Clearing up the past, preparing the future

The Working bee last sunday 17 feb was awesome

 

 The boys did an awesome job of cleaning 50 sqaure metre of Lantana and other bush. This patch will be cleaned again, refenced to make sure cant fall at the back...and the soil should be fantastic or at least a bit better than on the other side.

• The girls did an awesome job of saving the last tomatoe plant which were a bit dammaged after the storm.
• The kids did a great job watering
• The crop rocket was great
• and more girls/ladies did an awesome job at looking after babies, kiddies and make sure everybody was happy.

Yeepee: The Landcare Community Garden has been awarded. We'll have fundings to set up nice beds. sitting area, irrigation system, all this kids friendly and made to be 'educative'.

Xmas...time to reflect

Two topics on which to reflect over the Christmas break (and a few tasks - cf newsletter)

0.Water rosters (if away, exchange with a friend or post on the Otford local) -

24: Pauline T
25: Sarah M
26: Natasha
27: Andrea
28: Adriana
29: Samantha
30: Madeleine
31: James
1: Eleanor
2: Lorraine
3: Nicola
4: Phil
5: Esther
6: Donna


1. Here is the design of our future garden, as resulting from our proposal and the workshop with Elemental Permaculture.
We need to put a ring on it....and the best way to do so is prioritise our work, zone by zone.
Knowing that we have a remaining grant including mulch, compost tumblers, another including a greenhouse, and a few funds, access to seeds.
We'll discuss this on Sunday 23 December from 2.30pm. Expected outcome: a list of tasks and a corresponding list of date to achieve the design.
THIS SUNDAY WE LL ALSO PLANT SALADS and BEANS.

2. Our use of the clubhouse and tennis court as we are about to finalise the agreement with Otford Tennis Club, Wollongong Tennis Administration and Wollongong City Council.
A proposal below. Please comment replying by email.
Weekly activities

• Morning Yoga (before the 7.57 am train)
• Mums and Bub Yoga
• Thursday morning parents group
• Evening Art and Craft Workshop
• Garden maintenance (no direct use of the clubhouse and court, but use of the toilet)

By-weekly activities:

• Garden working bee (sunday 3pm)
• 'French classes' - clubhouse - evening
• Drumming circle (time and noise consideration)
• Tight ropes and acrobalance (from June 2013) - tennis court
• 
  

Trimester activities

• Pecha-Kucha
• Brewer club meeting
• Committee meeting

Semester activities

• Festive gardening celebrations

 Merry Xmas ans happy new year.

What a great community party it was

...memories and a few pictures speak better than words (although i dont have all the one of the evening and night).

You can see and download the pictures here.

The fundraiser was a great success and we can now think about proper gears for our garden. We also had an Annual General Meeting to elect a committee, so you also have people to help organise all this:

• President - Electronical communication - Gaetane
• Vice-president - Garden coordination - Adam
• Secretary - Parents group - Bron
• Treasurer - Brew club - Andwoo
• Grants - Lachlan
• Garden - James
• Infrastructure - Marc

and we had a few new members, happy visitors and mery kids cropping their first 'home grown Sebago potatoes!

So a huge thanks to all the volunteers, cooks...and:
the musicians: Bhanglassi, John and Wolf, DJ Robbo
Emma Khourey and Circus WOW
Warren Windsports. A Garden for Life, The Jack of Harts and Jude, Glenbernie Orchards, Plat du Jour, Karen McDougall Yoga, Andrea and Yoga Unite Me, Kellie Bollard Permaculture Books !

So to prepare our green future, get involve this coming saturday in our FREE PERMACULTURE WORKSHOP.

We'll have to drink a few bubble to celebrate this success, a Council grant (SI SI - yes yes) and a new great partnership with the Otford Tennis Club (Thanks Pauline) and the License from the Council !!!!

Garden party raffle: Call to local businesses

Hi local businesses interested in sustainability and community engagement,

The Otford Community and Garden Association organises a garden party on the 24th of November 2011. We'll have a circus workshop, a kid movie, 3 different liveband, a DJ and a gardening workshop.

We would like to raise money to undertake the following activities:

• Installing sustainable structure for permaculture beds 
• Installing a greenhouse
• Creating signage around the garden to educate on foods plants, native plants and permaculture principles
• Developing workshop activities on sustainability, healthy food
• Having a great, safe and engaging community space for Otford and its surrounds.

If you want to get involve, you can donate a prize in the raffle, as the following businesses have already done, or you can also directly support us (great raffles prizes)

• A Garden for life
• Warren adventure
• The vege box
• Karen McDougall Yoga
• Soil co.
• Otford Farm
• Plat du Jour
• Kellie Bollard Books

You can also forward the poster or the information about this event to some of your partner (media release available).

