Minutes of TCE Meeting 18 July 2012

Transition Crouch End Meeting, 18thJuly 2012, 7.30pm at Hornsey Vale Community Centre

Present:  Patrick, Barbara,Rebecca, Andy, Chis, Rachel, Kate (Allerdyce), Gemma,Gillian, Tilly (minutes)

 Apologies: Pamela

Minutes from last meeting held on 25^th April were not read.

Agenda Items

1)Green on the Screen

Plan for Autumn 2012 Season:

September: Schooling the World

October: Transition 2 (& we advertise Apple Day)

November:  George is organising

December: Local Short Films; end of year party

Was agreed we should continue our good practice of obtaining licenses for the showing of films.

Tilly mentioned she has purchased a DVD of an award winning film about Ed Burtynsky- entitled Manufactured Landscapes,  after seeing his exhibition at the Photographers Gallery, which could be a film for a future GOTS screening.

Action:George to organise November film.

2) Urban Harvest News- Gemma

Transition Belsize have set up an abundance website – a network of local fruit trees etc.Gemma is organizing local picking groups and picking events, including picking on the Ladder.

Gemma is also holding regular monthly Wednesday morning gardening  slots at the Priory Common Orchard, situated on Priory Rd, near the entrance to Alexandra Park. The children’s nursery nearby are showing interest in getting involved.

For more information, dates etc, see www.urbanharvest.org.uk

3) Tree Mapping/Conservation

 Chris is wanting to raise awareness about the mapping and conservation of local trees– there was mention of the local Tree Trust who used to attend our events.

Action: Gemma, Kate and Rebecca expressed interest in working with Chris on trees,

4) Meadow Orchard Update

Meadow Orchard going well- Open day and Concert on 7^th July was a big success. Rachel has run some workshops for Highgate Wood School year 10 students at MOP.

Kate is looking for more people and /or groups to get involved at the Meadow Orchard.

5) HVCC Update

The HVCC May Gala on 7^th May, featuring lambs from Church Farm was a big success. Transition Crouch End ( Patrick, Pamela, Tilly) ran the café, selling almost entirely home made cakes and despite large crowds, used no disposable serving items, apart from paper napkins.TCE Tyre Garden at HVCC growing well- Patrick, Johnand Tilly plan to build a raised bed in the autumn.

Patrick and Tilly have hired the meeting room for this evening in exchange for  weeding the HVCC forecourt.

6) Church Farm CSA Update

Gillian is the link person- fed back on Church Farm news. The box scheme is going very well in Crouch End- the Farm is now delivering 20 boxes. The Farm has a facebook page. Sadly Sam is leaving, to set up a farm in Devon.Wanting to develop the ‘More than a Box’ aspect- Richard investigating using a community minibus for transport on Farm volunteer days.

7)Apple Day

First discussions held about organising the fourth annual Apple Day run by TCE  with Urban Harvest and HVCC, to be held on Saturday 20th October 2012 at HVCC. Excellent news that George’sfather may be able to attendand give a talk on Apples.Discussion of our aims for the day- and the messages we want to get across. A wish expressed to have transparency about funds made on the day. Some people who attend want to buy apples etc, as well as taste them. Enthusiasm for the idea of having a market area in the hall, for people to sell produce made from local apples, pears etc. Talk of events/stalls on the day- London Orchard project?,  children’s activities, apple pressing sessions, the big crunch etc. Chris has kindly agreed to organise showing of films,possibly urban foraging film? and/or loop of photographs during Apple day, in the side room at HVCC.

Action: George and Patrick organising collecting the apples from Blackmoors

Gillian will look at last year’s poster to possibly revise for this year

Tilly& Gillian will mention Apple Day at the next HVCC events meeting.

  

Other  Items:

·       Please send all events information to Rebecca for next TCE Newsletter

·       Rebecca  holding a Hearthlands |Off Grid Green Tour of Crouch End area on 27^thJuly and also a Concert at MOP on 28^th July

·       Any posters for local Transition related events can be sent to Tilly, to put in the TCE noticeboard at HVCC.

Date of next meeting:

Apple Day Planning Meeting: Evening of Friday 7^th September 2012, all welcome, venue to be confirmed.

Please come to our Culture Jam on Saturday

You are invited to this event - this Saturday (28th July) @ 5:30pm

We aim to aid our creative community in making Crouch End a stronger and happier place in these troubled times, and enjoy doing it. We support the annual Crouch End Festival ( it helps raise the profile of the creative community here) and want to go further by helping more local cultural events to happen throughout the year. Events worth your while attending - something you would want to go to again. Many of us who live in Crouch End are creative performers, and even more are supporters of cultural activities. We have enough people, places and skills to make our own cultural events, so what would you like to see happen? Join us at this one so your voice is heard.

