27th September 2009

27th September 2009.

Dear All,

It has been Harvest Festival this weekend with a supper and talk on Saturday and guest speaker this morning. The talk on Saturday was by John Marshall the local rep. of “Send a Cow”. The organisation was started by UK farmers and has been going for 20 years currently working in seven African countries. Cows are donated to individual families and the first calf is passed as a gift to another family. There is a back up for vet services and advice on organic growing based on the dung and urine collected from the cows. I had heard that donating animals to Africa was not a good idea because of the overgrazing and erosion they cause but these are all zero grazed and the scheme appears to work very well.



Harvest Display plus cow

One of our former Covenanters was the guest this am in the form of Anita Darashah, she is now working for the Billy Graham organisation and gave a very confident (and emotional) presentation.
On Wednesday we hired the trailer for winter cricket pitch maintenance from March; this contains a scarifier, aerator, soil spreader and lute. We learnt from last years experiences and purchased some Ongar loam recommended for topping up and levelling the square. I kept the soil collected from the scarifier and had enough to fill my new raised bed in which I hope to grow summer raspberries, thus avoiding Phytoptera foot rot which is common in Over.
We completed the Icknield Way on Thursday our 11th stage, I think we did about 120 miles from Ivanhoe near Dunstable to Hopton near Thetford, as we deviate to end at a pub if possible.


Icknield Way

For those who know Chris & Susan Kean their third child was born this week, Isaac Toby Tomati Kean (Tomati is Maori for Thomas and they have an obsession with NZ).
The garden continues to perform well and I harvested my first ever successful peanut yesterday, for those that don’t know the flowers are pollinated above ground the spiral downwards into the soil and develop like potatoes.



Over (rated?) Peanuts


Peanuts growing between Aubergine and Sweet Potatoes


Aubergine

We hope to go to Northumberland next Saturday for a week so you are more likely to receive a postcard than a letter or blog.

Love


Mike & Kate

20th September 2009

20th September 2009.

Dear All,

Mary-Ann and Andy have been here since Friday night and they were joined by Esther Saturday lunchtime. Andy wanted to do the “tourist thing” round Cambridge as he not seen much of it before. We visited the Madingley American Cemetery, the Sedgewick Rock and Fossil museum, the Fitzwilliam museum, the market, climbed the tower of Great St Mary’s and a food and craft fair on Parkers Piece – pausing only for lunch in a Spanish tapas restaurant. Both the Sedgewick and Fitzwilliam had Darwin exhibitions. There was no time for punting but being a tourist is very tiring.

Madingley American Cemetery


Fitzwilliam restored vases


View from Great St Mary’s - Kings


Crew at the top of Great St Mary’s


Market from top of the tower

I have delivered four talks this week: an update on Moldova last Sunday night, Over Gardening Club on Wednesday, a breakfast meeting at 7.30am in Willingham church on Saturday and the children’s talk in the morning service today. I think there is a danger of over exposure!
Thursday’s walk was more chaotic than usual as our leader was away in France. We had leadership by committee which meant the pace was not so hot and there were more rests to work out where we were. The walk started and finished at Little Walden via Ashdon – only 9.5 miles, hardly worth getting your boots on.
Friday was a busy day: preparing the last cricket pitch of the year, collecting a few things for the Moldova lorry, dividing seed for Romania and Moldova, packing items for the lorry, a meeting to discuss “terms of reference” for a new part time church worker, cleaning the house from top to bottom, Garden centre to buy some bulbs, Tescos, talk preparation. Still better to be busy.
We had another “Tea & Talk” tonight from a local guy who has done time inside and now visits Bedford Gaol every week.
Kate had a work bonding day at Mepal Outdoor Centre on Wednesday. It seemed to go well; she chickened out of paint balling but took part in archery and rifle shooting.

Love


Mike & Kate

13th September 2009

13th September 2009.

Dear All,

Three days at work again this week – how long can this go on? These included two open days, Sweet corn at NIAB on Tuesday and Salads near Chichester on Thursday. We stayed overnight in Havant and ate in the yachting haven of Emsworth. Thursday in Sussex was a nice sunny day so it was quite enjoyable even though the plots were not as mature as we would have liked.


Sussex salad Plots

I was sent a complimentary copy of the revised “Oxford Book of Food Plants” this week as I helped with the text – look out for this international best seller in your local bookstore!



We had to prepare two cricket pitches this week as the juniors had their end of season exhibition matches and awards presentations. I have also ordered 60 bags of Ongar loam which is the recommended soil for winter pitch repairs and renovation.
Kate and I went to the Over Players presentation of “Caught in the Net” on Friday; it is a Ray Cooney farce and was very funny – especially when they forgot their lines.
On Saturday I judged Shelford Produce Show. The fruit and veg entries were not spectacular but they have several innovative classes of crafts, miniature gardens and amusing animals made out of veg.



Shelford Show

Kate has been to a “Pain Symposium” so will be able to understand how you are all feeling.

6th September 2009

6th September 2009.

Dear All,

We had our annual chapel trip to the seaside yesterday, this time to Walton-on-the-Naze. David had arranged for us to hire a church hall as a base and the day went very well, with the weather pretty good for September. We have normally gone to Hunstanton but last year people voted for a change. Unfortunately the first attempted visit to Walton in 2008 had to be cancelled due to rain but this year there were no such problems. In a party of 28 it was surprising how many had not visited Walton before.

Sand at last (it was high tide)


The Naze Tower

We arrived at 11 am for coffee, most then explored the pier, a few then held our annual putting tournament followed by fish and chips and a visit to the Naze. Some walked the Naze and explored the beach, most climbed the Tower and studied the art exhibits and the view from the top. The rest entertained toddlers on the beach. We then returned to Over for a BBQ. Everyone seemed to enjoy the day.
At the risk of provoking your sympathy I have been to work 3 days this week as several crops are ready at the same time: lettuce, sweet corn, courgettes, oriental greens as well as onion grading. On Tuesday we cut 180 lettuce plots which is not good for the back. I will probably need to go in three days this week as well as we have two open days.
Kate has been to a croquet party with some of the U3A ladies that she met in Yorkshire and followed that with an evening entertaining Japanese colleagues.
We had to postpone the Moldova lorry this week as due to the political uncertainties there no one is prepared to sign the necessary papers. A CEEM BBQ an auction of promises on Saturday has so far raised £1380 – far more than anticipated. We have received a steady trickle of photographs from Moldova this year so we have a much better idea of what is going on. The maize harvest has apparently been carried out by hand with the help of willing volunteers and a donkey!

Moldovan Maize harvest

Satisfied customer


We had Cliff Keeys at chapel this morning for a taster session for the “Walk Through the Bible” training – he was very good so should have enthused a few people.
Thursdays walk was along Fleam Dyke near Six Mile Bottom. The going was fairly tough 12 miles with strong winds and hardened hoof prints, but the dyke was well worth the effort.


Fleam Dyke