WEMPOWERED CIC

Hello friends of WEmpowered CIC and happy May half term!

Sharing with you a few pics and tips from our latest Saturday session with Louise, at Wildflowers Allotment

We spent a happy afternoon weeding, planting, and enjoying each other’s company. The children had a great time playing in the sandpit and crafting with paint and glitter, facilitated by one of our talented mums, Celeste Prytherch. We shared food surplus from Oxford Food Hub and enjoyed a delicious, nutritious homemade lunch created with love using ingredients that would otherwise have gone to waste. Thank you Marta for the tasty Romanian bean stew and refreshing chickpea salad with crunchy veg chunks!

Louise’s gardening tips!
When watering new plants, water into the ground, not over the plant itself;
Don’t water when it’s sunny, water in the evening when the sun goes down;
Banana is a good fertiliser for new plants: blend banana skin with water and use as fertiliser;
Crushed egg shells can be used to keep insects and slugs from new plants: put them round new plants to keep away insects;
Crushed garlic can also be used to get rid of insects, snails from your plants: boil in water, leave overnight, blend it out and strain through a cloth. Add water and washing up liquid to a spray bottle;
Ground coffee can also be used for this purpose.

For more info and tips on how gardening, especially with friends, can help with physical and mental wellbeing, “build strength, bolster the immune system and reduce stress” , try this episode of Just One Thing with Zoe Ball (BBC iPlayer, 29 mins): https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m002t4hc/just-one-thing-series-2-3-gardening

Let us know in the comments what you enjoyed about Saturday’s allotment session! And stay posted for the next date. Take care and keep cool!