Sorry birds!

Today, we are probably less popular with the birds than we were yesterday. We're keen here to work with nature, rather than against it, so we definitely aren't anti-birds. In fact you may remember that we even provided a des-res for the local wrens, who successfully raised 2 chicks there. We also leave the fruit cage open for the Spring, so that if we get any saw-fly caterpillars on the gooseberries, the birds can come in and snack on them to solve the problem for us. However, the time has come to put the lid on the cage again, because the berries inside are ripening, and we can see the birds starting to plan their dinner parties. Marc and Ellis did a great job with the net - it's really fiddly and tends to lead to various comments that we won't print here, but they seemed quite calm and approached the task methodically.

Mark works on the fruit cage roof

We've also put the net down over the strawberries now. They were also getting quite a bit of attention  with the blackbirds sneaking in for a crafty nibble any time we gave them enough room. Added to that, the smaller slugs seemed to be laughing in the face of the organic-approved pellets that we used, nibbling the ends some berries, just enough to make a good route in for ants. Because we didn't just want to provide the slugs with a nice warm patch to live in, we've introduced another possible way of stopping them, by putting down bran. This is apparently irresistible to slugs and when they eat it, they get full and dried out. Let's hope that works - with all this rain it might not, but we're always happy to try things out.

Merion sows the late carrots

Another try out was some late-sown carrots. Merion put some in between the onions and the leeks, where we hope the carrot fly won't find them. We were told that we'd be likely to get a good set if we sowed just on or after the solstice, by a local Biodynamic Grower, so we'll see. It would be good to get some going, as our carrots are rubbish at the moment - they really haven't liked the weather, even in the sand-trench we put in.

Helen,  Jade and Merion plant the calalloo and some shark's 

fin melons

A final measure against bird-attack was to hang some of the painted CD's from the open day to annoy any birds trying to eat the calalloo. Our lovely neighbour Ken gave us a tray full of his best calalloo (he's not impressed by what we grew from seed at all!), and reckons that birds don't go for the plant. We'd love to believe him, but we're not so sure after what happened to the red-version, as that really did look like bird damage. We'll see - we've protected some of it but not all, so it will be interesting to see if there is any more damage and if there is, whether the CD's make any difference. It's a bit like having a living "who done it"!

Jade puts in the bird scarer - will is make any difference?

Tony and Mark from Framework with the roof
supports for the clay oven

Added to all this hard work, we managed to collect enough bricks so that we can build the plinth for the clay oven which Framework will be helping us with. They've already put the roof-supports in, so we're looking forward to being able to get on with that shortly, and trying not to get too distracted with thoughts of freshly-baked bread...

Outreach at the Acorn Day Centre

Today, Tracey went to the Acorn Day Centre, which is in the Mary Potter Centre in Hyson Green. We enjoy going to Acorn, or inviting the centre users to Windmill, as they are a great crowd and very good at providing refreshments if we visit them!  Tracey's job was to help some pupils from Berridge Junior School to plant up the main growing bed there to provide some crops and some herbs, as well as interest for butterflies and bees. It may sound like a bit of a tall order, but the growing bed is huge, so there was plenty of room. 

The Weeding Team get on with the job

The Berridge group did a fantastic job. As the group weeded really carefully, pairs of pupils took it in turn to plant up the bed. The first worked to plant strawberries, the second group worked on herbs and butterfly plants and the last group put in a variety of vegetables.

Pupils helped to put in lots of strawberry plants,
within easy reach of the edge of the bed.

Bee friendly plants going in at one end of
the big bed

Putting herbs around the edge of the bed so
they are easy to reach and smell.

After all their efforts, the Acorn folk provided some well-earned drinks and biscuits, which were much appreciated. 

Well done to the whole Berridge Team

Once the group said their goodbyes, a few of the centre users had a bit of time to come and help (they'd all been busy with actvities when we first arrived - it's a busy place!). They helped Tracey to plant beans and tomatoes and to make sure that all the plants were properly watered.

Some volunteers from Acorn helped to finish the job.

We are hoping to go back in a week or so, to help finish off the work, putting in some ornamental planting and wiring up the pergola to provide support for the new grape vines and other climbers. 

The place should soon be looking spectacular!

Build a Rocket Stove, Girls!

