November 19, 2010
It’s a good thing I’m very fond of leeks, as I dug up 90 of them this morning for Camel Community Supported Agriculture’s weekly veg boxes. It certainly made me appreciate where my food comes from.
After all the torrential rain in Cornwall lately, the earth was distinctly claggy. My boots got heavier and heavier as the mud stuck to them, and my clothes, hands and face were splattered with streaks of soil.
I wasn’t the only one, of course. This sort of task is routine for members of Camel CSA’s volunteer picking and packing team.
While I tussled with the leeks, Mike was trimming them. He also dug and washed the Jerusalem artichokes. Anne and Cath were pulling up beetroot and fennel. Robert was sorting and labelling the boxes and rinsing the leeks. Meanwhile in the shed Trish and Henrietta were weighing and sharing out the rest of vegetables to go in the boxes.
A total of 30 boxes of fresh, seasonal food achieved in just over an hour’s work… how ever will we cope when we reach our weekly target of 90?!
November 2, 2010
The sun shone on the launch of Camel CSA’s £60,000 Local Food and ECLAG grants.
Children carved pumpkin lanterns for Halloween while work continued on our first big polytunnel. Linda Emmett, manager of the East Cornwall Local Action Group, presented us with our funding plaque. The Soil Association’s Traci Lewis, who has given us valuable support, was also a guest at the event.
Pictures: Shayne House
October 29, 2010
There’s been lots of media coverage about our Lottery and ECLAG grants over the past few days.
Camel residents grow their own – BBC News video
Green-fingered enthusiasts in north Cornwall are celebrating – James Churchfield Show 28-10-10 – BBC Radio Cornwall
Cornish vegetable home-growing scheme awarded £60,000 in grants – Western Morning News
Vegetable group wins grants – Cornish Guardian
Community Supported Agriculture near Wadebridge awarded £60,000 in funding – Wadebridge People
Community Supported Agriculture – words & pictures and that… blog
Watch all Camel CSA’s videos
October 27, 2010
These videos are about what we do and how we make local food work within our north Cornwall community. They were filmed at the Lottery and EU funding launch on our site behind St Kew Harvest Farm Shop at St Kew Highway.
David Wilcock of FoodiesSW recorded the first two videos on his smart phone. He also did own audio report of the event. Camel CSA member Shayne House videoed BBC Spotlight reporter John Danks as he was filming us.
Watch all Camel CSA’s videos
We celebrated our £60,000 Lottery and EU funding success today on our plot behind St Kew Harvest Farm Shop at St Kew Highway in north Cornwall.
Camel Community Supported Agriculture members are celebrating success! Our growing-own-food scheme has won £60,000 funding.
We’ve been granted £47,984 from the Big Lottery Fund’s Local Food Programme and £12,484 from the East Cornwall Local Action Group (ECLAG) to help us expand.
The Growing Food, Growing People project will reflect our main aims: to provide fresh, seasonal local food, reduce food miles and to reconnect people with the land where their food is grown.
We’ll be offering social, learning and volunteering opportunities for disadvantaged and unemployed people in north Cornwall. They’ll find out how to sow, grow, harvest and prepare their own vegetables. This will happen during educational sessions and site visits that we’re organising in partnership with schools, charities and other local organisations.
The grant funding will enable us to employ professional growers to cultivate the site and to provide advice and assistance to our volunteers. We’ll also be investing in three poly tunnels, a bore hole and water tank, irrigation system, sheds, a small tractor, rabbit-proof fencing and a variety of horticultural tools.
We’re launching our expansion today on our plot behind St Kew Harvest Farm Shop at St Kew Highway.
October 22, 2010
It’s been a productive end to the week on Camel CSA’s site at St Kew Highway in north Cornwall.
While the new polytunnel framework was being painstakingly put together, the volunteer picking and packing team were harvesting our own homegrown carrots, sweetcorn and beetroot from the veg plot.
As the freshly-dug carrots are so muddy they all need to be washed before they can be weighed and placed in the veg boxes. This Friday the job fell to Penny and Anne, who tackled it with characteristic goodwill and enthusiasm.
The eagerly-awaited polytunnel will house all the winter salad crops we’ve been sowing – corn salad and rocket, as well as two varieties of both mustard and mizuna. It’s the first of three big polytunnel constructions that our expert growers Jeremy and Mark N are overseeing at the far end of our two-acre site over the next 18 months.
Also on our shopping list are a small seeding tunnel, cold frames, a borehole, water tank, pump, irrigation, rabbit fencing, tractor, plough, cultivator, rotovator, storage sheds and other vital horticultural equipment.
October 21, 2010
Our expert growers have begun constructing the new polytunnel. Jeremy, Mark N and Gav have dug foundations and concreted in the base poles ahead of putting up the main framework.
October 17, 2010
Nearly 40 people came to our annual apple juicing event on our site at St Kew Highway in north Cornwall.
Everyone pitched in and helped with washing, cutting, crushing and pressing the apples. It was a big effort and we managed to produce nearly a litre of juice for every man, woman and child.
Many thanks to the kind folk who loaned us their apple crushers and presses and to those who donated vast quantities of apples from their gardens and orchards.
Our press gang on this beautiful autumn day were Aimee, Antonina, Brooke, Carla, Cat, Charlotte, Cheryl, Chris, Danny, David, Finn, Frances, Frank, Gavin, Jane I, Jane M, Jenny, Jeremy, Judy, Keira, Kitty, Lani, Leonie, Lily, Mark M, Mark N, Mike, Paul, Peter G, Peter M, Robyn, Ros, Sammy, Seth, Shayne, Sue, Teresa and Tom.
October 16, 2010
We’re all set for our annual apple juicing event. The apples are picked and the presses prepared.
It’s all happening tomorrow – Sunday 17 October – between 10am and 12.30pm. You’ll find us on Camel CSA’s vegetable plot behind St Kew Harvest Farm Shop at St Kew Highway in north Cornwall.
Our fest follows the success of last year’s event which involved lots of families. It’s just one of many Apple Day events taking place across the country.
Everyone will be able to join in washing, cutting up, crushing and pressing the apples. You’ll also have the opportunity to taste the different varieties.
In exchange for your efforts you’ll be rewarded with a fair share of the juice, either to drink on the spot or take away with you. Please bring a plastic container if you intend to take some home, as it freezes well.
It promises to be another warm, sunny Cornish autumn day, so do call by.