Feel free to contact us.

Otford Association is getting ready to party

On the Saturday 24 November 2012, the association will hold its Annual General Meeting. It means that you, member, will have an opportunity to learn how the association and its (your) budget is managed. We'll also discuss the future and agree on the best strategy. But who wants to spend a summery saturday afternoon sitting down discussing about organisation and budget?....not that many of us. So to make sure you have an opportunity to have your say, but also that we all have a great community time, we have decided to organise a very fun fundraising day, the Otford (End of the Year Fundraising Garden) Party: curry night, live music, kid movie, circus, gardening.
To make this day a successful day, we explain below how you can contribute, just by giving a bit of your time, skills or strength!
This newsletter also gives more details on the next garden working bees, the Pechakucha night and the next brewer club meeting.

Pecha Kucha: sat 27 oct - 6pm

Participants have to prepare an oral presentation on a topic they like, with 20 slides. The challenge is to keep it short and fun, so no more than 20 seconds by slides and slides content which add to the speach (not repeat it). Please bring your presentation (.ppt) on a USB stick or send it here before the 26 at lunch time. The event is open to the public but won't be very interesting to kids. The event will be followed by BYO drinks and BBQ.

 Brewers club

The first batch came back from the 'beershed'. A new batch will be launched on Saturday 3 November. Guys are currently going to a beershed in Kirawee. If any of you has everything to welcome the next batch, email asap here.
It would be great to start thinking about growing hops. It could be even easier with the new night light on the garden.

Arm strength NEEDED

Friday 19, from 7pm, we need arm power to carry wood from 59 station road to the tennis court (via vehicle).
BEFORE Sunday 28 we need a trailer or a ute to go and pick up soil/horse poo
On the Sunday 28 & Sunday 4 November we need PEOPLE to to build our vertical frame for Melon and to build the new herbs beds on the terraces.
Who can help fixing the fences?

Help us to raise money

On the Saturday 24 November, we'll raise money for the association. We have a few people to make delicious curries and dahl. We'll serve sweet crêpes. Who is happy to bake cakes? Which local business is happy to give a price for the raffle. Contact us now here.

Who is interested in 'Landcare' activities?

The creek needs cleaning (removing branches, moving sand to ensure a better flow). We would need gumboots, gloves and a trailer. We could also apply for a Landcare grant. Who is interested?

Blossoming activities around our garden!

Not only are we very lucky to see potatoes enjoying their mulch and sunny winter, but we have a lot of ideas growing blossoming:

A parents groups is now meeting every Thursday morning. We meet around the garden but we also do walks (Sea Cliff bridge was a really nice one) and will find many other activities. Today we cropped the overgrowing salads/Kale/spinach to add to our pic nic. Kids had great fun harvesting. Once they knew they could pick up mainly 'small' leaves of the Spinach and Kale, they had hips of fun selecting and checking. One thing is certain, these kids will know where salad comes from and how to harvest greens.

A group of guy met at a local 'beer shed' and started a batch of beer. I understood that the plan is to make beer, in deed, drink it, in deed...but also to learn the process and experiment it  in order to be able to do a real 'Otford beer' soon.

We also caught up last Sunday to prepare some seedlings to be planted in a few weeks. Seeds of cucumber, beans, cherry tomatoes were a few of the wonderfull that our seed saver Greg gave us. James did a great job putting this together and the seeds are nox germinating in Greg's wonderfull greenhouse.

Spring has definitely started and it's really productive at the Otford Community Garden Association. Make sure your neighbours know about it !

***The potatoes and the worm are happy. As they need a bit of maintenance, put your hands up for your 'MAINTENANCE ROASTER'.
I (Gaetane)'m doing this week (10 to 16th). I'll water every two days and i'll feed the worm (lifting the lid, lifting the carpet, putting food scrap on the far end side) and water the garden.
Would be great to have a list of people to do this till December, as our potatoes look gorgeous but will need more love with this hot summer approaching.
Look at the pictures (click here): they are doing great.

***Cherry tomatoes, beans and cucumber have been planted and are now growing to seedlings size in Greg's greenhouse.
Dont miss our next 'Working bee - catch up' on the Sunday 30th of September (most likely from 3pm) We'll also have a little BBQ and drinks on the afternoon.

***Don't forget to register your interest for the bus tour of Community Gardens (Sunday 7th of Oct).

*** A local Playgroup has started and meets up every thursdays (pictures to come). We'll have a salad together this week.

*** A local brewers club is starting as well.

*** We'll have a fun night on the Saturday 27 of October (Patcha Kutcha) so save the date.

What a great preparation to summer !-)