By Jenny Duff, Eco Fair Producer
The Eco fair at Westbrook’s Sunken Garden on Sunday (October 6) ended as it had begun, a serene, beautiful garden seemingly untouched by the 2,000 people that had spent four and a half hours visiting.
If you want a litter free event, then hold an Eco Fair – once the gazebos, tables, chairs and marquees had gone there was nothing to pick up. Cakes baked by local friends of the Sunken Garden were served to an appreciative crowd, along with cups of tea and squash, served up by a dedicated team of yellow-shirted volunteers. Coffee from the Real Deal Roasters came in recyclable, almost box like, containers – spill free and easy to sip.
One visitor said: “We really enjoyed the day and learnt so much! The talk about hedgehogs was great and I could have listened all day and I’ve come away totally fascinated with crabs! Well done and thank you to everyone involved. ”
The Sunken Garden Eco Fair was first held in 2021, as part of Margate NOW, Sunken Ecologies – hosting a small group of organisations in their gazebos sharing their knowledge. This sparked the Sunken Garden Society to hold an event this year.
Months in the planning it was to be bigger and more ambitious, giving locals the opportunity to visit the garden, hear speakers from across the country such Frances Tophill from BBC Gardeners’ World, Hugh Warwick ‘Hedgehog Hugh’, Donna Truwhyte of Enchanted Gardens, John Little of Grass Roof Company, Jo Barker and Helen Smith of Future Forest Foods, Dusty Gedge, Keith Sacre of Barcham Trees and Alasdair Moore from the Lost Gardens of Heligan.
They all talked inspiringly about gardening, trees, green roofs, hedgehogs, birds, brownfields, growing for food, bees, beetles and apples. So keen were the audience to hear this that they spread out of the marquee, standing out in the open.
The marquee was dressed for the occasion by a group of volunteers along with Tina McHugh. Hops and old-mans-beard – gathered in the Garden and at Windmill Community Gardens,- were hanging from the rafters, plus a hapazome backdrop created by Jenny Duff with crafters at a Marine Studios First Friday and dried foraged flower sculptures by Bea’s Art.
Community support was key, the generous sharing of the marquees by Yoakley Care and chairs from Broadstairs & St Peter’s Town Council created a perfect setting.
Outside the speakers’ marquee, in one of the sunken grass pools, artist Louis Michel worked in situ on a sculpture of a giant bee, using steamed UK harvested willow. In the spring indigenous, pollinating climbing plants will be encouraged to spindle through the artwork.
Some 30 gazebos, some kindly lent by Thanet Urban Forest and Cliftonville Farmers Market, held representatives who spent the Eco Fair sharing their expertise. National organisations were present: including RHS Learning, discussing opportunities to build a career in gardening; APHA, Animal and Plant Health Agency, an executive agency of DEFRA, discussing plant health issues and highlighting the importance of plant biosecurity, potential pests and diseases; Trees for Cities promoting lasting change in neighbourhoods.
Alongside these were representation from Kent County Council as Kent Plan Tree, Kent’s Plan Bee and Kent Tree and Pond Partnership, representing the Tree Council; and Butterfly Conservation: discussing tree canopies, pollination, butterflies and stewardship. Retailers included Wild Margate with honey and kimchi; Margate Mushrooms and Little Egret Pottery, who raised additional funds for the garden selling bird feeders and pots that didn’t quite meet the exacting standards needed to be full priced.
Local groups included Thanet Beekeepers Association, Dottie’s Little Hog Hospital, Birdwise East Kent, Windmill Community Gardens, Turner Contemporary, Plastic Free Thanet, Rise Up Clean Up and Sunshine Club. All had activities for young people – bookmaking, nature walks, printing, sculpting and planting, alongside Creepy Claws with a selection of live animals and Face Painting Canterbury, Agnes Pap, adding nature-themed artwork to small faces, including a very fetching green caterpillar!
Kent Wildlife Trust, Birdwise East Kent, RSPB Thanet, Crab Museum and the super Thanet Coast Project teams held visitors of all ages in thrall showing what can be discovered locally on our beaches and at Sandwich Bay Wildlife Park. Tasty Planters, a Broadstairs Town Team initiative, gave away over 200 mini seed packets and planted up pots with over 50 keen growers to take home. Westgate and Garlinge Action Group and Save Minster Marshes were able to share their news with interested visitors.
The event was opened by Deputy Lieutenant of Kent, Mrs Marian Boswall DL, a landscape architect with a true interest in sustainability, who attended on behalf of the Lord-Lieutenant of Kent, His Majesty the King’s official representative in the County.
Marian was joined by Cllr Jack Packman, the Town Mayor of Margate; Cllr Patricia Moore, the Mayor of Ramsgate and The Mayor of Broadstairs, Cllr Mike Garner, who represents the Green Party, plus KCC Cllr Derek Crow-Brown, Thanet District Councillors Cllr Joanne Bright, Cllr Kristian Bright, Cllr Ruth Duckworth; and Cllr Rob Yates and Cllr Matt Scott who both gave time and a lot of energy to assisting in raising the gazebos and marquees, alongside so many amazing volunteers – Gordon, Pat, Elliot, Ben and friends, Jeff, Gary, Lisa, Angie, Shirley, Jill, Nicola, Dave, Lynn, Joe, Denise, Karen, Nathan, Trevor, Ruyin and Dan.
The committee, Event Director Peter Hasted, Bev Aitken, Sue Finch, plus Andrew, spent many hours, along with Fair Producer Jenny Duff, fundraising, organising and worrying about the weather!
Thank you to Academy FM for spending the day chatting (this will play out from Paul Rutterford’s show on Saturday morning) and to all the funders – Thanet District Council as part of UK Shared Prosperity fund and their officers, Kent Community Foundation, London Array, United Lift Services Ltd, Co Op, both for funds and sustenance, Mayor of Margate, Kent County Council, Thanet Earth, Gore Brothers Ltd and the support from Rotary, Bumblebee Conservation Trust, Kent Wildlife Trust and RHS.
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