What We Do
&
Who We Are

We are a group of local people who grow seasonal veg, fruit, herbs and cut flowers together, to eat and share. We follow permaculture principles and use the ‘No Dig’ method with the aim of improving soil health and increasing biodiversity. We also keep bees and make honey. We work hard to be sustainable.

Our Aims

  • Food - growing healthy, seasonal food together in an environmentally sustainable  way

  • Community - spending time at the garden with members of our local community, in an enjoyable way that is supportive and respectful of everyone

  • Biodiversity - protecting and raising  biodiversity

  • Education - sharing and learning with others

“Getting it right on food, could be the greatest opportunity to improve our health and wellbeing, whilst at the same time protecting the planet.”

— Gunhild Stordalen, EAT Foundation

“It all begins with the soil …. nurture your soil to grow better veg with less effort.”

— Charles Dowding, ‘No Dig’, 2022

Join or Visit LCKG

 

Join LCKG and become one of our ‘volunteers’, if you live locally (approx. 6 mile radius of Lynsted) and are interested in any of the following:

  • ‘No Dig’ growing and helping out

  • Eating seasonal, healthy, fresh, organic veg, fruit and herbs for FREE (pick what you want when you want in exchange for your help in the garden)

  • Sharing and learning more about food

  • Learning about bees & honey

  • Getting to know your local community

  • Making a positive difference with climate change and biodiversity

    Visit Us on one of our Open Morning Events to learn more. You are also welcome at other times, but please contact us to make an appointment.

 

What We’ve Achieved

  • wonderful local group (individuals and families) with a strong sense of purpose and community

  • quarter of an acre of outdoor ‘no dig’ veg beds, using recycled cardboard & compost

  • reused a 25 year old polytunnel frame to establish a ‘no dig’, ‘indoor’ growing area

  • no chemical pesticides, herbicides or fertilisers

  • compost-making with help from local compost experts @heartandsoilcommunity

  • harvested rainwater to provide for watering

  • linked to solar panels for electricity

  • built a ‘no dig fruit cage

  • bees, harvested 1st honey Sept ‘22

  • supported Swale Borough Council’s Great Big Green Week, in 2021 & again in 2022, to raise awareness on climate and biodiversity action

  • supported Kent County Council’s 2021-22 Reconnect Locality programme (for young people to enjoy family-time, taking part in outdoor activity and experiences

  • run events (open to the general public) with outstanding feedback

  • regular visits from our local primary school

  • grant from Swale, KCC, and a charitable trust

Our Governance

The whole feel of the Kitchen Garden is a relaxed one; a place where you come to enjoy yourself with family and community. The easy going, fun loving atmosphere is something we all treasure, but we also have responsibilities: the place, the people and the money. To ensure its smooth running Lynsted Community Kitchen Garden formalised itself into a constituted group, by electing a management team: chair, secretary, treasurer and two young ambassadors, on 3rd December 2021. We have a Treasurers’/Community bank account to manage a small (optional) annual subscription for adults, (under 18s free), and any funding/donations we receive.

Formal meetings are held every three months. We communicate daily via a whiteboard at the garden & WhatsApp.

In order that we respect and support our membership/visitors, and the environment, we require members to agree to the following guidance.

Management Team

  • Vanessa

    FOUNDER & TREASURER

  • Neil

    CHAIR

  • Jacqui

    SECRETARY

  • Ray

    TREASURER

  • Freya

    YOUNG AMBASSADOR

  • Amber

    YOUNG AMBASSADOR

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