0 Our new 'Herbs for Healing' group begins!

• by Fern Towers
• 05-04-2023

We are delighted to say that we are beginning a new herbal group at Gerddi Bro Ddyfi Gardens, funded by the National Lottery Awards for All. Running fortnightly for 12 months, we will show participants how to start and maintain a herbal garden, how to harvest the plants, and how to make useful remedies and gifts out of them. Seasonal workshops will demonstrate how if we look after the garden, the garden can look after us in return! We are planning to run our first session next Tuesday 11th April, from 10am-1pm. We know that not everyone can make weekdays, but Tuesday morning did come out as the most popular time on the survey we shared. We will definitely make sure to run some sessions on Saturdays too, so keep an eye on the website for the full schedule to come shortly.  For our first session, we will be getting grounded in the gardens, meeting the plants and each other. We will begin with a spring tidy-up of the apothecary, weeding and removing the old stems from the year before for a fresh start. Along the way we will cover identification of plants in the spring – knowing what to weed and what to leave; making teas from some of the ‘weeds’; and our workshop leader Etta will introduce one particular plant in detail, giving us the chance to really get to know it! The apothecary hasn’t had much attention for a year or two, so we did a little inventory of all the plants that might be of interest for this group. We were pleasantly surprised by its abundance! Here is the list of the plants, to give you an idea of some of the species you’ll get to learn about over the course of this project: Sweet cicely Roses Lavender Sweet bay Marjoram Celandine Sage Dandelion Hyssop Nettles Echinacea Nipplewort Rosemary Cleavers Feverfew Herb Robert Meadowsweet Primrose Evening primrose Common dog violet Bronze fennel Sweet violet Lemon balm Mullein Sorrel Valerian Comfrey   Hot drinks and biscuits/fruit will be provided. We have a new shipping container which contains hand washing and first aid equipment, garden tools, and a gazebo should we need the shelter – but do please dress for the unpredictable April weather! If you have any further questions, don’t hesitate to contact Fern at fern@gerddibroddyfigardens.co.uk   We hope to see you there! Fern and Etta