On Saturday afternoon, we were delighted to host a Rocket Stove building workshop. This was run by Jen and Tom, and taught us how to create these amazing fuel-efficient stoves which can be made with readily available waste items and a few simple tools. The guys who had booked on the course couldn't make it, for various reasons, so an all female team of trainee rocket-stove builders set too, and managed to make 3 separate stoves, proving that they can be made by those without a huge amount of muscle, or practical metal-working experience.

Here's how we did it!

First Jen and Tom explained the basic principles of the rocket stove. The aim is to create a small fire in a confined L-shaped space with good airflow. The shape of the space also helps, as it draws the fire up, meaning that only the tips of the fuel burn and the gases from the fuel are also burned, which gives a pretty much smoke free fire with minimal residue. 

Step 1: Remove the top of the can 

Step 2: Press in any sharp edges, and clean
out any remaining oil

Step 3: Cut out some sections of can with tin snips, to create
flat plates of metal.

(Some of the group made a much neater job of step 3
than others. This is Jo's reaction to seeing our sheet!)

At this point, you'll notice that there were 2 different patterns of chimney being constructed. This is because one aim of the day was to create a long-lasting stove for Windmill, which meant it was created using a round tubed "ceramic elbow" which will contain the burn area and be more robust in the long-term than the other stoves. Those stoves were created with square-profile elbows which will last for a few years before becoming brittle and needing to be replaced.

Step 4 - round version: Those metal plates were bent around
the ceramic elbow and riveted to create tight-fitting sleeves
for each end.

Step 4 - square version: The metal plates were bent around a
square fence post of appropriate dimensions then cut and
riveted to create an L-shaped chimney with a square
cross-section.

Step 5: Make a hole around 10cm from the base
of the can that the foot of the L-shaped chimney
can slot into.

Step 6: Cut a wind-baffle from another can which
holds your pan just a few centimetres above the top
of the chimney. Cut a hole in the end of the can to
make a slot for the top of the chimney to fit into.

Step 7: Slot the chimney into place and make sure it stops
about level with the top of the main can.

Step 8: Fill the void in the can with vermiculite to provide
a non-flammable insulation. This ensures the heat is retained
in the chimney and means that the sides of the stove stay very
cool, allowing for easy handling of the stove when lit.

Step 9: You have to squint to see this one! Make a "bridge"
that will sit in the bottom end of the L to keep the fuel high
enough to ensure a good flow of air into the stove. The
round chimney stove had a specially made ceramic version.

Step10: Make sure everything fits!

Step 11: Test firing. Another can provides a
useful increase in height to cooking level.
Marvel at the lack of smoke - yes the stove
really was already lit at this point.

Step 12: Eat the freshly-made popcorn!

You do have to make sure you keep tapping the ends of the fuel sticks so that they move forwards as the ends burn away, otherwise the fire goes out, so this isn't a stove to light and then leave to its own devices as you prepare the food. It's not too difficult to keep going though, as long as you just fiddle with it regularly. 

Apart from all the other great features of the rocket stove, the thing that really appeals to us is that it's just the right size for us to use our coppiced willow in it. With any luck, most of our cooking will be carbon neutral from now on. Thanks to Jen and Tom, and the folk that helped them deliver all the kit. We've had some really positive comments about the course, and those who got to take away a stove were delighted with them. We look forward to hearing how they have performed as well.

Family Fun Morning

Today, we reserved the morning for an event to encourage more local families to visit the allotment. The weather forecast was dire, so we had our fingers crossed, but fortunately, it held off bar the odd sprinkle of rain, and we had a nice number of local folk who responded to our leafletting.

Decorating CD's to make bird scarers

Dan looks after the self-watering pot stand

 We laid on decorating cd's to make bird scarers, making self-watering pots again (see the Green Festival post for all the details),  making scarecrows, games from Spots Vs Stripes and pancakes made with butternut squash, served with a rhubarb sauce (thanks for the rhubarb Sally!). Visitors were also invited to harvest lettuces and herbs, which they happily did, going home with stuffed bags and happy smiles.

Some of our guests

The finished pirate scarecrow

Everyone seemed to have a great time, and we enjoyed ourselves as well.

Getting on with lots of jobs

This time of year, there is so much to get done, and fortunately everyone is still very keen, so we've all been working hard, and we might even be making some progress!

