GREEN-fingered residents have gathered at Alderney West Community Garden in Poole to sow a wildflower meadow.

Residents of all ages were involved with preparing the land and sowing the seeds for the new addition to the garden at the bottom of Bedford Road.

Some 50 people turned out last Thursday for the first event in the project - which is a collaboration between the Residents of Alderney West community group (RoAW) and Poole Housing Partnership (PHP), and joint funded by Grow Wild and the National Lottery.

Chair of RoAW, Jane Ford, said: “The community garden is now entering its third season and is going from strength to strength. We started out with just a handful of raised beds but now we’ve expanded the growing area, introduced some seating, created a wildflower meadow and have a brand new play area alongside too. We are very proud of what we have achieved, and the way it has brought the community together.”

The group meets weekly at the community garden and over the next few weeks will also be working with young people at the local youth club to produce artwork which will form the basis of two signs, designed to link the two sides of the estate together, and to connect the community garden with the wider heathland it sits alongside.

PHP’s project co-ordinator Clare Sutton said. "The community is very active and always keen to get involved, and we are really excited about seeing the results of our work when the meadow blooms and the signs go up. We are very grateful to the Dorset Wildlife Trust for all their help, and to Grow Wild and the National Lottery for supporting us.”

Last year, PHP secured funding to develop the site beside the garden into the Alderney Orchard play park, which features a range of equipment, including a tunnel mound, agility trail, climbing frame, talk tubes and swings. Local children helped design the park, with help from PHP and RoAW.