0 Autumn newsletter 2022

• by Fern Towers
• 16-01-2023

Dear friends Welcome to our Autumn newsletter! We have lots to fill you in on after an incredibly busy summer. We've just come to the end of our National Lottery Community Fund project, ‘Growing Together/ Tyfu Gyda'n Gilydd’. We want to say a big thank you to the Lottery for enabling us to run such a fantastic 3-year project, which included an inspiring range of workshops and trips, and two drop-in sessions per week for our wonderful volunteers. While we reflect on the successes of this project and plan for the future, we’ve got some highlights of 2022 so far to share with you in the meantime …VolunteeringVolunteers have had a busy summer helping us to maintain a wildlife-friendly but accessible garden.While we work on securing new funding, we have reduced our weekly drop-in sessions to Thursdays from 1pm-4pm. Our autumnal tasks ahead include things such as pruning, seed-saving, path maintenance and planting ahead for spring. If you would like to join us, you are most welcome!      One of our volunteers takes a breather after doing a fabulous job of restoring paths with woodchip. BioBlitzWe are very grateful to have received funding from the Ashley Family Foundation, which allowed us to run a 24-hour BioBlitz in June, followed by a series of nature-based art workshops to celebrate our wildlife. The event attracted over 150 visitors, who came to learn how to identify a range of species with help from experts in: mammals, moths, bats, birds, lichens, flowering plants, honeybees, mosses and liverworts, invertebrates, hymenoptera, butterflies and trees. A grand total of 342 species were recorded! To read more about the day click here.Over the summer, artists were hired to continue this celebration of wildlife, and help participants to make nature-inspired art. This featured graffiti for teenagers with Nicky Arscott, Drawing with Pip Lewis, Clay creatures for kids with Helen Ingham, and relief carving with James Davies and Bodge.Look out for some amazing new sculptures we also now have, co-designed and made by volunteers and sculptors James Davies and Bodge, pictured below…Workshops  This summer we enjoyed a final line-up of workshops as part of the Lottery project, including whittling, scything, wildlife-pond construction, and bridge building for teenagers.Gardening session for refugeesAs part of refugee week in June, we welcomed a group of refugees from Ukraine, Syria and Afghanistan to the gardens, to take part in a knowledge exchange event organised by Aberystwyth university. This was funded through the University’s ‘World We Want hub’. Participants helped us to make a mini wildlife pond, experimented with dyeing fabrics, and most all had fun sharing food and stories with our volunteers. To read more about the day, click here.And we are happy to say that the pond is now occupied by a resident frog!Summer schoolDuring the summer, a 6-week project called ‘Come to your Senses’ was hosted at the gardens, to engage young people from the town in nature-based crafts, skills and arts. Thank you to Powys Teaching Health Board for providing 3 years of funding for this project, and to all of the volunteers and instructors who took part.TripsAs part of our Lottery project, we took volunteers on a range of trips this summer to gain inspiration and knowledge about gardening, wildlife and the wider environment. In July we took volunteers and members of our kid’s group to Cors Dyfi to admire the ospreys, and got some incredible views of sunbathing lizards. In September we visited CAT to learn about wider environmental issues and how we can garden in a more climate-friendly way. Our final trip to the Botanic Gardens provided a wealth of inspiration for how we might alter our site in future, including gravel gardens, drought-tolerant planting and unusual sculptures!Site