Posted on Mon, Mar 29, 2010
It doesn't feel like a year ago but it is... since the last graduation and having to say good-bye to all the great agriculture students at the college. The thing that makes the good-byes easier is the fact that the work really gets going at this time of year, I don't know how I'd survive if they all disappeared over the winter, I'd be a bit lost as to how to spend my time. They have all been great fun to be around and I will miss them all, luckily a few are still around working at farms close by so there will be some company close to hand, oh and I have a second year as my apprentice this year Sarah Vaughan, she'll be starting with me on 12th April.
So what have I been up to recently? Well I am now officially a member of the Tablehurst farm team and will be growing vegetables and some fruit for the farm shop. I've got one Polytunnel on the go now and have Corriander, Rocket, Radish, Spinach, Spring Onions, Carrots, Lettuces, Peas, and an Italian leaf on the go so far, and it's getting rather full in there now, we have two more tunnels which should get covered by early May, in time for my tomatoes, cucumbers and basil to go in the ground. I have had to order in a large quantity of transplants this year to allow the garden to become more productive. In order that all my costs were covered I calculated the number of plants I needed and the prices I would get them and realized that I didn't have the space or equipment to produce so many seedlings, the solution was to buy in some plants, mainly the ones that take up most space and take the longest to produce, so most of my brassicas, tomatoes, leeks and courgettes are being bought in to save time and space. There is more pressure on me this year to achieve results from the garden than was initially planned, i'm happy with this and am pleased to be faced with such a challenge and opportunity.
So now all I need is for the weather to clear so I can get on and do some work outside, the ground is slowly getting warmer and my green manure lays are starting to grow again. I want to get them into the ground again so I can sow freshly and increase the Organic Matter content in the soil. The potatoes need to get planted in the next few weeks so that will be my first priority when the conditions allow. I know that my little green tractor is working and I'm fairly happy with the stone burier I got with it, it's helpful to know that the machinery you are going to use works well so I don't have to worry too much when I get going with it.
I've harvested the first of my Purple sprouting broccoli and some forced rhubarb (which was delicious baked with a little blood orange and ginger), the polytunnel also has thyme growing in it so I managed to get the first of the thyme out of there too, this went straight to the shop, selling my first produce from the garden... How exciting
Posted on Tue, Mar 16, 2010
I think we can say that spring is here, I haven't stopped for more than a week now and am getting up at first light everyday. It's a great feeling, I get a little light headed with all the coffee I drink through the morning. Things are moving very quickly for me and it's a game to keep it all under control, there is still no clear answer of who will own the land I work on in two weeks, and if I can work on it or not. But I'll carry on with some faith that we will not be kicked off too soon or can buy the land for the training and St Anthonys Trust.
The farm are meeting soon to make a decision about if I'll work for them in the future, it's a tense time for us all. This aside I am still getting quotes to repair the Polytunnels at the farm and learning (very quickly) about buying in transplants. It was not something I was intending to do this year but after I had done the sums for the farm I realized that there was no way I could produce so many plants in the area I have in the time I need to. The only realistic option is to buy in the plants. This does have some very clear advantages for me, mainly that I will not have to take too much time sowing, watering and weeding the trays, you order them and they are delivered to you at a stated date... There are a few disadvantages but this is the only way forward for me this year.
I have been on the (old) tractor the past week, lifting the soil and I started to roll it today to start and break up the larger lumps of soil and make it easier to rotavate later on. I also have a potato ridger which had been on loan at another farm for the past 4 years. This will make potatoes a lot easier this year, and the weeding of them too.
So we carry on, the garden continues to grow, I'm still sowing seeds and have plans to sow more... Watch this space
Posted on Sat, Mar 06, 2010
The whole process of change at Emerson seems to take an eternity. For over 3 weeks now we have been on tender hooks attending meetings waiting to hear what will happen to the beloved college and what future is held for all of us at the college, staff, students and residents of this community. After another 1.30 pm meeting yesterday i'm getting the impression we are sitting in some kind of T.V. show like Eastenders, every week and even some days we are left on a cliff hanger and will only find out what happens in a few days from now. Although when the day arrives it's never quite as good as you would have expected. I've come to the decision that similar to T.V. shows the whole process Emerson is going through is best avoided for the time being. I'm cracking on with what needs to be done in the garden instead.
A student asked me last week to join them for a cup of tea outside Pixton, I declined and said I'd go to the garden. She suggested that maybe I needed a rest and some company for a while, the answer which I came out surprised me in a way but in another way also gave me a renewed faith in what I'm doing and why I love working in a garden... 'No thanks I feel much more relaxed when I'm in the garden amongst the plants and animals I know and love'.... And it's true, I can have numerous conversations which can fill me with a sort of hope for the future, but if I get out there and do some work I feel a different and more wholesome sense of well being.
We have been asked as a staff to stop spending money on behalf of the college due to the hard financial situation we have found ourselves in. So how does one grow things without any capital? Well we just make do with what we have, luckily all the tractors are full of diesel, I have a supply of petrol for the strimmer and plenty of seeds and potting compost... so I'm just carrying on and trying to forget about any other things I was hoping to achieve this winter. Having said this I feel that winter is almost done now, just today Arjen and I were cultivating old beds, and I started to prepare the ground for the coming week.... It's all very exciting.
So as far as I'm concerned even if there is no cash one can still get a great deal of pleasure from being out side amongst nature and the ducks- who by the way laid their first egg today... should it be eaten or left for chicks???? I can't decide yet.
Warm sunny wishes to everyone and may the spring bring us all red skin and some joy