So, we're holding a series of occasional free events - the idea is, as it's nearby, just turn up and be creative if you wish. This is intended to be a gathering of local culture-friendly people who enjoy supporting each other creatively - a 'safe' place to give and receive performance, shaped by the people who are there. A get-together outside on a summer evening in a natural setting.


Please 'join' this event on Facebook so we know you are going to be there.

5:30pm event starts - please bring some food and drink to share, cups and plates (nothing disposable please)

The Meadow Orchard is a natural, open community space. There are enough chairs and we can sit on the grass - there is no electricity or water, although there is a composting toilet. We can make a fire to heat water for some tea. Food is welcome, particularly if we can share it. There is a polytunnel in which we can shelter from any rain, but let's hope it doesn't.

There may only be a few people who show up, it's not a 'big' event. Some of us are professional performers and others remain unrecognised. At previous events, people gathered to talk and play, tell stories, listen, participate, support and perform. There have been songs sung a capella and accompanied by guitar. A battery-powered keyboard was provided. Poems have been read (and written) here. People have quoted and cited works by others they wanted to share. A choir sung. Instruments were played. Drawing and painting took place. We've had conversations about the sort of cultural events we can help create here from our own resources. We know from previous experience in holding local events that these conversations are what leads to action - people become the change they want to see.

8:30pm (approx) Battery-powered cinema - an eclectic program of short films,designed to facilitate discussion. The 55 inch screen is quite small, so consumes little - if the battery runs out, please take turns to pedal the bicycle that will be standing by. Several people have shown their own works. The screen is not exactly cinema quality, but it's still nice to see stuff out in the open air. If you do show some of your own work, please send it in advance (gots@TransitionCrouchEnd.org.uk) so that we can add it to the portable computer we stream from, and expect a Q&A.

Culture concert (with Tea) at the Meadow Orchard, Saturday 5pm

Come and visit your local community garden, orchard, wildlife meadow and eco-building.

The Meadow Orchard (behind the new health centre in Crouch End) has an open day this Saturday and we've organised a 'culture concert' with troubadour Michael Hart, starting at tea time.
This is a free event but please consider a 'pay what you want' donation on the day - we've tried not to spend any money but cannot avoid some costs.

Please go to our Facebook page and click the 'going' button on the top right.

https://www.facebook.com/events/291882770909361/

Or email us at Sat7thJuly@TransitionCrouchEnd.org.uk and let us know you're coming, and if you intend to contribute.

This is an opportunity to help create a cultural event that is worth your while attending - something you would want to go to again. Many of us who live in Crouch End are creative performers, and even more are supporters of cultural activities. We have enough people, places and skills to make our own cultural events, so what would you like to see happen? Join us at this one so your voice can be heard.

Saturday July 7th 5pm onwards (all times are approximate):

5pm Arrive - please bring some food and drink to share, cups and plates (nothing disposable please)

5:30pm Michael Holt, troubadour, will entertain us in a 'salon' format with his music and conduct a talking circle about a change of culture in our community.

7:30pm Gather round as a group to continue the conversation, interspersed with contributions of reading, poetry, storytelling and singing - whatever the audience brings.

8:30pm Bicycle-powered cinema - the 55 inch screen is quite small, so should be easy to power - please take turns to pedal so we can see an eclectic program of short films.

Please bring:

Food and drink to share, and your own plates/cups etc - we don't do disposable and expect to leave the meadow as we found it, and create no waste.

Something warm if you stay after dark in case it gets cold.

Something to sit on - a blanket or something you can lay on the ground.

An except/paragraph/page from something you would like to share with us - maybe a passage from a written work, your own or from a published author. A poem, a speech, a reflection, a story, a song - anything you want.

This is a gentle chance to get involved - no spotlights, just a group of nice people gathering round and sharing what they wish to share.

A sense of humour and a willingness to smile at people. 

Green on the Screen is outside (this Wednesday, 4th July), on a roof in the middle of Crouch End.

London Green Fair and Apple Day

Many thanks to Lewis from the London Orchard Project for an interesting and informative talk at this year's London Green Fair.