plansAs many of you know, we had to remove our wooden shelter in May due to damage and old age. We know that this was a highly valued space for the community, and so have spent several months consulting with volunteers, visitors and community members to plan how we will redesign the area and make an exciting new space for everyone. We are really grateful to have been awarded funding from Tyfi Dyfi to get started on re-developing the area, including a new community shipping container, a pergola, a cooking area and lots of lovely new edible plants and trees. We will let you know in our next newsletter about any updates (and possibly ask you for help with our constructions!).Donate to support our workWe now have a convenient PayPal button on our website's homepage, which allows you to set up a monthly or one-off donation to support our work. We would be incredibly grateful for any amount you can spare. Click here to find the button. Thank you!Join our committeeWe are delighted to welcome two new members to our committee, Donna Pybis and Jeanette Gray. Their diverse skills and insights have already been an enormous help to us.Would you also like to help your community gardens? If you have an interest in running community groups, fundraising, admin, events/catering, or would just enjoy listening and offering your perspective in our meetings, then we would love to hear from you! All that we ask is for committee members to attend one monthly meeting, lasting for 2 hours. Other than that, you’ll only be expected to offer as much time per month as you have available to help us crack on with the ‘behind the scenes’ running of this project. Contact fern@gerddibroddyfigardens.co.uk to find out more or express an interest in joining.   And finally, come to our Winter Warmer!To say thank you to all of our wonderful volunteers and supporters, we will be hosting a Winter Warmer event on Saturday 3rd December. Come and make some nature-inspired clay decorations with Carine Van Gestel, enjoy some music with Arising Choir and lots of yummy seasonal food and drink, and much more!We hope to see you soon.Gerddi Bro Ddyfi Gardens Teamhttps://www.gerddibroddyfigardens.co.uk/Annwyl ffrindiauAnnwyl gyfeillion, Croeso i gylchlythyr yr Hydref! Mae gennym ni lawer o wybodaeth i’w rhoi i chi ar ôl haf hynod o brysur. Rydym newydd ddod at ddiwedd ein prosiect Cronfa Gymunedol y Loteri Genedlaethol, 'Tyfu Gyda'n Gilydd'. Hoffem ddweud diolch yn fawr i’r Loteri am ein galluogi i gynnal prosiect 3 blynedd mor wych, a oedd yn cynnwys ystod ysbrydoledig o weithdai a theithiau, a dwy sesiwn galw heibio yr wythnos i’n gwirfoddolwyr gwych. Wrth i ni feddwl am lwyddiannau’r prosiect hwn a chynllunio ar gyfer y dyfodol, mae gennym rai o uchafbwyntiau 2022 hyd yn hyn i’w rhannu gyda chi yn y cyfamser…GwirfoddoliMae gwirfoddolwyr wedi cael haf prysur yn ein helpu i gynnal gardd hygyrch sy’n gyfeillgar i fywyd gwyllt.Wrth i ni weithio i sicrhau cyllid newydd, rydym wedi lleihau ein sesiynau galw heibio wythnosol i ddydd Iau o 1pm-4pm. Mae’r tasgau sydd o’n blaenau’r hydref hwn yn cynnwys pethau fel tocio, arbed hadau, cynnal a chadw llwybrau a phlannu ar gyfer y gwanwyn. Os hoffech chi ymuno â ni, mae croeso mawr i chi!Un o’n gwirfoddolwyr yn cymryd hoe ar ôl gwneud gwaith gwych o adfer llwybrau gyda naddion pren.BioBlitzRydym yn ddiolchgar iawn ein bod wedi derbyn cyllid gan Sefydliad y Teulu Ashley eleni, a ganiataodd i ni gynnal BioBlitz 24-awr ym mis Mehefin, a ddilynwyd gan gyfres o weithdai celf natur i ddathlu bywyd gwyllt yr ardd. Denodd y digwyddiad dros 150 o ymwelwyr, a ddaeth i ddysgu sut i adnabod amrywiaeth o rywogaethau gyda chymorth arbenigwyr mewn: mamaliaid, gwyfynod, ystlumod, adar, cennau, planhigion blodeuol, gwenyn, mwsoglau a llysiau’r afu, infertebratau, hymenoptera, gloÿnnod byw a choed. Cofnodwyd cyfanswm o 342 o