News

A Pollinator Friendly Garden

Mrs Smith’s Cottage Garden is beloved by staff, visitors, and volunteers. With its bright fresh greenery in the springtime which erupts into glorious colour through the summer creates a relaxing space for all to enjoy. While being a joy for humans, the cottage garden allows all kinds of pollinators to truly thrive.

What makes Mrs Smith’s Garden so ideal?

Close Planting

There are a lot of plants packed into the Mrs Smith’s garden, all working together to make the most of light, water, and pollinator attention.

This close planting allows caterpillars and larvae to move easily from plant to plant allowing them to find fresh food while providing places to hide from predators.

Diversity

Mrs Smith loved flowers and was always delighted to add new finds or varieties to the cottage garden. Having a rich diversity of plant species mixing herbs, wildflowers, and classic cottage garden bedding plants supported a greater diversity of pollinator species, including specialists.

Year-Round Blooms

Mrs Smith was able to have something in bloom throughout the year, which is not an easy feat by any stretch, and we are still working to do through our national lottery heritage fund project. Having food sources for pollinators throughout the year is often key to their ongoing survival, especially in early spring when bees first start to emerge.

What can you do at home?

Pollinator friendly species

There are lots of different pollinator friendly species to choose from when you want to start a pollinator friendly garden. We have split out suggestions into different seasons, and advice new gardeners to select at least 1 species for each season giving support to pollinators throughout the year.

Winter

Snowdrops, Ivy, Crocus, Mahonia, Rosemary, Celandine, Winter Aconite

Spring

Apple Tree, Daffodils, Alliums, Lungwort, Cowslip, Forget Me Not

Summer

Lavender, Comfrey, Foxgloves, Phacelia, Chives, Strawberry

Autumn

Dahlias, Wallflowers, Asters, Honeysuckle, Abelia, Sedum

Leave a little mess

A perfectly neat and tidy garden removes a lot of the shelter which is required by pollinators. Allowing a little mess into your garden is the easiest way to create environments where species can rest, lay eggs, and hide from predators.

Leaving leaflitter, and any other fallen plant material, in place is an easy place to start. It will provide a home for a wide range of different insects the ideal place for them to nest or find shelter, this could be done across the garden or simply select a quiet corner to leave messy.

No Mow May! Neat and tidy lawns don’t provide a lot of opportunities for pollinators to feed or shelter. Reducing how often you mow your lawn and allowing plants like daisy, dandelions and clover to bloom makes a big difference to pollinators. This is especially important in the spring when pollinators are first starting to emerge and look for food.

Sources:

  • https://www.rhs.org.uk/wildlife/pollinators-decline-in-numbers
  • https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-019-08974-9
  • https://butterfly-conservation.org/butterflies/why-butterflies-matter
  • https://friendsoftheearth.uk/nature/gardening-bees

Newsletter – July 2022

We’re open to guests on Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Mondays, 12pm-4pm. Mrs Smith’s door was always open to drop-in visitors, and so are we! Due to the small size of the building we recommend booking your visit in advance to avoid disappointment.

Our ‘Be More’ events programme continues into July; we’re sharing practical everyday skills inspired by Mrs Smith’s low waste lifestyle and helping us understand seasonal eating, food production, and waste disposal methods to make more sustainable choices.

Have a look at the ‘Be More…’ webpage for more information and see the list below for July’s exciting events!

The Navenby Heritage Trail

Last month we launched the new Navenby Heritage Trail. Starting at Mrs Smith’s Cottage the trail takes you on a circular route of the historic village, where you can find date stones embedded into the pavement that have been designed by artist-in-residence Nicki Jarvis.

The trail booklet explains the significance of each date to Navenby. What a great way to mix heritage, art, nature, and exercise!

Upcoming events in July

Mrs Smith’s Wallpaper – our new exhibition – Running until 2nd Sept

Pull back the layers and explore the changing decorative schemes in the cottage in this exhibition by the Lincoln Conservation team thanks to our Heritage Lottery Funding.

Anthotype Workshop – Fri 8 July, 6-8pm, Tickets £8.50

Create your own anthoype prints using Mrs Smith’s Cottage and Gardens as inspiration.

Big Butterfly Count – Sat 15 July, 12-4pm, standard entry fee applies

Join the Big Butterfly count at the Cottage and take a copy of our butterfly trail, with tips and ticks for creating a butterfly friendly space at home.

Small Space Gardening – Mon 12 July, 11am-12pm, tickets £5

Join the Sage Gardener team as they help you to make the most of any available growing space. This talk is ideal for families, beginner gardeners or those who don’t know where to start with their own garden projects.

Family Guide to an Edible Garden – Tues 29 July, 11am-12pm, FREE

In this workshop Hannah Sylvester will be sharing a family friendly guide to some unexpectedly edible plants. Helping you to make a nibble pot, letting you try the plants as you go along!

Save the date! Coming up in August…

Rag Rug Workshop: Tues 2nd

Lino Printing: Fri 5th

Plant Dye Workshop: Thu 11th

Wash Days: Sat 20th & Sun 21st

Seasonal Plate Talk: Fri 26th

Come and say hello at Heckington Show!

Back for a full two-day weekend, the 153rd Heckington Show will be on 30th and 31st July, and we’re excited to be there!