I already knew a fair amount about the Project, having attended one of their training events at Camley Road Nature Park in 2009.  I learned a lot then from the splendid Wade Muggleton about apple trees, and how they can come in different forms (for example, espalier, step over and fan), and even featured in a Permaculture magazine photo.  The main outcome however was the decision to run our own Apple Day as part of Transition Crouch End, which is now in its fourth year.  Amber, the other Project Manager has actually been to one of our events and remembered the talk by John Selborne on the origins of apples. It seems to me this is a golden opportunity to revisit that connection.


There are three initiatives that the Project currently offers.  One aim is to create thirteen community orchards every year, working with local groups such as Friends of Parks and Housing Associations.  They will plant eight fruit trees and offer one's day training, with a visit six months afterwards to check how the plants are doing.  For their part, the community association guarantees four 'orchard leaders' who will take responsibility for the trees, including weekly watering during the first year.  The trees are planted carefully, which means choosing a suitable location; lawns with their bacteria-rich soil are not ideal for apple trees.  Because they are essentially edge of forest plants, they prefer a soil rich in fungus, which is facilitated by a mulch of vegetable matter.


Experience has shown that the new trees can be vulnerable to theft, vandalism and dog training, and so each new plant is protected by a fairly substantial guard, dug about three feet into the ground.  These may not be pretty to look at but will be reduced as the tree establishes itself.  The orchard is there for the duration.  By the same token, the choice of apple tree may be surprising: exotic varieties, rather than traditional.  Why is this?  The sad fact is that climate change means that delightful Victorian varieties such as the Peasgood Nonesuch, need chilly winter days to prosper, and these can be rare in an urban southern setting. Foreign varieties fare better.


The second activity offered by the London Orchard Project is restoration of old orchards.  It is striking how many of these exist in London, several of them interestingly linked to mental institutions,  founded in the nineteenth century.  (I wonder if St Annes Hospital in Tottenham is a case in point.)  The reasoning behind this seemed to be that tending the orchards was viewed as a kind of occupational therapy, something we would now regard as ecotherapy. 


The orchards can be seen on old Greater London Authority maps but the Project needs people on the ground to confirm this.  The Project will then attempt to restore old trees that may be overgrown and in need of care and attention.  Pruning out extra branches in the centre will recreate the goblet shape which is most productive, in that it allows pollinators to access the flowers and the fruit to benefit from light.  Older orchards are rich sources of biodiversity and even damaged trees are fruitful as excellent habitats for insects and birds.



The final service on offer is the harvesting of fruit.  The Project now own two cargo bikes, provided by the London Cycling Campaign, one in North London, one in South.  The Project appreciates that there are several groups already involved in collecting urban fruit.  There is the Organic Lea Scrumping project; Transition Kilburn to Kensal Rise have been offering fruit to schools for three years now and of course, our Apple Day would not exist without the input of the Urban Harvest and Gemma.  Nevertheless Lewis did mention one exciting development: the London Glider cider created by a group of enthusiasts in Epping and now stocked by six London pubs.  It even gained the accolade of a Camra award.


In terms of our Apple Day next year, it might be worth pursuing some of these ideas.  We already know about the iniquities of 70% of supermarket apples being shipped in from other countries, but did you know we could feast on a different English apple every day for six years?    


It would be great to invite London Orchard members to the Day to tell us more about their work.  They could also advise us about planting more apple trees in local green spaces, Stationers Park being a prime location. Lewis is a keen permaculturist and wants to explore the possibility of creating a forest garden around apple trees, where the formation of guilds would reduce infection and increase yields.  And of course they could give us feedback on our own apple produce, especially the liquid kind.  They have already conducted a successful experiment with cider-making and may be keen to share their expertise....  


It's never too early to start planning for Apple Day!  

Summer 2012 News

Get Growing!

Knowing thru Growing Weekly Low Maintenance Gardening and seasonal community celebrations. knowingthrugrowing@me.com

MeadowOrchard Project. Regular growing sessions at our community orchard behind the health centre on park rd.

Foodfrom the Sky Regular growing sessions up on the roof of Budgens.

Other Growing Spaces: Harold Rd - community garden, Plot 21- community allotment, Naturewise Forest Garden, Priory Common Orchard and Hornsey Vale Tyre Garden - details from growing@TransitionCrouchEnd.org.uk

Get Connected!

Green on the Screen
1st weds of the month films on sustainability, environmental issues and all things green at Moors Bar, Park Rd N8. A great night of film, food and discussion.  Next film Weds 6th June 'Just Do It'

UrbanHarvest…Free Food Foraging walks and workshops third Saturday of the month.

