As a passionate gardener and member of the local "Purley in Bloom" team, our staff member Dave initiated Project Pumpkin at the beginning of the year. Using a spare plot of land behind the Eltham office, Dave transformed a 20-square-meter patch of wasteland into a pumpkin patch.

The plan was to sow 100 seeds and prepare the area for planting. However, the first batch was quickly devoured by squirrels, leading to a second round of sowing. As the seedlings thrived in Dave’s greenhouse, further preparations were made to ready the land for planting.

Once the seedlings were transferred to the ground, the bees from our seven McHugh beehives took over the task of pollination. Remarkably, the pumpkins grew throughout the summer without the need for fertilizing, weeding, or watering.

With the crop maturing, Dave reached out to clients within the Bromley local authority contract to donate the pumpkins. He connected with the Age Concern Saxon Day Centre in Orpington and the Griffin SEN School in Locks Bottom, both of which were delighted by the donation and used the pumpkins for carving, decoration, and cooking.

After a successful harvest, the largest pumpkin, weighing 9.5 kg, was kept for display in the office reception. The rest were washed and delivered to the Griffin SEN School and the Age Concern Saxon Day Centre. With the help of our boiler engineer, Stephen, the pumpkins were handed over, and staff and residents at both locations were immensely grateful for the generous contribution.