Building staging in the Propagation Station.

Last week we built the long stretch of wooden staging in out new propagation tunnel, upon which we aim to raise all the plants the farm needs - quite a major undertaking!

Pete fitting the cross beams with u-brackets onto the staging supports.

Jake and Jessie laying out the staging ready for fixing.

Staging and hot-bed both approaching completion.

The hot-bed still awaits connection, but the staging is finished and already being used - this week we have sown trays of lettuces, cauliflowers, early peas, and pointed cabbages, in preparation for a busy season of veg growing....

Green MEP visits Bosavern.

During her tour of West Penwith, the Green Party MEP Molly Smith Cato visited Bosavern Community Farm, along with Tim Andrewes (Green candidate for St Ives and the Isles of Scilly), and spent more than one hour looking around the farm and chatting with staff and volunteers.

Molly Smith Cato (in purple coat) and Tim Andrewes (stripey hat) in conversation with Rob Pickering and Kate Beckly (two founder members of the community farm) in Home Field.

The visit was reported briefly in yesterday's Cornishman (page 12).

Jake and Paula.

Jake and Paula picking salad in the Mothership.

Jake and Paula, who are both studying in London, came and helped on the farm for one week over half term, and have now returned to their studies - thanks for your help!

Western Morning News article, 15/2/2015

We were waiting for this article to appear online, but as yet it hasn't done so, so here is the article scanned and uploaded instead!

Natalie.

Natalie, from Australia, also left the farm today after 2 weeks volunteering, so many thanks to her also and we hope you enjoy your next farm near St Agnes.

Simon.

Simon, from Germany, left the farm today to catch a ferry over to Ireland and continue his wwoofing adventures. Thanks for your help over the past 3 weeks, and good luck for the future.

Skinning the propagation tunnel.

Wednesday 11th February promised a good enough weather forecast to skin our latest polytunnel, with no rain and very mild winds, so we took the opportunity, gathered a group of volunteers, and spent the day getting the plastic cover on and dug in and the doors hung.

Natalie, Pete and Jessie applying anti-hot-spot tape to the frame first thing in the morning.

This is our new propagation tunnel, or "The Propagation Station", where we will raise as many seedlings for the farm as possible, saving us money by not having to buy in seedlings, and allowing us a greater say in what plants we use, and when, and how they are raised. There will be a heated bed, plus an array of wooden shelving - plus tea-making facilities!

The cover on and fastened in place, before morning coffee break.

Discussing the best way to get the plastic as tight as possible.

Inside the tunnel before hanging the doors.

Hanging the last door of the day.

Part of the skinning team at the end of the day.

We'd like to thank everybody who helped to skin the tunnel on the day - Ian, Nikki, Pete and Pete, Simon, Jenny, Willow, Andrew, Jessie, Natalie, Jim, and Tommy - plus the three dogs for keeping us entertained.

Building a hot propagation bed, phase one.

On Tuesday, inside the skeleton of our to-be-completed propagation tunnel, we constructed most of the hot bed on which we will raise this year's polytunnel seedlings (and some for early outdoors crops).

The hot bed frame laid out and being screwed together by Pete and Tommy.

The bed is 7.5 square metres, which we hope is ample to propagate and pot-on this season's tomatoes, cucumbers, courgettes, peppers, chillies, aubergines, squashes and herbs.

Nikki trimming the lining.

We built a raised bed of 7.5 x 1m, lined it with polytunnel plastic offcuts, added a layer of gravel then coarse sand, and fixed hoops across the top to hold the plastic cloche (see phase two!).

Pete raking the first layer of coarse sand level.

The next phase will be to lay the soil-warming cable, wire it in plus thermostat, lay another layer of coarse sand, and erect the plastic over the hoops. Then to start sowing!

Chapel Street Market and the Transition Penwith Roadshow.

For the third time this winter Bosavern Community Farm had a stall at the Chapel Street Market in Penzance, on Saturday 7th February. This was a special market, as it coincided with a weekend of activities organised by Transition Penwith, including workshops, a street parade, and benefit gig, plus a talk by Rob Hopkins in the Acorn.

Despite a freezing wind, our stall did very well through the morning, encouraged by a Morris display and several choirs performing on the chapel steps.

This year's workshop schedule.

Rudolf.

Rudolf left the farm on Thursday morning to head back to his studies in France, so we'd like to thank him for his work as a volunteer on the farm for 6 weeks, and wish him all the best back at college.

Rudolf pegging down the fruit-cage netting.

Netting the fruit cage.

A beautiful crisp winter day, with a sprinkling of snow on the ground, but the wind was too strong to skin our propagation tunnel so we opted to attach the netting to our new fruit cage instead. Our plan is to cover the ground with woven black mulch (mipex) and plant fruit bushes through holes to minimise weeding - raspberries, blackcurrants, loganberries, and gooseberries.

Laying out the roof (we found this the most difficult step, and ended up tying each mesh corner to each cage corner, then choosing a corner and working away from it along both sides, perpendicular to each other).

Mesh roof on and fastened.

Simon and Natalie fastening side mesh to the uprights.

Almost finished.....

Reflexology workshop, 10th February.

Reflexology Workshop
with Isabelle Makowska
Tuesday 10th February

9.30am – 2.30pm
at Bosavern Community Farm

How Reflexology works
Holistic Healing explained
Learn how to offer a simple Reflexology session to family and friends
Exchange a practice session on the day
Your questions answered!

Please bring a contribution to a shared vegetarian lunch
Cost £20 (£5 deposit to secure a place)
Please book early as places are limited

To book a place please ring the farm on 01736 788454
or email kate@bcents.org

Tree planting days in March.

Current polytunnel crops.

These photos were also taken yesterday, in our four polytunnels, as 40mph winds raged outside.

Green sprouting broccoli/calabrese, which we have just started harvesting, and it went into our standard veg boxes last Friday for the first time this winter.

Rainbow chard.

Chervil.

A rocoto chilli on one of our trained perennial bushes.

Elephant garlic (a closer relative to leek than garlic), we're hoping to be able to sell some for the first time this year, having built up our stocks for the past three seasons.

Purple kohl rabis ("cabbage turnips"!).

Vietnamese coriander bush (a close relative of redshank, with a spicy coriander flavour, my new favourite spice/herb).

Pak choi with surprisingly little slug damage.

Flat-leaved parsley.

Winter purslane, which has now spread of its own accord throughout our tunnels, and is a major constituent of our salad bags at this time of year.

Four lines of red radishes a few weeks from being ready.

Farm Shop Photos.

These photos were taken yesterday in our farm shop, which is looking amazing considering it's the middle of winter.

We have recently begun to harvest cauliflowers from beneath the mesh on our winter brassica field.

A selection of chilli products from Kernow Inferno (from Newlyn).

Raw chocolate made by Food Of The Gods in St Just.

Probably our two most popular items - the farm's own eggs and salad.

Part of the Bosavern Farm range of chutneys, made from our own vegetables, by Treacle's Treats in St Austell.

Delicious winter fare - leeks, onions, and jerusalem artichokes.

Forks fresh from harvesting those leeks!

A recent addition to our shop range and veg box choices - creamy whole organic milk from Treen.

Socks for sale, knitted by Isabelle whilst staffing the shop as a regular volunteer.

Lomonde purple-top swedes at £1 per kilo.

A sample veg box on display in the shop - this is a standard £10 weekly box.