Scarcroft & District Allotment Association Autumn Social

Scarcroft & District Allotment Association Autumn Social

At the Golden Ball, 2 Cromwell Road, York

http://www.goldenball-york.co.uk/

Come along to catch up and to discuss what we hope has been another eventful and productive year of gardening for everyone, plot-holders and home gardeners alike

There will be a buffet and a fine selection of drinks available from the bar - as well as good company, of course!

Allotment Shop Opening Hours

A reminder regarding seasonal changes to the opening hours of the Allotment Shop on Scarcroft Allotments.

At present the Shop opening hours are as follows:

Saturdays 13.30 - 15.30

&

Sundays 10.00 - 12.00 

Throughout the winter months - November, December and January - the Allotment Shop will be open on SUNDAYS ONLY, but we will be returning to Saturday and Sunday opening from February 2012.

Please make a note of these changes and times, so you are not caught short when shopping for your winter supplies!

Full details about the shop can be found on its Blog Page:

http://scarcroftanddistrictallotments.blogspot.com/p/allotment-shop.html

Apple Day Celebration - A message from Laura Potts

 

Dear friends,

Let's celebrate Apple Day on Saturday October 15th at our very own orchard - in the middle of the Green on Scarcroft Allotments.

Although there won't be much by way of a harvest from this year, there will be a varied selection of apples and pears for us to sample and enjoy.

Do bring along any you have too, with names if you know them.

Contributions of fruit-based delights to share for an afternoon tea would be very welcome too. Bring a flask if you want a hot drink - or juices.  Plastic cups will be provided.

There will be bit of work to do to build up your appetite: We need to weed around the bases of the trees, and then to plant up the area with some traditional orchard meadow flowers - now I have finally succeeded in preventing the council mowing it to within a millimetre of its life!

Do bring any donations of plants you may have, trowels and watering cans.

The schedule for the afternoon is as follows:

3-4pm - planting watering weeding

4-5pm - tasting and feasting

hope to see you there

Helping Yorkshire's Hedgehogs

Britain’s hedgehogs are in serious decline and the hedgehog has been placed on the Red List of threatened species in need of conservation

A course, consisting of an illustrated talk and workshop, will be held by Toni Bunnell from 13.30 to 16:00 on Sunday 6th November

The workshop will be held at the Black Swan Inn, 23 Peasholme Green, York, YO1 7PR [01904 679 131]

http://www.blackswanyork.com/

To secure a place on the course, please send a cheque for £10 (made out to ‘T. Bunnell’) to 5 Beech Avenue, Holgate, York, YO24 4JJ

Course content:

Reasons for the decline of hedgehogs in Britain
First aid treatment for new arrivals
Further treatment of sick or injured hedgehogs
Caring for baby hedgehogs
Attracting hedgehogs to your garden
Monitoring hedgehogs in the wild

Proceeds to go to York Hedgehog Rescue Centre
with 10% to go to Hull Hedgehog Rescue Centre (Lorraine Jackson)

For information contact: Toni Bunnell (01904 791124) T.Bunnell@hull.ac.uk

or see: http://www.hedgehoghelp.co.uk/index.php?topic=5060.0

Spare Plants Wanted for South Bank

Planet South Bank & Edible York have a plot at St Clements and are currently very keen to source Some strawberry plants, as they plan to underplant some of their old rose bushes with them.

They are also on the look out for perennial herbs (rosemary, lavender etc), for their plot.

If any allotment holders or home growers have any suitable plants going ‘spare’ following a seasonal plot tidy, donations can be left at the Planet South Bank & Edible York plot at St Clements.

Any donations will be greatly appreciated I am sure.

Planet South Bank promote Climate change awareness and local action in South Bank, York.

Edible York are a small group of dedicated  individuals who are committed to nurturing existing food growing spaces in the City and bringing new food growing spaces to life.

For more information about the work of these great local organisations, or for details as to how you can join, see the below links:

http://planetsouthbank.org.uk/

http://www.edibleyork.org.uk/

Chutney Making event at Scarcroft Learning Centre

The Planet South Bank & Edible York plot at St Clements grew a bucket-full of green tomatoes, so they are going to make chutney from them.

All are welcome to come along for chutney tips to help with any Green Tomato Glut you might be facing from your own harvests.

The Chutney Making Event is this Saturday 24th September, at the Scarcroft Learning Centre, starting at 10am.

The Scarcroft Learning Centre is located at Scarcroft School at the corner of the school playground and can be accessed from Nunthorpe Road.

This is a FREE event and all are welcome. Planet South Bank & Edible York would love to have any volunteers to help – and to take away some chutney at the end!

The Urban Horticulture Programme

The Urban Horticulture Programme at the Centre for Lifelong Learning

This year’s modules focus on the health, educational, social, economic, practical, environmental, and policy dimensions of local food. Combining guest speakers, visits, practical work and theoretical learning, the course will help you develop your understanding of the potential of urban horticulture in the twenty-first century.

 
You may be:

already involved in a community food project….

a keen gardener who would like to be….

a social worker or therapist wondering how to help your clients get out more…

a teacher trying to develop the school garden…

Or…

You may simply believe that food production is at the centre of society’s problems and their solutions, and want to find out more.



