Members of the Forest Fields Gardening Club came to visit us today for a really fun session that gave us a chance to try out the rocket stove. We had a great afternoon here getting to know how to use fire safely, and also how to cook in a "climate-friendly" way.
First, we introduced the group to the allotment and explained our views on how to do things sustainably. Then, we helped the group work out where the wood for our fires comes from (our own trees!), and did a little thinking about how this differed from using fossil fuels.
The next bit was fun - first the group helped to build a fire in the fire pit. For many of them, it was the first time, so Tracey initiated them with a promise to only light fires in a careful way, with adult permission. Then we showed them how wasteful an open fire was by demonstrating with a kelly kettle and our new rocket stove, how little fuel is needed if you burn it carefully.
For those of you who haven't come across it before, a kelly kettle, or storm kettle, is a clever beastie. It's a kettle where the reservoir for the water is in a sleeve, wrapped around a chimney. That means if you light a fire and keep it going with small twigs, it will heat the water up in about the same time it takes to boil an ordinary kettle. We used it to boil water to make fresh mint tea, which was a huge hit.
We used the rocket stove to make popcorn, and then used it to cook pumpkin pancakes. Both were huge hits. The group had a great time feeding the fires and seeing how much wood each type used. They also became very good as safe match use and were very aware of the fire risks and how to deal with any accidental spilling of fire.
When the time came to leave, the group really didn't want to go, so we hope they will come back to see us soon.
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