Dear friend,
First of all, we’d like to give a warm welcome to all our new subscribers – there are now over 600 of you receiving our monthly newsletter! Thank you for your ongoing support and interest in STAA.
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Summer workshops
Make your own flower crownSaturday 9 July, 10:00-12:00, £35A relaxing workshop to try the intricacies of wiring flowers and greenery to construct a beautiful flower crown. Learn useful tips for making your own crowns, corsages and buttonholes for weddings and proms.
Propagate your own herbal tea gardenSaturday 9 July, 10:00-12:00, £25Learn the principles of stem cutting, make your own tea plant ‘pot’, best practices for drying your herbs, DIY tea bags, and taste delightful herbal teas in our beautiful historic garden – lemon verbena, lavender and apple mint.
Grow with us: Planning your winter veg cropSaturday 23 July, 10:00-12:00, £25Learn how to spread your harvest across the year with our winter and spring crop workshop. No need for a barren garden come December, join us to discover how to design for Winter feasting.
Fermentation: Make your own sauerkraut and kimchiSaturday 23 July, 13:30-15:30, £35Enjoy an in-depth introduction to everything you need to know about lactic fermentation techniques, and discover new ways of combining these ancient foods into everyday meals.
On the Orchard
The Community Orchard runs free events for all ages every month.
Summer holidays: Family sessions, Every Thursday from 28 July, 10:30-12:30Summer holidays: Adventure Play, Every Thursday from 28 July, 13:30-15:00Community Open Day, Saturday 23 July, 12:00-15:00New Shoots for ages 0-4, every Tuesday 09:30-11:00 in term timeAfter School for ages 8-12, every Wednesday 15:45-17:00 in term timeOn Thursday 7th July, 1:30-2:30pm we’re running a Literacy Afternoon for families with little ones aged 0-4 in collaboration with the Literacy Volunteers. We’ll be singing songs and telling stories around the fire. If you’d like to join us for this free event, please text Rachel on 07498 864498.
Social gardening mornings
Socialise and relax – join us for a morning of relaxed social gardening for local people on the beautiful Heritage Display Garden. This event is free and we welcome people of all ages and ability. We will provide gardening tools, and we will serve free tea and coffee ☕
Thursday mornings, 10:00-12:00
Volunteering
Last week on Urban Nature we did a bit of DIY next to a pond while damselflies laid their eggs in the water. Quite a picturesque way to work!Tuesdays at the Nursery, 10:00-14:00Digging, sowing, pruning, clearing, building, watering, harvesting! All things food and flower focused for a productive garden.Wednesdays at Oliver’s, 10:00-14:00Help maintain a beautiful display garden for visitors to enjoy, and promote its heritage features.Volunteer induction, 14:00-16:00 on Sat 9th JulyThis is an introductory session for anyone interested in volunteering at STAA. Receive a tour of our projects to find out what you might be interested in, and an opportunity to meet people and ask questions.Developing the pond plot, 10:00-14:00 on Sat 9th July & Sat 23rd JulyWe will spend time on the bottom plot, finding and managing the wildflowers around it, moving pond plants, and creating habitat around the pond as well as seating and signage.Suitable for all abilities and levels of experience, tools provided. Just dress for the weather! 🌦️If you have any questions about volunteering, please contact Lucy at volunteering@staa-allotments.org.uk or visit our website.
On the blog
Last month on the blog, Paul looked at past and current methods of water collection at St Ann’s Allotments. From Victorian cholera outbreaks to the current borehole system. Read all about it.
If you’re interested in finding out more about the fascinating 700-year history of the site, we run guided tours on the second Saturday and last Wednesday of each month.
Food bank donations
In June we sent 20.7kg of fresh food to local food banks and social cafes!While our volunteers help us to grow food and learn skills, they also get the benefit of knowing that the food is going to a good cause and helping others.
