For Martin and Christine and their 11 year old daughter Emily were lucky enough to get one of the mini allotments at Kingston Lacy estate in Wimborne. As part of the Food Glorious Food campaign initiated by The National Trust and funded through DEFRA’s Eat into Greener Living initiative, 28 new allotments were created and snapped up by people on the waiting list for full-sized plots. They took over at the beginning of April and it’s amazing what has been achieved. It’s the first time the Sanders have had an allotment and they are completely new to vegetable growing. Yet as Emily will proudly tell you, they have grown 37 varieties of vegetables, herbs and flowers. As she took me round the plot she reeled off the list: “potatoes, nasturtiums, onions, spring onions, leaks, garlic…….mint, chives, marigolds, sweet corn and butternut squash.” This is all a far cry from the children shown during Jamie Oliver’s food crusades not recognising the most common of vegetables. Emily, a pupil at St Michael’s Middle School in Colehill, has clearly loved having the allotment. “I’ve brought my friends up to see what we’ve been doing and they’ve been interested as well. It’s been fun watching the plants grow and the best bit is picking and eating them.” While Emily’s enthusiasm is infectious, it’s Martin and Christine who’ve been doing the labour intensive part of the growing. Christine said: “The watering has been hard work, especially during all the hot dry weather we’ve had. It takes about half an hour every day but when you see all the plants growing we know it’s been worth it.” As they have never grown vegetables before, it’s been a steep learning curve for the family. Christine explained: “We’ve grown some from seeds, some from tiny seedlings and had to learn how to time when to plant the different crops so everything isn’t ready at once.” There are 28 plots at the kitchen garden site and a sense of belonging has been very important to the gardeners – especially those new to growing. “Everyone is very friendly and willing to give advice and help to those of us who need it,” Christine added. Until they got this allotment Christine and Martin, who is a train driver, have not had enough garden space to grow food. However, they have enjoyed this mini allotment so much that they are desperate to have more room. “We’d like to grow fruit and winter vegetables as well so need twice this space,” Christine said. The National Trust wants to create 40 full-sized allotments for next year and the Sanders family will be waiting with spades and forks poised in the hope they will be lucky enough to get one. Liz Turner

Alfresco Chop & Chat session

Knightshayes is quite possibly home to one of the finest kitchen gardens within the National Trust.

Alfresco Chop & Chat sessions

With an abundance of tasty fruit and veg being farmed from the kitchen garden, the team were keen to teach visitors just how easy it is to cook delicious dishes with what you grow.

As a result funding has enabled them to develop an ongoing programme of ‘Chop & Chat’ sessions. The property chef visits the kitchen garden with visitors, harvests produce with them and then gives outdoor cooking demonstations. Fortunately the great weather we’ve enjoyed this summer has allowed for a really comprehensive timetable of these events.

Giant Bee Panel tells the story of the importance of bees in the food system

Gibside Food Larder sells local produce

Gibside Estate (Northumberland) is developing an exceptional profile as a local food hero hub within the local community. Ahead of the project Gibside had become a Farmer’s Market location, in June it the team launched the Gibside Food Cooperative.

Greener Living funding has enabled the property team to develop a wonderful mix of food related experiences at the property.

Food Trail

Gibside has a great food story to tell. This is being told in a truly interactive way with the launch of the Gibside Food Trail. Visitors are given a trail book which takes them around the Estate. En route they visit the kitchen garden taking in the observation bee hives, compost corner, growing spaces, old ice house, farm and stables – which play host to the newly arrived chickens and lifesize milking cow. The trail launched during the May school holidays. The combination of fun activities, education and exercise are proving a winning formula for visitors.

Gibside Larder

Visitors can purchase fresh local seasonal produce at the Gibside larder.

Like many of the properties participating in the Greener Living project Blickling are offering visitors a wide range of  ‘Grow Your Own’ and other food related activities.

Mrs Wadlow’s Cookery School is launched

One part of their project which is proving popular with younger visitors is the launch of Mrs Wadlow’s cookery school. Flo Wadlow was a cook at Blicking back in the 1930s. During her time at Blickling she created an extensive collection of recipes.

The project has enabled Blickling to start a children’s cookery school. Staff and volunteers dress in themed costume of the 1930s kitchen staff, and teach children how to bake Mrs Wadlow’s recipes using locally sourced ingredients wherever possible.

Children get to take home what they’ve baked on the day and are also given recipe cards to try at home with their parents / carers.

The ‘Season’s Eating’s’ giant board game has been created as part of the National Trust’s Green Living project.

We felt it important to teach children (and parents) which fruit and veg is in season for each month of the year. To do this we’ve developed a giant (1m x 1m 20) magnetic board game. The game comes with 24 magnetic fruit and veg cards. It’s been rolled out to almost 30 properties, and is proving a great hit with family visitors. The children love learning which month each piece of fruit or veg is in season and sticking them on to the magnetic board.