This FREE Saturday School introduces the year’s programme and we get straight down to some practical activities to explore society’s relationship with food. Come along and see which module(s) might be for you! (Existing UH students also very welcome)

SATURDAY SCHOOL: 1st October 2011, 10am-12noon

AUTUMN TERM Oct-Dec 2011: Society, food security and health

SPRING TERM Jan-Apr 2012: Scaling up to the community, national and global level

SUMMER TERM Apr-Jun 2012: Policy and the future
 

For more information or to enrol: www.york.ac.uk/lifelonglearning or call 01904 328473

Over-Wintering Onions & Garlic

Over-Wintering Onions & Garlic

now on sale in the Allotment Shop

Onions

  

Senshyu    £3.50 per kg
Electric     £4.00 per kg

Garlic

£16.50 per kg

or

£1.65 per average bulb

(there are approximately 15 cloves per bulb)

Anti-social behaviour and worse - Making a difference.

There have been several incidents of theft, vandalism and anti-social behaviour recently on our sites.  So maybe now is a good time to re-visit advice we posted here at the beginning of this year.

• If you see someone threatening or attacking another person or damaging property, such as breaking glass on a greenhouse or breaking into a shed, call 999. 
• If the incident is less serious, including, say, a group of people on a plot who obviously shouldn't be there, call 0845 60 60 24 7. 
• Please always report any damage you find on your own plot to the police and encourage your neighbours to do the same.
• In cases where damage has been done or tools or produce stolen, it can be helpful  to let the Allotments Officer know about it, and please do report it at the Shop on the Scarcroft site, where you can pick up a card with the relevant contact numbers and e-mail addresses.  The Association keeps a record of incidents reported to them and this is passed on to our local PCSO, but all incidents should first be reported to the police directly.

The police may not be able to do anything about non immediate crimes, unless there are witnesses, but telling them about what crime is happening on the plots with as much detail as possible about what, when and where, helps them build up a picture of the key times and areas and allows them to adjust their patrolling patterns accordingly.  You can make a difference to the level of crime on our plots by doing the following:

• don't leave any valuables in your sheds or hidden on your plots
• mark any tools you do leave on your plot so that they are less easy to sell on
• don't leave petrol on your plot as it can be used to set fire to sheds
• don't leave weedkiller on your plots as it can be used to vandalise other plots
• either leave your sheds and greenhouses unlocked or lock them with a very sturdy lock
• get to know your neighbours and challenge people you don't recognise (if you feel safe to do so).  Remember most paths on the sites are not public rights or way so people are trespassing if they are not going to visit a plot.
• always take your phone with you when you go to your plot so you can call the police if you see vandalism in action or call a friend to come and join you if you feel threatened
• make friends with your local dog walkers as they can be our eyes and ears early in the morning and later in the evening when fewer plot holders are around
• display the 'there are no valuables in this shed' sign on your shed - these are available free from the allotment shop
• visit your plot regularly so, if you are the victim of a crime you are able to give more accurate information as to when it happened

It's very upsetting when these things happen.  We won't ever stop it completely. but we can help the police to reduce the number of incidents and follow them up.

 

Patrick Cairns

It is with great sadness that we share the news that long term plot holder, allotment shop volunteer, allotment association committee member, Leeds United fan and friend, Patrick Cairns, died suddenly on August 16th 2011.  He was only 47.  We wish his mother, Pat, who gardened his plot with him, and the rest of his family, strength and comfort at this difficult time.

2009

For many years, Patrick was a familiar face on Sunday mornings in the Scarcroft and District allotment association shop, which he ran with Tom Walters.  He will be sadly missed. 

Patrick's Funeral Service will be held on Friday, September 2nd at English Martyrs RC Church, Dalton Terrace at 11am, followed by a Burial in Fulford Cemetery. Family flowers only, donations in memory of Patrick will be gratefully received to support St Leonard’s Hospice. A plate will be available at the Church.

Harlow Carr

Thanks to everyone involved in the visit to Harlow Carr, especially to Katy, who did so much of the organisation.  It was a great day out with near perfect weather! 

Expect to see adventurous features on our allotment plots soon...?

End of Summer Feast

Potato Blight Information

Recent rain and mild weather have produced ideal conditions for potato blight.

The link below takes you to some useful information on recognising the symptoms of blight, dealing with infected foliage and choosing blight resistant varieties for next year’s crops.

http://www.potato.org.uk/department/knowledge_transfer/fight_against_blight/index.html?menu_pos=knowledge_transfer

The following link leads to The Blightwatch service, a management tool which is available to farmers and other users free of charge.

http://www.blightwatch.co.uk/content/bw-Home.asp

Harlow Carr Visit - 2011

Hello all,

We are organising a trip to Harlow Carr on Wednesday 24th August.

Attendance will be via "car share", so let us know if you will be a driver of if you will need a lift.

If you would like to attend please contact Katy Brierley: katy@hookhouse.fsnet.co.uk, by Wednesday 17th August, specifying if you require transport or can offer space in your car.

More details about Harlow Carr can be found via the following link: http://bit.ly/re0hxR

If you wish to attend, we will be setting off from the shop on Scarcroft Allotments at 09:30 on the 24th and will be meeting at Harlow Carr at 10:30.

You may wish to bring a picnic, otherwise refreshments can be purchased on site.

Best Plot Competition 2011

The winners of this year's Best Plot Competition were presented with their certificates and prizes at The Guildhall on Wednesday 10th August.

The winner on the Hob Moor site was Valerie Warren,

and the Scarcroft site winners were Katy and John Brierley. 

 Congratulations to all the winners! And thanks to everyone who took part - the standard of entries this year was very high. Particular thanks to Judith Ward and Sue Harvey at City of York Council for organising and running the event, and to Site Secretaries who judged the plots.