Wishing you and all your families a very Happy Easter. It was lovely to see so many people on Thursday at the shop and those that came to experience the Swap Shop rail. Sue Gilson said she was delighted to meet so many people and the enthusiasm for the rail and other donated items. Without exception, I think all of the Tuppenny staff participated and I can report I was able to get a lovely 100% woollen Scottish cardigan and a Gym top in exchange for my donated items. Sue will be with us for another 5 Thursdays so please do come along and see what you can obtain from bringing in your own clothing in exchange for something on the rail. It is great to see this upcycling in action knowing how much goes into landfill on a daily basis.
The broad beans and lettuces that have been coming on over the past few weeks are now planted out, but with some fleece covering them due to the possible plummet in temperatures. All our propagation hot beds are full with many seedlings coming on and lots more still to sow.
Talking of Spring sowing, I am please to report that Ann, Suzanne and Ruth who started the inaugural Southbourne Spring Show last year at Tuppenny Barn, will be co-ordinating this year’s on Saturday 7th April from 2 – 4pm at The Southbourne Free Church. Children at the local schools and at Tuppenny Barn Explorer Clubs have been having fun over the last 3 months making mini gardens in seed trays and growing poppies to commemorate the anniversary of 100 years since the First World War, ready to plant a ribbon of red poppies around Southbourne. They will also be entering their mini gardens and poppies in the Spring Show. There are other children’s classes to enter such as a terrarium in a jar, flower arrangement in an egg cup and a vegetable or fruit animal and the organisers have made a plea for more children to enter this fun event. Do go along to support all the children’s efforts. There will also be a display of all the different types of narcissus and a large plant and garden items sale. Home made refreshments. All proceeds will go to local charitable causes. If you would like to enter the show please call Ann Moss on 01243 370048 before Wednesday 4th April.
Abi now has a full compliment for her Holiday workshop this Tuesday, however there are a few spaces left for Spring Scavengers on Tuesday 10th April. My next workshop is on Saturday 21st April and is all about Understanding Compost. I recommend to anyone that grows their own fruit or veg should have a compost facility, no matter how small. The workshop will cover how to begin composting, what can and can’t be put on compost heaps as well as the may different types of compost that can be made. We will be showing attendees how we make our own at Tuppenny as well as talking about the benefits of wormeries, comfrey and nettle feeds with lots of hints and tips. Booking can be made at https://bit.ly/2EqCKYj
Last Wednesday, Steven Cross, Head Chef at Park Community High School, and myself gave a joint presentation to the Havant Borough Full Council meeting on our collaboration, highlighting the importance of food education and the work we do with their SEN students. We have agreed that as part of our contribution to this year’s British Food Fortnight, we will be helping to put on a supper evening with Food Waste as its theme. Steven has agreed to cook the meal together with some of his Food Ambassador pupils and we will also be linking with the local Food Waste charity UK Harvest. It will be a fund raiser with a ‘Pay as You Feel’ entrance fee. More details to follow when we launch the event.