Invitation to a Harvest Barbeque

Chris and Tam invite you to Come along to a

Harvest Barbeque
at
Grampound Road Allotments

“Get Together and Enjoy our Local Food”

This Saturday Afternoon 11th September
1pm to 4pm, weather permitting.

All Welcome

Bring your friends and family,
something to sit on and food and drink to share

For further details Phone Chris Jones on 07971 436319

Or Tam Battell at National Trust Trerice on 01637 875 404

Grampound Road Allotments are situated at the top of the village of Grampound Road

Longest Day and The Veg are Growing Growing Growing!

Our cabbages are going great guns. Spent a few hours yesterday weeding, liquid feeding (home-made nettle concentrate) and mulching with hay our vegetables with Sophie a volunteer from France. It's a truly multi-cultural experience! Other vegetables doing well at the allotment site are chard, brocolli, Curly

Kale, Lettuce and pumpkins.

Key Hole Garden being Constructed at the Grampound Road Demonstration Site

Tom, Joe Morgado and Chris Jones, putting the stones around the base of our keyhole garden at the Grampound Road Demonstration Allotment site.

Work has begun on our Demonstration Allotment Site

Work has begun on a Demonstration Allotment site at Grampound Road Allotments. The project is the inspiration of Chris Jones who owns the Woodland Valley Organic Farm and is supported by Tamasin Battell, Gardener in Charge, National Trust Trerice.

On Saturday May 1st, volunteers Charles Mulwana a Ugandan farmer and Joe Morgado from Chicago joined Chris and Tam to begin the work of removing turf and digging in organic matter ready for planting.


By the end of the day two beds had been fully prepared and one bed planted up with brassicas spinach and leaf beet.


The ultimate aim of the project is to demonstrate how to make the most of the space in your allotment, including inter cropping, companion planting and use the space in 3 dimensions through the use of climbling vegetable and fruit plants. Paths in the plot are also designed to optimise the productive space.


Chris Jones explains "we also plan to incorporate plants that are essential to our diet, but perhaps not commonly grown such as maize and sweetcorn that provide valuable carbohydrates. It's true that some planting combinations work really well and benefit each other and we want to show how that works."



Best practice in water conservation and water use will be demonstrated through the use of water collection and storage and different mulching techniques.


Tamasin believes that this project will really benefit anyone that sees it. "I want to stress this is not about us saying do it this way. The aim is to give people permission to experiment. Really to personalise their own site, make it work for them and make the most of the resources that are available. We hope to encourage a really creative approach to allotmenting and efficient resource use."

If you would like to find out more about this project email tamasin.battell@nationaltrust.org.uk

How to grow a big one!

Top Tips from our Garden Manager John Lanyon

- Choose the best site - they like to grow in an open sunny place where they get sun all day

- They like to be warm - do not plant your plant out until the temperatures have risen, the beginning of June I reckon but down here in the right place you could start a couple of weeks earlier

- Soil - veg gardening is all about the soil - it needs to be well dug - this basically fluffs it up, allows the root in and holds onto water and nutrients

- Feeding - these guys are best feed 2 ways - heavily incorporate well rotten manure when digging your plot and then liquid feed every three weeks when the plant is growing

- Let them flower and then wait until the best fruit sets - not necessarily the first, you will sense which one is going to be the best because it will develop the quickest and look keen - then cut the others off

- Then water and water and water your plant and it is the luck of the draw after that

I am looking forward to meeting you and your champion in the Autumn!

ps the most important thing is to enjoy the whole thing and share your fun with others.


Mr John Lanyon
Gardens Manager
Trelissick, Glendurgan, Trerice and Bosloe in Cornwall
Follow us on Twitter - www.twitter.com/NTHeartCornwall
Find us on Facebook - 'National Trust - Heart of Cornwall'

Growing Your Own Talk tonight with the Grampound Garden and Allotment Group

I'll be giving a talk tonight on growing your own vegetables this evening. The talk is for members of the Grampound Garden and Allotment Group. Should be a good evening. The village of Grampound has only recently set up its own allotment field under the ownership of a local landowner which I understand has space for around 20 allotment plots, of which 4 have already been taken. For more information contact Val Warrington on ValWarrington@aol.com.

