We’re changing how we manage our communications, and where we update information. With us struggling to find time to keep the website updated, we’ve decided to jump headlong into Facebook!
If you’d just like to see photos of what we’re up to, and get details of up and coming allotment days, you just need to log in to Facebook and check out our Facebook Page (or search ‘BS3-Community-Smallholding’)
If you’d like a more interactive experience and fancy starting, or joining in, broader discussions (say, the potential of forest gardening in the UK, or the benefits & tricks of no-dig approaches) or just share an idea that you’ve tried or seen elsewhere - then our Facebook Group is best for this
Members & Volunteers
We have now formed an official “Crop Sharers” group for those who wish to become members of the community smallholding, committing to a share of the food-growing work & a share of the crops. This group meets regularly, both at the allotment for growing sessions and elsewhere for meetings.
Volunteers can chose to come as often as they like, or just as a once-off, to join in the food-growing activites and to help create a vibrant community space. Dates will be announced via the Smallholding email group.
Aerial View
Thanks to Marvin for getting this. It’s the Google Earth image for the site - it’s out of date but good enough to use as our design starting point. The challenge is to see how great we can get it looking before the next aerial photo is taken!
Pondlife
Saturday 26th July
Wow, busy morning again! Shona, myself, Lucy B, Marvin, Simone, Kristin, James, Michelle and Tony all made it up there and got stuck in to more clearing & planning.
Local knowledge:
It turns out Lucy used to have chickens and James works for The Wildlife Trust, so alongside our enthusiasm we also have a wealth of experience and access to even more knowledge - Lucy’s friend Nicola came down to look at our set-up and advise us and it seems we’ve got a good start and could have between 20 - 30 chickens, possibly more.
Progress & discoveries:
The wildlife & pond area got a lot of attention, with nettles pulled and some bed edging moved out to the resources pile in the chicken area. The willow got a trim, and lots of discussions were held on the best way forward for this area, with a general consensue amongst the wildlife gardeners that enlarging the pond was part of the way forward. We still have to get the conifer removed, and need to call the Council for this again. Happy findings in this area included a healthy number of frogs of various colours and sizes, wild mint, a couple of oak saplings (that need re-locating - anyone got a big enough garden to plant one in?) and a mystery trailing bush that looks a bit elderberry, a bit grape vine, a bit blackcurrant - fruit identifiers, step forward please! The other main piece of work was clearing nettles in the chicken area to create paths to the chicken shed, the water trough and the feed shed, plus scraping the floor of the chicken shed. If I’ve forgotten anyone or anything, I’m sorry - too much sun, I think!
Donations & neighbours:
This week we have had donations of scaffolding planks & windbreak netting from Ashton Scaffolding, and timber & netting staples from Robbins Timber. We’ve also had a very warm and encouraging reception from the established allotment holders with plots around us - when we got there today Stuart had sourced and delivered 4 pallets for us to replace our missing ones, and we had harvest donations of potatoes, cucumbers and courgettes from Ronnie, and marrows from Trevor. And of course, more advice! Our oil-free, organic, permaculture approach is probably going to look barmy to them at some points but they couldn’t be more welcoming.
Next steps:
- continued management of wildlife area
- removal of conifer from wildlife area (council)
- removal of oak saplings from wildlife area - any takers?
- creation of compost bays against the side fence in the chicken area
- waterproofing of feed shed
- creation of compost toilet
- dismantling, collection and reconstruction of shed from Freecycle
- rain water harvesting systems set up on all structures possible
- layout design and bed construction
Next session:
Sun Aug 10th 10am - 12pm+
Bring water & lunch and we can stay on & picnic until people have had enough
Nettles & Neighbours
Thursday 24th July
Thursday saw Dorothy, Lucy H, Marvin, myself, and Sarah clearing nettles from the front enclosure. Whilst leisurely pulling up nettles and adding them to the oil drum and a second barrel (donated by Ronnie, an established plot holder) we mulled over the possibilities for this patch. After dismissing the initial idea of compost & muck heaps due to it being on a hill and thus probably having too much high nutrient run-off, (which would both be a waste and a problem for the pond below), we thought it would be best to fill the area with attractive flowers and nursery beds for things needing regular attention before being planted out, as well as putting our access path through it, as it’s the gentlest slope and the shortest route from the road into the heart of the plot.
