Get Growing in Hollingdean, at the Forest Garden
Every 3rd Sunday of the month, from 10am to 12pm. Come along and help us grow food! Our friendly Growing Hollingdean volunteers will meet you at The Shed (on the corner of Brentwood Road and Lynchet Close) at 10am, where you’ll be able to borrow gloves and equipment.
Everyone is welcome, no experience needed! We look forward to seeing you, rain or shine.
Mulching and weeding in Hollingdean Park
Every month we spend time taking care of the Forest Garden and Community Orchard. There is always something for everyone to do- weeding, removing the long grass, mulching round the trees with bark to keep water in and weeds down. Some months there are special jobs like pruning the fruit trees or harvesting their crops or watering in new plants in hot spells. Eventually, as the Forest Garden matures and the soil microbiome develops we should need to do less watering. Join us, we look forward to meeting you.
Growing Hollingdean volunteers plant a Forest Garden at Hollingdean Park Community Orchard, March 2025
See our Forest Garden page here.
Golden rules of foraging
The golden rules of foraging are: some for yourself, some for the wildlife and leave some for others, too. This year the new plants are busy getting their roots down to really bed in. As the garden becomes mature, so it will become more and more fruitful in coming years.
Buggingham Palace at Hollingdean Park, March 2025
Buggingham Palace can be found in Hollingdean Park at the end of the Edible Hedge. We would love to know what you see here.
Growing Hollingdean volunteers
Growing Hollingdean volunteers get together to help look after the Hollingdean Community Orchard, mulching, weeding and pruning. The orchard is a beautiful wildlife friendly peaceful space for anyone to sit and relax in. Found at the back of Hollingdean park behind the Family Hub on Lynchet Close. Join us!
Weeds to remove from the Food Forest Garden at Hollingdean Community Orchard
Cleavers (sticky weed) and bindweed can be pulled out by hand, left to dry in the sun where they will dry up, left to feed the soil. These plant can take over and shade our edible plants, regular pulling out will reduce their growth and eventually stop growing.
Hollingdean Forest Garden Pond, Dead hedge and Hibernaculum built in 2024
In March / April 2024 volunteers and Froglife got together to build a wild life pond in the community orchard. See our blog on the progress and how we did it. Anyone can build a dead hedge and see why, here. Frogs, newts, lizards and slow worms have been seen here. Please let us and Froglife know when you see any wildlife.
Hollingdean Park Bog Garden, Winter 2024
In September 2024 Growing Hollingdean volunteers, Hollingbury Hawks F.C., and Discovering Dewponds (Froglife) team built a bog garden pond for wildlife at Hollingdean Park Football Pitch. Everyone is welcome to visit and please let Froglife know what you see. Visit at night with a torch during spring time activities.
A ‘Bog Garden’ is a shallow, boggy and plant-rich pond. A ton of aquatic soil has been added to achieve the perfect boggy texture, before planting-in some aquatic plants. Please keep dogs and children out as there is a liner to hold the water in. Thank you.
Fruit and nut trees for Hollingdean Community Orchard
Hollingdean orchard has many trees such as: apple, cherry plum, field maple, lime, Sharon, hazel, pear, plum, fig and olive. Bearing fruit and nuts for everyone to enjoy. See our tree map here.
Thank you for your help.
Hollingdean Orchard Bee Boxes installed 2023
For all the latest news on Growing Hollingdean free events and volunteering please sign up here or in the box below. Thank you to all the Growing Hollingdean volunteers who made this possible.
Growing Hollingdean 