Spring Allotment Workshop a Great Success!

A really good day was had by all last Saturday. Many questions were asked and gardening knowledge was shared between everyone who attended. Around twenty people from St Newlyn East, Grampound Road, Polmassic and Cubert Allotments.

The event went down very well with lots of positive comments about it so another event is in the pipeline for June, so watch this space for updates, venue and date tbc.

Top tips!

The question of what compost to use was raised, suggest looking at TT compost http://www.cornishcompost.co.uk/ 01208 74550 for pricing and quantity queries. Why not buy in bulk and share the cost? Local, recycled, good quality stuff. But do use your own well rotted compost and horse/farm manure too. The high quality bought compost is great for young plants and seedlings in your seed beds, more bulky stuff is good to add in the autumn months so it can break down over the winter.

Don't forget to give your seedlings plenty of light, very important in the early phase of the seedlings growth.

Make use of a cold frame if you can, it helps plants to harden off and ensures young plants have plenty of light before planting out. Don't forget to water them in here, and lift the top in fine weather.

Recycle as many things as possible, why pay when you can get stuff for free? Get creative with bath tubs, old wheelbarrows, bathtubs and old hoses and guttering and windows. This shed was made entirely out of salvaged reusable materials - smart! (Thanks to Simon for the tour inside)

Cover your water butts to keep out of sun prevent algae forming.

Many thanks to all those who contributed their knowledge, time and allotment site to assist with this event. Great stuff all round, see you all again in June. Why not come to Trerice Garden, near Newquay off the A3058?

Notice of a Spring Allotment Workshop on 10th April 2010 with National Trust Gardener Tamasin Battell

Allotmenteers local to National Trust Trerice are warmly invited to the Grampound Road allotments for a Spring workshop with me Tamasin Battell, Gardener in Charge at National Trust Trerice. Grampound Road is in Cornwall between Truro and St Austell, for directions follow link below.

The workshop will focus on getting started with your own allotment and growing your own fruit and vegetables. It should be a great opportunity for you all to meet, share knowledge and ask questions.

The workshop is to be held on Saturday April 10th from 10am and you are warmly invited to attend, we can expect to be finished by lunchtime although it depends on the level of interest, questions and ideas generated as to the exact finish time.

Please bring along thermos flask, biscuits or a bite to eat. Bring basic tools such as garden forks, small and large and rakes if you would like to do something practical on the day.
Waterproofs may be needed if it is wet, although alternative inside arrangements have been made if the weather is really severe.

Directions: Go right through to the north end of Grampound Road village turn left on to the main Ladock to Grampound road 100 yards along this road there is a car park for the allotments on the right.
The http://www.woodlandvalley.co.uk contacts page has a map and satellite image of the area for you to navigate around and get your bearings. The allotments are clearly shown on the google map on this page on the north end of Grampound Road village, you can zoom in on them!

I look forward to seeing you all there. Please phone me if you have any questions about the day.

Tam Battell
07866 942 715

Another Year and Another Chance to Grow Your Own Pumpkin for Halloween!

Spring is here and now is the time to get ready to grow your own Pumpkin.
National Trust Trerice is making this easy for you!

Between 12th and 17th April Trerice is holding a number of pumpkin growing workshops. We will share with you the secrets of how to make 2010's Halloween filled with your own home grown pumpkins.

Come along between 11oo and 1430 each day and head for the greenhouse. For a small cost of £1 and you shall be given a number of pumpkin seeds, some compost and pots and growing instructions and helpful advice from our gardening team.

This year, the Trerice Garden Team invite you to return on Saturday 30th October. On this day your Pumpkin will be officially judged. There will be a number of prizes for pumpkins with the strangest shape, the most colourful and the most ugly for example. There will be certificates, photographs and fun pumpkin related activities for all the family.

For more information please telephone our office on 01637 875 404