Find us in the NKDC marquee, where you can have a go at some great family activities; join in with our vintage Wash Day, collect some free #BeMore tips and goodies, and much more!

Welcome to the team, Sophie!

We’re so excited to introduce Sophie, the new Heritage Assistant at the cottage.

Sophie has a love of heritage and we’ve loved having her here at the cottage for her first month. Pop along during our opening times to say hello!

Keep Updated!

Don’t forget to follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to keep up to date with the latest news and information from the cottage.

We also really value the feedback you leave us on Trip Advisor – if you’ve visited us recently please click here to leave us a review – it’s great for us to see how we’re doing!

NavenBEEs Garden Dairy – 17th June

On a very bright June morning our NavenBEEs toddler group enjoyed the sunshine, working on paintings and getting some jobs done in the garden.

Garden notes:

  • Did lots of watering, as it is a very sunny day!
  • Found that our pea plants had bee taken by some slugs, so we removed them.
  • Played in the lavender, making our hands smell lovely.
  • Harvested our radish plants.
  • Planted tomatoes plants in place of our failed peas.

We have a few spaces available in our NavenBEEs group, to secure a spot and follow our activities, join the facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1208789059566216

Sustainable Navenby

Shopping Locally to #BeMoreSustainable

A guide to some of the sustainable shopping options in Navenby village.

The Lounge Cafe

Located at the back of the Navenby Antiques Centre, this small cafe has a strong focus on locally soured products.

Choosing small businesses in your local area is a simple way to reduce your carbon footprint, while supporting the local economy.

Find them on Facebook- Opens in a new window

Navenby Antiques Centre

Found on Navenby High Street this friendly Antiques Shop is a great place to find unique and inspiring gifts.

Buying preowned/second hand is a fantastic way to reduce your impact on the planet, preventing waste and reducing the need to produce new items.

Find out more on their website- Opens in a new window

Petal and Stalk

A delightful, small, florists on Navenby High Street.

They carefully source British grown flowers to reduce the carbon footprint of their displays. Upcycling and reusing items to create one of a kind gifts.

Find out more on their website- Opens in a new window

Pedal Electric Cycles

Making cycling accessible to everyone is the goal for this small cycle shop on East Road in Navenby.

Their dedicated staff see electric bicycles as an important tool for reducing car use. Making cycling accessible to those who might otherwise struggle with a standard push bicycle, and allowing confident cyclists to go further or carry more shopping.

Find more information on their website

Seconda

Extending the life of each item and preventing beautiful clothing ending up landfill. Seconda is proud to be a vibrant part of the Navenby, Lincolnshire community, bringing the future of formal wear right to your doorstep.

It offers a welcoming and personal experience centered around sustainable elegance. They provide a curated collection of stunning brand new and ex-display wedding gowns, elegant ball gowns, sophisticated men’s suits, and beautiful accessories, all selected for their quality and potential for a second life.

Find them on Facebook

Newsletter – May 2022

Throughout 2022 we’re sharing practical everyday skills inspired by Mrs Smith’s low waste lifestyle and helping us understand seasonal eating, food production, and waste disposal methods to make more sustainable choices.

Have a look at the ‘Be More…’ webpage for more information and see the list below for May’s exciting events!

Coming up in May

We’re open to guests on Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Mondays, 12pm-4pm. Mrs Smith’s door was always open to drop-in visitors, and so are we! Due to the small size of the building we recommend booking your visit in advance to avoid disappointment.

As well as our usual opening, we have these great events coming up in May:

Spring Forage: Saturday 14th May – 10-12pm

We are excited about our first seasonal forage! Join us at Hill Holt Wood for a Spring forage led by Hannah, the District Herbalist. The group will be taking a walk around Hill Holt Wood, identifying and gathering the plant material needed to brew a wonderful tea to share at the end.

A wonderful introduction to foraging, tickets are only £5.

Memory Sharing Day: Friday 20th May – 12-4pm

Do you have any memories of meeting Mrs Smith? We are opening the cottage doors for free for anyone who has memories of Mrs Smith to share with our dedicated volunteer team. We would like to record stories which will help us, and our visitors, to get to know more about Mrs Smith, her everyday life, food, and personality.

Small Space Gardening Talk: Tuesday 31st May – -4pm

The Sage Gardener team will be leading this exciting talk on small space gardening, helping you to make the most of any available growing space. This talk is ideal for beginner gardeners, those with limited growing space, or people who don’t know where to start with their own garden projects.

Tickets are only £5.

Find out more about Sage Gardener on their website: Sage Gardener

Group Workshops and Activities

Did you know that we run workshops and outreach visits for youth groups?

From Victorian wash days to rag rug workshops the Mrs Smith’s Cottage team provides a range of exciting activities – we can bring all the resources to your scouts/guides/beavers/brownies group, or you can book a workshop at the cottage and immerse yourself in history.

Email us [email protected] or click here for more information!

Mrs Smith’s Cottage, East Road, Navenby, Lincoln. Picture: Chris Vaughan Photography for North Kesteven District Council Date: August 18, 2021

Poetry Competition Winners

Congratulations to the winners of our poetry competition – thank you so much for entering and we hope you enjoy your prizes!

Keep Updated!

Don’t forget to follow us on Facebook- Opens in a new window, Twitter- Opens in a new window and Instagram- Opens in a new window to keep up to date with the latest news and information on upcoming projects!