Ac Baker

Riona Abhainn wrote:Took a look at the website, looks like a cool idea.  Nothing in my area yet, but things take time to spread, so I understand.  I think this has a lot of potential to grow and become popular though!

I agree.  We are currently doing very limited sharing food surpluses, between keen gardeners and our neighbours, and through the local Black-led Mutual Aid. But we know there is much more scope to get gardeners, people with gardens, and food-insecure and local produce appreciating neighbours involved.

Impressive work!  We are just finishing off coppicing our hazel.

Those alder hemispheres are beautiful, and interesting.

I also lean towards village-size communities being an important scale in permanent culture.

I grew up in the same village of c. 400 people that my father and his mother had grown up in.

There was scope for people and families who wanted to be more separate and "self-reliant" to be more loosely associated with the village.

But when there was a crisis, people had long-standing relationships to lean into for collective survival and problem-solving too.

A village can be stewards for a varied landscape of a thousand or more hectares.

Villages also have relationships with other neighbourung villages, which are also richer and more resilient than even a multi generational single family unit.

Robin Wall Kimmerer passes on, in her book "The Serviceberry", that all flourishing is mutual.  We flourish in relationships with the whole biosphere.

Yes! We have two key holders now!! So communication in the group is growing.

Here in central England, winter still feels in full swing: wintery showers forecast today, and chilly sun tomorrow.

Time to do the last of the winter jobs like sheet mulching new growing areas, pruning, coppicing, setting up supports for climbing fruit, transplanting dormant shrubs etc.

Our delicious hybrid currant (Ben Sarek) / green gooseberries (known as Nancyberries here!) are already showing green on their leaf buds.

I've also been setting up for sowing Spring crops: putting up cloches to speed up the soil's Spring drying & warming cycle.  These last few years we've lost quite a lot of seeds I've over-enthusiastically sowed in soil staying damper & colder for longer than I'm used to.

One of our gardening neighbours unexpectedly voiced support for our low-dig methods this winter, admitting they'd seen how terrible soil erosion can become.  This is someone who only recently gave up growing annual veg through digging extensively ..

One step at a time.

Thank you. We've put articles in local newsletters: the Neighbourhood Forum, the Residents Association, and the Parish newsletter too, so far.  Lots of support, but only half-a-dozen people making return visits to do gardening so far.

But we're only just coming out of the least inspiring time in the garden, unless you're already fascinated like us .. !!

Onwards!

Sadly, Cristina Crossingham passed away in 2016: https://simshill.co.uk/2016/12/09/sims-hill-mourns-the-passing-of-long-time-supporter-and-bristol-gardener-cristina-crossingham/

Their Website was updated in 2023: http://eastoncommunitygarden.org.uk/planting-plans-info/

Gorgeous, thank you.  We have a long way to go, but that's very inspiring.

Moyra Fowler wrote:

S Tonin wrote:Moyra, how long do you let the seeds sprout before roasting?  I really like powdered roasted lentil sprouts in breads and soups, so I'm definitely going to have to try this.

Haven't been too scientific about it, we usually let the seeds soak overnight for sprouting, then add a bit of salt to the water, then a couple of hours later remove from water, dry them off a little, then roast in the oven. The sprouting makes the seed shell easier to eat or peel off. If they aren't sprouted they shell can be too woody to eat. We aren't soaking them long enough to get proper sprouts, but we usually look at squash seeds as a snack to munch on like nuts. I had never even considered making actual sprouts out of them, I have no idea how that would work, but it's worth a try.

I've been looking around for different ways to go from the stage of seeds in cases, after you scoop them out of the squash & separate from the stringy pulp, to eating them.

I've only done this the fiddly way before, which is to roast them, cases and all, and then crack them in my teeth one-by-one.

What are alternative approachs, and their pros & cons?  Many thanks!