One job is to earth up the potatoes. Last year, we'd pretty much finished doing this at this point in the season, but this year, everything is coming up more slowly so we're still at it. Fortunately Ellis is a dab-hand at this, and got through the job pretty quickly. He then joined Dan in putting his hoe to good use, taking out weeds from the area next to the polytunnel. If only everything here grew where we wanted it to!

We also got on with more planting in the sensory garden. Helen added some more plants and shrubs to add to the lovely bee and butterfly friendly plantings. Mark also helped out, braving the attentions of ants to seek out the sneaky docks, thistles and brambles that keep trying to muscle in on the main flowering bed.

Tracey gave some of the newly planted pumpkins and squashes a treat and watered them with liquid seaweed solution. She reckons it's good stuff - full of trace elements and hormones which help the plants to get over the shock of being planted, grow more strongly and fend off pest attack. Hopefully the pumpkins and courgettes agree.

Is seaweed the solution?

We had a treat, when Sally arrived with some mega-rhubarb from her established patch. We only planted ours this year, and we won't be able to harvest until next year, so she took pity on us. We're not sure what she's feeding her rhubarb, but it's massive, so we'll have to work out her secret for next year.

Marvellous meadows and wonderful weeders

Volunteer extraordinaire Ray has long held an ambition, to lie in a tall-flowered meadow and look at the sky. He noticed that we have a meadow... and asked if we'd help him achieve his ambition. The meadow is just starting to look amazing, full of red and white campion, and ox-eye daisies amongst other things, but we found a corner of it that we thought would accommodate him without leaving too much of an obvious hole.

How long have you been working in this field?

So Ray got his wish. The verdict? Nice but would be good to try it on a sunny day. If you want to try it for yourself, left us know and we will be happy to help you use the specially-flattened spot!

Jade and Ray put in the purple brussels

Apart from that little bit of fun, we also did some good weeding (oh the excitement!), with Merion (a much welcomed return volunteer), Jade and Ray doing sterling work. They also found time to add some purple brussels to the brassica bed, along with a little catch-crop of beetroot, and to extend the tunnel so that the pigeons don't stop things working before they've even started, like they did with our crop of red amaranth, which is sadly just a few stalks now. That surprised us, as it's related to callaloo, which the pigeons don't seem to touch, and when the amaranth was stripped, the next-door horseradish leaves were too, which again is very unusual. It can't be caterpillars as the damage happened overnight and there are no tell-tale caterpillars or signs of them having been there. We suspect we'll find a very hung-over pigeon if we look in the bushes.

Merion gets to grips with the weeds in the
herb garden

In the afternoon, the Nottingham University Samworth Academy group arrived after school, to help us do some weeding and planting. We are always happy when groups are willing to do that, and took the opportunity to help the group find out more about weeds as well. Jade and Merion stayed on to help, so we had a really good crowd and they made a huge difference, weeding the paths and the fire-circle and even attacking the horse-radish that refuses to die because it's roots are over 3 feet long.



We'd like to thank the NUSA group for all their hard work and we're hoping to see them again soon for some harvest, cook and eat sessions.

Windmill goes to the Green Festival

Today we took the chance to publicise our wonderful allotment at the annual Green Festival at the Arboretum. Tracey, Dan, Ellis, Sally and Ray took turns to work on the stall. Fortunately the sun shone for most of the day, and it was almost warm a few times! The public turned out in force and we were delighted by how many of them took the chance to look around our stall and talk to us.

The Windmill Community Gardens stall

Ray and Dan in action

We did have a great draw - the offer of a mini-workshop on how to make a self-watering pot. This stopped quite a few folk in their tracks, and certainly made many realise how versatile a plastic bottle can be. We also had a nice selection of plants that we had raised, which nearly all got taken by the end of the event.

The self watering pots were a big hit

For those of you who know Nottingham, you will probably realise that our main problem was explaining to people where we are located, as everyone knows the very prominent Green's Mill in Sneinton. It's a lovely place, well worth a visit, but it's not where we are! Anyway, we had a great day and we took a healthy amount of donations which will be put to good use. A number of people said they would try to pay us a visit, so we might even attract some new volunteers which would be a nice bonus.