of events spans three to four activities- you can see what they have scheduled on their events calendar. There is never a dull moment.
As you walk in through the garden's entrance a food truck is on your right, on your left is the community shop selling produce grown in the garden’s vegetable patch, to the back left is a large canopy, and turning clockwise is a kid’s play area and a polytunnel.
What RCG doesn’t have isn’t worth knowing about! But for a place with a lot to offer it has a calming atmosphere. With plenty of seating at its centre and structures around that keep the wind out, even on a blustery day like today, the garden is a sanctuary. Locals obviously feel the same way. Looking around there are people of all ages here. There is something for everyone.
I head into the shipping container office where I meet Cath Atkinson, Programme Manager at RCG, to find out more about the site’s past. As recently as ten years ago this section of land was a disused bowling green. Cath explains how Kate and Mike, the gardens’ co-founders, combined their expertise to build a small community garden, which has increased in size over the years to the thriving hub it is today.
Cath tells me wellbeing is at the heart of all that is done here. RCG caters for green prescribing, i.e. when doctors prescribe for people to spend time outside for their health. The garden is also a place for people of all ages to develop skills, confidence and friendships. Among RCG’s remarkable schemes is a free two-course lunch served on a Tuesday, open to all, made using ingredients from the garden and prepared by talented volunteers and staff.
As a social hub is makes perfect sense RCG have worked with the Festival of Nature to put on a nighttime safari. The evening event features a range of activities: cyanotypes, poetry-reading, silent disco, and a food and drinks van selling unbeatable pastries filled with veg from the garden.
Tylah Hendrickson
Jesse Frizzell
At dusk my friend and I join the final event of the evening- a bat walk led by Dani Walker, Project Officer for the North Somerset Bat Survey. A few members of the group plug bat detectors into their phones. The devices amplify the bats’ calls- they sound like chattering dolphins. We are also fortunate to see several bats in flight as we slowly circle around the park.
As night descends at the end of a mesmerising evening we walk back to the bus stop. Remember to look up the next time you’re outside at dusk. You might just spot a bat loop-the-loop.
Featured image: Veg patch at RCG | Epigram / Hannah Corcoran
Which activity will you try at Redcatch Community Garden?