rywogaethau! Dysgwch fwy am y diwrnod yma.Dros yr haf, cyflogwyd artistiaid wedyn i barhau â’r dathliad hwn o fywyd gwyllt, ac i helpu cyfranogwyr i wneud celf wedi’i hysbrydoli gan natur. Roedd hyn yn cynnwys graffiti ar gyfer pobl ifanc yn eu harddegau gyda Nicky Arscott, Arlunio gyda Pip Lewis, Creaduriaid Clai i blant gyda Helen Ingham, a cherfio cerfweddau gyda James Davies a Bodge.Chwiliwch am rai o’r cerfluniau newydd anhygoel sydd gennym ni nawr hefyd, wedi’u cyd-ddylunio a’u gwneud gan wirfoddolwyr a’r cerflunwyr James Davies a Bodge, yn y llun isod…GweithdaiYr haf hwn fe wnaethom fwynhau cyfres olaf o weithdai fel rhan o brosiect y Loteri, gan gynnwys naddu, pladurio, adeiladu pyllau bywyd gwyllt, ac adeiladu pontydd ar gyfer pobl ifanc yn eu harddegau.Sesiwn garddio i ffoaduriaidFel rhan o wythnos y ffoaduriaid, croesawyd grŵp o ffoaduriaid o Wcráin, Syria ac Afghanistan i’r gerddi, i gymryd rhan mewn digwyddiad cyfnewid gwybodaeth a drefnwyd gan brifysgol Aberystwyth. Ariannwyd hyn drwy ganolfan 'Y Byd a Garem' y Brifysgol. Helpodd y cyfranogwyr ni i wneud pwll bywyd gwyllt bach, arbrofi gyda lliwio ffabrigau, ac yn fwy na dim cafwyd hwyl yn rhannu bwyd a straeon gyda'n gwirfoddolwyr. I ddarllen mwy am y diwrnod, cliciwch yma.Ac rydym yn hapus i ddweud bod y pwll bellach yn cael ei feddiannu gan lyffant preswyl!Ysgol hafYn ystod yr haf, cynhaliwyd prosiect 6 wythnos o’r enw ‘Dewch at eich Synhwyrau' yn y gerddi, i ennyn diddordeb pobl ifanc o'r dref mewn crefftau, sgiliau a chelfyddydau seiliedig ar natur. Diolch i Fwrdd Iechyd Addysgu Powys am ddarparu 3 blynedd o gyllid ar gyfer y prosiect hwn, ac i’r holl wirfoddolwyr a hyfforddwyr a gymerodd ran.TeithiauFel rhan o'n prosiect Loteri, aethom â gwirfoddolwyr ar amrywiaeth o deithiau'r haf hwn i gael ysbrydoliaeth a gwybodaeth am arddio, bywyd gwyllt a'r amgylchedd ehangach. Ym mis Gorffennaf aethom â gwirfoddolwyr ac aelodau o’n grŵp plant i Gors Dyfi i edmygu’r gweilch, a chael golygfeydd anhygoel o fadfallod  yn torheulo. Ym mis Medi buom yn ymweld â'r Ganolfan i ddysgu am faterion amgylcheddol ehangach a sut y gallwn arddio mewn ffordd fwy cyfeillgar i'r hinsawdd. Rhoddodd ein taith olaf i’r Ardd Fotaneg gyfoeth o ysbrydoliaeth ar gyfer sut y gallem newid ein safle yn y dyfodol, gan gynnwys gerddi graean, plannu planhigion sy’n gallu gwrthsefyll sychder a cherfluniau anarferol!Cynlluniau safleFel y mae llawer ohonoch yn gwybod, bu'n rhaid i ni gael gwared ar ein lloches bren ym mis Mai oherwydd difrod a henaint. Gwyddom fod hwn yn ofod gwerthfawr iawn i’r gymuned, ac felly rydym wedi treulio sawl mis yn ymgynghori â gwirfoddolwyr, ymwelwyr ac aelodau’r gymuned i gynllunio sut y byddwn yn ail-ddylunio’r ardal a llunio gofod newydd cyffrous i bawb. Rydym yn aros am ganlyniadau ceisiadau am arian ar gyfer hyn, ac felly byddwn yn rhoi gwybod i chi yn ein cylchlythyr nesaf am unrhyw ddiweddariadau (ac o bosibl yn gofyn i chi am help gyda'n gwaith adeiladu!). Ymunwch â'n pwyllgorMae’n bleser gennym groesawu dau aelod newydd i’n pwyllgor, Donna Pybis a Jeanette Gray.Mae eu sgiliau a'u dirnadaeth amrywiol eisoes wedi bod o gymorth mawr i ni.Hoffech chi hefyd helpu eich gerddi cymunedol? Os oes gennych chi ddiddordeb mewn cynnal grwpiau cymunedol, codi arian, gweinyddu, digwyddiadau/arlwyo, neu os hoffech chi wrando a chynnig eich persbectif yn ein cyfarfodydd, yna byddem wrth ein bodd yn clywed gennych! Y cyfan a ofynnwn yw i aelodau’r pwyllgor fynychu un cyfarfod misol, sy’n para am 2 awr. Ar wahân i hynny, dim ond cymaint o amser y mis ag sydd gennych chi y bydd disgwyl i chi ei gynnig i’n helpu ni i fwrw ymlaen â chynnal y prosiect hwn 'tu ôl i'r llenni'. Cysylltwch â fern@gerddibroddyfigardens.co.uk i ganfod mwy neu i fynegi diddordeb mewn ymuno. Gobeithio’ch gweld chi yn fuan. Tȋm Gerddi Bro Ddyfihttps://www.gerddibroddyfigardens.co.uk/    