We had several visits from the longer established plot holders, including Stuart, Pete, Ronnie and Trevor. Stuart and Pete did a trawl of the site for our missing pallets (all the ones I delivered on Tuesday had disappeared), they all gave lots of input, Ronnie and Pete lent us mattocks, Pete donated the second barrel for nettle juice and Ronnie gave us some lettuce to share out as well as the loan of his radio and space in his shed. A very warm welcome! I think they’ll probably despair at some of our organic permaculture techniques, which will differ from theirs, but all in good humour - and if you’re a cider drinker you’ll have friends for life!
Smallholding - sourced & donated in BS3?!
Monday 21st July
After a quick visit to a number of businesses on South Liberty Lane (very close to our site on the other side of the railway) we have so far had donations of netting, scaffolding planks, pallets and cardboard. Since the idea of Transition is to build local resilience to the changes we forsee, setting up our community smallholding entirely with the efforts and resources of people and businesses within BS3 has to be something worth aiming for, and yesterday was a good start. At this stage it’s more a question of finding what we need to mark out and manage the plot (before we can get on to the more exciting overall design), and we’re going to make a start on some of that on Thursday and Saturday this week, so contact us to come and join in!
Plot marking resolved
Friday 18th July
There have been a few hiccups getting started - an expected outcome really of a group of novices trying to split an odd-shaped pasture into allocated plots marked on a map which seems to have only a passing resemblance to what’s in front of us - but plot markings are now all resolved and we have a plot to work!
Through this process though we have been able to establish that our plot neighbours are a lovely bunch of amenable, patient people with a great sense of humour. We’re all up for the challenge and are approaching it with a common mixed sense of trepidation & adventure. Plans are bubbling for sharing tools, running workshops to help each other get started and so on. Come & join us!
Rainy meet-up @ Bedminster Down Plot
Saturday 5th July
7 of us met up at Bedminster Down ‘C’ to have another look around. Due to the torrential downpour that coincided fairly neatly with our arrival on site, we kept the visit brief but it was still very inspiring and ideas abound, not to mention madcap ambitious mega plans!
The next step is for us to get hold of exact details of the boundaries of our plots from the Allotments Team, and then organise a meeting somewhere dry & warm for everyone to chip in their ideas and dreams, and come up with a ‘Phase 1 plan’ to get the place a bit more tidy & manageable. Details will be sent out via the online discussion group and announced on the ‘Events‘ page.
BBQ @ Redcatch Plot
Friday 4th July
3 of us went up to the Redcatch plot and met a whole load of other plot holders for a bbq in Steve’s garden. We mostly managed to dodge the rain and discovered a whole host of people who could get useful stuff from their work for the allotments.
- Paul is going to get a load of large pallets delivered from his work for free - we just need to help unload them and then help each other make raised beds and compost bays out of the wood.
- Kenny works for a cardboard manufacturer and can get us large sheets of cardboard for lining our raised beds and mulching etc. He is also arranging a large delivery of manure for the plots, and a mass delivery of mushroom compost is being arranged.
- There’s going to be a communal shed and some communal tools (mower etc). going forward. We nearly got a greenhouse from someone but it had gone on Freecycle already!
It was great to meet so many people and to discover we’re all new to this and happy to learn together. Come & join in!
BS3 Community Smallholding
Monday 30th June
Seen “River Cottage Spring” & been inspired to be part of something similar?
Transition BS3 is in the process of setting up a community allotment in BS3.
A bit like the Forest of Avon concept, there will be different pieces of land incorporated into one community smallholding - hopefully this means most people in BS3 will be within walking distance of a community growing plot on a day-to-day basis but we can get together as a larger group for special events, bbqs, harvest swaps etc.
So far we have a full plot ready to start on the allotments known as “Redcatch E” on Beckington Road (just off Redcatch Road), and a much larger plot on “Bedminster Down C” on which we even have the option (and encouragement) to have chickens & ducks once we’re ready.
To get involved, please join our online discussion group and keep an eye on both the Meetings page and the Events page for information on smallholding activities. You can also come along to our monthly meetings to get more involved & help us plan.