Growing community success story

Lytes Cary Manor in Somerset create 40 new allotments at the entrance to the property grounds.  Lytes Cary allotments site in Somerset has helped to bring a local community together, reconnected them with the land and given them a sense of involvement and ownership of Lytes Cary Manor, helping to develop this historic National Trust property as a multi-functional community resource.

Learning together

A huge range of community events take place through the year to help people learn new skills, get to know each other and have fun. Jo Wragg, Allotments Association Treasurer, said “Learning about growing is an on-going process. You can have a look around at other people’s plots and get new ideas. It’s a very social experience – very much dig for five minutes and talk for ten!” Specific workshops take place through the spring and summer on topics from water conservation to practical cookery.

A scarecrow competition taking place over the summer will be judged by Lytes Cary visitors. A hedgerow harvesting event and even a hogroast are also planned and a regular newsletter keeps everyone up to date with what’s happening. On show The 40 allotments are located prominently next to the main entrance to Lytes Cary which has many advantages. They are open all the time for visitors to explore and learn as well as plotholders – and as an added bonus there are now 40 extra pairs of eyes keeping a watch on the Lytes Cary grounds.

Connecting communities

This project has linked together hundreds of local people from all social backgrounds from neighbouring villages. 35 of the 40 plots are let to the local people with 5 set aside for community groups. A group of young people from Swanmead Secondary School have really taken ownership of the project at Lytes Cary. Simon Larkins, the Head Gardener at Lytes Cary said “This group are not academic and initially it was difficult to get them interested. Now, a few months into the project they work well on the garden. After work they clean their tools, tidy up and leave their overalls by the washing machine, and even have a cup of tea ready for me when I come in! For 90% of the kids on the project this is their first ever experience of growing anything. They love it.” Changing perceptions Many people, including Treasurer Jo Wragg were not aware that the Trust were involved in allotments. Jo said “I commuted past Lytes Cary every day for two and a half years and I’d never been in. It feels far more accessible to me now because I’ve got a part in it. Since Pete and I have been involved in the allotments project my parents bought us joint National Trust membership for Christmas”. This project has received funding through the ‘Eat into Green Living’ project funded by Defra, as well as the Big Lottery Fund and South Somerset District Council.

Piggy Tales…

Two piglets were introduced to Attingham. Their mission was to clear the ground of part of the kitchen garden ready for the next stage of its regeneration. Family visitors are really enjoying meeting and feeding the pigs, and learning about the importance of high standards of animal welfare when rearing animals for the food chain.

Great growing activities

Attingham has run a great calendar of activities to teach families how to grow their own. There have been ongoing seed growing workshops. Pumpkin Day saw visitors planting the property’s pumpkin seeds. Visitors are encouraged back to check on progress. Lots of children sized watering cans have been provided, with signs encouraging children to join in the watering activities.

England team “veg-heads” kick off home grown competition

A unique sculpture of the England football team made from onions and other home-grown produce is launching a new competition to help keep families occupied this summer. 

Called “veg-heads”, and organised by the National Trust as part of its Food Glorious Food campaign, families are being challenged to create a sculpture from produce grown either in their back garden, on a windowsill or from their allotment.

For creative types harvesting veg with unique characteristics, there is a ‘celebrity look-alike category’; and the competition has kicked off with a specially commissioned sculpture of the England team.

Jenny Sansom, local food co-ordinator at the National Trust said: “It’s a crying shame that England are out of the world cup – so we hope we’ll be able to bring a smile back to people’s faces with the veg heads competition.

“We want everyone to get creative and have fun with their home-grown produce. 

“Anyone who grows veg at home will inevitably at some point have a gnarly, quirky or oversized vegetable that makes them smile, and may even remind them of someone, and we wanted to find a way of sharing such finds. 

“We hope to inspire people over the summer to open their minds to create characterful veg that can be captured on camera for all to see.”

The closing date for entries is 30 September 2010.  Winners of the adult competition will receive a years supply of fruit and veg from Riverford Organic, while the winner of the under 16s will receive a children’s kit for growing fruit and veg and a wormery.

For more information, to enter the competition, and to see view entries on-line, visit http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/vegheads

The City Mill is situated in the heart of Winchester. 2004 saw the completion of major restoration to bring the mill back into working order as a a corn mill powered by the River Itchen. They now produce and sell their own wholemeal flour.

Hilary got the opportunity to walk around the mill and see the millers in action producing the flour, he then joined the local Brownie pack in the mills demonstration kitchen to make and bake bread rolls using the freshly produced flour. Eat Into Greener Living has provided the mill with enough money to purchase more baking equipment and an upgrade to a better bread oven to make sure even more fresh bread can be produced.

Visitors to the property will now be able to take part in more baking lessons over the next year and learn all about the on site flour production and other local sustainable food produce available in the area. Events such as bread and honey days and cake baking will be held regulalry and visitors will be given their own recipe cards to take home to carry on baking!

For more information about Winchester city Mill click here.

Photo courtesy of Professional-Images.com