0 BioBlitz June 2022

• by Fern Towers
• 15-11-2022

Between Friday 24th – Saturday 25th June, we hosted a wonderful celebration of wildlife here at Gerddi Bro Ddyfi Gardens, with a BioBlitz in collaboration with Machynlleth Biodiversity group. This event was kindly funded by the Ashley Family Foundation, which also allowed us to run a brilliant series of nature-based art workshops over the summer. An impressive group of experts turned up to kindly offer their help on the day, including: Ben Porter; Caroline de Carle (Wildlife Trust, mammals); the Dyfi Biosphere Swift Project: Montgomeryshire Moth Group; North Ceredigion Bat Group; Tom Kistruck (RSPB, birds); Tracey Lovering (Lichens); Lottie Glover (Wildlife Trust); David Elias (flowering plants); Sarah Thomas (butterflies); Mark Lawley (mosses and liverworts); Phil Ward (invertebrates); Richard Becker (hymenoptera); Tom Brown (honeybees); and Kirsten Manley (The Woodland Trust). With so much wildlife knowledge around, it is unsurprising that we counted a grand total of 342 species! A particular hats-off is given to Phil McGregor of the Montgomeryshire Moth Group, who stayed up until an 5:30am to keep an eye on the moth traps. Dedication! Some highlight species included Spotted Flycatchers, Heath Spotted Orchid, a Fork Tailed Flower Bee (probably new for the area), and an amazing Conopid fly called Physocephela rufipes. We also had a lovely range of stalls present on the day, to keep people fed and entertained in between sessions. This included a book stall from the Coch-Y-Bonddu bookstore, children’s activities with Clara Lloyd TicToc play, Montgomeryshire Wildlife Trust’s Green Connections, and some delectable Syrian food from our friends Arabic Flavour. Given the success of this event, we are hoping to run another next year. Indeed, many of our recorders believe they’ve only just managed to scrape the surface of the wildlife we have here, so much more nature-hunting needs to be done! It was also lovely to see new connections between wildlife-lovers be made, and various groups receiving sign-ups from new members, as a result of the day. If you’d like to be involved in the running of next year’s event in any way, or have some ideas for sessions/stalls we could include, get in touch with fern@gerddibroddyfigardens.co.uk   ------------------   Rhwng dydd Gwener 24 a dydd Sadwrn 25 Mehefin, cynhaliwyd dathliad arbennig o fywyd gwyllt yma yng Ngerddi Bro Ddyfi, gyda BioBlitz mewn cydweithrediad â grŵp Bioamrywiaeth Machynlleth. Ariannwyd y digwyddiad hwn yn garedig gan Sefydliad y Teulu Ashley, a roddodd ganiatâd i ni hefyd gynnal cyfres wych o weithdai celf yn seiliedig ar natur dros yr haf. Daeth grŵp nodedig o arbenigwyr i gynnig eu cymorth ar y diwrnod, gan gynnwys: Ben Porter; Caroline de Carle (Ymddiriedolaeth Bywyd Gwyllt, mamaliaid); Prosiect Gwennol Ddu Biosffer Dyfi: Grŵp Gwyfynod Sir Drefaldwyn; Grŵp Ystlumod Gogledd Ceredigion; Tom Kistruck (RSPB, adar); Tracey Lovering (Cennau); Lottie Glover (Ymddiriedolaeth Bywyd Gwyllt); David Elias (planhigion blodeuol); Sarah Thomas (gloÿnnod byw); Mark Lawley (mwsoglau a llysiau’r afu); Phil Ward (infertebratau); Richard Becker (hymenoptera); Tom Brown (gwenyn); a Kirsten Manley (Coed Cadw). Gyda chymaint o wybodaeth am fywyd gwyllt o gwmpas, nid yw'n syndod ein bod wedi cyfrif cyfanswm o 342 o rywogaethau! Rhaid rhoi canmoliaeth arbennig i Phil McGregor o Grŵp Gwyfynod Sir Drefaldwyn, a arhosodd ar ei draed tan 5:30 a.m. i gadw llygad ar y maglau gwyfynod. Ymroddiad! Roedd rhai o’r rhywogaethau a amlygwyd yn cynnwys y Gwybedog Mannog, Tegeirian Brych y Rhos, a Fork Tailed Flower Bee (sydd mae’n debyg yn newydd i’r ardal), a phryf Conopid rhyfeddol o’r enw Physocepela rufipes. Roedd gennym ni hefyd amrywiaeth hyfryd o stondinau yn bresennol ar y diwrnod, i sicrhau bod pobl yn cael eu bwydo a'u difyrru rhwng sesiynau. Roedd hyn yn cynnwys stondin lyfrau o siop lyfrau Coch-y-Bonddu, gweithgareddau i blant gyda Chwarae TicToc Clara Lloyd, Cysylltiadau Gwyrdd Ymddiriedolaeth Natur Sir Drefaldwyn, a bwyd hyfryd o Syria gan ein ffrindiau Arabic Flavour. O ystyried llwyddiant y digwyddiad hwn, rydym yn gobeithio cynnal un arall y flwyddyn nesaf. Yn wir, mae llawer o’n cofnodwyr yn credu mai dim ond newydd lwyddo i grafu’r wyneb yr ydym wedi’i wneud o ran y bywyd gwyllt sydd gennym yma, felly mae angen gwneud llawer mwy o hela natur! Roedd hefyd yn hyfryd gweld cysylltiadau newydd yn cael eu creu rhwng y rhai sy’n caru bywyd gwyllt, a grwpiau amrywiol yn derbyn aelodau newydd, o ganlyniad i’r diwrnod. Os hoffech chi fod yn rhan o gynnal digwyddiad y flwyddyn nesaf mewn unrhyw ffordd, neu os oes gennych chi rai syniadau ar gyfer sesiynau/stondinau y gallem eu cynnwys, cysylltwch â fern@gerddibroddyfigardens.co.uk  

0 Bioblitz 24th - 25th June 2022

• by Angela Paxton
• 10-06-2022

0 Bioblitz 24th-25th June 2022

• by Administrator
• 10-06-2022