The Norfolk Show

What funny weather we have had this year; as I write it is pouring with rain; as I cleared the allotment yesterday and dug down I was amazed how deep the wet soil went; I can almost see the weeds growing. My onions aren't ready. There are looking great, but maybe this wetness won't be good for them.

It's been a great year for growing things, everyone is delighted, even with such a dry spring. A friend new to gardening has a plot next to mine at Mahesh's and it is looking stunning - far better than mine (which is rather embarrassing). She is thrilled and can't believe how much they have picked, and how easy it has been. How can we package that thrill and give it as a present to everyone? It's wonderful, it is almost fashionable to grow your own now.

At my allotment two children wandered over to join me with searching for my potatoes. Little hands love to find the treasure and don't harm them like forks! They were 8 and 11 and full of expertise about gardening. Very sweetly, they were full of praise for my plot. They especially admired the huge rubber snakes and asked if they worked. I told them that I had thought they worked well for birds, but a farmer at the Norfolk Show had commented that they even worked well with rabbits. “Really, wow, that's so cool!” they exclaimed. (It's not easy to impress kids these days!)

My son is 6 and suddenly mad about gardening. Instead of going to the toy shop for a treat we go to the garden centre, where we go for the gooseberry plant we had planned to buy but distracted he makes me tell him about all the other berries and then can't make up his mind, and we end up buying something completely different.

On the subject of berries, I can recommend a lovely old fashioned nursery that have a huge selection of pick your own berries gooseberries, raspberries,black red and whitecurrants Tayberries, Worcester joster sun and blackberries. Not organic unfornately but it didn't look very sprayed, with reassuring nettles around!

Hillfield Nursery, Thorpe-Next-Haddiscoe. NR14 6PA, 01508 548306

Alexander constantly asks me for my plants and spends hours potting up and planting anywhere and everywhere, which can be tricky. I'm thrilled and can't believe our luck, maybe it's because I've finally decided to ban the TV. Growing plants teaches children so much: patience, nurturing, gentleness, (and failure); but also wonder when their flowers finally burst open; not to mention deadheading and collecting seeds. Not many subjects pack in so much. A teacher from a state school recently told me, “gardening is taught to those pupils who aren't that clever or have problems”. It's a crazy world. Gardening is a basic necessity.

We had a very successful visit to Francine Raymonds and Julian Turner's. Everyone seemed to really enjoy it. It was a long and hot day and I could see everyone wilting a bit towards the end. The mini bus worked well, other than people wanting to leave at different times. We hope to do it again in the future , I think it made it a more relaxing day, its not often I am driven to places!

The Norfolk Show went very well, again very very hot and busy but really very pleasant in the horticultural tent. The smell of the flowers is just so relaxing. We did a display of four wooden boxes with the rotation of crops. Each box had little plants belonging to that group. It took a lot of guesswork working out how big plants would be in the time we had! The display was called 'Helping Nature help you'.

It demonstrated everything you could do to deter pests, attract beneficiary wildlife and help your plants be healthy. I added a little rubber snake , scarecrow, pond, a potato with feathers (to look like a hovering hawk) a glitterball (the quivalent to loads of CD's!) and a little man just relaxing. People seemed to enjoy the display and we won bronze (again!) Photos will be on the web site soon. We were also wearing our new Norfolk Organic aprons, hand embrodied on organic cotton of course! We have Daphne to thank for those, thank you Daphne.

The Norfolk Show is mainly a commercial show these days, big money big business and serious farming stuff everywhere. I felt we were such a quiet voice amongst the racket of commercialism. I tend to mix with like minds, it was a bit of a shock to realise there are so few of us compared to conventions in this day. Imagine a time when organic was the norm, and chemicals were frowned upon. Goverments make checks on fruit and veg to make sure they were clean. The Norfolk show and the Norfolk country side was clean and healthy, full of good old fashioned healthy farming. We are a quiet voice or even thought! But if we could spread the word maybe slowly things can change, every little action counts.

Bob Flowerdews visit was great. He was there this year and we all enjoyed some very interesting talks. He showed us the wonders of horseradish, did you realise if you leave the leaves to dry out you end up with white twine that strong enough to make into rope. I also noted that he had horseradish growing under all his apple trees. His garden looked splendid, my sister who came with me was very impressed and is now helping me to make our parents garden more productive with fruit!

I also took the Norfolk Show display to the Steiner summer fayre where it attracted a lot of attention and gained us a few more members.

I'd like to thank Dr Ron Self for taking the time to write an article for our newsletter. His website is huge and fascinating, do check it out if you haven't already - www.naturalantioxidants.org. He explains what is high in antioxidants with great long lists, cinnamon for instance is very high. He tells you what is best for value at the moment. His organic section is great reading. His newsletter article is scientific and whats he is saying is really relevant.

Sarah and me have been busy redoing the Norfolk Organic leaflet. It is now out and about in different places in Norwich so do look out for them. If you know of anywhere that you think is suitable for our leaflets please let us know. We are in the process of doing the website and magazine so this will be your last old style newsletter! In the new style newsletter we plan to send all our members a copy of the new leaflet.

These new leaflets are going into 400 veggie boxes at Salle Moor Hall Farm, promoting us and our visit to their farm.

At the beginning of this year they said it was going to be a really hot one, and the dry spring seemed to confirm this to me, so I bought a droughtbuster bathwater recycling system (about £20). Its a siphon that pumps the water out of your bath, without you having to suck! It makes a noise as it works so you can hear when its getting low. Health shops should be able to get one for you. Tell them Suma sell them.

I hope you are enjoying your summer, tomorrow I am off with my son and husband camping. Marcus is a very reluctant camper at the best of times and hes looking out of the very wet window grimly .....

From Brigid

HELP REQUIRED

We are looking for a member who would be prepared to help to co-ordinate posters being distributed to other members who have said they will put a poster up for us and also a list of other places posters are sent to. We will provide envelopes, stamps and posters. Some places are willing to accept the posters via email. If you haven't got a computer maybe someone else could do that. It would be done every month except the summer months. Contact brigid@agcl.com or phone 01362 684195.