Yesterday was the fourth meeting of my first River of Herbs course.

A tidy group of us met on Spuistraat and proceeded to speak with a few locals before launching into a little tidying up of earthy spaces, some herb planting and some gardening chat! The main aims of River of Herbs are to enable as many people as possible to grow edible and medicinal herbs in disused urban spaces and for those herbs to encourage pollinating insects into our city streets.

During this meeting we also leaned about how a range of other beneficial insects (such as Lacewings, Ladybirds and Ground Belles) can be welcomed into herb gardens, to control pests and keep the plants in good condition.

You can read all about it on the River of Herbs website. And you can download the booklets which the course participants receive from this page.

The current course members have all been planning and planting small (and large) urban spots, close to their homes, which we call Urban Herb Meadows. The current group will soon be ready to go fourth and offer their own courses to other interested volunteer gardeners. The courses are free and are funded by sponsorship and gifts.

If you are interested in joining one of our courses or getting involved in other ways, then please get in touch!