Community Supported AgricultureWeekly 'More Than A Box Scheme' at Haberdashery Café- food delivered from Church Farm, near Stevenage www.churchfarmardeley.co.uk every Thursday 6-7pm, also- monthly community farm participation at Church Farm, seasonal farm camps and more.

FoodCycleLove food hate waste? See what’s cooking at the weekly community Food cycle café, serving great meals made from surplus food, Fridays 12-2pm, Station House, Ferme Pk Rd.

Barboot7.30-10.30pm 1st Friday of each month , the Haberdashery Cafe, Middle Lane, turns into a colourful and kaleidoscopic bazaar with community artists, craftspeople and vintage sellers. 3rd Friday of each month musicians perform ' Three Songs' each, proceeds to a local cause. Also at Moors Bar.

Bon Croissant Cafe Monthly Community Music Jam.85 Weston Park. All levels of music skills welcome. Monthly Saturday afternoons (next one 5^thMay ). Facilitated by local musicians Mary Hogan & Peter Budge. FFI mary6104@hotmail.com

HornseyVale Community Centre (HVCA) A busy hub in the heart of our community with something for everyone.Home of our Tyre Garden and Recycled tabletop sales.

Hearthland ; Off grid cooking, seasonal earth based celebrations, off grid green tours, greenwood working and other low impact reskilling to renew and re-root our connection to the land for our and future generations ‘hearth’ and well being. FFI; hearthland@riseup.net

Community Acupuncture Tues eves 5.30-8.30 @ HVCA FFI: loncapinfo@gmail.com

Get Crafty!


Mosaic making with recycled materials: 1st Sunday of the month, also at HVCA. Pre Festival Nature Mosaic making April 21st at Meadow Orchard.
Details http://www.thirdrock.moonfruit.com

Knit Cafe – Unlibrary at Hornsey Library on Saturdays

Get Building!


Eco building- cob, straw bale, rammed earth, timber and lime rendering at Meadow Orchard Project.

Draughtbusting (when demand arises)

Coming up... Home energy initiatives....Tool Library (we're looking for a co-ordinator to set up with our donated tools as well as swaps)

Get Loaded!
NLLETS We are a member of the local exchange and trading scheme & have now joined Haringey Timebank…other ideas for boosting our local economy welcomed.

Also Coming Up:
Community Choir...singing songs of resilience, midday Thursdays at Union Church, Ferme Pk Rd
6^th June Hearthland 'Off Grid Green Tour'  from 3pm
One of our seasonal green tours en route to Green on the Screen!
This one begins near Alexandra Palace (ali pali) station at a community allotment at Ranelagh Rd, N22 (steel gates opposite no.10). Come 3pm if you want to join us for some off grid food, prepared and cooked out in the open. Learn a little about off grid cooking. Tour the community allotment and learn about eco cabin making from reclaimed materials, green roofs and witness it firsthand..Check out whats growing as well as cooking!
(Bring your own eating/drinking utensils)
Leaving about 4.30pm we weave our way up the palace (with a very likely ale stop at the Phoenix pub at the top) to the allotments on the other side of ali pali, visiting Fred Fitze's solo allotment plot.
We then descend to Naturewise Plot 21, permaculture community allotment (bottom of Ali Pali) Gemma will introduce the Priory Common Orchard. By then we'll have wetted our appetite for a feast on film and food as we arrive just in time for Green on the Screen at Moors Bar, Park Rd, N8.
Scrummy food for all on the menu!
Doors open 7pm.
The films title and details below gives us all the motivation we need this summer,
'Just do it' !
7pm  Green on the Screen – ‘Just Do It’ fim – Feast on film and Food, with ‘World Café’ style discussions after..
8^th June Moors Bar
The Alan Warner Band fronted by the original guitarist of the word famous pop/soul band
"The Foundations". Playing an exciting mix of Rock/Blues/Pop Covers. Including the massive hits "Build me up Buttercup", "back on my feet again" and many more
Doors open 8pm admission £5
14^th June  eARTh in the City, 5-7pm @ the Haberdashery Cafe   - booking essential
16^th June ‘Flower Power Solstice Celebration’ at Meadow Orchard Project. Featuring Community Design from 10am. 1pm Urban Harvest ‘Edible Flowers’ session, green woodworking, Cob and straw bale eco build tours, acoustic jams and Solstice Celebration
4^th July – Outdoor Green on the Screen - save the date!
7^th July Meadow Orchard open day with Transition Culture Tour….music storytelling etc

Recycled Craft Workshops at HVCC