Pinar

Pinar picking sugar-snap peas in the polytunnel.

Pinar, our first ever Turkish wwoofer, from Ankara, left the farm last Friday having volunteered with us for 3 weeks. Many thanks go from the farm to Pinar for her help during that time, and particularly for her superb lunches! We hope to see you again later this year.

Planting tomatoes

On Tuesday 18th April we planted our maincrop of tomatoes in Imogen polytunnel, being about 300 plants of about 15 varieties (including gardener's delight, sungold, chocolate cherry, costaluto di firentina, berner rose, yellow submarine, orange banana, quadro, ruby, galina, stupice and more). Some fruit has already set, showing that bumble bees have been active recently.

Pinar removing old salad plants ready for planting tomatoes. The row of early tomatoes planted in March are on the right.

Ben planting tomatoes.

The polytunnel fully planted, ready for stringing up.

This year we are using compostable jute twine for stringing the vines, to make the removal and composting of the plants quicker and easier in the autumn.

Veg boxes 21st April

Small £6 veg box - the last of this season's parsnips, plus a swede, a kilo of potatoes, rainbow chard, mixed herbs (Vietnamese coriander, fennel, flat-leaf parsley, and oregano), and a lettuce.

The standard £10 veg box contained all of the above plus some oriental greens, a bag of mixed salad leaves, and the first of this season's rhubarb.

Chicken identification guide

Bethany, who wwoofed with us here earlier in the month, produced this amazing piece of illustrative art during her time on the farm, and here it is for all to see - many thanks to Bethany for allowing us to publish her work on the farm blog.

Big thank you

We'd like to thank all the people who volunteered at the farm and kept things ticking over whilst our Head Grower was away on paternity leave for two weeks at the beginning of April. These include Andy, Jill, Yvonne, Viv, Ian, Tim, Mark, Chris, Sonja, Martin, Ben, Anne, Charlie, Shelley, Jenny, Fran, and I'm sure there are more too! A big thank you to you all for helping put the community into the farm.

May Day event, 30th April 3 till 5pm.

Derek Thomas MP visits the farm.

Our local MP, Derek Thomas, spent a morning at the farm last week, meeting volunteers and staff, and finding out about what we do. He returned with his family a few days later to adopt ten of our old chickens, taking them to live in their backyard.

Jill Neville, Chair of the farm's committee, with Derek Thomas MP in the cob round-house.